The Maltese Falcon
Ratings98
Average rating3.9
15
Ratings98
Average rating3.9
Classic noir. Private detective Sam Spade is hired to search for a valuable, gem-encrusted antique in the shape of a falcon.
Sam Spade is hired by the fragrant Miss Wonderley to track down her sister, who has eloped with a louse called Floyd Thursby. But Miss Wonderley is in fact the beautiful and treacherous Brigid O'Shaughnessy, and when Spade's partner Miles Archer is shot while on Thursby's trail, Spade finds himself both hunter and hunted: can he track down the jewel-encrusted bird, a treasure worth killing for, before the Fat Man finds him?
Reviews with the most likes.
Wow! I love mystery noir novels, and I've read a lot of great ones but this one has become my favourite. Sam Spade is such a great character and Hammett's prose is exquisite. Highly recommended!
The Maltese Falcon is probably one of those quintessential mystery/detective novels. I found the writing to be rather spare, and a touch misogynistic. This is definitely a “boys book” in that at the time it was written the target audience was most likely men, and men of a certain temperament as well.
I enjoyed reading this as an example of the genre and as a period piece, but I don't know that I am likely to reread it any time soon.
I enjoy the novels of [b:Raymond Chandler 2052 The Big Sleep Raymond Chandler http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41AGA624Z5L.SL75.jpg 1222673], but for me THIS is the best hard-boiled private eye novel ever. Hammett's laconic style, his punchy dialogue and his concise and driving storytelling make this the standard to measure all others against.
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