On Feb. 5  56 years ago, James and Mary Bond left their room at the Mona Hotel (once the Mona Great House) outside Kingston in Jamaica and drove over the Blue Mountains to drop in unexpectedly -- but not uninvited -- at Goldeneye, the winter home of Ian Fleming.

Things were a bit tense at first, as Fleming feared that Bond was going to try to sue him for identity theft. Fleming even challenged Bond about a bird identification to see if Bond was for real.

Bond passed, and they soon got along famously.

Although much has been written about that day, one mystery remains.

I write about the meeting -- and the mystery --  in "The Real James Bond," published by Schiffer Books.

The top photo, of the Fleming Villa at GoldenEye, is courtesy of Island Outpost.

The photo above right, the only known image of their meeting, was taken by Mary Bond and is used here courtesy of the Free Library of Philadelphia.

The photo below, of the Mona Hotel, was also taken by Mary Bond and is used here courtesy of the Free Library of Philadelphia as well.

Back in August, when Schiffer Books announced a publication date for "The Real James Bond," writer Matthew Chernov contacted me immediately about an interview.

I said, "Sure -- but closer to when the book arrives."

Well, time flies, and here we are.

This online interview is the first in-depth look at the book, and hopefully worth waiting for.

You can read it here.

The book arrives in four weeks -- on Friday, Feb. 28. You can order a copy from Schiffer now by clicking the book's dustjacket in the top right-hand corner.

(The photo of me is by Kevin Watson. Thanks, Kevin!)

On February 5, 1964, James and Mary Bond paid an unexpected visit to Goldeneye and met Ian Fleming.

It turned out to be a historic day, with Fleming and Bond talking about their books and Fleming giving Bond a copy of his soon-to-be-released "You Only Live Twice."

Fleming inscribed the book:

“To the real James Bond from the thief of his identity, Ian Fleming, Feb. 5, 1964 (a great day!).”

Mary Bond took the above photo, which is now in the archives of the Rare Book Department in the Free Library of Philadelphia.

It is the only known photo of the two men together. It is widely used -- alas without proper credit or attribution.

You can read more about the photo, the day, and the parallels between the two authors in my book.

By the way, I'll be doing a free talk at the Free Library on Saturday, April 11.

More info here.

"The Real James Bond" is front and center in Schiffer Books' Spring 2020 catalog.

You can read the page devoted to the book here.

Among the photos featured on the page is a photo of a Hoatzin by a Watson (ace photographer Kevin Watson, that is.)  On James Bond's first expedition to South America, the Hoatzin was one of his target birds. You can read more in the book.

Also pictured: A photo of the real James Bond with Ian Fleming at Goldeneye in 2020. More about that photo is a future post.

The real Bond sought a Hoatzin on his first expedition to Latin America 95 years ago.

You can order the book in advance of the Feb. 28 publication date here.