[FLEMING, IAN]. Goldfinger. London: Jonathan Cape, 1959.
FIRST U.K. EDITION, FIRST IMPRESSION. Hardcover with dust jacket; octavo (19.5 x 12.5 x 2.5 cm); pp. 318. English text. Bound in publisher's original black boards with a stamped skull with golden eyes to the front of the board and gilt lettering to the spine; presented in the original unclipped dust jacket (priced '15s net') designed by Richard Chopping with the illustration of a human skull with gold coins in the eye sockets and a red rose held between its teeth. Condition: VERY GOOD. Binding tight and secure. Covers and contents very well-preserved. Dust jacket lightly toned, the corners and ends slightly rubbed. Without previous ownership markings. A handsome copy.
Notes: First edition, first impression, an excellent copy of the earliest state of the binding with extra stamped detail to the skull. The seventh Bond book and the third to be filmed. Goldfinger features the villain Auric Goldfinger, the richest man in England whose wealth is stored in his namesake mineral, gold. Indeed, the symbol of gold plays an important role throughout the text; the name "Auric" comes from the chemical element symbol for gold "Au," and Goldfinger murders his ex-girlfriend by covering her body completely in gold. In this novel, Bond must stop Goldfinger from completing Operation Grand Slam, a gold-smuggling plot that would cripple the world economy and give the Russian spy organization SMERSH total power over the West. Goldfinger also introduces one of the most memorable villainous sidekicks, Oddjob, whose deadly aim and razor-edged bowler hat make him a force to be reckoned with. Gilbert A7a (1.2).
