The Return of the Continental Op

The Continental Op #2.2

by Dashiell Hammett

A collection of five short stories previously unpublished in book form.

Genres: Mystery, Short Stories, Fiction

190 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1945

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

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

just CANDY, so good, the continental op is tough and a fighter and knows when to be worried and gets knocked around and, of course, always figures it out. i like the idea of having a detective watch over your wedding presents, all the snappy lines, all the bad women. bought at once upon a crime in minneapolis, where I went with Gen when me and Brett were visiting him and Xue, and while we were in there (it's downstairs) there was a rainstorm we didn't notice and when we came out the whole world was glistening.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

As hardboiled as it gets, "...didn't I steal a crutch from a cripple?" from The Gutting of Couffignal.

[Richard Hemingway · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you had read ‘The Maltese Falcon’, the first short story, ‘The Whosis Kid’ might look like a short draft for Hammett’s best novel. Hammett was supposed to have said that he was unhappy with this short story. I don’t know if one can technically plagiarize ones earlier stuff, but it looks like Hammett put some added bells and whistles and added a marvelous bird that may or may not exist and turned it all into one of the best detective novels ever written.

If you haven’t read ‘The Maltese Falcon’ then I am not going to say how the lead female characters in the first two stories are similar to the one in ‘The Maltese Falcon’. I will say that he must have met some interesting (in ways I can’t mention) women during his days as a Pinkerton detective. The Continental OP looks like a precursor to Sam Spade. I’m sure he has a name and personality to go along with the name, but I couldn’t find a name and his personality was limited to his own ethics and how he goes about the business of doing detective work.
Still if you like pulp fiction detective stories played against the background of the great depression where everyone is looking for something and some people are looking for something at someone else’s expense; then a hard charging detective who will unravel all the puzzles and crack a few heads in the short period of time it takes to read these stories will give you a good example of this type of fiction.

[Shaun Steven Struble · Rating 5 out of 5]

The one short story in this volume that hasn't been collected in a more recent volume, Death & Company, is one of the weaker Op stories. But alas, I am a completist so I'm glad I tracked down a copy.

[tortoise dreams · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Return of the Continental Op is an easy if arbitrary introduction to Dashiell Hammett's early creation. The Continental Op, an agent or operative for the Continental Detective Agency (modeled on Pinkerton's where Hammett had worked), is the nameless protagonist of many of Hammett's early stories and novels. In these stories we learn that the Op served in the Great War, is about 40 years old, is short and weighs 180 pounds. The five stories herein are: "The Whosis Kid" (1925) - On a whim the Op decides to tail a known gunman he sees on the street, which soon leads him straight into the midst of a battle between backstabbing (literally) international jewel thieves; "The Gutting of Couffignal" (1925) - While on duty guarding the presents at a rich folks' wedding reception the Op finds himself fighting a one-man battle against a mysterious military-style invasion turned crime spree, machine guns and all, and has to steal a crutch from a cripple; "Death and Company" (1930) - A kidnapped wife leads to two murders and no one the richer; "One Hour" (1924) - The Op solves the case of a fatal hit-and-run in an hour, and then needs a hospital; "The Tenth Clew" (1924) - After a rich man is murdered there are too many clues and the Op almost drowns. The Return of the Continental Op was part of the broad release of the first collections of Hammett's short stories in book form. The Op stories are almost devoid of characterization except that necessary to describe an able detective, which is carefully detailed and explained. We get little background, no friends, family, or history, not even a name. The reader is given a premise, a bit of violence, and a solution. A complete collection of the Op oeuvre is available for those who like their stories cut and dried, basic, and to the point. [3½★]

[Glen U · Rating 3 out of 5]

This volume by Dashiell Hammett contains five stories featuring the "Continental Op", perhaps the first hard boiled detective in literature. What makes two of these stories unique is that the first story, "The Whosis Kid" is a model for Wilmer Cook, the baby-faced killer from "The Maltese Falcon". The second story, "The Gutting of Couffignal" has an ending that Hammett uses near the end of, again, "The Maltese Falcon". So, in essence, Hammett plagiarizes himself, twice, to create one the greatest detective stories in history. Not a bad feat. The other three stories in this collection are also equally excellent reading. In fact, some aficionados state that The Continental Op is a better character than Sam Spade or The Thin Man. No matter what your opinion is, Dashiel Hammett will always be a timeless writer and a pleasure to read for the mystery lover.