Casino Royale is a spy novel by Ian Fleming originally published in the 1950’s . It’s the first James Bond novel .

James Bond is sent by M ( the head of the British Secret Service ) to play and win a baccarat game at the Royale-les-Eaux Casino in France with the goal of bankrupting Le Chiffre . Le Chiffre being a paymaster for SMERSH. Vesper Lynd is assigned to help Bond and Bond has a companion in the C.I.A. ( Felix Leiter) whom is also playing . Now Bond initially loses the game but luckily Felix lends Bond some money . From here Bond gets the win despite some attempts on his life but the story does not end there . The rest of the story involves kidnapping , torture , death , blackmail , double crossing , and suicide .

Something I’d like to point out is that this is a lot more realistic James Bond than the one used in a lot of the movies . He can lose , he doesn’t wisecrack after every kill , and he is overall a more cruel character . This novel is set at a good , fast pace with strong tension throughout . It’s one hell of an introduction for the character . If you like spy thrillers , or if you’re just interested in checking out the origins of one of cinema’s greatest franchises , I’d give this one a look at .