The Maltese Falcon (Mystery Masters Mystery Masters) (Maltese Falcon, the Cloth, #1) (Wheeler Softcover)

by Dashiell Hammett

FEATURING THE CHARACTER THAT INSPIRED THE AMC SERIES MONSIEUR SPADE STARRING CLIVE OWEN

ONE OF TIME MAGAZINE'S 100 BEST MYSTERY AND THRILLER BOOKS OF ALL TIME

Detective Sam Spade is a private eye with his own solitary code of ethics. When his partner is killed during a stakeout, he is drawn into the hunt for a fantastic treasure with a dubious provenance—a golden bird encrusted with jewels. Also on the trail are a perfumed grifter named Joel Cairo, an oversized adventurer named Gutman, and Spade’s new client Brigid O’Shaughnessy, a beautiful and treacherous woman whose loyalties shift at the drop of a dime. 

These are the ingredients of Dashiell Hammett’s coolly glittering gem of detective fiction, a novel that has haunted generations of readers.

*With a new introduction by Richard Russo*

• ISBN10: 0679722645
• ISBN13: 9780679722649
• Publish Date: 17 July 1989 (first published 28 February 1974)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Random House USA Inc
• Imprint: Vintage Books
• Edition: Vintage Books ed
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 240
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9780679722649

Reviews

[empressbrooke]

This book has lots of slapping, punching and talking. Lots of it.

[Michael @ Knowledge Lost]

I love Hard-Boiled novels, so I was really looking forward to reading Dashiell Hammett. Right off the bat, it was clear his style was more raw and gritty than the likes of other great authors like Raymond Chandler. I really did enjoy this novel and am thankful to read a book by the father of Hard-Boiled. If you are new to this genre, I might suggest you try Raymond Chandler first, as his novels are more comical and the plots are less twisted. I will have to read some more from Dashiell Hammett.