OK folks,
Following our recent discussions regarding the Masterwork series (SF and fantasy) I thought I would try to see if I could source a list of the less discussed and now defunct Crime Masterworks series.
Well, somewhat to my chagrin (although hardly surprising given the publisher’s track record on maintaining their other Masterworks lists) I discovered that there did not appear to be an online list of this series, so yours truly went trawling through Amazon in attempt to compile said list.
Why you ask? Well, mainly because having already become annoyed with the lack of maintenance shown with the other lists, I felt the members here, particularly those keen on crime fiction like Conn, deserved to at least have a listing of what was potentially available.
The following is what I came up with, based on order of publication date of the paperback editions. I know the first 1-9 were numbered in the series (I own a copy of Number 1 – Maltese Falcon) but beyond that, as some publications were released on the same day, I have no clear way of being absolutely certain what the number allocation was. Therefore, I’ve simply listed these more or less in publication order.
From what I can ascertain, the final Crime Masterworks publication, Savage Night, was published 16 December 2006.
I must confess to only having heard of maybe 1/4 of those listed but then I’m not a crime aficionado.
If anyone has a confirmed list, e.g. the two Ians, of the Crime Masterworks series or is able to categorically confirm any titles that were never actually published in this series, then please post here.
Cheers…
*Some observations/comments:
1. I noticed that a handful of the titles had the term Abandoned beside them, which may indicate they were never published. However, as I was able to find other references without this tag, I suspect 2-3 may possibly not have been published under the banner of Crime Masterworks but the vast majority of those listed I am confident were published.
2. A select few of the listed titles appear to have also been published in Hardback, as is currently occurring with the SF Masterwork edns. However, as all of these titles were also published in paperback, this list is based on the paperback publication dates.
3. Like the other Masterwork series, several names appear to crop up a number of times in the series but it seems a lot more prevalent here than in the other 2 lists. Arguably, this compromises the series but as I’m not an authority on crime fiction, then perhaps these really are the “greatest” crime novels of the past, although given the fact there are no novels by e.g. Raymond Chandler, I remain yet to be convinced.
Crime Masterworks Series
The Maltese Falcon – Dashiell Hammett
Sherlock Holmes's Great Cases – Arthur Conan Doyle
Other Paths to Glory – Anthony Price
The Deep Blue Goodbye - John D. MacDonald
The Getaway - Jim Thompson
Double Indemnity - James M. Cain
The Murders in the Rue Morgue – Edgar Allan Poe
Ice - Ed McBain
The Laughing Policeman – Sjowall & Wahloo
The Choirboys - Joseph Wambaugh
The Glass Key - Dashiell Hammett
The Hollow Man - John Dickson Carr
The Big Clock - Kenneth Fearing
Rogue male – Geoffrey Household
The Specialty Of The House – Stanley Ellin
The Killer Inside Me – Jim Thompson
Dance Hall Of The Dead – Tony Hillerman
The Best Of Father Brown – G K Chesterton
Night webs – Cornell Woolrich
Briarpatch – Ross Thomas
Black Money – Ross MacDonald
Beast in View – Margaret Millar
The Blue Room – Georges Simenon
Mildred Pierce – James M. Cain
The Dain Curse – Dashiell Hammett
Hammett – Joe Gores
Pop 1280 – Jim Thompson
Sadie When She Died – Ed McBain
The Steam Pig – James McClure
Red Harvest – Dashiell Hammett
The Eighth Circle – Stanley Ellin
Anatomy Of A Murder – Robert Traver
The Old Vengeful – Anthony Price
The Stain On The Snow – Georges Simenon
The Grifters – Jim Thompson
The Eighth Circle – Stanley Ellin
Roseanna – Sjowall and Wahloo
After Dark My Sweet – Jim Thompson
The Continental Op (short story collection – Dashiell Hammett
Interface – Joe Gores
Nothing More Than Murder – Jim Thompson
Serenade– James M. Cain
Midnight Plus One – Gavin Lyall
A Hell Of A Woman – Jim Thompson
The Labyrinth Makers - Anthony Price
The Big Knockover – Dashiell Hammett
The Postman Always Rings Twice – James M. Cain
A Swell-Looking Babe – Jim Thompson
Savage night – Jim Thompson
Following our recent discussions regarding the Masterwork series (SF and fantasy) I thought I would try to see if I could source a list of the less discussed and now defunct Crime Masterworks series.
Well, somewhat to my chagrin (although hardly surprising given the publisher’s track record on maintaining their other Masterworks lists) I discovered that there did not appear to be an online list of this series, so yours truly went trawling through Amazon in attempt to compile said list.
Why you ask? Well, mainly because having already become annoyed with the lack of maintenance shown with the other lists, I felt the members here, particularly those keen on crime fiction like Conn, deserved to at least have a listing of what was potentially available.
The following is what I came up with, based on order of publication date of the paperback editions. I know the first 1-9 were numbered in the series (I own a copy of Number 1 – Maltese Falcon) but beyond that, as some publications were released on the same day, I have no clear way of being absolutely certain what the number allocation was. Therefore, I’ve simply listed these more or less in publication order.
From what I can ascertain, the final Crime Masterworks publication, Savage Night, was published 16 December 2006.
I must confess to only having heard of maybe 1/4 of those listed but then I’m not a crime aficionado.
If anyone has a confirmed list, e.g. the two Ians, of the Crime Masterworks series or is able to categorically confirm any titles that were never actually published in this series, then please post here.
Cheers…
*Some observations/comments:
1. I noticed that a handful of the titles had the term Abandoned beside them, which may indicate they were never published. However, as I was able to find other references without this tag, I suspect 2-3 may possibly not have been published under the banner of Crime Masterworks but the vast majority of those listed I am confident were published.
2. A select few of the listed titles appear to have also been published in Hardback, as is currently occurring with the SF Masterwork edns. However, as all of these titles were also published in paperback, this list is based on the paperback publication dates.
3. Like the other Masterwork series, several names appear to crop up a number of times in the series but it seems a lot more prevalent here than in the other 2 lists. Arguably, this compromises the series but as I’m not an authority on crime fiction, then perhaps these really are the “greatest” crime novels of the past, although given the fact there are no novels by e.g. Raymond Chandler, I remain yet to be convinced.
Crime Masterworks Series
The Maltese Falcon – Dashiell Hammett
Sherlock Holmes's Great Cases – Arthur Conan Doyle
Other Paths to Glory – Anthony Price
The Deep Blue Goodbye - John D. MacDonald
The Getaway - Jim Thompson
Double Indemnity - James M. Cain
The Murders in the Rue Morgue – Edgar Allan Poe
Ice - Ed McBain
The Laughing Policeman – Sjowall & Wahloo
The Choirboys - Joseph Wambaugh
The Glass Key - Dashiell Hammett
The Hollow Man - John Dickson Carr
The Big Clock - Kenneth Fearing
Rogue male – Geoffrey Household
The Specialty Of The House – Stanley Ellin
The Killer Inside Me – Jim Thompson
Dance Hall Of The Dead – Tony Hillerman
The Best Of Father Brown – G K Chesterton
Night webs – Cornell Woolrich
Briarpatch – Ross Thomas
Black Money – Ross MacDonald
Beast in View – Margaret Millar
The Blue Room – Georges Simenon
Mildred Pierce – James M. Cain
The Dain Curse – Dashiell Hammett
Hammett – Joe Gores
Pop 1280 – Jim Thompson
Sadie When She Died – Ed McBain
The Steam Pig – James McClure
Red Harvest – Dashiell Hammett
The Eighth Circle – Stanley Ellin
Anatomy Of A Murder – Robert Traver
The Old Vengeful – Anthony Price
The Stain On The Snow – Georges Simenon
The Grifters – Jim Thompson
The Eighth Circle – Stanley Ellin
Roseanna – Sjowall and Wahloo
After Dark My Sweet – Jim Thompson
The Continental Op (short story collection – Dashiell Hammett
Interface – Joe Gores
Nothing More Than Murder – Jim Thompson
Serenade– James M. Cain
Midnight Plus One – Gavin Lyall
A Hell Of A Woman – Jim Thompson
The Labyrinth Makers - Anthony Price
The Big Knockover – Dashiell Hammett
The Postman Always Rings Twice – James M. Cain
A Swell-Looking Babe – Jim Thompson
Savage night – Jim Thompson
