The Continental Op (an unnamed operative of the Continental Detective Agency) arrives in Personville, a corrupt mining town controlled by rival gangs.

Hired to clean up the town, the Op employs brutal and often unethical methods, playing the gangs against each other in a bloody and violent power struggle.

Red Harvest is a bleak and unflinching portrayal of corruption and violence, showcasing Hammett's hard-hitting prose and cynical worldview.

The novel's relentless action and morally ambiguous protagonist make it a cornerstone of the hardboiled genre.