Manhattan Books

This book was well worth the read. Much better than the prequel Revenge is best served cold. This novel is action packed from beginning to end and "Tyrone"...you won't be able to get enough of him. Fast paced with lots of twists that moves you right along with the books. Just enough characters ...not too many things going on at once but no chance of boredom with the characters illustrated. Also the author did an excellent job of keeping Dakota and Morgan in the background (they were the main characters in the first novel)giving just enough attention to them so that prequel readers know what happens to them w/o dwelling on them as main characters. Get the book especially since it has been out for a few years and I am sure you can get it at a really cheap price.

As far as I am concerned anyway, I was really disappointed in the first book. All of the name dropping was irritating, and I was looking for this book to be the same, but it was so much better.Tyrone was at it again and it was interesting to see what he was up to this time and how he would get caught or get out of it. This book can be read without reading the first book, (wish I had known that before I bought it.) I hope the next installment is even better.

These authors (unlike some others) do a good job of combining their writing styles and thoughts and come together to write "Success..."

This book captures the exploits of Tyrone AKA Contessa Aventura. Tess is a cross dressing gold-digger whose past catches up with her in the worst way. There is also a love story or two thrown in here. Not to mention the ever-present and all too tired story line that includes reconciliation of a jail-bird brother with his widly successful younger brother.

By the way, these authors mentioned that they wanted to show African-Americans in a positive light, well "drug-dealing to feed the family cause the daddy walked out" didn't do it for me.

All in all, not a bad read and I finished it in one day.

Kristy Phillips
Sister 2 Sister Book Club

For those who know, the flamboyant Tyrone is at it again! For those who don't...start from the very beginning with Tracie Howard and Danita Carter's first book "Revenge Is Best Served Cold". Once again the duo of diversity has cleverly blended the elegance of high-powered living and the gritty lifestyle of the streets. Although not as dramatic as its predecessor, "Talk of the Town", "Success Is the Best Revenge" still holds its own. Sit back and relax as the leading characters bump into each other's lives causing controversy, greed and love (yes!), all boiled into one book. You won't be able to put it down!

This book is an elegant example of urban class. So many books illustrate lower class black society and never touch on black middle and upper class. This book is an eloquently written contradiction to the ghetto concrete jungle, low moral, lack of respect, education, class, family values and self esteem, portrade in too many other black books. Their were no drive-by's, baby mamas and cheap liquor in this book, just sheer elagance in its most dramatic form. The characters in this book could have been any race and that's what I love the most about this book!

This book is outdated, so not very helpful. Moreover, the suggestions are pretty obvious - I was hoping for a book that gave more specific ideas on what to buy and where (in other words, as an apartment-dwelling mom, what products make sense given the space constraints and where can these be bought today in 2007), where to go (for example, child-friendly gyms), etc. Although there were some suggestions, the suggestions were very outdated.

I don't know jack about babies and quite frankly dont wanna know right now, but if I ever did, then I would grab this book off the shelf in a hurry. Arthur, Misshula, & Pollock are the definitive authority on rearing the little monsters in the Big Apple. About the only thing they don't touch on is how to prevent your kids from becoming one of those dreaded Liberal NY Democrats. Beat those grandmothers to the punch, buy a copy for your friends who got pregnant to give themselves something to do during the current bear market.

Sure, raising kids in New York IS easy when you have the bucks these authors must have to shop at the stores they mention. This extremely yuppy guide smacks of elitism and left me feeling like an embittered "have-not" Additionally, there's not nearly enough information about the borroughs, not all of us are fortunate enough to live on the upper east side...

This is a great book for parents of toddlers. I found the writing funny, the locations mentioned of interest and great tidbits to make your shopping, eating or recreational experience better.

Fun Book!!

The title of this book is misleading. Thinking of Manhattan as "New York City" is a typically yuppie-provincial view--but in line with the voice of the authors. In addition, this book adds nothing you can't find in more reliable and complete sources such as Fodor's guides or the very many NYC web sites and news channels.

They fail to mention many of the exciting and educational attractions outside of Manhattan (to note are the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens, Prospect Park, and the zillions of Staten Island events). They often leave out vital bits of information such as directions or phone numbers (perhaps they take taxis everywhere?) They mentioned one book store that I know has been closed for some time.

It was particularly disturbing that the majority of the book is spent on shopping and eating, and less on the variety indivudual nuances of libraries, museums, and music centers.

On a personal note, I found the authors style to be grating. To me, some of their phrasing, "Food and Whine" as the title for the restaurant chapter and "Here comes the Bribe" for toy stores, are tell-tale as to how they view and interact with their children. It's not a pretty picture.

This is not a book I would recommend to anyone, especially to Native New Yorkers.

finish reading this for the life of me.
not much goes on in the first 50 pages, which is a marked contrast to her previous books.
ehh... boring.

I love Laura Anne Gilman's books, don't get me wrong, but Free Fall was the first time I actually delved completely into this series. The last couple of books I felt the Wren/Sergei relationship was a little too much. However, like her note at the beginning of the book says, she found out what love is, and she communicated that knowledge very gracefully.

So, the first issue to address is the relationship. In Free Fall it felt far more nuanced and real than it has before. Not even just with Sergei, but with PB as well.

Second, the first chapter's illustration of what the Silence was when it was founded impressed me a great deal. It allowed more empathy to be placed upon the Organization and really fell in with that old adage "the road to Hell is paved with good intentions."

Third, the plot is clean, and while there were one or two blips I noticed while reading... I can honestly say I don't remember what they were now, so they can't have been all that important. The plot also has so much more pathos than the others. I feel for the characters, even the minor ones, in ways that were not near as deep or as meaning full in Burning Bridges or its predecessors.

All in all this was a great book. There is learning and growing, and learning to get along and when to kick butt. Both things are necessary, and both are brilliantly written here.

In the twenty-first century, magic is not used by reciting spells, but by being able to channel current through their bodies. These adepts are called Talents and the non-human members of the Cosa Nostradamus are named Fatae. The Silence is a top secret private organization that protects the innocent from t abuses, but has become corrupted and believes the Talent and the Fatae must be eradicated.

Retriever Wren Valerie obtains objects for clients. She is separated from her lover Sergei the Null who can not channel current, but is addicted to it. If they make love and her current goes out of control, Sergei will die. He forgives her for their separation and hopes they can find a way back together. Meanwhile he uses his contacts inside the Silence to gather information for the upcoming confrontation with the magic users. Wren is in underground place for a meeting but it is really a trap and she is almost raped and killed by vigilante Nulls who label her as "it". However she kills them instead and is determined to breach the fortress of the Silence in order to retrieve kidnapped children with Talent being brainwashed for use in some Silence operations. Sergei and Wren's live-in cuddly demon P.J. plan to keep her safe as the three know something is not right with Wren.

This latest Retriever novel is one of the best tales in an exhilarating series due in part to the separation between Wren and Sergei. Readers see both sides prepare for the upcoming final battle with the current channel practitioners coming together to protect Magical Manhattan. Fans of fantasy and romantic fantasy will appreciate Laura Anne Gilman's superb FREE FALL.

Harriet Klausner

After the disastrous fight between The Silence (organization to protect humans from mages) and the Cosa Nostradamus (mages' representative) in "Burning Bridges," you know there's going to be war. Wren and Sergei have broken up because Sergei is addicted to the 'current' that's part of Wren's magical power and Wren knows being intimate will eventually kill him.

Most of the fatae have moved out of New York City, but P. B. has opted to remain with Wren in her tiny apartment. Wren and Bonnie, her downstairs neighbor vow to protect the demon (fatae) as best they can.

Wren's taking work on her own without Sergei to guide her. Her first assignment nearly gets her killed and convinces her that the Cosa needs to go to war against the Silence, otherwise the Talents will be wiped out.

"Free Fall" is a fast-paced, strongly written story of war. It's also a relationship struggle between Wren and Sergei, who truly do love each other.

I was in a quandary as to whether I'd read further after "Burning Bridges" but I'm glad I did. I don't know if Ms. Gilman will be writing more in this series or not, but I don't plan on reading more. For me, the end of "Free Fall" struck a nice coda to the five book series.

Free Fall continues three and half months after the battle in Burning Bridges, and in the aftermath most of the non-human magical 'Fatae' have left the city and the 'Cosa', the tenative coalition of all magical beings, is holding its breath waiting for the bigoted power organization, 'The Silence', to strike again -- the Silence won't be satisfied until all the magical beings including the Fatae and the human magic-using 'Talents' have been eliminated.

Wren begins the book trying for some normalacy in her post-Sergei world, she still has to pay the bills so she's on a Retrieval, but what should be an easy in-and-grab turns out to be a deadly trap. Wren manages to survive but the price of her survival is one that she doesn't truly understand and the backlash of her actions 'break' her in a subtle way. When minions of the Silence begin openly targeting the Talented, Wren convinces the Cosa to go on the offensive but using guerilla and sniper tactics instead of striking openly. But in order to make their effort effective Wren must search out the master of information, her ex-partner/ex-lover Sergei, who she believes betrayed her trust at the end of the last book. Sergei having accepted the undeserved verdict is very pragmatic, even though he misses Wren, as long as Wren is safe he can handle not being with her, but in order to make sure that she stays safe he continues to do the job the Silence trained him for -- gathering information -- so Sergei is ready with what Wren needs when she comes seeking his help.

I enjoyed Free Fall much more than the previous book, which ended on a sad note with the world falling apart and a high price paid by all who survived. But the Free Fall is still mired in wars and politics, where the first three books in the series were focused more on Wren's adventures. Here things are still a mess but I enjoyed the build-up, and all the pieces that fell into play along the way to Wren's 'big Retrieval' -- her contribution to the battle. I was happy to see P.B and Sergei play a big part in the narrative since I love both of these characters. I also liked that these two had finally resolved their adversarial relationship, even as far as coming to respect each other, both united in their love for Wren. Though Wren was definitely the still the star, I liked the way we got a bigger picture view of what was going on in the story with threads following P.B. and Sergei. Also the little peeks into what was happening within the walls of the Silence through Andre's eyes added to the tension too. This did mean that there was a fair amount of setup before the action kicked in, but when it did the book raced to a climatic finish with some surprises along the way. But this time the story ended on more hopeful note and luckily for us Wren's adventures are not over - the series will continue with "Blood from a Stone".


Staying Dead (Retrievers, Book 1)
Curse The Dark (Retrievers, Book 2)
Bring It On (Retrievers, Book 3)
Burning Bridges (Retrievers, Book 4)

There are also two very very very short Wren and Sergei prequels (unless you like the other authors in these anthologies look for them at the library)
Murder by Magic: Twenty Tales of Crime and the Supernatural 'Overrush'
Powers of Detection: Stories of Mystery & Fantasy "Palimpsest" (this also has a terrific little short for Simon Green Nightside fans)

I recently re-read this book for the second time after reading it when it first was published, almost 20 years ago. I find that this book is both entertaining and interminable. This is a collection of several short stories, and the first to feature stories about the "Family," which feature the characters of Bud, Dennis Savage, Carlo, and Little Kiwi (Virgil). Those stories are the finest in this book. The other stories are a mixed bag -- the final entry, "The Disappearance of Roger Ryder," I couldn't even finish (and I TRIED!). I'm looking forward to "Buddies," and eventually the rest of the books about the "Family."

I read this in high school. This was one of the first peices of gay "literature" I ever read and I fell totally in love with it (and what I imagined gay culture to be). Elitist, warm, fun and fantastical. I'm re-reading it now and I'm on Amazon looking for more work by the author. I hope I find something just as good.

Ethan Mordden's first entry in his decade-long series could easily have stood on its own as simply a collection of short stories, some of which share the same characters and continue situations. Fortunately for us, it is just the beginning, a somewhat modest introdction to his world. He lightheartedly tells of friendship and growing up and painfully yet without bitterness details the diffculty of maintaining a longterm gay relationship in a gay world that is still obsessed with sex and yet falling apart for that very reason. His characters are interesting, well drawn, and extremely well spoken always having the witty response and the snappy one-liner ready in any situation. Like real people, which no doubt they are, this group plans for the future, fears the present, and recalls its youth with fondness. I first read Ethan Mordden and "I've A Feeling We're Not In Kansas Anymore" when it was published in paperback in 1987. I was twenty and had grown up in a very rural setting and had moved to a fairly large city where here seemed to be something going on, but which I knew nothing about. I found the book at a local store and devoured it the same day having come across something I had never seen before. This wass the real life that I knew existed, but which seemed hidden and forcefully so. While it is not a book to educate the young gay male or the recently out gay male, it does tells not only of gay life in New York before AIDS, but also chronicles the universal establishment of a circle of friends that often becomes family in a most entertaining and literate fashion. Mordden is laugh-out-loud funny at times, culturally superior at times, and even lays on the line some of his great sadnesses and disappointments creating a widely multi-faceted picture of the life he knows and lives

I loved 'How Long Has This Been Going On' I thought it was a fantastic collection of characters and an accurate and revealing look at the gay lifestyle. The same can be said for this I guess, but in the much more specific microcosm of mainly fire island.Threaded together by a narrator named Bud, the book becomes collected stories from his friends and their varied experiences in and out of love. I couldn't help but wish by the end that the book was a simple straight narrative as opposed to short stories. The problem was that while some were very entertaining, others I found boring, and 22 years after it's been published the ideas no longer resonate as fresh. I think for me, the book is best approached as a time piece of a culture that morphs as quickly as the lights on the dance floor.

While the title might seem a little trite, it wasn't when the book was published and the vignettes told within are certain to hook the reader into reading and following the exploits of the members of this crew of buddies as they live their lives on the Manhattan-Fire Island axis of the 1970s. I caught myself laughing out loud on the train reading these stories, especially some of the actions of Little Kiwi; the interaction between the characters is so masterful that either Mordden is an incredible chronicler of his surroundings or has one of the most amazing imaginations of any fiction writer ever. The reader can picture the events vividly and they are believable. Highly recommended, and this book will hook you into reading the other three in the series, and hunger for more when they are completed.

I only wish I had the access to the maps that Augustyn and Cohen had in the preparation of this book. Unfortunately for the reader, these maps are not in the book. What's in "Manhattan in Maps" are photographs of maps which in the case all but 6 of the maps are reproduced in a manner which lets you see the outline of Manhattan and no detail in the map whatsoever. There should have been someone involved in the production of the book who was familiar with other books of this type and included for each map some section enlarged to actual size. Some of the maps featured appeared to have been reduced 10x such as a 72 inch map shrunk to 7 inches. The text is wonderful. If the book is every republished, I hope the editors take heed of the reviews here.

While I agree with one reviewer that the maps depicted in the book are small and difficult to read (more due to the apparent custom of making 17th and 18th century maps totally illegible in any case rather than the editors' layout of them), the commentary accompanying the maps is very illuminating and interesting. The authors also chose to use maps highlighting, for example, '70s-era police practice, '20s-era political classifications and a map of the subway along with the more conventional surveyor's maps; truly a very interesting collection. A good companion to any history of pre-20th century NYC, such as Gotham.

The maps are miniscule, reproduced to fit into a single spread, where they are squeezed between commentary. The type on them is so small and blurry that it was impossible to read, even with serious magnification. This book was a complete and total disappointment. Instead of an informative, legible reference, Manhattan in Maps is nothing more than a "coffee table" book, and not a very good one at that. If you're looking for maps you could actually refer to and learn from, this is not the book for you. Hopefully, someone will get the hint and put out a quality folio of these valuable maps.

This is a beautiful book for both those who are fascinated by maps and those with a deep interest in the history of New York City. The preface explains that, "The richness of New York's cartographic heritage is unique among the major cities of the world." It goes on to outline a number of reasons for this, including the city's founding by mapmaking mavens (the Dutch) during a cartographic boom time, its initial status as a commercial interest, its later status as a Revolutionary War battleground, and so on. The selections are spread more or less evenly throughout the four and a half centuries and each is accompanied by an excellent elucidating essay. My own favorites are some of the later, more thematic ones such as an 1834 fireman's guide, an 1842 water pipe diagram, an 1853 insurance company survey, the 1920 ethnic survey, and the 1973 midtown vice map.

Some reviewers have referred to this in an apparently derogatory manner, saying it is a mere "coffee-table" book, to which one can only say that it would be a welcome addition to any New Yorker's coffee-table. It certainly won't satisfy ultra-serious cartographers or historians, but the quality of the writing and research is well beyond what is commonly found in so-called mere "coffee-table" books. In addition to the usual sources (Library of Congress, British Library, New-York Historical Society, New York Public Library), the authors have tracked down maps in archives in Spain, Italy, Holland, and perhaps most impressively, about a third of those presented in the book reside in private collections. Indeed, it's somewhat baffling that people complain about the size of the reproductions -- just be glad they were made available to be seen at all! Not to mention the practical limitations of reproduction: the original dimensions of most of the maps range from 12" x 18" to 90" x 135". These maps were made to cover walls, general headquarters planning tables, no book could possibly make them legible! In some cases, portions of maps are blown up for a detail view, but these don't reproduce very well. The original photos and scans simply don't support the detail and the results are pixilated. This small production problem aside, the book is beautifully produced from a typographic and color standpoint, and is well worth having or giving as a gift to your favorite Manhattanite.

I know I'm jumping on the bandwagon here, but the maps are disappointing because they're too small to be scrutinized. The text, however, compensates greatly for this flaw. The chapters are concise but not a word is wasted. I found the section on the British invasion of Brooklyn as well-written and gripping as any thriller. I can only hope that they are planning to come out with a larger edition for the illustrations.

Must say, I really enjoyed Davis' other books such as "Chain Reaction" and "Endgame." After reading those, I wasn't expecting her to jump on the chick lit bandwagon. If you're into NYC designers and restaurant namedropping, this is the book for you. It was weak in plotting, and the character development seemed flat. Personally, I find this genre a yawn. There are, unfortunately, plenty of lackluster authors out there with nothing more in their heads than clothes, shopping and irritating dialogue, but too few who can put together good romantic suspense. The two stars are for accurate spelling and good karma left over from her earlier books. If you're more in love with your Manolo's than your man, you might grade it higher.

Endows one with a healthy distaste for the pretentious socialites style of living, whilst at the same time providing a likeable host of characters.

Surrounded by a menagerie of friends, Vanessa runs a young business in matchmaking, and her biggest competition is her old mentor, Althea - a rather ferociously canny matchmaker of old.

Genuinely caring about her clients, Vanessa has been makng matches for all the wrong reasons, which work for all the right! Staunchly denying the necessity of LOVE for a match, she instead operates on 'like attracts like' and a few other really boring monologues peppered throughout the narrative.

When a martini-fuelled catch up delivers an irresistable challenge, Vanessa is catapulted into the society pages with some disastrous results. Enter the enigmatic millionaire, Mark Grayson - the object of her intentions - matchmaking intentions that is.

But as she is knee deep in her matches she finds she has neglected her own heart. .

The obvious parallel to Emma, the ending and plot was relatively predictable, but kept smoothly and entertainingly playing out with Davis' mostly fresh players enjoyable dramas.

Dee Davis has provided another enjoyable fluffy romance, and I am inspired to read her other novels.

kotori Sept 2007

I've read quite a few of Dee Davis' books and this one fell short. Snappy lines, but dialog was not up to her usual -- the writing style has changed from her earlier works, and in my opinion, not an improvement. Not sure where the problems lie, just not as engaging as her earlier works. Not her best and not as enjoyable as I had expected and was anticipating.

I really enjoyed this book. It was a great way to spend a rainy Saturday. The rivalry between the two matchmakers and the matches was a riot. I really liked all the insider information about Manhattan, too. I would definitely recommmend this book to others -- it's a big step above most chick lit fare.

Okay, I loved this book. The writing was spot-on New York, and the stories of the matchmakers were right out of the New York Times! I'm a huge Jane Austen fan, so the Emma subtext running through the book was fabulous. If you're a reader who likes books that are smart, funny, with lots and lots and lots of heart, I highly recommend this book.

This is an outstanding historical account of the Manhattan Project. I read it when I could see the lights of Los Alamos outside my kitchen window at night. Amazing work, and chilling developments, took place there. This is a well-researched documentary of those events.

In THE DAY THE SUN ROSE TWICE, Ferenc Morton Szasz recounts the story of the Trinity Site Nuclear Explosion that occurred on July 16, 1945. The author does an excellent job tracing critical details leading up to this historical process which changed American history and the world around us.

The book is broken down into nine chapters beginning with the origins of Los Alamos. However, Szasz begins by discussing the conceptual revolutions of human knowledge during the late nineteenth-early twentieth century.

The illustrations included in the book give the reader incredible insight into the actual events. "The ball of fire," a photograph taken of the nuclear explosion in New Mexico offers a visual effect of the actual event. Photographs of the people show the reader who was involved in the project. The map explains the large area in the state of New Mexico consumed for this project.

Overall, I found the book to be easy to read, although
I knew very little about the subject matter. I did, however, gain more insight into nuclear weapons. My favorite chapter was "The Blast." Szasz spoke to a number of people from all walks of life who experienced the blast of the Trinity. I chose this book as one of my book reviews for a special topics history class and found it to be an excellent read.

My rating is really 3 1/2 stars...as the previous reviewiers have stated, this book has a lot of previously unknown information and is really written for the Trinity Test/Site enthusiast. Could be a lot more exciting, but well worth the read and should probably be read before you read R. Rhodes "Making of the Atomic Bomb".

If you read one book about the bomb, read Richard Rhodes's "The Making of the Atomic Bomb". I read Szasz as a refresher a few days before visiting the Trinity site, and found that it had a number of nice bits of information. (The Trinity site can be visited on the first Saturdays of April & October.)

A short book that focuses on the Trinity test of the first nuclear 'device' (not a bomb, because it wasn't cable of being dropped from a plane). Worth reading if you're as deeply interested in this subject as I am.

Keith Blanchard's premise is that the fabled sale of Manhattan Island by the Manhata Indians to the Dutch is actually incorrect. Instead, the island was sold a second time by the starving Dutch colony to a Dutch man who sympathized with the Manhata, married a Manhata woman and insisted on a deed for the island so that he and his heirs could hold it for the native peoples who did not understand these legal machinations.

It's an interesting premise, but one that was explored 4 years earlier by Larry Jay Martin in his book "Sounding Drum". Interestingly, it was also a quirky comedy, it also involved a romance, the mafia and Indian casinos.

Regardless of those similarities, this book should be judged on its own merits. I liked the historical section and the actual mystery of the deed. I truly disliked Blanchard's description of Hansvoort and his friends. Page after page in this book involve the bar scene and the consumption of literally gallons of alcohol. If Blanchard was trying to show us the dichotomy between Hansvoort's pointless career and the empty lives he and his friends live and that of the Indians he failed because he did not explore the lives of the Indians.

On the whole, this book failed to go farther than just being OK for me - the white characters were unlikable, the Indians were mysterious and barely developed as characters and the mafia characters were menacing until it came to actually menace - then they were duds.

All in all, I give this one a grade of C.

This is a very light mystery novel built around different type characters than the normal police, detective or CIA agent. A young struggling ad exec is approached by a Native American, attractive attorney-to-be with very mysterious questions. While trying to overcome his attraction to her he learns her secret. Her heritage and legal background puts her in the unique position of knowing that he may be the rightful heir to all Manhattan.

Now, isn't this the type fantasy we would all like to dream about? Well, except if you are in the title insurance business of course. The novel becomes a light trip through this fantasy, the past history of Manhattan, and the growing relationship between the two main characters.

This is an enjoyable, light read for the beach or a plane trip across country. Not really breaking new ground but an excellent idea for a first time novelist.

After reading this I was reminded of both, "The Nanny Diaries" and Jack Finney's New York time travel book, "Time and Again." The Deed is a snarky read and the idea of a young ad exec becoming the sole owner of Manhattan is intriguing. It will keep you amused for a couple of days. I'll be interested to see what Blanchard comes up with next.

It's nice to read a stress-free book about a modern day treasure hunt! The author has a very good ear for dialogue. I can't wait to read more of his works.

The most positive thing that can be said about Keith Blanchard's debut novel THE DEED is the fact that he hits one out of the park when it comes to writing about New York City. Although the novel seems a bit sophomoric at times, Blanchard, editor-in-chief of Maxim magazine, also does a solid job in bringing to life his story's protagonist, Jason Hansvort.

Set in 1999 in Manhattan, before the horrific terrorist attacks of September 11th, Jason is struggling with his career in a top ad agency. He doubts himself, he doubts his career choice and he especially doubts the current product he's supposed to be peddling. But Jason, fortunately, is a direct descendent of Pieter Hansvoort. And so Blanchard's novel tries to convince the reader that somewhere there is a deed that, after over 400 years since the Manahatas sold the city that never sleeps to Dutch settlers, will rightfully allow Jason to claim his long lost inheritance.

The deed becomes known to Jason after he receives a mysterious phone call from Amanda, a gorgeous Native American lawyer who is determined to find the Hansvoort descendent, even though his name has been shortened throughout the centuries. Jason is skeptical at first, but after his boss gets removed from the ad agency, Jason walks after a hilarious spat with his autocratic supervisor Diana and the cat-and-mouse chase for the deed really heats up.

Blanchard not only possesses the fine ability to translate the history behind the discovery of Manhattan, he also does yeoman's work in describing the sale of the island and the effect it had after the Manahata people sold it to the Dutch. The novel's prologue begins in New Netherland (New York City) in 1643. While the prologue is vital reading to understand the jest of the story, the author wastes 16 pages before the first chapter and never, ever returns the reader to that time period. He could have easily worked the entire prologue into the story and made it much more interesting.

The author tragically does an injustice to Amanda's mother as well. Mary is doing all she can to thwart her husband from allowing organized crime to establish a casino on their Long Island reservation. Blanchard crafts Mary perfectly but leaves her by the wayside far too often.

THE DEED is definitely worth reading as Blanchard illustrates the mystique of Gotham before the destruction of the World Trade Center flawlessly. He writes in great detail about Wall Street --- and the history behind it --- and the Statue of Liberty. In years to come, people who will want to understand The Big Apple and all its uniqueness should rent Ric Burns's splendid PBS documentary New York and pick up a copy of THE DEED to accompany it.

--- Reviewed by David Exum

A short, yet boring story. The facts are not all there. Poorly written, and just a waste of paper. Save your money and go to a couple of movies.

Mr. Rose needs to go to school on how to write, as his skills are very amateurish to say the least.

While I found some of the material in this book interesting, in the end, I was quite disappointed. The story is about a hoax that was purported to have occurred in the 1800's. In 150 pages of prose, the author describes the hoax and many anecdotes regarding the period. However, the final chapter lays out the case that the hoax probably never occurred in the first place - the hoax was a hoax. Since I probably would never have read the book knowing this, I felt I had wasted my time. On the positive side, the book was received as a gift, it's a short read, and I was able to learn a few things about the period. I would buy this book only if you have absolutely nothing else to read.

There have been some great hoaxes in the history of the United States, but this book describes one of the most bizarre. In the early years of the 1820's New York City was booming. Thousands of immigrants were arriving from Europe and they were moving into crowded and festering slums. Garbage was rarely collected and there were masses of people struggling to survive. The story is that among all this building, a rumor was started. Supposedly, all the added weight was going to cause part of the city to shrink into the water.
In response to this "crisis" a grandiose plan was developed. A giant crew of men would be assembled and they would saw the island in half, tow it out to sea, flip it over and then reattach it in a way that would repair the problem. Supposedly, a call went out to the mass of unemployed people and thousands responded. Men were tested to see how long they could make sawing motions under water and barracks were built to hold the masses of workers and their families.
Unfortunately, the story of a hoax is the true hoax. There is no historical record of this ever happening, it seems to have been one of those urban legends that seems to get started as a joke only to snowball into something much bigger. This book sets the historical context for the story and the presentation generally maintains that tone when the aspects of the hoax are presented. Even though I had never heard of the hoax, there were times when I thought that perhaps a couple of extremely talented con-men had pulled it off. At the end, the author admits that there was never any plan to saw New York in half and he describes some of the more elaborate hoaxes down through American history. As I closed the book, I found myself wondering if it would have been possible for someone with the flimflam skills of a P. T. Barnum to actually carry out such a charade.

I picked up this book while in NYC because I was looking for a gift for a friend back in Seattle. The flyleaf got me hooked. The author spins a delightful tale that skillfully illuminates an era (almost 200 years ago) when hoaxes were regularly promoted in "the press" and which gives meaning to the admonition of "let the buyer beware!" The hoax which is at the heart of the book is placed in realistic historical context.

Highly recommended for anyone interested in historical NY as well as those of us who think we're not interested in history. A very good tale well told.

I bought this book after seeing a glowing review in the New Yorker. It's the story of a hoax that took place in the early part of the nineteenth century. It's full of great information and wonderful anecdotes. The story itself is fantastic. That this could have ever happened is beyond belief. For people interested in something out of the ordinary, you won't be disappointed.

Ms. Tillman engages the reader through excellent narration, vivid descriptions, and developed characters. Simply a work of art.

Ms. Tillman has once again created another memorable narrator and voice. NO LEASE ON LIFE is a remarkably quick read, rife with interesting characters and observations. I enjoyed the joke motif throughout the book. Clearly, the BIG JOKE is on anyone willing to live in NYC.

Lynne Tillman's No Lease on Life is a brilliant and magical novel. Impossible to put down, it's utterly, wildly hilarious. It's a darkly comic tale of mayhem in pre-millennial New York City, shot through with such lawless, wicked humor that one may find oneself laughing uncontrollably, out loud. It traces 24 hours inside the troubled mind of Elizabeth Hall -- a woman on the verge of committing a violent crime. Written in an urgent, percussive prose, it's irresistable, hurtling forward with the momentum of a rock thrown through a window. Opening with a barbed joke about drive-by shootings, No Lease on Life takes place in a dangerous, hilariously funny realm beyond the margins of good manners and good taste. Jokes appear throughout the novel, like rude remarks blurted out, unexpectedly, at a cocktail party. Hugely entertaining in themselves, the jokes accentuate the kinetic, jaunty rhythm of Tillman's writing. They poke serial killers, Jews, WASPS, African Americans, Puerto Ricans and everyone in between. Nothing is sacred. Brimming with in-your-face sass, the narrator is impossibly entertaining. Her "inner voice" is foul-mouthed and ill-tempered, as well as captivating and completely charming. Elizabeth's burning, unrealized ambition is to be a killer. The people she'd enjoy murdering are the loud-mouthed morons who noisily invade her East Village block every night. They amuse themselves by throwing garbage cans and throwing vomiting contests. They make it impossible for Elizabeth, and everyone else, to get any sleep. Pissed-off, irritable and murderous, Elizabeth isn't a nice character. Yet she elicits the reader's sympathy immediately. She's Every Chick who's ever tried to keep her block clean, or her hallway free of garbage and needles. She's a one-woman urban avenger in a world where barbaric, dehumanizing forces have mysteriously taken over. Tillman's novel is suffused with violence, humor, and the percussive energy of urban life. It's an acid-etched valentine to New York

I am a fan of Lynne Tillman's fiction and happened to notice that the Kirkus review for her new novel NO LEASE ON LIFE badly misrepresents the book. The reviewer just doesn't get it, especially the crack about "too much familiar material". I thought that the hero of the book had a very unusual way of seeing her environment - which is pretty urban and tough - but, in spite of its faults, she was deeply engaged with the lives around her. I found it to be a wonderful and believable (and fun) way to react to our modern cities.

Check out the fantastic (and accurate) review from the Los Angeles Times, which got it right and will give potential readers who might indeed want to buy the book a chance to get the story right. There's also, if you haven't seen it, a very clever, to-the-point commentary on NO LEASE IN LIFE under "Briefly Noted" in the lastest New Yorker.

By the way, Cast In Doubt is my favorite book of hers. Check it out, too.

This book is about nothing. But not the funny kind of nothing as in Seinfeld. If you read the back of this book, you get the impression that this woman takes revenge on the people in the streets making all the noise. Let me save you the suspense, she does NOTHING! All she does is complain complain complain, and in the end she finally loses it and, oh my, throws a few eggs out the window that don't even hit the perpetrators. They land on the street. Nothing is resolved at all, there's no plot, there's random jokes all through the book that start out corny and then become unneccessarily offensive and very inappropriate (since when are incest jokes funny?) not to mention annoying when you're trying to figure out why this book was even written. It's important to note that half of everything in this book never happens. It's all about what this woman "would do if..." and "then she would say..." Well,if I "would" have known that I'd gain nothing from reading this book, I "would" never have bought it in the first place.