num_pages: 132
description: Banned from publication in the U.S. due to its mature subject matter, Solomon's Vineyard is a tense, hard-boiled work starring Karl Craven, a non-nonsense guy who predates detectives like Lew Archer and Mike Hammer. Craven is out to rescue a wealthy heiress from a twisted cult. The novel's famous opening passage --FROM THE way her buttocks looked under the black silk dress, I knew she'd be good in bed. The silk was tight and under it the muscles worked slow and easy. I saw weight there, and control, and, brother, those are things I like in a woman. I put down my bags and went after her along the station platform--explains why this book was too hot for domestic publication. (Initially published in 1941 in the UK, a heavily bowdlerized version came out in the '50s, but the less said about that one the better.)
language: English
title: Solomon's Vineyard
titlecomplete: Solomon's Vineyard
characters: Charley Pendis, Thomas McGee, Piper Sommes, Mary Jane Bronson (1910-1936), Tabitha Peck (1920-1937, Piper, Karl Craven, Anette Nordstrom (1911-1939), Bethine Gleason, Penelope Grayson, Ginger Boiton, Carmel Todd, Oscar K. Johnson, Joe Manno, Carter Jeliff, Grace Robins (1913-1938), Caryle Waterman, Pug Banta, Gus Papas
genres: Mystery, Noir, Detective, Mystery Thriller, Banned Books, Novels, Hard Boiled, 20th Century, Crime
ratings_count: 371
places: Paulton, Paul County
publisher: Black Mask