When they first came out, I bagged a set of 14 new paperbacks from Ian Fleming Publications of the novels and short stories, but I didn't originally get the other two for the full set. I did pick up a copy of 'The Diamond Smugglers' a little while later, but it has taken me until today to find a copy of 'Thrilling Cities'. Partly, I suspect this is a reflection of more limited demand (more people likely to want to read Casino Royale) but also more difficult to track down in the bookshops. However, there was one (still with the '1') waiting for me in Waterstones today, so I claimed it. Amazingly, despite the rapidly growing collection, this is my first copy of this title.
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.
