The only physical difference appears to be that Solitaire is stated to have blue-black hair; she also possesses pale skin reminiscent of the tropical planter class.

At their first meeting, in the presence of Mr. Big, she comes across as superior, cold, and disdainful, an attitude reflected by her face, which Bond finds beautiful partly because of its lack of compromise and its hint of both cruelty and command.

Mr. Big discovered her doing a mind-reading act in a Haitian cabaret and, recognizing the value of her abilities, took her into his employ, using her in his espionage operations and planning for her eventually to have his children.

Unlike in the film, there is no evidence that Solitaire would lose her psychic powers after sexual congress, an eventuality that does not appear due to a broken finger Bond sustains and his need to stay vigilant during their only night together.

As is the case in the film, she is apparently a virgin, and she gives every sign of wishing to have a sexual relationship with Bond, going so far as to initiate their first physical contact and later teasing him with her nudity.

Unusually for one of Fleming's heroines, what becomes of Solitaire after Live and Let Die is never explained; in Dr. No, when returning to Jamaica, Bond finds himself wondering about her whereabouts.

Later, Felix Leiter informs Bond that after a raid on the Fillet of Soul, Kananga has taken Solitaire back to San Monique where she is to be sacrificed in a voodoo ceremony, leaving three Tarot cards: The High Priestess, The Moon, and Death.

After travelling to San Monique, Bond rescues Solitaire from being sacrificed and kills Kananga while Quarrel Jr. destroys the opium poppy fields.

Screenwriter Tom Mankiewicz has stated that although Solitaire is a white person in the novel, he initially wrote her as black, with Diana Ross in mind.

United Artists president David Picker objected, however, on the basis that there were several countries where the film could not be released if there were relations between Bond and Solitaire.

Back in New York, the neckline plunges down to a butterfly appliqué stitched on the high waist of the red and gold dress she wears on her last tarot reading session.