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The Maltese Falcon cover art

The Maltese Falcon

By: Dashiell Hammett
Narrated by: Robertson Dean
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Summary

The definitive masterpiece of the hard-boiled detective genre, The Maltese Falcon first appeared in the pages of Black Mask magazine in 1929 and was almost immediately acknowledged as not only a great crime novel but an enduring masterpiece of American fiction.

Tough, cynical PI Sam Spade - a man who, as his creator explained, is "able to take care of himself in any situation, able to get the best of anybody he comes in contact with" - is hired by the story's irresistible femme fatale, Brigid O'Shaughnessy, to locate the client's sister by tailing her companion. Spade's partner, Miles Archer, takes on the assignment, and quickly both he and the man he was shadowing are murdered. As Spade pursues the mystery of his partner's death, he is drawn into a circle of colorful characters - all of them after a legendary statuette of a falcon fashioned long ago for King Charles of Spain.

Made of gold and encrusted with jewels, the falcon is worth a fortune. Missing for centuries, it resurfaced in Paris in 1911, covered in black enamel to disguise its value, and then disappeared again until it was traced to Constantinople - and now, it would seem, to Spade's own backyard.

©2018 Dashiell Hammett (P)2018 Blackstone Publishing

What listeners say about The Maltese Falcon

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    3 out of 5 stars

Watch the film seriously more enjoyable

My high expectations from watching the film over the last 50 years were quickly dashed .
The reader lacked any character was bland .
The story is complicated and i lost the thread on a number of occasions as i lost interest in the reading

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classic

enjoyed listening to this classic detective story, so different from today's private eye tales so enjoy

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

A classic hard boiled detective story

If you don't know the story then absolutely listen to this version. Yes the accents of the narrator can sometimes be less than brilliant but he still manages to get the ethos of Sam Spade across.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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excellent description

you can't fault the vivid writing style. story is decent. just read it if you like reading books lol

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Fantastic

One of the true greats of hard boiled Detective fiction wonderfully brought to life. Almost 100 years old and still putting many of its contemporaries to shame.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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A classic well read.

Firstly, l prefer Chandler to Hammett. However, the Maltese Falcon is a true classic of the noir genre. As such, this was a wonderful listen, very well read, although the narrator's breadth of voices could have been better.

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The Original Hard Boiled

Heard it recently described as a masterpiece, and it really is. VERY highly recommended. You probably already know the plot, but this was the story that kickstarted an entire genre.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Humphrey Bogart classic.

I looked forward to enjoying this and was not disappointed. My advice is to Wikipedia 1930 in USA, this will help set the tone.

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Helluva book!

Classic. Perfect forensic narrative. Dead-pan delivery. Pin-sharp despite, it because of, it’s age.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Classic book/film, great narrator

Loved the original book & film.
The narrator made it sound just like Sam Spade, 'dead pan', just like Sam(character) and Humphrey Bogart(actor) in the film.
Loved every minute of it.
A classic from start to finish.

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