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Manhattan Mayhem: An Anthology of Tales in Celebration of the 70th year of the Mystery Writers of America
Manhattan Mayhem: An Anthology of Tales in Celebration of the 70th year of the Mystery Writers of America
Manhattan Mayhem: An Anthology of Tales in Celebration of the 70th year of the Mystery Writers of America
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Manhattan Mayhem: An Anthology of Tales in Celebration of the 70th year of the Mystery Writers of America

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

4/5

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About this audiobook

Take a crime-filled tour of Manhattan with this collection of all-new mystery stories compiled and edited by Mary Higgins Clark—with contributions by Lee Child, Jeffrey Deaver, Ben H. Winters, and others.

From the streets of Harlem to the winding paths of Central Park to the high-rise towers of Wall Street, Manhattan is brimming with motivation, opportunity, means…and unsolved mysteries. In this new collection of stories, brought together by Mystery Writers of America and edited by bestselling suspense author Mary Higgins Clark, neighborhoods in the borough come to life—or death—with their own cases to be cracked. From the Flatiron District (Lee Child) to Greenwich Village (Jeffrey Deaver), from Times Square (Brendan DuBois) to the NY Public Library (Susan Isaacs), this collection of fifteen original short stories will lead listeners all over the Big Apple.

LanguageEnglish
Release dateJun 2, 2015
ISBN9781491542637
Manhattan Mayhem: An Anthology of Tales in Celebration of the 70th year of the Mystery Writers of America
Author

Mary Higgins Clark (Editor)

Mary Higgins Clark, #1 international and New York Times best-selling author, has written thirty-four suspense novels. Her books have sold more than 100 million copies in the United States alone.

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Reviews for Manhattan Mayhem

Rating: 3.8869047797619047 out of 5 stars
4/5

84 ratings25 reviews

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  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Absolutely outstanding collection of stories! What an awesome tribute to the 70th anniversary of MWA.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This is one of the best anthologies of crime stories that I have ever read. All the stories are set in Manhattan, but they range in time from the early 1900's to the early 2000's. The settings take in the many neighborhoods of New York, from Sutton Place to Chinatown, from Central Park to Harlem. Edited by Mary Higgins Clark, authors include well-known names (Lee Child, Jeffrey Deaver) and many other award-winning writers. This is a unique and gripping collection of stories. Highly recommended!
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    A collection of 17 short stories.

    ****The Five-Dollar Dress by Mary Higgins Clark - A young woman's grandmother has recently passed away. While going through her things she finds a vital clue to a murder that happened long ago.

    *****White Rabbit by Julie Hyzy - A young woman is reading a copy of "Alice in Wonderland" near the Alice in Wonderland statue. A persistent man approaches her and insists on making small talk until he finds out why she chose to read that book near that statue on this particular day.

    *The Picture of the Lonely Diner by Lee Child - I didn't understand this one.

    ***Three Little Words by Nancy Pickard - A young woman with a few weeks left to live makes a bucket list.

    ***Damage Control by Thomas H. Cook - After finding out about his former foster child's death, a man thinks back to the time they were a family and what led to his decision that she could no longer stay with him and his family.

    ***The Day After Victory by Brendan Dubois - An old street sweeper is cleaning up after New York celebrates the end of the war when he tries to strike up a conversation with a man in an alcove.

    *****Serial Benefactor by Jon L. Breen - In his younger years, when he was a broadway actor, a serial killer took the lives of those who weren't very well-liked within the theatre. Figuring it was someone he knew, this old man has been trying to solve this 'whodunnit' for many, many years.

    **Trapped! by Ben H. Winters - Written as a play. The detective tries to find out who killed the producer.

    **Wall Street Rodeo by Angela Zeman - A young boy pays $5 to hear a story from an old con man in the hopes the old man will remember where he stashed his fortune.

    **Copycats by N. J. Ayres - Three boys who were friends when they were young are deployed in World War II together along with another guy from their neighbourhood. What paths do they take after the war?

    **Red-Headed Stepchild by Margaret Maron - A young girl gets revenge on her new step-mother and her daughter.

    ****Sutton Death Overtime by Judith Kelman - An obnoxious reporter attends a monthly gathering of the top New York mystery writers. After promising not to give anything away to the public about what the writers say, he spills his guts after one woman spews out the plot of her next true-crime novel. I did not like the ending at all.

    *Dizzy and Gillespie by Persia Walker - I didn't like this one.

    **Me and Mikey by T. Jefferson Parker - Two brothers, who are nothing alike, grow up in a Mafia family.

    ****Evermore by Justin Scott - Edgar Allan Poe and a bank robber time travel together to pull off a heist.

    **Chin Yong-Yun Makes a Shiddach by S.J. Rozan - A mothers youngest son needs her to get in touch with his sister, a private investigator, because his girlfriend has been kidnapped and held for ransom. Instead of getting a hold of the sister, she takes things into her own hands and makes a shiddach in the process.

    **The Baker of Bleeker Street by Jeffery Deaver - An Italian baker wants payback.


    Overall I liked the book.

    I won a hardcover copy through BookLikes from Quirk Books. Thank you. It's an attractive book with nice pictures.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Some very enjoyable stories and a few clunkers which I happily skipped!
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Manhattan Mayhem is an anthology of crime stories that take place in various parts of the city. It was edited by Mary Higgins Clark and put out by the Mystery Writers of America. Each story is accompanied by a map indicating it's particular section of New York, such as Chelsea or Greenwich Village or the Upper West Side. They range in time from the 1900s to the early 2000s. I had previously read books by most of the authors, as all are pretty well-known and widely read. Some I was reading for the first time and enjoyed the introduction. I would recommend this collection to anyone who enjoys the mystery and crime genres and especially likes short stories.(Review based on complimentary Advance Reader copy.)
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Absolutely outstanding collection of stories! What an awesome tribute to the 70th anniversary of MWA.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This is one of my favorite short stories book . I like most of the authers . Lots of great stories and charactors. Highly recommend this book
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I received this book in exchange for a review. I love a good mystery and these short stories did not disappoint. These stories are all based in NY, and span many years in time. I was most intrigued with the older time periods. I also loved that in each story you were left to make your own conclusions. The clues are all there but the stories never actually say this is who did it and why. The book reminds me of the Ellery Queen Mystery series on TV when I was a kid. This book is definitely worth your time.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Mysteries are built on secrets and "the city that never sleeps" may have more than its share. The usual structure of a mystery is built on an investigation to discover the details of secrets, the clues that lead to the identification of how something was done and who did it. However, that is not the case with most of this collection. These are stories of the ordinary lives of people who reside in the neighborhoods of the New York City borough of Manhattan. We peek into the thoughts of a woman who is cleaning out her recently deceased grandmother's apartment in Union Square; we meet a woman in Central Park who is nervous about the stranger who is chatting her up; in the Flatiron district, a despairing man sits in a park, awaiting his fate to overtake him; we peer into the ethnic customs in Little Italy and Chinatown and into the social classes in the Upper West Side, Harlem and Hell's Kitchen. In short, these are the collected stories of people going about their daily affairs, criminal or innocent. We see the minutiae of these character's lives, how they get along with their neighbors, how they deal with the death of a loved one, where they work and what they eat. None of them expect the twist their lives will take when they discover that things they thought unimportant harbor a secret. The reader, in turn, realizes that the clues to the reality that the secret hides have been presented to her throughout and the story abruptly morphs from a pleasant drama of manners into a mystery! Realizing this and trying to suss out the reality behind the story before it is revealed is the joy of these stories and, indeed, all mysteries.I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Not really a fan of short stories but most of these were intriguing enough to hold my attention.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    The best thing about this book is its presentation. The maps showing the area of the city where the story takes place are just wonderful, and make the book worth having on your shelf. I would have expected to have a sense of Manhattan after reading all the stories, but some are seriously lacking in portraying the sense of the city. I think I expected that the locale would be the important ingredient of each story. Everyone has a type of mystery that they enjoy and others that they don't, so no combination by so many writers is going to please everyone. True here. You will find some stories that you really enjoy and others that are so-so and probably a couple you don't like at all. I hope that the fact that it took over six months to receive this "early review" didn't influence my opinion!
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Manhattan Mayhem consist of short stories by Mary Higgins Clark, Lee Child, Jeffrey Deaver and more. The stories are good and definitely short. My problem is that just about the time you get your teeth into a story it's over. The book is good and if you are looking for a quick read then this is the book for you. For me I like a much longer story.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Others have noted that this isn't the evenest collection of short stores ever assembled, and I have to agree that a few left me cold, but others are wonderful, sort of perfect in their tininess. Mostly I think they leave you wishing for a longer, more filled-out version of themselves, possibly because the sort of person who would be interested in this collection is the sort of person who is used to reading at least some of the contributors at novel-length and, presumably, enjoys spending time with the characters. Some do, honestly, push the boundaries of what I think of as a "mystery" short story - i.e., no real crime to solve, no big murder reveal - but that doesn't make them bad stories, just unexpected. I wouldn't call this collection essential, but I would call it enjoyable, and I do think the gem is SJ Rozan's "Chin Yong-Yun Makes a Shiddach." The book itself is beautifully designed and put together and a pleasure to look at. I think it succeeds where a lot of similar written-to-order sorts of collections fall flat, and would definitely recommend it.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    It's always nice to have a bunch of short stories to read at bedtime. These stories by some of my favorite authors were quite enjoyable. I especially like Lee Child. However, it appears that this was strictly a commercial venture. That I do not like. Let the authors stand or fall on there own merits. Writing to just help fill in a commercial venture must be tedious at best.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Short stories set in different times in different parts of the island of Manhattan, all with endings that aim to surprise the reader, all surrounded in some kind of mystery.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I finally received this book that I won in April. I enjoy a good mystery and this collection was very enjoyable. Sometimes you just want to read a short story which made this collection good for those times. The collection contains many mysteries by well known authors so pick up a copy and enjoy.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    ***Won in a LibraryThing Members giveaway*** Really just a mediocre collection of mystery stories. Mediocre in that for every good story there was one to cancel it out. The first few were strong and it finished strong but the middle was a bit of a slog. And since these stories are so fast, that is hard to do. Overall it was passable both in the sense it did not fail but also that it should be passed over.A very nicely produced hardcover from Quirk Books. Pictorial boards with a paper band on the front. Each story is illustrated with a black and white photograph taken in the neighborhood where the story is set. Maps also accompany each story. Marbled endpapers, frontispiece, introduction by Mary Higgins Clark and a message from the MWA.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I received this book from the members giveaway on LibraryThing. Manhattan Mayhem by Mary Higgins Clark is a collection of mystery and suspense stories written by members of the Mystery Writers of America in celebration of their 70th anniversary. All of the stories take place in New york City. Initially I was pretty excited to have won this book and was anxious to read it. I found the first few stories quite good but then I think they went downhill after that. I didn't expect all of the stories to appeal to me, but I think there were more that I didn't like than I did. Some of stores seemed to drag on and offered very little mystery or suspense. My favorite story was Three little Words by Nancy Pickard. I also enjoyed the stories authored by Mary Higgins Clark and the Lee Child. Loved the old black and white photos at the beginning of each chapter!
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This is a nice anthology! The story about the woman with cancer was enjoyable and entertaining. However, some of the stories were a little weak and uninteresting. But overall, a good collection of short stories! :)
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    You'd think that I'd have heard about the Mystery Writers of America before now but I guess I've just been stumbling around in the dark. There was the time that I reviewed their cookbook but that's quite different from the collection of short stories that comprise Manhattan Mayhem. It introduces the reader to a variety of writing styles, tropes, and authors which you may or may not have heard of (along with a list of their written works which will be added to my TRL). I really enjoyed the pace of this anthology. Not only is the reader bounced around to different areas of Manhattan but also to different time periods. It's a grab bag where you're left asking, "What's going to happen next? Is it a story about the mob? Is it a cold blooded murder? Will it be obvious who are the good guys and the bad guys?". This would probably be an excellent choice for "book to take while on vacation". For fans of crime and/or mystery stories, you can't go wrong with this one.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I was between books. I’d just finished one and had a week to go beforeManhattanMayhem I started those books I purposely set aside for vacation. I needed a filler. A short story book was just the answer. I could switch around, not read them all and not feel any the worse. I knew Manhattan Mayhem, edited by Mary Higgins Clark, had stories by a few authors I like, primarily Thomas H. Cook, so I thought I’d give it a try. What did I have to lose?Well, I would have lost a lot because it is totally enjoyable…a little unpublicized gem. Manhattan Mayhem was published to commemorate the Mystery Writers of America’s 70th anniversary. The hazy photo of the Empire State Building on the cover portends what you’ll find inside. Each story takes place in a different section of Manhattan-Sutton Place, the upper East Side, the Flatiron District and Central Park to name a few. At the beginning of each story is a photo of some area landmark and a small map for those of us not familiar with Manhattan’s various neighborhoods to identify where the action takes place.The authors include Mary Higgins Clark, Thomas H. Cook, Jeffrey Deaver, Julie Hyzy as well as authors I hadn’t heard of before reading the book. The always ethereal writing of Cook is a tad less so in his story Damage Control, but the mystery is present in the misinterpretation (or is it a misinterpretation) of actions and words. It can drive a man crazy. The take off on the play Death Trap in Trapped by Ben Winters is just as suspenseful as the play. The remake of Cinderella in Margaret Maron’s The Red Headed Stepchild is, while you know the ending, totally amusing. I could go on, but I’m sure you’d rather read the stories.I think my favorite thought must be S. J. Rozan’s Chin Yong-Yun Makes a Shiddach which only goes to show that mothers are mothers regardless of their ethnic origin.There is a mystery for every type of mystery lover in Manhattan Mayhem.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    A wonderful read for mystery-lovers and Manhattan-lovers! A wide variety of short stories and beautiful photographs of the locations featured in the book.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    “Manhattan Mayhem” is a collection of seventeen short stories from the Mystery Writers of America to celebrate the organization’s seventieth anniversary. In addition to the Mary Higgins Clark tale, the roster of authors is impressive and includes Lee Child, Jeffrey Deaver, T. Jefferson Parker. Julie Hyzy, Nancy Pickard, Thomas H. Cook, Brendan DuBois, Jon L. Breen, Ben H. Winters, Angela Zeman, N. J. Ayres, Margaret Maron, S. J. Rozen, Judith Kelman, Justin Scott, and Persia Walker.The inclusion of iconic photographs of the various New York locations where each of the crime stories takes place is a nice touch. Mystery fans can explore the Flatiron District with Jack Reacher, visit the white rabbit statue in Central Park, and celebrate victory in Times Square. Readers will find this volume, with its wide variety of tales, a true delight. Highly recommended.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Manhattan Mayhem, edited by Mary Higgins Clark for the 70th Anniversary of the Mystery Writers' of America (MWA), holds an entertaining variety of NYC stories by such notable mystery writers as Margaret Maron, Jeffery Deaver, Lee Child, and Jon L. Breen, along with the opening story by Mary Higgins Clark herself. With seventeen in all, it's an anthology using a diverse array of time periods, something a history buff as myself likes, but what adds to the enjoyment and makes it truly a standout from other anthologies are the illustrated maps of each selection's neighborhood and the great photographs accompanying every entry. Actually, the books' clever cover is a map of Manhattan and it marks off in what neighborhood every contributing writer's story takes place. I thought it a book that I might just meander thorough, but after every story, I opted for another, and then another, and I got to the last story in a rather unexpected short amount of time. But then, it is after all, about New York City, where it's said life and minutes fly by.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    First off I did not read this whole anthology. I only got to read a sampler that had 4 stories that are featured in this collection. They are Three Little Words by Nancy Pickard, Chin Yong-Yun Makes A Shidduch by S.J. Rozan, Trapped by Ben H. Winters, and The Day After Victory by Brendan DuBois. I liked all of the stories but was not really feeling S.J. Rozan's story. However all of them did have the great feel of the theme of this anthology "Manhattan Mayhem". My favorite story was Three Little Words. For a short story the author really wrote with such passion and emotions. Instantly I shared a connection with the characters in this story. I was a little sad when the story ended. Than there is Trapped which I liked the concept of this story. A story within a story. A classic murder story with a twist. The Day After Victory is real. It touches on after the Japan War. Therefore I did like what I read and will have to check out this full anthology.