Casino Royale (1953), Ian Fleming’s first novel, introduced James Bond and other recurring characters of the Bond series of novels and short stories. Complex, even conflicted, this Bond belongs to the post-war world of rationing, trauma, and a growing sense of uncertainty due to social and technological change and the rising tensions of the Cold War. This is the first edition of Casino Royale to include footnotes that provide a larger context for the novel as well as translate its French passages.

The edition also includes appendices that provide a number of other works by Fleming and other literary and historical materials that help to situate the spy thriller.