Fox... excels at telling a story that is rich in historical detail.

Fox... a seasoned journalist and author, [writes] in a breezy, fast-paced style.

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.

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?.

Through immersive storytelling, Fox delves into the intricate web of alliances and betrayals that shaped Mandelbaum’s world.

Rollicking.

Fox successfully tells this story by letting colorful characters stand out.

A captivating biography.

Throughout this extraordinary life story, Fox explores larger issues of how organized crime grew during the Gilded Age of municipal corruption and stark inequality.