Dull, flat, unexciting and slow - Rated 
Reading the Bond books in sequence this is the fourth one in, and it's the worst one so far by a long shot. The previous three are all excellent, but this one a big disappointment. Dull, flat prose, little excitement, slow pacing, irrelevent incidents and unexplainable plot developments. The film hardly follows the book, and you can certainly understand why that decision was taken. Unfortunately, the filmmakers didn't do much better, and Diamonds are Forever is the worst of the Connery Bonds.
Diamonds Are Forever - An Enjoyable 007 Thriller - Rated 
I think this may be the most underrated James Bond book by Ian Fleming. It literally is a thrilling read. While not his very best, it is a true gem, just with some rough edges.
Tiffany Case is one terrific leading lady by Fleming, one of his better ones, I think. A woman with a strong wall surrounding her for the most part, and one that you do not get to call all the shots with. She goes through quite a change in the story from being the frosty version we meet with Bond's alias of Peter Franks to the much happier one during their nighttime escape and Queen Elizabeth trip.
If there is one problem with this book, it is the obvious one, the villains. Yes, they are hardly some of Fleming's best. Jack and Serrafimo Spang, the beginning and end of the pipeline from England/Africa to the USA, while described as being some of the toughest of the bunch, and made out to be quite the villains, are never given enough actual time in the book to show off exactly what they are. Serrafimo gets a few minimal scenes with Bond, and Jack is....to save for spoilers...hardly in the book much at all. Wint and Kidd are fairly good though. They receive a general amount of time to be shown as a threat to Bond, as odd as they both may be.
The location switching is often claimed as a huge fault of this book, I even used to always harp on that myself, but I've come to see that it really doesn't bother me much at all. London and the USA are done fairly well for me, and I really, really love the moving around in this book. I like reading about the Tiara in the US, and the House of Diamonds, it just feels like a James Bond book.
Very excellent little aspect in this book...
A strong story overall, at times it gets murky, such as in the horse racing, and that sort, but I don't think anything in this story detracts too heavily from the overall plot.
Death is Forever. Diamonds are Forever. And this book is Forever. 4/5
Failure to Bond - Rated 
I came to the books after the movies and near half a century after Fleming wrote them. The writing is awe-inspiringly bad; it's hard to credit that Fleming worked at Reuters, this is narrative at its laziest, from mise-en-scene to character to dialogue. No one ever thought or spoke like this; one cannot imagine such prose getting published now. Everything here has been done better by other writers. Compare Elmore Leonard on the inner vacancy of the psychotic with Bond's aimless and murderous rampage at the old mine. Or compare how Len Deighton's anonymous hero discovers new places in "The Ipcress File" or "Horse Under Water" with Fleming's perfunctory notes here on Saratoga and Las Vegas. All of which begs the truly interesting question. Given Fleming's appalling prose, what did his readers find so fascinating? There is something of the figure of James Bond that is so very much of its time; and to spend a few hours with him in his original form is to rediscover an innocence, a certain complacent brutality, that is no longer open to his later incarnations as Pierce Brosnan. Perhaps as well.
Not as good as others, but one hell of a read, - Rated
I've read almost the entire Bond sereis and among all these books, Daimonds stands out. Why does it emerge as an almost seperate book, its style. this story is told less like Flemmings very british thriller and more like an american effort. Though this is well accomplished you feel a little cheated. The plot is also quite odd, daimonds are being smuggled out of seira leon (which belonged to Britain at the time) and this makes for good reading but leaves the question as to why Bond was needed. The characters a uniform Flemming creations, but not as inteligent as those of ,say, From Russia With Love. It's a thriller but if your not a Bond fan I suggest You start elsewhere.
Yep, it is a classic - Rated
I first read this when I was in my teans and now I am in my mid-forties I thought it was time for a revisit. I'm a Bond fan, love the films and have read all the various books from Fleming through to Benson and I have to admit I was surprised how much I had forgotten about this book, my memories having been tarnished by the film and the more modern versions of Bond.
Initially I was astonished how old this book was (1956!) and this is more of a detective story with a Bond that is over confident and too casual at times who is at odds with the emerging American mob.
In many ways it does show its age, and this adds to the charm.
Well worth reading to remind oneself where and how it all started...
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