Goldfinger (1959)
The seventh Bond title, ‘Goldfinger’, is also the longest. It is perhaps the best, and the film version, which was another close adaptation, is also generally placed in the all-time top three. There isn’t much sense of Fleming recycling the plot of ‘Moonraker’. The fact that Auric Goldfinger, like Hugo Drax, cheats at cards, and this time also at golf, is simply a way for Fleming to demonstrate his evil heart. Goldfinger’s nefarious plot is to control the world’s gold supply by seizing the contents of Fort Knox. Bond is assigned to Goldfinger because of fears that if he succeeds, it will weaken the British economy. The most famous sequence in the film – Bond being tied up and tortured by Goldfinger (“Do you expect me to talk?” “No, Mr Bond, I expect you to die!”) can also be found in these pages. There’s only one slight difference. There’s a rotating saw heading in the direction of Bond’s groin, rather than a laser beam! This novel rivals only PG Wodehouse in presenting readers who care nothing about golf with a thoroughly engaging scene revolving around the inexplicably popular hobby. If you only ever read one Bond novel – it should be this one, or ‘Casino Royale’. See our review of this title and buy The Folio Society’s edition of Ian Fleming’s ‘Goldfinger‘.
