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3.62 AVERAGE
3.62 AVERAGE
I haven’t seen the movie, but I’m willing to bet that this is one of those rare books that’s worse than the movie.
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:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fatphobia, Gun violence, Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Murder
Ranked Book 7 (out of 15) of my holiday reads - August 2019
I loved this - 4*
This has been on my to-read list forever...Honestly, I don't know why I've not ever read it but I'm so glad I took it to the beach today.
I'm burnt to smithereens and I've been on an adventure. I wish this was a series. I loved it. I didn't love any of the characters but I felt like I was in a Hollywood blockbuster directed in the 1920s. Turns out there is a black and white film based on this that I will most definitely be watching. I felt like I was watching a tense movie and I loved the ride.
What a book.
A definite classic.
I loved this - 4*
This has been on my to-read list forever...Honestly, I don't know why I've not ever read it but I'm so glad I took it to the beach today.
I'm burnt to smithereens and I've been on an adventure. I wish this was a series. I loved it. I didn't love any of the characters but I felt like I was in a Hollywood blockbuster directed in the 1920s. Turns out there is a black and white film based on this that I will most definitely be watching. I felt like I was watching a tense movie and I loved the ride.
What a book.
A definite classic.
"You're a damned good man, sister."
As I already mentioned in my review of [b:Farewell, My Lovely|2050|Farewell, My Lovely|Raymond Chandler|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1465778099l/2050._SY75_.jpg|1263111], hardboiled detective fiction is really just not my genre. It's a little too intensely masculine for my tastes, overwhelmingly gritty and often unnecessarily violent.
What saved Farewell, My Lovely, though, was Chandler's descriptive writing and his strong sense of place that really created a unique reading atmosphere. The Maltese Falcon didn't really have any of that. Even though I knew it was set in San Francisco, I had a really hard time rooting myself in the setting. It was largely just a shuffle between different offices and hotels so that I also had a hard time following the plot.
I honestly just overall found this really boring. To be honest, there's not much action, and Sam's macho dialogue, his constant beratement of the only two female characters, and the lack of appeal in everyone else meant I had a really hard time focusing while reading this since I simply was just not interested or invested in what was going on. I've even seen the film before and knew what it was all about, but the intrigue I think is necessary to crime fiction was just not there. I'll be interested to discuss this in my class today, but I hope this is not the beginning of a semester-long downhill slide into crime ficiton I just can't like.
This is a fast-paced short book... that somehow took me two months to get through. Too much sneering and slapping, maybe? The descriptions are great and the plot never settles, I just didn't get into it.
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
bought at a charity shop in Brighton for £1.50 to read on my backpacking trip. helped pass the time on several bus and train rides
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
THE classic hard-boiled detective story. I get it, it is atmospheric and the slang is amazing, but overall it's just not my style. I didn't feel much interest in who ended up with the falcon.
And what's up with the descriptions? People are always having "white-ringed eyes." Doesn't everyone? Spade is always yellow. The fact that his eyes are yellow-grey is repeated a LOT. WHY ARE THEY YELLOW? His face is also various shades of yellow. WHY? Does he have jaundice? We get it, Cairo is effeminate. I didn't need 200 descriptions of him mincing. And as for Gutman's fat pouches continuously wobbling? Less of that please.
And what's up with the descriptions? People are always having "white-ringed eyes." Doesn't everyone? Spade is always yellow. The fact that his eyes are yellow-grey is repeated a LOT. WHY ARE THEY YELLOW? His face is also various shades of yellow. WHY? Does he have jaundice? We get it, Cairo is effeminate. I didn't need 200 descriptions of him mincing. And as for Gutman's fat pouches continuously wobbling? Less of that please.
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated