Red Harvest

Published in 1929, Red Harvest stands as a defining moment for Dashiell Hammett and the hard-boiled genre. The novel runs 207 pages and features the unnamed Continental Op, a character rooted in Hammett's own time with the Pinkerton Detective Agency. Set in the mining town of Personville, now known as Poisonville, the story begins when two rival gangs tear the community apart after a labor dispute. The Op arrives to clean up the mess but quickly realizes that the local corruption runs so deep he must play both sides against each other to survive.[edit]