Fox... excels at telling a story that is rich in historical detail ... The tale of her life as a brazen and shrewd crime boss, and then her escape and life as a fugitive, is enthrallingly cinematic, and Fox captures every detail.
Fox... a seasoned journalist and author, [writes] in a breezy, fast-paced style ... The Talented Mrs. Mandelbaum serves up a platonic ideal of the criminal mastermind.
Ms. Fox has produced a vivid portrait of Mandelbaum in this rich recounting of her life and times. Best-known as an obituary writer for the New York Times, Ms. Fox knows how to synthesize facts and shape a story ... Sometimes, the extraneous information threatens to swamp the Mandelbaum story, especially as there are also copious footnotes on nearly every page. But Ms. Fox is too skilled a writer to slow the momentum for long.
There’s not much for a biographer to work with, so Fox gives us Mrs. Mandelbaum’s world instead — which is very entertaining. The problem comes at the end, when Fox asks the big question: how did Mrs. Mandelbaum go from struggling immigrant in the 1850s to New York City crime boss twenty years later? ... It’s a tribute to Fox’s storytelling talents that this unique and mysterious woman has come to life.
Through immersive storytelling, Fox delves into the intricate web of alliances and betrayals that shaped Mandelbaum’s world ... It’s a riveting exploration of resilience and ambition in the face of adversity. Fox’s narrative prowess and meticulous research make this a must-read for history enthusiasts and fans of gripping storytelling alike.
Rollicking ... After decades of books about 1920s bootleggers and the rise and fall of the 20th-century Mafia, The Talented Mrs. Mandelbaum is a genuinely fresh story of American crime and culture.
Fox successfully tells this story by letting colorful characters stand out ... With copious notes and research, Fox offers a tale as madcap and thrilling as it is illustrative of American history and culture. The Talented Mrs. Mandelbaum is riveting for fans of both history and entertaining storytelling.
Throughout this extraordinary life story, Fox explores larger issues of how organized crime grew during the Gilded Age of municipal corruption and stark inequality ... Fox succeeds in rescuing a once-notorious public figure from historical obscurity.
