Dashiell Hammett and Yuri Rasovsky - The Maltese Falcon

Pros: Excellent plot, characterization, and dialog in this first great American detective novel.
Cons: There are not more books of this caliber.

The Maltese Falcon, by Dashiell Hammett "I'm a detective and expecting me to run criminals down and then let them go free is like asking a dog to catch a rabbit and let it go." Sam Spade "The boy spoke two words, the first a short guttural verb, ...

Pros: Great plot, interesting characters...
Cons: ... writing style doesn't flow well at all

The Maltese Falcon is one of the most famous detective stories of all time. First published in 1929, it marks the arrival of detective Sam Spade, and was immortalised by John Huston’s film version in 1941. Author Dashiell Hammett had himself ...

Pros: Interesting story, strong main character
Cons: Pacing slow at the end, writing style needed some polish

It's a normal afternoon when a beautiful woman walks into the private eye office of Sam Spade and his partner Miles Archer. She shared with them a tale of woe about a sister who has run off with a horrible man. The woman hires them to follow this man, ...

Pros: Fantastically developed characters; Nice, simple writing style; Hammett is an incredible storyteller
Cons: It's a detective story, so there are a few cons. (Cons- get it? Convicts? Cons? Ey)

I apologize up front for the length; I was quite happy with the results of a book report for school, and thought it would double quite well as an Epinion.

A shady, borderline- corrupt private detective. His client, a seductive and intriguing,...

Pros: Captivating Plot, Excellent Writing
Cons: Somewhat formulaic

I had a strange impulse to read a good mystery novel a few weeks back; I suppose it's no mystery which book I finally selected. I've always enjoyed a good detective yarn, having read all the Sherlock Holmes books extensively, but I was surprised that I ...

Pros: Vivid characters; plenty of twists in the story
Cons: Characters a little two-dimensional

(This review will probably be most useful to someone who is, as I am, relatively unfamiliar with the mystery genre.)

Though I hardly ever read mysteries and haven't even seen the movie "The Maltese Falcon," it is easy to see that...

Pros: Strong plot and powerfull charecters
Cons: Nonexistant

The important thing to remember about this book is not that it is a great detective story but that it is a great novel. Until this point Hammett had written only shorter fiction. I know...He had written two previous novels but both were really short...

Pros: great mystery
Cons: simple reading (is that a con?)

While The Maltese Falcon isn't the best book I've ever read, I would be lying if I said that it took me more than two days to finish. Hammett's story is remarkably simplistic, yet captures the reader's attention in a way that few authors have the...