Wednesday, June 10, 2015

Manhattan Mayhem edited by Mary Higgins Clark


I grew up on mystery stories.  My very favorite form of them is in short story.  When I saw this book,  I had to have it...

Quirk Books sent me a copy to review (thank you).  It has been published, so check with your local bookstore for a copy.

There are seventeen stories in this book and they all are set in various Manhattan locations during different eras and different seasons.  I've never been there but I have a good friend that lives there.  Several of the photos in the book depicted parts of the town that I've seen on Christmas cards or photo tours online so it was a bit like visiting there.  Most of the folks I met in this book I'd just as soon not meet in real person.  Many of them were not nice people.

Mary Higgins Clark has the first story in the book.  It's called The Five-Dollar dress. It's a short tale with a whopper of an ending.  A very subtle touch with a punch at the end.

As in New York itself, the stories are populated with every nationality and every wage range you could imagine.  Everybody does what they must to survive.  Those who are weak, don't.  One underlying theme here that I found interesting is that people with red hair aren't to be trusted.  It's like it marks them as a bad person.  Maybe it was only coincidental but I found it amusing.

The stories read quickly and are a fascinating look at times gone by.  I was pleased to see that all the stories were different from anything I've read before.  They kept me reading and wondering what was going to happen.  A few of the authors are:  Lee Child, Thomas H Cook, Jeffery Deaver, Margaret Maron, T Jefferson Parker and S J Rozan.  With these names you know the stories have to be worth a read.  You might even find some new authors to read.  That's the fun of short stories.

9 comments:

Michellesmama said...

I dont understand the significance of the red dress being found in the truck. What is mary trying to tell us?

Journey of a Bookseller said...

Since I last read that in 2015, I don't really remember the story. I think it was a dress she'd owned years ago and had come across again.

Michellesmama said...

I think it was the dress of the murdered girl but so what. What did it mean. Does anyone know?

Michellesmama said...

I think it was the dress of the murdered girl. So what? Does anyone know what it means?

Journey of a Bookseller said...

This from another reviewer on Good Reads, Terry Lynn: The Five-Dollar Dress by Mary Higgins Clark: Jenny's Gran has died and the newly minted attorney went back to New York from San Francisco to empty out the apartment. Her grandmother's dying words were that "Barney didn't kill her. Vincent did." Jenny finds an old file of clippings her grandmother kept about the murder of an old friend who modeled a designer's dress that would be sold to women for $5 each back in 1949 who died in one of the dresses. When Jenny begins to investigate the cold case she discovers to her horror that the real killer of the 6 weeks pregnant model was way too close to home.

You might want to look it up on there and read more reviews individually. Or maybe someone else might chime in with their take on it!

Michellesmama said...

Thanks. Im apparently not bright enough to figure it out with the clues given.

Michellesmama said...

Thank you. I know it tells who the killer is but the clues are too subtle for me.

Michellesmama said...

Im so embarrassed. I reread the story and now know who the killer is. Dont know why i couldnt understand the first time.

Journey of a Bookseller said...

Don't be embarrassed. Sometimes clues are real subtle. There are times I don't get it either.

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