Private eye mystery recommendations, please

[Jodoc]

I've been reading a lot of old-school mysteries lately. Love John Dickson Carr/Carter Dickson, I'm enjoying the Joe Puma books by William Campbell Gault, and I go through Perry Mason's like potato chips, 5 or 6 at a time. No characterization to speak of, but Gardner was a slick, readable writer.

But you may want to take these recommendations with a grain of salt, since I love Rex Stout, too.

[Slam_Bradley]

I've been reading a lot of old-school mysteries lately. Love John Dickson Carr/Carter Dickson, I'm enjoying the Joe Puma books by William Campbell Gault, and I go through Perry Mason's like potato chips, 5 or 6 at a time. No characterization to speak of, but Gardner was a slick, readable writer.

But you may want to take these recommendations with a grain of salt, since I love Rex Stout, too.

You should give Gardner's Cool & Lam books, written as A. A. Fair a try. I prefer them to Mason.

[berk]

Anyone have a recommendation on which anthology of Hammett's short stories to go with? I've read the 5 big novels, but no idea where to start with the short stories. I saw a trade paperback collection today that unfortunately I forget the title of that looked promising; and then there's the hardcover Library of America collection that seems to be bigger and perhaps more complete - but is completeness desirable in this case?

[Slam_Bradley]

Anyone have a recommendation on which anthology of Hammett's short stories to go with? I've read the 5 big novels, but no idea where to start with the short stories. I saw a trade paperback collection today that unfortunately I forget the title of that looked promising; and then there's the hardcover Library of America collection that seems to be bigger and perhaps more complete - but is completeness desirable in this case?

Hammett was a great short story writer, so I think completeness is a virtue when it comes to his work. If in doubt, The Big Knockover and Nightmare Town will help you decide.

[berk]

Hammett was a great short story writer, so I think completeness is a virtue when it comes to his work. If in doubt, The Big Knockover and Nightmare Town will help you decide.

Unfortunately, upon further investigation there doesn't seem to be any single complete collection, so I'll probably go with one of those three - the two you mentioned and the LoA one.

[Libaax]

Unfortunately, upon further investigation there doesn't seem to be any single complete collection, so I'll probably go with one of those three - the two you mentioned and the LoA one.

Have you read the one titled The Continental OP? It has the character that is the star of his best novel and the PI pioneer. It has something like 20 something stories and they are among the best written by Hammett. Im a big Hammett fan and have all those collections. Those two mentioned by Slam are very good and specially have bleak,cool stories that isnt just with The OP or Spade short stories.

[DennyK]

Have you read the one titled The Continental OP? It has the character that is the star of his best novel and the PI pioneer. It has something like 20 something stories and they are among the best written by Hammett. Im a big Hammett fan and have all those collections. Those two mentioned by Slam are very good and specially have bleak,cool stories that isnt just with The OP or Spade short stories.

The late Joe Gores wrote a book called Spade and Archer, which is a prequel to the Maltese Falcon that is excellent; in it Sam Spade is an operative for the Continental Detective Agency before he strikes out on his own.

[Libaax]

The late Joe Gores wrote a book called Spade and Archer, which is a prequel to the Maltese Falcon that is excellent; in it Sam Spade is an operative for the Continental Detective Agency before he strikes out on his own.

Which is not surprising Joe Gores is a real San Francisco author who gave Hammett tour of the city like he used the city as setting. I will read that book out of respect to Joe Gores backround as Hammett fan,scholar and old real world PI himself.

[ElectraAlan]

Hammett was a great short story writer, so I think completeness is a virtue when it comes to his work.

I've always loved Chandler more than Hammet, but I find Chandler's short stories to be almost unreadable. They don't have any of what I read his books for. I remember him saying that they would blue-pencil all his lovely literary flourishes; they didn't want anything that got in the way of the gore. "I wish that these stories of mine had been better, but if they had been much better they wouldn't have been published."

Hammet's short stories are lovely little gems. This was definitely the form in which he triumphed.

[Kaplan]

A different recommendation for you with a female PI. Marcia Muller's Sharon McCone books. I've not read any recently but I enjoyed her earlier novels.