Live and Let Die is the second James Bond novel by Ian Fleming, and it wasn’t until my first trip to New York that I really appreciated and understood some parts of the book.

Here, James must uncover a gold-smuggling ring, sponsored by the Communist SMERSH government agency. The leader of the smuggling ring is Mr. Big, who wields control of his crime network, stretching from Harlem to Jamaica, through fear from the practice of Voodoo.

Bond must travel to Harlem in his investigations, and there has an unfortunate encounter with Mr. Big. Bond also meets the Voodoo fortune teller Solitaire, who catches Bond’s eye with her beauty. But a reversal of fortunes for Bond and Solitaire has them cross paths again in a race across the country, ending with underwater operations, and excitement, in Jamaica.

We also meet with CIA operative Felix Leiter again, and we learn how and why Leiter appears with a hook for an arm in later Bond stories.

As with other Bond stories, this one has a tight and fast-paced plot, lots of action, and Ian Fleming’s eye for detail and succinct description.

The movie version, with Roger Moore, is worth it just for the Paul McCartney Live and Let Die theme music.