Chapters 1 and 2 Summary

This book is described on the cover and on its liner as "the last James Bond novel that [his creator] the late Ian Fleming wrote." A fast-paced, suspenseful novel of action, violence, suspense, and unexpected metaphoric depth, it tells the tale of an intensely personal confrontation between British secret agent James Bond, and the internationally notorious assassin Scaramanga. Themes relating to the nature of murder and to the multi-faceted mirror imageries of life thread through its tersely written narrative.

When telephone operators at the top-secret Ministry of Defense take a telephone call from a man calling himself James Bond, they forward it to Captain Walker, who tests Bond's claims of identity. After Bond passes these tests, Walker consults a superior, his comments revealing that for several months the Ministry believed Bond was dead. Walker is instructed to direct Bond to meet...