Hammett
Hammett refers to Dashiell Hammett (1894–1961), the American author who created the hard-boiled detective genre.
His spare, tough prose in novels like *The Maltese Falcon* and *The Thin Man* established a distinctly American crime fiction style.
As an adjective, Hammett-like or Hammettian describes writing with similar qualities: terse dialogue, morally ambiguous characters, and urban seediness.
Storied American detective firm
- operativeCovert field agent
- private eyeHired investigator, unlicensed
- gumshoeInformal term for detective
- sleuthPrivate investigator
shamus · Sam Spade · investigator · casework · shadowing · surveillance · stakeout · clues
- The Thin ManClassic detective mystery
- pulpSoft wet mass
- crime fictionGenre about solving crimes
- detective fictionGenre about investigating crimes
The Maltese Falcon · Sam Spade · mystery writer · novelist · screenwriter · San Francisco · Pinkerton · storyteller
Punishable illegal act
- corruptionDishonest abuse of power
- femme fataleTreacherous enchantress
- underworldRealm of the departed
- shadowyObscured by darkness
betrayal · murder · gangster · Prohibition · blackmail · double-cross · seduction · morally gray
Coarse or courageous
- cynicalDoubting human goodness
- toughDurable and strong
- terseBrief to bluntness
- laconicBrief in expression
unsentimental · streetwise · world-weary · stoic · bleak · unflinching · spare prose · moral ambiguity
Pinkerton
Storied American detective firm
- operativeCovert field agent
- private eyeHired investigator, unlicensed
- gumshoeInformal term for detective
sleuth · shamus · Sam Spade · investigator · casework · shadowing · surveillance · stakeout · clues · deduction
Dashiell
- The Thin ManClassic detective mystery
- pulpSoft wet mass
- crime fictionGenre about solving crimes
The Maltese Falcon · Sam Spade · detective fiction · mystery writer · novelist · screenwriter · San Francisco · Pinkerton · storyteller · prose
crime
Punishable illegal act
- corruptionDishonest abuse of power
- femme fataleTreacherous enchantress
- underworldRealm of the departed
shadowy · betrayal · murder · gangster · Prohibition · blackmail · double-cross · seduction · morally gray · atmosphere
gritty
Coarse or courageous
laconic · unsentimental · streetwise · world-weary · stoic · bleak · unflinching · spare prose · moral ambiguity · antihero
HammettAgatha Christie
cozy mystery · Arthur Conan Doyle · G.K. Chesterton · whodunit · Miss Marple
HammettHenry James
"The Ambassadors" author
William Faulkner · ornate · purple prose · florid · baroque
- hammering homeEmphasizing through repetition
- MC HammerNineties hip-hop performer
- hammer outResolve through prolonged effort
- hammered outSettled through laborious effort
- claw hammerTwo-headed nail tool
- hammering outResolving through persistent effort