First We Take Manhattan – New York Stories

When I think of New York City, I invariably picture the Manhattan skyline. I guess it is because it is featured prominently in so many films and tv shows (cue the Law & Order theme song).

It is also an extremely popular setting for novels. Think of the many acclaimed authors have had much success setting many of their novels in Manhattan, authors such as Jeffery Deaver and Louis Auchincloss.

At my branch library we have had repeated success with a fiction display entitled “It Happened in Manhattan“, which indicates to me that many leisure readers do enjoy a Manhattan setting.

If you enjoy stories set in Manhattan, here are some recent titles that may also appeal to you:

City of Dreams : a novel of Nieuw Amsterdam and early Manhattan, by Beverly Swerling.

A historical family saga which follows six generations of the Turner family, who were driven out of England for illegally practicing surgery. The talent Lucas Turner establishes a practice in the fledgling New York in 1661 and the future seems very bright for him and his sister Sally. If only Dutch physician Jacob Van der Vies hadn’t also decided to immigrate to the new world, bringing his secrets with him…

Midnight Voices, by John Saul.

Master storyteller John Saul will give readers chills as they read about a recent widow and her young children, who have been kindly befriended by a handsome stranger and move into his apartment in Central Park. As with most horror novels, things are not quite what they seem and people, however friendly, are not quite who they are supposed to be…

The Rackets, by Thomas Kelly.

A rough and tough thriller combining the conflicting worlds of NYC politics and organized crime. Acting on frustration and impulse, Jimmy Dolan physically knocks down a well connected mobster and then has to pay the price. Fast pacing and vivid descriptions of NYC make for an enjoyable Manhattan reading experience.

Manhattan Noir 2: the classics, edited by Lawrence Block.

“Seventeen sure winners by such literary heavyweights as Edith Wharton, Stephen Crane, O. Henry, Damon Runyon, Donald E. Westlake and Joyce Carol Oates.” ~ Publisher’s Weekly

Too Much Money: a novel, by Dominic Dunne.

A posthumous novel from famous New Yorker Dominic Dunne, a book which humorously comments on the rarefied world of Manhattan’s social elite. Both scathing and sympathetic in his observations, Dunne provides a insider’s glimpse into the world of the super rich and what happens when the wealthy go wild!

Living on Air: a novel, by Anna Shapiro.

A tender coming of age novel, where 14 year old suburbanite Maud discover a strange and exciting new world among the avant garde artists of 1960’s Manhattan.

Say That to My Face: fiction, by David Prete.

A gritty coming of age story set in 1960-70s. Italian-American Joey Francone learns to survive on the streets of Yonkers. Not having the best role models in neighbourhood, Joey ends up traveling to hell and back, well actually a drug run to Jamaica, only to find himself in even more desperate straits.