In Print: Dr. No by Ian Fleming (1958)

So far this novel, Dr. No is one of the most intriguing Bond books I have yet to read. The amount of racism in this book is off that charts!

The book is named after the villain, Dr. No. As described in the book Dr. No is a ruthless "Chinaman" who employs "Chigroes" ( a mix of Chinese and Negroes, likely from Jamaica) in a very involved multi-layer Cold War plot against the US. Essentially Dr. No will work for anyone willing to pay him. He's got all manner of devices for jamming and spying on American military transmissions. All of his evil work is hidden cleverly behind his front, a fertilizer business that uses bird crap.

Of course Bond is able to defeat this evil-doer, but not before all sorts of mayhem breaks out all over the place.

This might be one of the most inventive, if not odd, Bond stories I have ever read.