Saturday, December 12, 2009

Spade & Archer: The Prequel to Dashiell Hammett's The Maltese Falcon

Spade & Archer: The Prequel to Dashiell Hammett's The Maltese Falcon
By Joe Gores
Alfred A. Knopf, 2009. Fiction. 337 pgs.

When I heard that someone had done a prequel to Hammett's classic The Maltese Falcon I didn't expect it to be anything very good, but very pleasantly surprised to find that author Joe Gores has pulled if off extremely well. He has nailed the characterization of private eye Sam Spade, as well as the setting (San Francisco), the period (1920s), and the story genre (hard-boiled detective story). Gores is thoroughly steeped in Hammett and his milieu and his work is first-rate.

SML

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