The Spy Who Loved Me.
Hard Cover. London: Jonathan Cape, 1962. First Edition. Very Good / Dust Jacket Included.
First edition, first impression with "Jonathan Cape's" on half-title page, line 13. Publisher's dark gray cloth, lettered in silver to spine, dagger illustration centrally stamped to front board in blind and silver, red endpapers; in the original pictorial dust jacket designed by Richard Chopping, with an illustration to the front panel of a charred paper pinned to a desk with a dagger and with a carnation resting on top, lettered in black. Near fine book, with a touch of rubbing to spine ends, a few pinpoint dents to front board, bottom edges of boards lightly bumped, light spotting to text block edges, and a couple of creases to front free endpaper; very good or better clipped dust jacket, with light staining to spine ends, a bit of chipping to spine ends, and a touch of soiling to rear panel. Overall, an attractive, bright copy. Gilbert A10a (1.1). The Spy Who Loved Me is a unique Bond novel, written from the point of view of the main character, Vivienne Michel. Michel narrates the text, beginning with her troubled childhood, and, interestingly, Bond does not appear until well into the second half of the novel. The Spy Who Loved Me was an experiment for Fleming, who was "interested in this view of James Bond, through the wrong end of a telescope, so to speak." The novel was commercially unsuccessful, and, in response, Fleming asked Jonathan Cape to suppress any paperback editions, a request which the publisher honored during the author's lifetime. The subsequent 007 novel, On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1963), returned to the classic Bond story format, as it was set in the Picardy resort where readers had first encountered 007 in Casino Royale. The 1977 film adaptation of The Spy Who Loved Me bears almost no resemblance to this text other than the title.
Item #IF190
Price: $750.00
