The Maltese Falcon (1930)

I wasn't expecting this to be bad - after all, it's only the most famous noir novel of all time - but I really wasn't expecting it to be this good. It's got an intriguing MacGuffin, the archetypal femme fatale, loads of interesting minor characters, a good plot, great writing, and although the protagonist is maybe a little too much of a badass to be plausible (whatever plausibility is worth in a noir novel), he's definitely a badass. I've seen some of the film version and liked it, I definitely need to go back and watch the whole thing, even if only to see how they handled the final scene, which is a masterpiece of psychological move and countermove. I know Hammett's other novels aren't as highly regarded as this, and I can't say I'm going to rush out and pursue them, but this book is one of the greatest examples of how to really use the "show, don't tell" rule well. Deserves every bit of its fame. ( )

This was a fun novel. The narrator was good. ( )

Ein Klassiker, ohne Zweifel, sollte man sicher gelesen haben. Vielleicht liegts am Alter, vielleicht liegts an der Übersetzung: nicht alles ist aus heutiger Sicht verständlich, manches wirkt etwas betulich, aber Scheiß drauf, hat trotzdem Spaß gemacht. ( )

I enjoyed this one because it's so weird lol. Is it supposed to be suspenseful or some type of comedy? *Shrugs* ( )

Not really a bad book, but not really a great book either. The core mystery fails to intrigue, and Hammett's writing just doesn't do anything for me. At least it was short, I guess? ( )