Read 'A Long Way Down' by Nick Hornby on the plane journey to Orlando. Didn't intentionally set out to read a book about suicide on way to two weeks of holiday, but there you go. It was a case of downloading a selection of books by authors I like, and picking one to make a start on once we were settled on the plane, and the rest is history. Anyway, maybe the book isn't actually about suicide anyway, maybe it's about people looking out for each other when they really need it, and how, even when life can seem at its bleakest, somehow it's worth sticking around and seeing how the story pans out.
Ian Fleming publications released the first chapter of the forthcoming Felix Leiter book on Tuesday this week. They could have waited for a day and released it on Fleming's (117th) birthday, but never mind. Their post includes both the first chapter and the author, Raymond Benson, reading it. I am reminded of this post from 2023 when I was pleased to report on a successful eBay purchase from Mr Benson. Last year, I was able to repeat the trick by purchasing, directly from the author, another set, this time of the US first edition signed paperbacks of his Bond works. As for The Hook and the Eye, I don't think I'm going to sign up for the digital serialisation, but will look forward to the hard copy later this year.
