Jump into the gritty world of Poisonville, where corruption seeps into every street and even the 'hero' plays fast and loose with the rules. Red Harvest rewrites the rulebook of detective fiction, loaded with sharp dialogue, relentless pacing, and a nameless protagonist who sets the template for the hard-boiled antihero. If you love noir, crime fiction, or stories where nobody’s really clean - and enjoy a swift, action-packed read stuffed with moral ambiguity - this one’s a must. Fans of Hammett, Chandler, gritty movies like Yojimbo or Miller’s Crossing, or anyone curious about the birth of American noir will dig this.

Who May Not Like This Book:

If you’re after a classic whodunit filled with clever puzzles and genteel detectives, Red Harvest might be a rough ride. Some readers find the avalanche of violence and relentless body count overwhelming or even confusing, especially with so many characters changing sides (or getting dropped, literally) at a breakneck pace. The slang and minimal character backstory can make it tricky to form attachments, and the relentless cynicism might turn off anyone hoping for a clear-cut good guy - or a little more hope in their mysteries.

Hard-boiled, brutal, and uncompromising, Red Harvest is a landmark of noir fiction - a bloody chess game in a town with no real winners. Essential reading if you want to see where gritty American crime fiction began.

About:

In 'Red Harvest' by Dashiell Hammett, the Continental Op is summoned to Personville, a town overrun by corruption and violence. Upon arrival, he finds his client murdered and embarks on a mission to clean up the town by manipulating the various criminal factions to turn against each other. The narrative is fast-paced, filled with brutal action, double-crosses, and a high body count, all set in a gritty and corrupt environment. The writing style is hard-boiled and direct, with sharp language and a focus on the relentless pursuit of justice amidst a morally bankrupt society.

Characters:

The characters are deeply flawed and mostly corrupt, culminating in a cast that is unsettling yet compelling, inhabited by an antiheroic detective.

Writing/Prose:

Hammett's writing style is characterized by its brevity, cynicism, and engaging first-person narrative, effectively conveying the story's dark themes.

Plot/Storyline:

The narrative follows a detective's quest to cleanse a corrupt town, using cunning to incite violence among its criminal leaders.

Setting:

The setting of a corrupt and violent mining town enriches the story's dark themes and amplifies the sense of hopelessness.

Pacing:

The novel's pacing is brisk and relentless, designed to keep readers engaged in the unfolding chaos and action.

I first heard Personville called Poisonville by a red-haired mucker named Hickey Dewey in the Big Ship in Butte. He also called his shirt a shoit. I didn’t think anything of what he had done to the ci...

Notes:

Red Harvest is written by Dashiell Hammett and was published in 1929.

The story is set in a corrupt town called Personville, nicknamed Poisonville.

The main character, known as the Continental Op, is an unnamed private detective.

The Continental Op's mission changes from solving a murder to cleaning up the entire town of corruption.

Hammett drew on his experiences as a detective for the Pinkerton Agency to craft the story.

The novel is credited with Americanizing the crime novel genre, differentiating it from British murder mysteries.

The book features a significant body count, with at least 17 murders mentioned in the text.

The Continental Op uses manipulation and deception to turn criminals against each other instead of pursuing legal justice.

This novel influenced films like Akira Kurosawa's Yojimbo and Sergio Leone's A Fistful of Dollars.

The character of the Continental Op is portrayed as an anti-hero, engaging in morally questionable actions.

Red Harvest presents a cynical view of justice, suggesting that true change can only come through violence and death.

The novel contains elements of a bloodbath and critiques the rampant corruption of the 1920s in America.

Hammett's dry humor and vivid prose style contribute to the dark and gritty atmosphere of the book.

The femme fatale in the story, Dinah Brand, is depicted as a dangerous character, contributing to the novel's noir elements.

Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings

The novel contains high levels of violence, including multiple murders and general themes of corruption and crime.

From The Publisher:

Detective-story master Dashiell Hammett gives us yet another unforgettable read in Red Harvest: When the last honest citizen of Poisonville was murdered, the Continental Op stayed on to punish the guilty-even if that meant taking on an entire town. Red Harvest is more than a superb crime novel: it is a classic exploration of corruption and violence in the American grain.

January 1929

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231 pages

Ratings (11)

Loved It (5)
Liked It (2)
It Was OK (3)
Did Not Like (1)

Reader Stats (23):

Read It (11)
Want To Read (10)
Not Interested (2)

1 comment(s)

jesnel908

It Was OK

8 months

Very cut and paste hard boiled detective. The solutions to the various cases aren’t super predictable, but they don’t feel high stakes so you don’t care.

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About the Author:

Samuel Dashiell Hammett was born in 1894 in St. Mary's County, Maryland, and his family moved to Baltimore when he was five. He dropped out of high school after his freshman year and held a series of odd jobs-messenger boy,…

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Red Harvest

Dashiell Hammett

Book 2 in the series:Continental Op

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