The Creeping Siamese

The Continental Op

by Dashiell Hammett

The Continental Op is going over his expense reports when a raw-boned man staggers through the door of his office, stretches out his arms, and dies. As the stranger falls to the floor, he utters a final word: Hell. It’s apt, because this man’s death will drag the Op right into the inferno. The contents of the man’s pockets are enough to send the Op off in search of his identity, his connection to San Francisco, and the treacherous underworld dealings of both the victim and his killers.

The Continental Op made his name taking punches and dodging bullets, but unraveling “The Creeping Siamese” is the kind of mystery that will baffle even him. This story, along with “The Big Knock-Over” and “$106,000 Blood Money,” is a testament to the enduring genius of Dashiell Hammett.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Short Stories

160 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 1926

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

[Greg · Rating 3 out of 5]

This 1926 short was published a year before Hammett's first novel, Red Harvest, began its serialization (according to Otto Penzler, editor of "Black Lizard Big Book of Pulps"). "Creeping Siamese" does lend to us a slight hint at Hammett's upcoming hard-boiled/pulp style: "He was a tall man, raw-boned,hard-faced," reads the entire second sentence into this work. If you love Hammett, this is a must.

[Liam · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5*

[Brian Thornton · Rating 1 out of 5]

This edition is a poorly scanned, barely comprehensible, not at all edited and not true to the original edition, RIP-OFF. Words transposed or line-jumping. Just awful and impossible to read.

[Bidita · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5

[John Peel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Six minor short stories by the master of the mystery field. Murder and mayhem abound, but these are lacking his usual touch.

[D Muerte · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5 ⭐
Short pulp for a bus ride. With all the pulp tropes:
Tough detective ✅
Ugly faces ✅
Moronic copper ✅
Femme fatale ✅
Unbounded racism ✅
No happy ending ✅

[Ayleen Julio · Rating 3 out of 5]

Como siempre digo: "ante la duda, Hammett", y rara vez suelo equivocarme. En esta ocasión, amplié mi conocimiento del agente de la Continental, personaje emblemático en la obra del autor. Formalmente, es una antología de cinco relatos cortos (Los siameses escurridizos, El hombre que mató a Dan Odams, Los clavos de Mr Cayterer, La broma de Eloysa Morey, Tom, Dick o Harry) y una nouvelle (Aquel asunto del rey) que tienen como protagonista al agente de la Continental. La traducción no ayuda mucho a comprender algunos pasajes, pero por suerte no opaca demasiado los giros narrativos del autor que en cada historia nos va llevando para de repente, resolver de una forma totalmente inesperada.
Recomiendo especialmente "El hombre que mató a Dan Odams", "Los siameses escurridizos" y "Tom, Dick o Harry" como los relatos más notables. Los demás están buenos, capaz les encuentre mejor gusto con una relectura.