The substance of Mr. Fleming's book [The Diamond Smugglers] is a series of reminiscences by a pseudonymous 'John Blaize,' describing his experiences as an official of the International Diamond Security Organisation…. The trade in illicit diamonds is described as 'the greatest smuggling racket in the world'; and it is clear there are many people and a great deal of money involved in the business.
When we get down to cases, however, the difficulty is—as Mr. Fleming himself admits—that realistic writing about such matters is likely to be 'full of loose ends, and drabness and despair'; and the reader who goes to the book in search of high adventure may find that the malefactions of 'Sammy Silberstein' and 'Henry Orford' and the rest are no more necessarily thrilling to read about than a place like Kimberley, say, is to visit. On the other hand, Mr. Fleming has not given himself nearly enough space to individualise—and thus make interesting, for another reason—the very drabness and shabbiness of the people and the operations he describes. The author does try hard to generate the thriller atmosphere, with many significant asides, and even more significant reticences; but the material he has gathered together is recalcitrant. (pp. 844-45)
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