<<So I know I'm taking aim at a sacred cow but does
anyone agree with me that Red Harvest doesn't hold up very
well?>>
No, I strongly disagree. This is my favorite Hammett novel
and one of the very best examples of the hardboiled genre. By
the way, what's so complicated about the plot that it would
put off the modern reader? Hammett's plot twists are nothing
compared to Michael Connelly's, for example. As to the
writing itself, Hammett's is clearly experimental and
original, with a particular black-and-white magic that, at
least for me, is as fresh and vivid as ever.
<<Was this ever a popular success in novel
form?>>
I remember reading that it was moderately sucessful in its
day; on the other hand, it has stayed in print continuously
since it was published, so the cummulative number of readers
must be huge by now.
Bu the way, you should read Whitfield's Green Ice, another
hardboiled masterpiece from that era. Besides being
hardboiled, this one has definite noir elements, and has been
pointed out as possibly the first noir novel, years before
Cain.
Regards,
MrT
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