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The Ryer Avenue Story
Haunted by the night when, as children, they fled the scene of a homicide in a Bronx street, six characters searching for power and success are reunited when one of them threatens to divulge the secret about the murder. Reprint.
474 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published February 1, 1993
About the author
Dorothy Uhnak
35 books17 followersUhnak's first book was autobiographical Policewoman (1964), written and published while she was still a New York Transit Police detective.
Her debut fiction, The Bait (1968), received a 1969 Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America for Best First Novel (in a tie with E. Richard Johnson's Silver Street). ,The Bait was also made into a 1973 made-for-television film of the same title. It was followed by The Witness and The Ledger, which was adapted for the TV-movie and series Get Christie Love! starring Teresa Graves. All three novels featured Christie Opara, an NYPD detective assigned to the Manhattan District Attorney's Office, where Uhnak herself was assigned for many years.
Later works included Law and Order, which was made into a TV-movie starring Darren McGavin and The Investigation, which was adapted into a TV-movie, "Kojak: The Price of Justice", with Telly Savalas.
In her later years she suffered from depression. She committed suicide by a self-administered drug overdoes in 2006. She was seventy-six at the time of her death.
Her debut fiction, The Bait (1968), received a 1969 Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America for Best First Novel (in a tie with E. Richard Johnson's Silver Street). ,The Bait was also made into a 1973 made-for-television film of the same title. It was followed by The Witness and The Ledger, which was adapted for the TV-movie and series Get Christie Love! starring Teresa Graves. All three novels featured Christie Opara, an NYPD detective assigned to the Manhattan District Attorney's Office, where Uhnak herself was assigned for many years.
Later works included Law and Order, which was made into a TV-movie starring Darren McGavin and The Investigation, which was adapted into a TV-movie, "Kojak: The Price of Justice", with Telly Savalas.
In her later years she suffered from depression. She committed suicide by a self-administered drug overdoes in 2006. She was seventy-six at the time of her death.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
October 28, 2025
I loved the characters and the story.
July 11, 2014
I read this about 20 years ago and it was brilliant. Some of the best characters I have ever encountered. Now it's out of print and I can't find it. Would LOVE to read it again.
February 5, 2012
I have read this book 3-4 times. I list it as currently-reading because I am rereading it now. It is a memoir-like story of a group of young people similar to the author, Dorothy Uhnak, and her friends growing up in the Bronx. I found it just as I was beginning a 3 year long project in Region 1 of the New York City Public Schools.
Uhnak was a police officer who began writing policy mysteries at the end of her police career. She turned into a professional writer, winning some awards as a mystery writer, and contributing to movie and TV plots and scripts. The Ryer Avenue Story contains a mystery but "a secret" would be a more accurate descriptor.
I got to read about the Bronx when it was a much more thriving borough. The children live on Ryer Avenue, a group of boys and girls from the same area. The mystery involves something they did as young people and do not openly claim responsibility for until they are adults, most of whom are living successful lives. At this time the Grand Concourse was just that, a grand boulevard, with Loew's Paradise movie theatre where they go to view movies about the broader world.
The book begins with these young people killing a drunkard bully that had molested 1 or more of the young men. They used his own snow shovel in a large snow storm. This event shadows the lives of all of the principles throughout their lives. Another part of the plot concerns a boy they refused to befriend even though he was part of the killing; his anger at their refusal to acknowledge him and at later ways in which he was mistreated drives the climax, in which all these now adult and highly successful young people are threatened with having their childhood secret made public--and probably ruining their lives. The Bronx is also an "actor" in this story--which was the main reason I chose to read it in around 2003. The ending is satisfying although at first I thought it was too "easy." I like the book better with each reading.
Uhnak was a police officer who began writing policy mysteries at the end of her police career. She turned into a professional writer, winning some awards as a mystery writer, and contributing to movie and TV plots and scripts. The Ryer Avenue Story contains a mystery but "a secret" would be a more accurate descriptor.
I got to read about the Bronx when it was a much more thriving borough. The children live on Ryer Avenue, a group of boys and girls from the same area. The mystery involves something they did as young people and do not openly claim responsibility for until they are adults, most of whom are living successful lives. At this time the Grand Concourse was just that, a grand boulevard, with Loew's Paradise movie theatre where they go to view movies about the broader world.
The book begins with these young people killing a drunkard bully that had molested 1 or more of the young men. They used his own snow shovel in a large snow storm. This event shadows the lives of all of the principles throughout their lives. Another part of the plot concerns a boy they refused to befriend even though he was part of the killing; his anger at their refusal to acknowledge him and at later ways in which he was mistreated drives the climax, in which all these now adult and highly successful young people are threatened with having their childhood secret made public--and probably ruining their lives. The Bronx is also an "actor" in this story--which was the main reason I chose to read it in around 2003. The ending is satisfying although at first I thought it was too "easy." I like the book better with each reading.
March 23, 2013
A lengthy saga spanning 40 years of kids growing up on Ryer Avenue. That happens to be my old neighborhood but taking place 15 years earlier than my time on Ryer Avenue. Six kids grow up and all their lives take different direction but all interesting.i really enjoyed it and it could have gone on further and I would have been content to continue reading.
May 20, 2013
The "mother" of crime stories, one can never go wrong on a Uhnak novel!!!!
October 17, 2018
I had no idea what I was picking up when I grabbed this book. I thought maybe a thriller. It is anything but.
The Ryer Avenue Story tells of six children who conspire in the commission of one horrific act. They did not plan it, yet in some ways it was foretold. They agree to keep quiet about it forever, and most of them do just that.
Of the six, Willie was the outcast. He was a scheming, angry young person that nobody trusted. How he became that person was fairly obvious but nobody excused him for it. Even in taking part in this one act together, he was not considered "one of them", and he deeply resented it.
The children grew up, going different ways, and several of them made distinguished careers. At any time their lives could be ruined or seriously set back by a revelation of the secret they held together. Most of them made peace with it and found a way to move on. But it simmered under them all.
We get to know all of the characters well. The characters are well developed and interesting, and clearly different from each other. The author takes her time bringing us along, making the book one of those that allows us to live in their worlds. It is absorbing just following them through their lives, keeping an eye on that secret. Ultimately it surfaces in a way that brings them together, for better or worse.
I found the relations among the six to reveal some ethical complications, and to me the sorting through them was the most interesting part of the book.
The Ryer Avenue Story tells of six children who conspire in the commission of one horrific act. They did not plan it, yet in some ways it was foretold. They agree to keep quiet about it forever, and most of them do just that.
Of the six, Willie was the outcast. He was a scheming, angry young person that nobody trusted. How he became that person was fairly obvious but nobody excused him for it. Even in taking part in this one act together, he was not considered "one of them", and he deeply resented it.
The children grew up, going different ways, and several of them made distinguished careers. At any time their lives could be ruined or seriously set back by a revelation of the secret they held together. Most of them made peace with it and found a way to move on. But it simmered under them all.
We get to know all of the characters well. The characters are well developed and interesting, and clearly different from each other. The author takes her time bringing us along, making the book one of those that allows us to live in their worlds. It is absorbing just following them through their lives, keeping an eye on that secret. Ultimately it surfaces in a way that brings them together, for better or worse.
I found the relations among the six to reveal some ethical complications, and to me the sorting through them was the most interesting part of the book.
Read
July 25, 2021In 1935 on Ryder Avenue, Bronx, NY an unsavory man is dead. This story circles that event.
Willie Paycek was the son of the man who confessed to the crime and was executed. But Willie witnessed the beating of the victim. Willie had his own motives and kept quiet. In order to save another participant from ruin, he accepted a deal to take himself and the problem to Hollywood. There, he filled his dream of making movies.
Megan Magee was there at the scene and landed a blow to the victim. While at summer camp she contracted polio. But it made her strong. Despite being handicapped and a woman, she graduated from Medical School and became a well known Psychiatrist.
Eugene O’Brian found a way to be forgiven for his part in the crime by his confessor. He became a Catholic Priest. Because of his angelic looks and experiences in life, he was ascending to higher ranks within the church.
Charley O’Brian took part in the event. He became a soldier in WWII. After witnessing the carnage of the Nazi Death Camps, he made a decision to convert to his mother’s religion. He achieved happiness in his life as a husband, father and fireman.
Ben Herkel was the big Jewish kid at the incident. He also went to war. When his service was over he immigrated to Israel. The destiny he followed was with the new Israeli Government, eventually becoming a member of parliament.
Dante D’Angelo a smart good looking kid took charge of the scene after the beating, sending everyone off to safety. His providence was to marry a well to do young lady, whose family’s political connections helped Dante to attain success.
Willie kept track of everyone involved and everything they did. His motive was to get revenge because he was always the outcast. He wrote about it all. He was dying. The story was ready to be released. Then in a surprising turn, Willie was given a dose of his own medicine.
I found this book somewhat interesting, not spellbinding. I prefer a book I find hard to put down. This is not that book.
Willie Paycek was the son of the man who confessed to the crime and was executed. But Willie witnessed the beating of the victim. Willie had his own motives and kept quiet. In order to save another participant from ruin, he accepted a deal to take himself and the problem to Hollywood. There, he filled his dream of making movies.
Megan Magee was there at the scene and landed a blow to the victim. While at summer camp she contracted polio. But it made her strong. Despite being handicapped and a woman, she graduated from Medical School and became a well known Psychiatrist.
Eugene O’Brian found a way to be forgiven for his part in the crime by his confessor. He became a Catholic Priest. Because of his angelic looks and experiences in life, he was ascending to higher ranks within the church.
Charley O’Brian took part in the event. He became a soldier in WWII. After witnessing the carnage of the Nazi Death Camps, he made a decision to convert to his mother’s religion. He achieved happiness in his life as a husband, father and fireman.
Ben Herkel was the big Jewish kid at the incident. He also went to war. When his service was over he immigrated to Israel. The destiny he followed was with the new Israeli Government, eventually becoming a member of parliament.
Dante D’Angelo a smart good looking kid took charge of the scene after the beating, sending everyone off to safety. His providence was to marry a well to do young lady, whose family’s political connections helped Dante to attain success.
Willie kept track of everyone involved and everything they did. His motive was to get revenge because he was always the outcast. He wrote about it all. He was dying. The story was ready to be released. Then in a surprising turn, Willie was given a dose of his own medicine.
I found this book somewhat interesting, not spellbinding. I prefer a book I find hard to put down. This is not that book.
March 13, 2009
I picked this book up at a tag sale in the Northwest Territories of Canada, and if you ever find it - be for a Canadian quarter or 30 times that sum - pick it up. The lives of many different characters are interwoven around a single event. Though I normally don't enjoy books that progress to where we see the characters over the course of decades, the storylines are fascinating and you don't get the "jumpiness" that you do of certain books that try this technique.
September 6, 2011
Too many characters to remember and to become part of... it just takes a lot of your mind to recall who was this who was that...and the story of the past last for the first 250-300 pages... To be honest I didn't get to the actual story in this book which should have been the last hundred pages.
November 27, 2009
I loved this when I read it a million years ago, but when I tried to re-read it recently, I couldn't get into it.
Maybe one of those books that simply doesn't beg to be re-read?
Maybe one of those books that simply doesn't beg to be re-read?
November 24, 2015
Interesting characters. Insight into Rome and Church.
June 2, 2009
loved it
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews