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Infamous Manhattan: A Colorful Walking Tour of New York's Most Notorious Crime Sites
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July 14, 2026
A guidebook to Manhattan crime.
Roth makes a clever take on traditional travel guidebooks. In this case, he is showing tourists famous crime scenes in Manhattan. The borough is broken up into districts (chapters) with references to addresses, mass transit, and a brief synopsis of what happened. The crimes run from the first murder in the 1630s up through the early 1990s. The crimes are overwhelmingly murders, but there are other crimes - frauds, perversions, and more. The writing is short. Roth aims to tease the audience into either moving on with the tour, or researching cases for themselves.
I would have liked to see more images. The few images within the book focus on the perps and the victims, not the locations. Even a modern image of a modern building where there was once a more picturesque murder scene would have added more flavor to the guidebook feel. The writing is clear and concise. Roth summarizes the cases very well without the emotional appeal that often accompanies such brief entries. That professionalism waivers with the case of Albert Fish.
Overall, Roth offers a fascinating delivery for what is otherwise an encyclopedia of Manhattan murder. The clarity of his writing style combined with the unique format was worth the extra star while the content alone probably earned the book 3 stars. The material is dated. I suspect many of the locations and restaurants have changed since publication. It remains an enjoyable and quick read.
Roth makes a clever take on traditional travel guidebooks. In this case, he is showing tourists famous crime scenes in Manhattan. The borough is broken up into districts (chapters) with references to addresses, mass transit, and a brief synopsis of what happened. The crimes run from the first murder in the 1630s up through the early 1990s. The crimes are overwhelmingly murders, but there are other crimes - frauds, perversions, and more. The writing is short. Roth aims to tease the audience into either moving on with the tour, or researching cases for themselves.
I would have liked to see more images. The few images within the book focus on the perps and the victims, not the locations. Even a modern image of a modern building where there was once a more picturesque murder scene would have added more flavor to the guidebook feel. The writing is clear and concise. Roth summarizes the cases very well without the emotional appeal that often accompanies such brief entries. That professionalism waivers with the case of Albert Fish.
Overall, Roth offers a fascinating delivery for what is otherwise an encyclopedia of Manhattan murder. The clarity of his writing style combined with the unique format was worth the extra star while the content alone probably earned the book 3 stars. The material is dated. I suspect many of the locations and restaurants have changed since publication. It remains an enjoyable and quick read.
Displaying 1 of 1 review