The Mike Hammer Collection Volume 1 (I, the Jury / My Gun Is Quick / Vengeance Is Mine)

By Mickey Spillane

Book Overview

A triple-shot anthology featuring the first three Mike Hammer novels--from the undisputed master of detective fiction. In Mickey Spillane's classic detective novels, the action exploded in a bone-crunching catharsis. Men and women didn't make love, they collided. Tough brutes used their fists to drive home a message. Tougher broads used guile. And no one's morals were loftier than the gutter. No apologies. Little redemption. They rendered critics powerless, shocked intellectuals, inspired a new wave of pulp mayhem, and left the public hungry for more. Given their hot, fever-pitch prose and breathless pacing, Spillane's Mike Hammer novels quickly became one of the most successful series in publishing history--an innovative, no-holds-barred, ultravisceral explosion of sex and violence that made Hammer a literary legend, and Spillane, one of the bestselling authors of all time. After fifty years, neither has lost their power to sucker punch the reader. Find out for yourself in this omnibus featuring the first three Mike Hammer novels by the living master of the hard-boiled mystery... Includes: I, the Jury My Gun is Quick Vengeance is Mine!

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0451203526
• ISBN13: 9780451203526
• Release Date: June 2001
• Publisher: Berkley Books
• Length: 528 Pages
• Weight: 1.02 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 5.3" x 8.0"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

The hardest of the hard-boiled

Spillane's books can be found at used bookstores or online for cheap, but buy these new collections and see how fast you can read three books at a time. I tore through these yarns fast and can't wait for the third set. Spillane does more for me than Chandlier or Hammett, though I love their books too, but the Mike Hammer stories are cool, tough, brutal, sexy, post-war stories with all the right slang. Mike Hammer is brutal, sure. Maybe even cruel. But he is an avenging angel, always seeking revenge for a friend, sometimes for a stranger, but always to set things right. Or at least as close to right as he can make it with his fists and his slabside .45.

Babes, Blackmail and Murder

Very good treatment of what i would describe as the ultimate in hardboiled fiction. The first three novels of Spillane's anti hero keep one reading late into the night. Each novel better than the last. Nice package.

Amazing How Good!!!

I have a B.A. degree in English literature, and I rarely read novels anymore. Being 46 years old and never having read a Spillane novel, I was always interested in his popular works. My father and older brother always read Spillane.After reading these early works, I was amazed with my total enjoyment of each mystery. The prose improved with each subsequent work. The stories were woven with fantastic charm, wit, and style that can only be attributed to Mickey Spillane. His being a part of the World War II generation added to his distinct writing background/style.I loved his continuing characters of Mike Hammer (Private Detective), his secretary Velda, and Police Chief, Pat Chambers. I am now "hooked" on Spillane's Mike Hammer novels and cannot wait to read more. BRAVO!!! What fun and exciting reading. Mickey Spillane is an important part of American Pop fiction.

Hard-boiled Mystery At Its Very Best

In this first installment of "The Mike Hammer Collection", Mickey Spillane's hero leads us through a trio of fast-paced, hard-hitting and thoroughly enjoyable stories. Each of these contain a rollercoaster of plot twists, a barrage of action sequences along with a ton of girls, who are as dangerous as they are pretty. I personally feel that with his first three Mike Hammer stories Mickey Spillane has created masterpieces.Well worth buying.

Confirms Spillane's Brilliance

As a contemporary mystery writer with my debut novel in initial release, I have often heard Mickey Spillane and his Mike Hammer character scoffed at by the writers of today. This collection, containing three early works, shows clearly why Spillane should be respected by authors and mystery fans of our time. Mike Hammer, the ultimate hardboiled American private eye, is a magnificent creation. Spillane's plots move swiftly, and the world of Mike Hammer is created in painstaking, and consistent, detail. Each of the novels in this collection clearly shows why Spillane has had the impact he has had on the mystery genre. He should not be scoffed at when he deserves to be admired. Read this collection, and you will find out why.