Return of the Maltese Falcon
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- Pre-Order
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- Expected Jan 6, 2026
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
Hardboiled noir that picks up where legendary author Dashiell Hammett left off, telling the story of iconic private eye Sam Spade and the quest for the priceless Maltese Falcon.
THE GREATEST PRIVATE EYE OF ALL TIME RETURNS TO FINISH THE JOB
Legendary mystery writer Dashiell Hammett only wrote one novel about detective Sam Spade: The Maltese Falcon, the most famous private eye story ever told. But the case was never really solved – the priceless golden, bejeweled bird that men and women had been dying to possess turned out to be a fake.
Now, Mystery Writers of America Grand Master Max Allan Collins (author of Road to Perdition) brings closure to this crime classic, reuniting all the surviving members of the original cast alongside femme fatales, crooked collectors, and greedy gangsters for one more thrilling, deadly chase through the streets, wharves, morgues, bars, and back alleys of 1920s San Francisco – and finally answers the question, Whatever became of the Maltese falcon…?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This stylish sequel to Dashiell Hammett's The Maltese Falcon from MWA Grandmaster Collins (To Live and Spy in Berlin) picks up in December 1928, just days after the events of the previous novel. Rhea Gutman, daughter of late gangster Casper Gutman, asks PI Sam Spade to recover the eponymous, jewel-encrusted artifact. During the course of the investigation, Spade's former lover, Iva Archer—who's also the widow of his late investigative partner, Miles—demands a share of any profits from finding the falcon that might have gone to her husband, and drags Miles's mob-connected brother into the picture to make sure she gets what she wants. When Wilmer Cook, Gutman's vengeful former gunman, ambushes Spade, it's clear he isn't the only one hunting the falcon; Chicago gambler Dixie Monahan is after it, too. Then there's British Museum curator Stewart Blackwood, who claims the museum legally owns the falcon after purchasing it from the original owner, General Kemidov. Navigating shifting allegiances and playing multiple sides, Spade races rival interests to claim the falcon for himself. Collins keeps the prose lean and sharp, true to Hammett's style, and ushers the proceedings to a tidy conclusion. It's a clever, well-executed tribute the hardboiled tradition.
