Dr. No

Dr. No is a James Bond novel by the British author Ian Fleming. The English edition was first published in London by Jonathan Cape on 31 March 1958, and it is usually listed as the sixth full-length novel in the series, after Casino Royale, Live and Let Die, Moonraker, Diamonds Are Forever and From Russia with Love. In the story, Lieutenant Colonel John Strangways, the head of the British Secret Intelligence Service station in Kingston, the capital of Jamaica, and his secretary suddenly disappear, and Bond, who has just recovered from being poisoned in From Russia with Love, is sent by his superior M to the Caribbean on what looks like a routine investigation. Soon after arriving, Bond realizes he is being watched: his room has been searched, someone sends him fruit said to be a gift from the Governor but actually poisoned, and someone even puts a centipede in his bed while he sleeps. With the help of his old local friend Quarrel, he secretly goes to Crab Key to investigate the reclusive half-Chinese, half-German businessman Dr. Julius No. Dr. No runs a guano mining operation on the island, which is also home to roseate spoonbills protected by the American Audubon Society, and there are rumors of a “dragon” on the loose. On the island Bond meets Honeychile Rider, who is collecting shells, and the group soon encounters Dr. No’s “dragon” and is taken into a facility inside the mountain. Dr. No reveals to Bond that he is building a hidden base for some power that can interfere with American missile tests. Bond is then forced to undergo an ordeal in a facility designed for torture and confronts Dr. No directly. The book is one of the earlier 007 novels adapted for the screen, and the 1962 film of the same name starring Sean Connery became the first entry in the Bond film series.