Nainen pimeässä

by Dashiell Hammett, Reijo Lehtonen (Translator), Robert P. Parker (Author of introduction)

Nainen pimeässä on Dashiell Hammettin ennen suomentamaton pienoisromaani vuodelta 1933. Se on karhea, nopealiikkeinen ja melodramaattinen kertomus, joka alkaa siitä, kun nainen tulee pimeästä ja koputtaa ovelle. Sisällä han tapaa miehen, jonka kanssa hän muutaman tunnin päästä lähtee pakomatkalle. Matkalla Luise ja Brazil kiintyvät toisiinsa, mutta kaikki ei ole niin yksinkertaista: taakse on jäänyt kuolemaa tekevä mies.

Nainen pimeässä on lyhyestä replikoinnistaan ja toimintajaksoistaa thuolimatta suuremmassa määrin rakkaustarina kuin Hammettin kertomukset yleensä.

Se ilmestyi ensi kertaa kolmiosaisena jatkokertomuksena Liberty-aikakauslehdessä 1933. Pienoisromaanin esipuheen on kirjoittanut tunnettu amerikkalainen dekkarikirjailija Robert B. Parker.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Noir, Detective, Hard Boiled, Thriller

103 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1933

About the author

Also wrote as Peter Collinson, Daghull Hammett, Samuel Dashiell, Mary Jane Hammett

Dashiell Hammett, an American, wrote highly acclaimed detective fiction, including The Maltese Falcon (1930) and The Thin Man (1934).

Samuel Dashiell Hammett authored hardboiled novels and short stories. He created Sam Spade (The Maltese Falcon), Nick and Nora Charles (The Thin Man), and the Continental Op (Red Harvest and The Dain Curse) among the enduring characters. In addition to the significant influence his novels and stories had on film, Hammett "is now widely regarded as one of the finest mystery writers of all time" and was called, in his obituary in the New York Times, "the dean of the... 'hard-boiled' school of detective fiction."

See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dashiell...

Reviews

[John Culuris · Rating 3 out of 5]

This particular work seems to defy classification. It is often listed among Dashiell Hammett’s novels, perhaps because it is subtitled “A Novel of Dangerous Romance.” Originally published in three parts in Liberty magazine in 1933, in my copy (Vintage Crime, 1989) and presumably in the Hardcover that preceded it, the publishers did everything possible to create a more substantial-looking book. There are generous bottom and right-side margins and the title of each of the three parts has its own title page, and a matching blank page. Add an introduction by Robert B. Parker--with its own title and blank page too--and you get a story that concludes on page 78. A novel it ain't.

Personal classification is also an issue. I can’t group it with lesser works like The Dain Curse. Neither is it a masterpiece like The Maltese Falcon. Nor does it contain the layers of The Thin Man. Red Harvest comes closest with its one man (for the most part) and his attempt to bring down a corrupt town.

But in Woman in the Dark the male protagonist is not an investigator. Brazil (no first name mentioned) is an ex-can, and his trouble with the power structure is forced upon him when he comes to the defense of the Luise Fisher, for whom the book is titled. They end up on the run; Brazil from the law, Luise from a man who thinks he owns her. But there’s a reason I say “male protagonist.” About halfway through the book, when Brazil is rendered ineffective, Luise becomes the story’s lead. New to this country by a couple of weeks, at first she is confused and helpless. But once the confrontations move into arenas with which she has some familiarity, Luise stands tall. In a stark world where bad guys are good, good guys are bad, and the rich and powerful blatantly use and abuse the system, she strides toward reuniting with Brazil in such a way that they are both free from pursuit.

If the ending comes off as a tad convenient by today’s standards, remember that it conforms to the storytelling norms of the day. Besides, it’s Hammett. Even his lesser work is interesting. And while Woman in the Dark is far from his best, it is also far from his worst.

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

[Brazil's] face was expressionless. "I'm all right outdoors," he explained. "It's walls that get me." -- page 32

A novella (originally published in three weekly installments) issued near the conclusion of the private eye-turned-author's all-too-brief writing career - he would publish only The Thin Man the year afterwards - and now celebrating its 90th anniversary, Woman in the Dark is merely a good but not necessarily great serving of pulpy crime fiction. Featuring a Swiss coquette named Luise on the run from her wealthy but nefarious V.I.P. / sugar daddy Robson, she is assisted in the opening by a laconic but obliging ex-convict named Brazil after stumbling injured into his cottage on a windy night. The duo slip away into the night to take refuge at his former cellmate's apartment to elude Robson's enforcers (a combination of stock-standard hired goons and some local cops either mislead or on the take). Again, it was not a bad story - although leads Brazil and Luise stubbornly remain ciphers - but it was still missing a certain something that would've propelled it to the next level - perhaps some more hardboiled dialogue and/or a juicy plot twist were possible solutions.

[Daren · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is another step in my premature search for an author to replace Raymond Chandler - premature because I have one of his books left to read. In Dashiell Hammett, it seems I have not found that replacement. To me it wasn't hard-boiled, or noir enough to compare with Chandler. Pulp fiction - yes.
This was an odd little book - no way a novel, a short story, at most a novella. I read it in a day, at lunch time for 45 minutes, then another hour or so in the evening.

It has a format which held interest, by throwing the reader into the story without explaining the characters and their relationships until partway through. It is a little abrupt in the telling, meaning I had to skip back occasionally where the story took a turn I wasn't expecting, and I had missed a half sentence of importance - like someone new entering a conversation when in the paragraph prior there were only two persons present - and I had missed a couple of words bringing a character into the room.

I don't want to introduce spoilers in such a short book, so it is hard to review the plot, other than to say we don't really get to know the characters well, and it felt more like a storyline that should form the basis of a longer work - needing fleshing out and tidying up, giving us more. I am not sure if this is the style of the author, or whether his novel length detective stories provide more depth.

Not too sure I will find out, I don't think I will be pursuing more of his work, although if it were to fall into my lap i might give it another go.

An average 3 stars.

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another Dashiell Hammett I had not read before and so it was happy times in reading this novelette, as the story does not cover many pages.

The story is about a lady who fell in with the wrong crowd and when she tries to leave her predicament she runs into whole new place of trouble. She is responsible for "Brazil" recent released from prison to get into trouble again. Sparkling dialogue, policemen that will not get any sympathy votes and the baddie of this story is as awefull as one can get within any such a short story.

Well written and fun to read, forget the foreword by Robert B. Parker who manages to spoil the mood in his opinion about Hammett.

well worth your time.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is not quite even a novel, really -- it's a slim novella. But whatever. It was really enjoyable. I found myself rooting so hard for Brazil, an ex-con with a temper and dangerous fists, and Luise Fischer, a kept woman trying to get away from the brute who thinks he should be allowed to keep her. Everything goes sideways and down for a long time, but there's a surprisingly hopeful ending that I absolutely loved.

[paper0r0ss0 · Rating 4 out of 5]

E' una magia! Una piccola grande magia la scrittura di Hammett. Qui ad esempio, la trama in pratica non c'e', sia per la brevita' del racconto che per l'esiguita' dello sviluppo. I personaggi poi, sono dei veri e propri stilemi del genere noir, eppure non si contano le volte che ti fermi e ti dici:"Ca... e' scritto da dio!". Questo e' Dashiell Hammett....

[Eva · Rating 3 out of 5]

Νομίζω θα μπορούσα να διαβάζω pulp φανατικά.

[Ed [Redacted] · Rating 4 out of 5]

I actually had never heard of this "novel" until I saw it at the library while contemplating whether or not to grab "The Big Knockover". A tiny little book with the words "A Novel" on the cover. I am pretty sure there is no way this qualifies as a novel. It is about 76 pages which makes it something in the neighborhood of 25,000 words.

This...story was first published in installments in a pulp magazine in 1933. The next novel Hammett published was "The Thin Man" and he never published another novel after that, to the detriment of us all.

This is a bit of a thin story. There's not much going on and certainly not the twisty plots Hammett is known for. The dialog sparkles, as always, with lots of 30's slang and humorous bon mots. The protagonist, "Brazil" (not the country) is a nice character but a familiar one. The people with money are corrupt and corrupting, the cops are as callous as ever and the system is stacked against our hero Brazil, as usual. The book ends on a more hopeful note than I would have expected, but is a touch ambiguous I suppose.

I am a Hammett fanboy so I suppose I am rating this book higher than I would have if I had not thought I had already read all the Hammett there was to read. This isn't his greatest by any stretch but it is Hammett and it is pretty good. This one is for completists. I would point those curious about the great Dashiell Hammett to "Red Harvest", which has always been my favorite. 4/5

[Bettie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Description: On a dark night a young woman seeks refuge at an isolated house. She is hurt and frightened. The man and woman who live there take her in. But their decency is utterly unequipped to deal with the Woman in the Dark, or with the designs of the men who want her.

First published in installments in Liberty magazine and now rediscovered after many years, Woman in the Dark shows Dashiell Hammett at the peak of his narrative powers. With an introduction by Robert B. Parker, the author of the celebrated Spenser novels.

A one-time detective and a master of deft understatement, Dashiell Hammett virtually invented the hard-boiled crime novel.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kx1qX...

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one of Dashiell Hammetts lesser known books at least to me that is - and I have to say at 80 pages it is rather light however I think for me it is what this story signifies more than what it actually is that is more fascinating.

As I have said on many a book the notes are sometimes more interesting than the body of the work and this is a perfect example. Firstly I didn't realise how challenging the authors life was from his fate at the hands of the Federal Government and his subsequent imprisonment and resulting blacklisting to the fact he died in poverty and relative obscurity. This is the man who is often referred to as the father of modern mystery novels.

But that is not all - this is probably his first and best (and possibly only) attempt at a romance story - in this case it worked but but never really appeared again his work.

This as such represents many points in Dashiell Hammetts life and as such the significance cannot be denied. As I say sometimes what a book signifies is more important that words within it.

[Greg · Rating 2 out of 5]

BOOK 200 - Mid-20th Century American Crime Readathon - Round 9
I've began each round with Chandler and ended each round with Hammett. I was surprised to find this on the library shelves as I didn't know it existed. In the introduction, Robert B. Parker says "To my eye the happy ending seems a bit forced...it led him into a swamp that nearly drowned him in 'The Thin Man'.
HOOK - 3 stars: >>>Her right angle turned under her and she fell. The wind blowing downhill from the south, whipping the trees beside the road, made a whisper of her exclamation and snatched her scarf away into the darkness.<<<
I like this opening: is this woman running from someone? Or to a place?
PACE - 3: This novella is different from Hammett's novels and is a one-sit read. It's only 76 pages (including a title page) so Hammett recognized this subject worked best in this novella format.
PLOT - 2: A lady is on the run, we learn, and she finds her way to a stranger's home in which she is welcomed. Then an assortment of people show up. To say anything more would give you the entire story, so I'll just say there is an accusation of murder and theft. But nothing much is resolved in my opinion. I disagree with Parker's introduction as i don't see any kind of resolution/ending.
CAST - 2: No one comes to life here, everyone seems flat.
ATMOSPHERE - 2: It's 1933 but there is no evidence of time or place that I noticed.
SUMMARY - 2.4: It's my opinion only that if Hammet's name wasn't on this work, it wouldn't have been published. There just isn't much here. It's not bad, really, but not good enough for 3 stars and I don't recommend it.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Claustrophobic ex-convict Brazil is on parole for a man slaughter sentence and is hoping never to go back behind bars again. All he has to do is stay out of trouble in his quiet cabin in the woods. Then a beautiful woman with a broken shoe stumbles through his door.
This was one of the last shorter stories that Hammett published before he walked away from crime writing. It's not his greatest bit of writing but still well worth a look. To be honest I much prefer the 1934 film version with Ralph Bellamy and Fay Wray in the lead roles. The film is pretty faithful to Hammett's story though it does smooth off the rough edges, notably Hammett's insistence on having characters with accents and lisps all fully annotated. The romantic element is more developed and there's also a bit of humour along the way mainly from Roscoe Ates. And you get to see Fay Wray's ankles.. so no contest really.
An introduction by Robert B.Parker comments on Hammett's style and suggests the reasons for the story's level of romance.

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

In his introduction, Robert Parker says that he thinks the happy ending of this book is forced. I disagree, and think that the ending is intentionally ambiguous, leaving room for a darker interpretation. In any case, why would you write an introduction to a book that gives the reader a low opinion of the ending before he's even begun reading the thing? Parker also goes on to suggest that "The Thin Man" was a bad book because Hammet had trouble writing about love. In short, what I took away from this enjoyable little story was that Robert Parker is kind of a dick.

[notgettingenough]

You've got to laugh at the academic industry - this book is as thin as they come, but it warrants an academic introduction because? It's hard to answer that. It doesn't deserve one. It reads like something churned out for a pulp and that's just what it was.

Hammett is an important writer, but I don't think that means we have to behave as if every time he wrote out a shopping list posterity was the winner. Save your limited reading time on this earth for something else.

I did, by the way, put it on my 'better written than HP' shelf, but only after due consideration.

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable but extremely slight (76 pp.) late novel by Dashiell Hammett has his trademark style and hardboiled attitude, but this is really a novella, if that. More like a long short story. It revolves around a kept woman escaping from her tormentor and the tough ex-con who tries to rescue her. It's always good to read Hammett, but this is decidedly a lesser work on many scores.

[Jimmakos Gavagias · Rating 4 out of 5]

Κλασσική αστυνομική λογοτεχνία από τον γίγαντα του είδους. Απλή στη πλοκή αλλά γραμμένη με τόση μαεστρία που το ισοσκελίζει. Το μόνο αρνητικό ότι ήταν μικρή

[Toby · Rating 3 out of 5]

Barely a novella, let alone a novel of dangerous romance as it purports to be. This is a decent enough example of Hammett's storytelling style but immediately forgettable too such is the slightness of the concept and the obvious rush to completion.

[Danielle]

What better way to start the new year than with a little hardboiled American crime from the virtuoso novelist Dashiell Hammett. I had just crossed paths with him in a very peripheral sort of way via Laurie King in her Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes mystery Locked Rooms (I still need to write about it), which is set in San Francisco and in which Hammett makes a cameo appearance and aides the pair in the solving of their most recent crime. The Woman in the Dark is really little more than a novella and can be read in one sitting and felt very slight. Hammett's novels are all fairly slight, he wastes not a word in his writing, but this one felt even thinner. Still, a perfect little kick off to reading Hammett this year.

Woman in the Dark, subtitled "a Novel of Dangerous Romance" was published in 1933 at the tail end of his writing career in installments for Liberty Magazine. It came, too, only a few years after the start of what would be a lifelong relationship with playwright Lillian Hellman. Apparently it is has more "romance" or the promise of a just possibly happy ending than his other works, but it's probably best not to read too much of the personal into his writing. His final novel, however, The Thin Man does feature a romantically involved pair filled with witty dialogue and lots of clinking glasses.

The titular woman of the novella, Luise Fischer, a Swiss refugee, is running away from something (or someone in this case) in the opening pages of the story. She is dressed to the nines in an evening gown and slippers. She has stumbled in the road and broken a heel in her effort to get away fast. And she rings the doorbell of the first house she encounters.

"She was a tall woman and carried herself proudly, for all she was lame and the wind had tousled her hair and the gravel of the road and cut and dirtied her hands and bare arms and the red crepe of her gown."

There she comes across a man known only as "Brazil" and as things are wont to happen in just these kinds of situations, both have just enough baggage and the hint of sordid pasts (or presents) to make things interesting. Brazil is as cool as a clear Arctic morning showing not the least bit of surprise, as if a woman in a red evening gown showing up on his doorstep is an everyday occurrence. Into some lives these things happen. He barely turns to her when she enters the room, and it is with a hoarse unemotional voice he replies to her anxious request for help. Maybe Brazil has other things on his mind as he seems to already be giving refuge to a young woman hiding from a difficult father.

Things quickly become complicated for the lot. Not far behind Luise two thugs come knocking on Brazil's door in search of their runaway maiden, but she doesn't want to return and Brazil is not going to let this damsel go unaided. It turns out that Brazil is a recently released parolee who has a problem with confinement. He cannot bear the idea of being locked up again, but against his better judgement he tries to help Luise free herself of what has now become unwanted attention. One of the thugs was at one time her rescuer if he brought her to America. It makes one curious what the story behind the story there is. I can only imagine, however.

These situations rarely end well. I won't give away the rest of the story, but only say that events snowball and Brazil gets himself into a messy situation. It may be that Hammett was writing this with one eye towards pitching it as a movie, which it was eventually adapted to. Woman in the Dark was filmed in B&W and starred Fay Wray, Ralph Bellamy and Melvyn Douglas in 1934, to what looks like fairly favorable attention. It seems to be streaming on Amazon now, so I shall be seeing how it translated into film.

Hammett only wrote five novels but loads and loads of short stories as well as a few screenplays. It's interesting that he stopped writing for the last twenty-five years or so of his life, but I think he was ill for a good chunk of that time. I hadn't actually planned on making reading his work into any sort of project, but it seems to be turning out that way, so I think now I will go back and pick up Red Harvest, his first crime novel and see where it takes me.

[mars · Rating 2 out of 5]

Eh?? I was honestly confused the entire time. While I understand that this is a short story, I think this idea should have had more information as far as characters and plot goes. It seems the plot suffered for the sake of having a short book.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short but very intense novel by one the masters of the "roman noir."

4* The Thin Man
5* The Maltese Falcon
3* Nightmare Town
4* Secret Agent X-9
4* Who Killed Bob Teal?
3* Red Harvest
4* Woman in the dark
TR The Continental Op
TR The Return of the Continental Op
TR The Glass Key
TR The Tenth Clew
TR The Dain Curse
TR The Big Knockover: Selected Stories and Short Novels

[Ralph · Rating 5 out of 5]

After too long an interval, Dashiell Hammett is back to being one of the flavors of the month, with not just his novels and pulp stories back in print, but also his early work (even vignettes written for humor and satire magazines) and his slim corpus of work for magazines less rough than the pulps. A case in point is "Woman in the Dark," a short novel or novelette serialized in three issues of the weekly Liberty Magazine in 1933. The high-circulation magazine was a better venue than the garish pulps; not only was he reaching a better class of people, he was reaching an audience who, if they had heard of him at all it was through his novels...at this time, only "The Maltese Falcon" had been made into a film (1931) and it did not do well at all. A better class of magazine, a better breed of readers...both may explain why this story seems (to me at least) like a well-written pastiche of Hammett.

An accident on a lonely country road, a dazed woman running through the whipping wind, losing the heel of her shoe and twisting her ankle in the darkness, stumbling up a path till she comes to the curtained window-door of a house. Such is the opening for "Woman in the Dark." The woman is Luise Fischer. The man behind the door is Brazil, just out of prison for manslaughter and is now mildly claustrophobic because of the experience. She's on the run from Kane Robson, a monied sociopath who always gets what he wants, and he wants her. The story is the conflict between the malevolent Robson and the emotionally scarred and ambiguous Brazil over Luise Fischer, a conflict that forces the woman to choose between two worlds.

If this story had been written for the pulps, there might have been more violence in it and more sexual overtones, but I think it would have been much less morally ambiguous. Brazil would have been much more a wronged man and the choice for Fischer would have been not just more clear but more costly. It is as if Hammett were walking a tightrope between the writing he knew and the respect he needed. The violence has been replaced by fisticuffs (though Robson does callously shoot a dog to demonstrate his moral orientation) and sexuality has been replaced by romantic suspense.

"Woman in the Dark" was his penultimate long work of fiction, his last before "The Thin Man," and published a couple years after "The Glass Key," another novel of corruption and romance. Hammett could easily have developed the magazine story into a true novel length, but he chose not to. Instead, he wrote "The Thin Man," and nothing else. For the Hammett completist, this thin book is a must read, but I think it would also help a reader trying to understand the moral universe through which Hammett moved and in which he wrote. For those readers who need a setting for this story, a very perceptive and enlightening introduction is provided by Robert B Parker.

[Tim Orfanos · Rating 4 out of 5]

Κατά πολλούς κριτικούς λογοτεχνίας (και με αυτό συμφωνώ) ο Χάμετ δεν θεωρείται το ίδιο αποτελεσματικός στη συγγραφή 'νουάρ' ή αστυνομικών ιστοριών-διηγημάτων σε σχέση με τα κλασικά hard-boiled μυθιστορήματα του, όπως 'Το Γεράκι της Μάλτας' ή τον 'Κόκκινο Θερισμό'.

Για να γίνω πιο συγκεκριμένος, όντως, θα συμφωνήσω με τα στοιχεία της νουβέλας (1933) που υπάρχουν στο οπισθόφυλλο δηλ. ότι αποτελείται από όλα τα κλασικά 'νουάρ' 'συστατικά' που μπορούν να την κάνουν να φανεί 'ελκυστική' στο αναγνωστικό κοινό που έχει τριβή με την αστυνομική λογοτεχνία - θεωρώ ότι είναι μια από τις πιο ενδιαφέρουσες και σωστά δομημένες νουβέλες του Χάμετ.

Πέρα από αυτό, ωστόσο αξίζει να τονίσω ότι, εκτός από την αρχή της ιστορίας που αποτυπώνεται και με εξωτικό τρόπο στο ευφάνταστο εξώφυλλο, δεν έχει να επιδείξει στοιχεία πρωτοτυπίας ή καινοτομική πλοκή με αποτέλεσμα να μην έχει την επιδραστικότητα που θα χρειαζόταν - καλό θα ήταν να είχε μεγαλύτερη έκταση κατά, τουλάχιστον, 20 σελίδες.

Πάντως, μαζί με το 'Μεγάλο χτύπημα', είναι από τις ιστορίες του Χάμετ που αξίζει να διαβαστούν.

Βαθμολογία: 3,7/5 ή 7,4/10.

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

This short novel was serialized in three installments for Liberty magazine in April 1933. It is a strange sort of love story between an ex-con and a Swiss girl who had taken up with a local landowner with psychotic tendencies. While not quite at the level of his best longer fiction such as The Maltese Falcon, The Dain Curse, and Red Harvest, it makes for a good, if quick read.

Brazil, the ex-con, has claustrophobia and will do anything rather than find himself behind bars again. So he escapes with Luise Fischer to the city where he has friends who will hide him. But the police from Mile Valley seem to track him down and put a slug into him.

I won't reveal what happens, but there remains the distinct possibility at the end of a happy ending. The subtitle of the book is A Novel of Dangerous Romance. And that it is.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a big fan of Hammett's writing not simply because his world view appeals to me, but because his story-telling was superior, if not outright superb.

The man could whip up a mean tale that keeps you spellbound.

I read this book ages ago (along with many others that I have written about) and haven't done so recently, so it's probably time for me to treat myself to it once again.

It doesn't involve Sam Spade or Nick Charles, so the Hollywood fans of Hammett may not care for it, but those seeking well written fiction should give it a try.

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was another one I read partly for book research since Parker wrote the introduction to this edition. More longish short story than anything else, this is nevertheless a fun piece with at least some of the typical Hammett tropes. The two lead characters are an interesting match. Of note, this one can be read as certainly more romantic and perhaps, more hopeful than other Hammett work. Those looking for the black cynicism of the Continental Op will be in for a surprise.

[Kb · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well-written novella, featuring many of the tropes of crime fiction of the era. The art lies in the way it is written. We start in medias res, and the story is told from one woman’s point of view. We do not see what she does not see. It unfolds almost in real time, with contractions mainly for sleeping, waiting, and journeys, except at the conclusion where a slight trick of the narrative keeps motives hidden.

[John Grazide · Rating 4 out of 5]

That was a fun little story. First apparing as a three part series in 1933. But as is the case with most of Hammett's works, it is timeless.
An unexpeted metting puts two people together as they try to escape their situations. Along the way they realize they are alike and try to stay together, but others may have something to say about it.

[Aditya · Rating 2 out of 5]

A forgotten Hammett and one forgotten for a good reason. This feels like the first rough draft of a better book that never came to pass. Everything from plot to characters is rough around the edges and it is not just the brevity of the book that is to be blamed for it. It is not paced like a short story but like a bigger novella so even the ending feels rushed and abrupt. Rating - 2/5.

[Greta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dashiell Hammett says so much in so few pages with the story Woman in the Dark. Short & sweet mystery is fun to read.

[Alexander Engel-Hodgkinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.4/5

This was a pretty quick read. Things came together nicely, but aside from how competently this was written, there isn't a whole lot to say about it. Everything gets neatly wrapped up without much of a spark. I enjoyed what I read, because Hammett's writing is strong and brisk, but his story almost felt like it was over before it even began.

Still, I look forward to reading more of his work.