The Maltese Falcon

A coolly glittering gem of detective fiction that has haunted three generations of readers, from one of the greatest mystery writers of all time.

Published in 1930, ‘The Maltese Falcon’ was Dashiell Hammett’s third novel in two years. Here he creates a new detective, Sam Spade.

A treasure worth killing for. Sam Spade, a slightly shopworn private eye with his own solitary code of ethics. A perfumed grafter named Joel Cairo, a fat man name Gutman, and 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 iconic, influential, and beloved ‘The Maltese Falcon’.

The plot, characters, and dialogue in ‘The Maltese Falcon’ are perfectly controlled by Hammett, incorporating a vigor and style that became the paradigm for hard-boiled crime fiction.