Classic Private-Eye Detective Novels: A Starter Pack

Our crime columnist recommends books starring hard-boiled investigators who are ready to travel down the meanest streets to root out the darkest truths.

By Sarah Weinman

March 19, 2025

When the hard-boiled private-eye detective story was born about a hundred years ago, the United States was a few years removed from a pandemic, grappling with Prohibition and reeling from the influences of far-right ideology on government. With chaos rampant, the tidy, puzzle-minded investigations of Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot and their ilk didn’t satisfy readers who wanted a different type of fiction — something more visceral and less trusting of both authority and law enforcement.

The P.I. novel has evolved over time, but one thing remains constant: The private investigators at their hearts are beholden to no one — not even their clients — as they chase down corruption, poisonous family secrets and more. These books showcase the most memorable of these detectives, ready to travel down the meanest streets to root out the darkest truths.

I want to start with the GOAT

The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett(1930)

When private-eye stories first started appearing in pulp magazines like “Black Mask,” they were just OK. It took a former Pinkerton operative with a stripped-down style and a fiery rage roiling underneath to make art out of pulp, as Dashiell Hammett did in dozens of stories and a handful of novels. Chances are, when picking up “The Maltese Falcon,” you’ll think of the movie with Humphrey Bogart, but Hammett’s private eye, Sam Spade, is a rougher animal who knows when he’s being played for a sap, and definitely doesn’t let romantic feelings get in the way of the truth.