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3.62 AVERAGE
3.62 AVERAGE
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Honestly, while I can recognize that this book is objectively a good example of the hard-boiled crime novel, I didn’t really enjoy it. Like half a star of my rating is because the audiobook is so well done!
An excellent example of the genre, Hammett takes a familiar heroic archetype and inserts him into a strange place and time: 1930s San Francisco. It's an interesting take on the idea of who and what a detective is, pushing the bounds on what we think of heroism and morality.
An exercise in grey areas, we're introduced to Sam Spade in all his flawed glory, and a cast of colourful villains all vying for the treasure that the titular falcon represents. Can they get it in time or will Spade end up taking the fall in their complex scheme?
Only time, and reading this book, will tell.
An exercise in grey areas, we're introduced to Sam Spade in all his flawed glory, and a cast of colourful villains all vying for the treasure that the titular falcon represents. Can they get it in time or will Spade end up taking the fall in their complex scheme?
Only time, and reading this book, will tell.
The Maltese Falcon is a classic noir private-eye novel that simultaneously fits and satirizes a wide spectrum of noir tropes. I'm obsessed with Hammett's writing style, and overall adored this book.
I first experienced The Maltese Falcon in movie form, where it quickly became one of my favorites of all time. I was happy to find that it wasn't just a faithful recreation; the screenplay is often word-for-word the dialogue from the novel. It's an endlessly quotable film, and all of those lines came straight from the source material.
I know I've been on a 5-star spree for a while now, but I choose to believe it's because I'm only reading excellent books.
I first experienced The Maltese Falcon in movie form, where it quickly became one of my favorites of all time. I was happy to find that it wasn't just a faithful recreation; the screenplay is often word-for-word the dialogue from the novel. It's an endlessly quotable film, and all of those lines came straight from the source material.
I know I've been on a 5-star spree for a while now, but I choose to believe it's because I'm only reading excellent books.
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
"I distrust a man that says when. If he's got to be careful not to drink to much it's because he's not to be trusted when he does."
Sam Spade a San Francisco detective and his partner take on a case of a missing sister. It is only when his partner gets killed and the man who killed him also ends up shot that Spade realizes that the woman who hired him has more secrets than she is letting on. This leads us on a chase for the ancient and priceless artifact that is the Maltese Falcon. Spade has his work cut out for him as he tracks down the artifact, with both the police and criminals on his tail.
The start of the hard boiled crime genre this is a quick and fun read. The characters all have distinct personalities and play off each other really well. The descriptions throughout the novel also really paint the scenes, everything from Spade rolling a cigarette, to the way the characters look. The writing very tell not show which works well for the crime novel as then we are forced to learn things when the characters are figuring things out and makes the ending of the book better.
You can see where some of the various noir cliches come from this being one of the first books like this. It is a product of its time so late 20s early 30s stereotypes do pop up but aren't overbearing or take you out of the story.
Overall an enjoyable read and change up from the usual genres I read.
Sam Spade a San Francisco detective and his partner take on a case of a missing sister. It is only when his partner gets killed and the man who killed him also ends up shot that Spade realizes that the woman who hired him has more secrets than she is letting on. This leads us on a chase for the ancient and priceless artifact that is the Maltese Falcon. Spade has his work cut out for him as he tracks down the artifact, with both the police and criminals on his tail.
The start of the hard boiled crime genre this is a quick and fun read. The characters all have distinct personalities and play off each other really well. The descriptions throughout the novel also really paint the scenes, everything from Spade rolling a cigarette, to the way the characters look. The writing very tell not show which works well for the crime novel as then we are forced to learn things when the characters are figuring things out and makes the ending of the book better.
You can see where some of the various noir cliches come from this being one of the first books like this. It is a product of its time so late 20s early 30s stereotypes do pop up but aren't overbearing or take you out of the story.
Overall an enjoyable read and change up from the usual genres I read.
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Culturally overshadowed by the movie adaption, but a major work in its own right. The Mystery Writers of America named it their third greatest mystery novel, and the Crime Writers of America put it at #10. Trying to decide whether it "deserves" that on some objective level is silly, it obviously can't be extracted from its influence on the genre, but I liked it a lot.
The Continental Op is not an open book, but his stories are first person, and you inevitably glean something about him; this novel, by contrast, is written in a fiercely objective, third person perspective--we'll be told what expressions Sam Spade puts on, and emotions he seems to show, just as we are with the suspects, but at no point in the novel are we told what he's thinking. I'm sure it's not unique, but I can't remember reading another novel quite like this in that regard. It really feels like Spade's down in the mud with everyone else, and I still don't know how he'd have acted if circumstances had allowed him to make off with the title treasure; but probably Spade doesn't know, either. I wouldn't want this degree of alienation in every novel I read, but it works well here. In spite of its depersonalized nature, Hammett's writing oozes Noir atmosphere, and the supporting cast is superb--although I won't pretend that some of the scenes with the female characters didn't make me sigh a little.
The Continental Op is not an open book, but his stories are first person, and you inevitably glean something about him; this novel, by contrast, is written in a fiercely objective, third person perspective--we'll be told what expressions Sam Spade puts on, and emotions he seems to show, just as we are with the suspects, but at no point in the novel are we told what he's thinking. I'm sure it's not unique, but I can't remember reading another novel quite like this in that regard. It really feels like Spade's down in the mud with everyone else, and I still don't know how he'd have acted if circumstances had allowed him to make off with the title treasure; but probably Spade doesn't know, either. I wouldn't want this degree of alienation in every novel I read, but it works well here. In spite of its depersonalized nature, Hammett's writing oozes Noir atmosphere, and the supporting cast is superb--although I won't pretend that some of the scenes with the female characters didn't make me sigh a little.
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated