Simple Art of Murder

"...[Chandler] flays his fellow crime-writers...as habitual dullards and tricksters--with almost the sole exception, I am glad to find, of Dashiell Hammett. Chandler also declares that no classic detective novel he has read, even 'Trent's Last Case' (singled out by most critics as the best ever written) really adds up, the trouble being that this type of fiction calls for a combination of qualities unlikely to be found together in one writer: if a cool-headed constructionist, he cannot suppply lively characters, sharp dialogue, pace and an acute use of observed detail; if any expert in recondite knowledge...he is apt to know nothing about the private life of the police."Chandler, Raymond is the author of 'Simple Art of Murder', published 1988 under ISBN 9780394757650 and ISBN 0394757653.