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Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency Paperback – October 7, 2014

by Douglas Adams (Author)
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 6,727 ratings
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From Douglas Adams, the legendary author of one of the most beloved science fiction novels of all time, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, comes a wildly inventive novel of ghosts, time travel, and one detective’s mission to save humanity from extinction.

DIRK GENTLY’S HOLISTIC DETECTIVE AGENCY
We solve the whole crime
We find the whole person
Phone today for the whole solution to your problem
(Missing cats and messy divorces a specialty)

Douglas Adams, the “master of wacky words and even wackier tales” (Entertainment Weekly) once again boggles the mind with a completely unbelievable story of ghosts, time travel, eccentric computer geniuses, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, the end of the world, and—of course—missing cats.
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Previous page
  1. Book 1 of 3
    Dirk Gently
  2. Print length
    272 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publisher
    Gallery Books
  5. Publication date
    October 7, 2014
  6. Dimensions
    5.5 x 0.7 x 8.38 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    1476782997
  8. ISBN-13
    978-1476782997
  9. Lexile measure
    960L
  10. See all details
Next page
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The chilling story of the abduction of two teenagers, their escape, and the dark secrets that, years later, bring them back to the scene of the crime. | Learn more

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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Douglas Adams, a legend of imaginative fiction, ushered in the advent of comedic science fiction with The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. The book developed into a hugely successful series of five novels. The Dirk Gently series—Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency and The Long Dark Tea-time of the Soul—helped cement Adams as one of the most successful and beloved authors in science fiction.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Gallery Books; Reissue edition (October 7, 2014)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 272 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1476782997
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1476782997
  • Lexile measure ‏ : ‎ 960L
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.7 x 8.38 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 6,727 ratings

About the author

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Douglas Adams

Douglas Adams

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Douglas Adams (1952-2001) was the much-loved author of the Hitchhiker's Guides, all of which have sold more than 15 million copies worldwide.

Photo by michael hughes from berlin, germany (douglas adams Uploaded by Diaa_abdelmoneim) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
6,727 global ratings
Mass Market Cover
3 Stars
Mass Market Cover
I was expecting the cover shown on the Amazon sales page. Instead I received a "mass-market" paperback with a photo of the actors from the TV adaptation. Not thrilled by the cheesy cover, especially when no warning was given that covers may vary.
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Top reviews from the United States

Christin Keck
5.0 out of 5 stars A great start--but unfortunately not finished
Reviewed in the United States on August 29, 2020
Verified Purchase
The first book in what promised to be a fantastic series, stands on its own as a fine example of what a good writer Douglas Adams was. It's plotting and characters are memorable, and there are moments that are laugh-out-loud funny. The problem is not with this first book. It's a more mature piece of writing than Hitchhiker was, and more cohesively done--but it really didn't have as good a follow-up.

If you want to see anything that even resembles the two television series that are available, you won't find it in this book. Whoever produced those apparently only read the jacket blurbs and not the actual novels. Which is too bad. Because the books ARE better than both British-made and American-made films. The books will startle you by how utterly divorced they are from both.

They did Adams a real disservice by doing that, but don't miss this novel because it isn't like the movie. This one is very, very good.
15 people found this helpful
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Mike D
4.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant..nothing much else to say really!
Reviewed in the United States on June 16, 2013
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I love all of Douglas Adam's books so it will come as no surprise I enjoyed this one too. As with all his other novels, the central character in this one is a bit of a wacky, eccentric sort who has a few gifts and has decided to play detective in order to capitalize on the gullability of his clients.

I just loved reading this book and the other "Dark Tea- time Of the Soul". They are just great, easy to read, funny, enjoyable and light fun reads that make me wish so much that Douglas Adam's had remained alive longer so we could have had even more pleasure enjoying his unique way of constructing a good yarn.

I wont go into the plot here, many paople know this book backwards as do I. I have read it a multitude of times over the years and intend to carry on doing so every couple of years.

Just enjoy it, it is an utterly unique style of book, juts like all the others in the Hitch-Hikers series. Thanks for reading my review!!
One person found this helpful
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Zachary W. Dyer
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant cast, great story
Reviewed in the United States on September 15, 2011
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Douglas Adams' brilliant detective novel Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective agency is brought to life in the same spirit as his Hitch Hiker's Guide series.
However where with HHG we have a radio series transformed into a novel, in Dirk Gently we have the opposite. It's an entertaining romp using borrowed plot points from the unfinished Doctor Who story "Shada". Combining Time Travel, murder, possesion, and the interconnectedness of all things the novel and audio play create an enjoyable story to read and/or listen too.
I found this production actually easier to sit through then the book itself. Having been streamlined and reaaranged a bit to better fit the format of an audio drama. The cast is brilliant, special praise for Billy Boyd. A choice for Richard Mcduff I wouldn't have expected. I guess in my head he sounded different when I first read the book, but Billy Boyd takes the character well beyond anything I imagined.
Great overall if you can find a copy.
2 people found this helpful
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Reviewing My Stuff
3.0 out of 5 stars Tough to get through but fun when it’s fun
Reviewed in the United States on July 22, 2020
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There’s no doubt that the writing here is Douglas Adams. Clever and quick dialogue mixed with strange happenings. Dirk was a very fun character. But the first third of the book before he was introduced took me forever to get through. I really barely knew what i was reading. The payoff is good in the end when you see what the purpose of that first third was, but even still, the writing, to me, was dense and slow going. I might read another in the series just because I’ve always loved the other Douglas Adams that I’ve read, and I’d like to see if I’d like this more now that dirk has already been introduced, but I’ll wait a bit before I do.
2 people found this helpful
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Barkingmad
5.0 out of 5 stars Kindle Version Could Use Some Proof Reading but I am thrilled to have this book on my Kindle
Reviewed in the United States on March 31, 2013
Verified Purchase
There are a few minor word substitusions that vary from the original paper text. Some one who is a Douglas Adams die hard should proof read this Kindle version and take some notes to the publisher but other than that I could not be more thrilled.
I AM AN ENTHUSIASTIC FAN OF DOUGLAS ADAMS
I have read all of his books an embarassing number of times and probably always will . . . until I am so old all that comes to mind are memories of smells and earrings . . . (read the book).
I am greatful for the low price of these two Dirk Gently books I must say.
I wanted these two books on Kindle so badly that for years, every week, I would click the "I want to Read This On Kindle" button" as I went about my other explorations on Amazon. I have no Idea if it helped. I like to think I single handedly caused these great reads to become available on Kindle. Probably not. I probably only got one vote.
Because of the puzzling and bloody minded way the universe works, the interconnectedness of all things as it were, probably what had the most effect was my bloody minded photographing each page of a hard bound copy of this book so I could read it on my iPhone. Dambed if I didn't get twenty or so pages in to this mad project and during the same week the Kindle version came on the market.
Never underestimate the power of harmless crazy behavior. ( and or the interconnectedness of all things).

PS: viewing this Kindle book on a color capable device, iPad etc., the publisher has done an exemplery job of reproducing the original cover graphics; the book cover looks great ! Thank you. That is a pet peive of mine. I pay for a book and usually they provide some generic and ugly stand in.
6 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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G. John Smith
5.0 out of 5 stars Better than Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (which I loved.)
Reviewed in Canada on February 19, 2022
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Great book. Interesting read.
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Cliente Amazon
5.0 out of 5 stars Extremely funny.
Reviewed in Italy on March 8, 2023
Verified Purchase
I have never laughed this much reading a book. I love reading D.A.
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Hélio
5.0 out of 5 stars Perfeição
Reviewed in Brazil on April 13, 2018
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Assisti à série na Netflix e fiquei apaixonado! O livro é excelente, leitura cativante e envolvente! Recomendo a todos. Leitura imperdível
13 people found this helpful
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ojedamazo
5.0 out of 5 stars Libro en inglés
Reviewed in Mexico on March 16, 2018
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Buen libro, el detalle es que viene en inglés completamente y yo no me dí cuenta, pero me sirve para animarme a aprender.
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Lucía H
5.0 out of 5 stars GOOD
Reviewed in Spain on June 11, 2019
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GOOD
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