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Nightmare in Manhattan
Nice reading copy, maybe not for collecting or giving. Book is complete, has markings inside, former Library Book shows heavy wear from reading and some fading. Clean, with tight binding. Our Family immediately and carefully packs each book in high-quality bubble lined, envelopes. We appreciate your business and welcome any questions.
- GenresMystery
190 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1950
About the author
Thomas Walsh
139 books4 followersWalsh began writing as a reporter for the Baltimore Sun and for the U.S. Army Historical Branch, but by 1933 he retired from journalism and turned to mystery writing. As a self-employed writer for thirty-six years, Walsh published more than fifty short stories and eleven novels--each set in the streets of New York City and depicting various elements of the city's vital population. His 1955 Nightmare in Manhattan, described as maintaining a consistent level of suspense throughout, received an Edgar Award for best first mystery and later became the successful film "Union Station", starring William Holden. Walsh's other novels include, Night Watch, Dark Window, Dangerous Passenger, The Action of the Tiger, and The Eye of the Needle, a 1961 Inner Sanctum Mystery Contest winner.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
July 4, 2013
Nightmare in Manhattan (1949)
This is a very strong crime novel, the first one I’ve read by Thomas Walsh and it’s the basis of a fairly well known film noir I’ve never read called Union Station. It is about a kidnapping in Manhattan and takes place, as the back-leaf tells us in “Manhattan Depot” (wink wink). Why they don’t just call it Grand Central Station in the novel is a mystery and I wonder if that was the author’s call or the publisher’s. Clearly accuracy was important to the author and practically the whole story takes place in the train station. The main characters are the six year old kidnap victim, little Ton Murchison, a tough railroad cop named Calhoun, the victim’s father’s secretary who saw the snatch, and, towards the end of the novel, the kidnapper himself. It’s suspenseful and cleanly written and he does this technical thing you don’t see very often where he smoothly switches attached 3rd person point of view from one character to the other. It’s always exciting to me to find these great writers that no one has ever heard of, though Walsh seemed to have some renown at the time. Guess I’ll read another one.
This is a very strong crime novel, the first one I’ve read by Thomas Walsh and it’s the basis of a fairly well known film noir I’ve never read called Union Station. It is about a kidnapping in Manhattan and takes place, as the back-leaf tells us in “Manhattan Depot” (wink wink). Why they don’t just call it Grand Central Station in the novel is a mystery and I wonder if that was the author’s call or the publisher’s. Clearly accuracy was important to the author and practically the whole story takes place in the train station. The main characters are the six year old kidnap victim, little Ton Murchison, a tough railroad cop named Calhoun, the victim’s father’s secretary who saw the snatch, and, towards the end of the novel, the kidnapper himself. It’s suspenseful and cleanly written and he does this technical thing you don’t see very often where he smoothly switches attached 3rd person point of view from one character to the other. It’s always exciting to me to find these great writers that no one has ever heard of, though Walsh seemed to have some renown at the time. Guess I’ll read another one.
December 18, 2019
1950 child kidnapping suspense thriller; the author’s first novel and an Edgar Award winner. Walsh had already published numerous short fiction works in Black Mask, Collier’s and The Saturday Evening Post.
A six year old boy is kidnapped and “Manhattan Depot” (a thinly disguised, for legal reasons I guess, Grand Central Railroad Station) becomes the hub of the action. A railroad detective, the boy’s nanny and the NYPD become involved in tracking the killers, one of whom is as evil a psychopath as you will encounter in the fiction of the time. Today, the Evil Ones come with much more window dressing and back story, but Walsh nevertheless does a fine job of portraying a character who is fatally twisted and out of control.
The main character, railroad detective Willy Calhoun is tormented during his efforts to save the child, because he had an earlier opportunity to apprehend the kidnappers, but blew it. The nanny, Frances, mistakes the cold professionalism of the police for not caring about the child and the relationship between Willy and Frances develops quietly throughout the story and is never a distraction from the relentless pace of the story.
Walsh does a wonderful job of maintaining suspense, through the near continuous movement of the detection/chase and through his description of the emotional turmoil undergone by the railroad detective, the nanny, the kidnapper and the boy himself. The railroad station is the hub of the action, but much of the dismantling of the kidnap crew occurs elsewhere; the setting is not static and the movement away from the station at times serves as a nice change in the pacing of the story, providing some relief from the claustrophobic tension surrounding the action in the train station. Walsh uses the railroad station as a character, that is the features, layout, noises, crowd ebbing and flowing, etc. are very well integrated factors, influencing the development of the story. I actually found that the intricacy of the description for the station and its environs served to amplify the suspense, rather than distract from it.
The ebb and flow of hope and despair regarding the likelihood of the child surviving is of course the emotional backbone of the story throughout. All characters are affected somewhat differently, adding to the depth of characterization for each. The dual parallel paths of physical pursuit and emotional turmoil make this book quite an effective thriller. The psycho kidnapper is very well drawn; I started to disbelieve his motivation for doing what he does, but Walsh convinced me. By the end, all my nails (figuratively speaking) had been bitten down to the quick. For some, this may be a “once you pick it up, you can’t put it down” read.
Filmed as UNION STATION the same year with Hollywood swapping New York City for Los Angeles; the writer and director make very effective use of Union Station, so the change might not bother those who like a movie to follow the book, but the six year old boy kidnap victim is replaced by a beautiful young blind girl. The blind female victim and other factors give the movie a more melodramatic flair, but so it goes. The novel was more effectively recreated as a suspense thriller, I think, in a 60 minute episode of Lux Radio Theatre in 1952, readily available on the net.
A six year old boy is kidnapped and “Manhattan Depot” (a thinly disguised, for legal reasons I guess, Grand Central Railroad Station) becomes the hub of the action. A railroad detective, the boy’s nanny and the NYPD become involved in tracking the killers, one of whom is as evil a psychopath as you will encounter in the fiction of the time. Today, the Evil Ones come with much more window dressing and back story, but Walsh nevertheless does a fine job of portraying a character who is fatally twisted and out of control.
The main character, railroad detective Willy Calhoun is tormented during his efforts to save the child, because he had an earlier opportunity to apprehend the kidnappers, but blew it. The nanny, Frances, mistakes the cold professionalism of the police for not caring about the child and the relationship between Willy and Frances develops quietly throughout the story and is never a distraction from the relentless pace of the story.
Walsh does a wonderful job of maintaining suspense, through the near continuous movement of the detection/chase and through his description of the emotional turmoil undergone by the railroad detective, the nanny, the kidnapper and the boy himself. The railroad station is the hub of the action, but much of the dismantling of the kidnap crew occurs elsewhere; the setting is not static and the movement away from the station at times serves as a nice change in the pacing of the story, providing some relief from the claustrophobic tension surrounding the action in the train station. Walsh uses the railroad station as a character, that is the features, layout, noises, crowd ebbing and flowing, etc. are very well integrated factors, influencing the development of the story. I actually found that the intricacy of the description for the station and its environs served to amplify the suspense, rather than distract from it.
The ebb and flow of hope and despair regarding the likelihood of the child surviving is of course the emotional backbone of the story throughout. All characters are affected somewhat differently, adding to the depth of characterization for each. The dual parallel paths of physical pursuit and emotional turmoil make this book quite an effective thriller. The psycho kidnapper is very well drawn; I started to disbelieve his motivation for doing what he does, but Walsh convinced me. By the end, all my nails (figuratively speaking) had been bitten down to the quick. For some, this may be a “once you pick it up, you can’t put it down” read.
Filmed as UNION STATION the same year with Hollywood swapping New York City for Los Angeles; the writer and director make very effective use of Union Station, so the change might not bother those who like a movie to follow the book, but the six year old boy kidnap victim is replaced by a beautiful young blind girl. The blind female victim and other factors give the movie a more melodramatic flair, but so it goes. The novel was more effectively recreated as a suspense thriller, I think, in a 60 minute episode of Lux Radio Theatre in 1952, readily available on the net.
February 21, 2021
Well done crime novel about the kidnapping of a six year old boy. The ending was very tense and well written, and I couldn’t stop reading. Yes, the writing style could be a little stiff, but it didn’t keep me from enjoying this little known classic.
June 26, 2025
3.5 ⭐ Energetic, exciting and methodical thriller about policemen pursuing a band of child abductors. 1951 Edgar Best First Novel award.
July 13, 2009
Winner of the 1951 Best First Edgar, tale of kidnapping suspense that spent too much time detailing the New York City train station where the exchange was to be made.
Want to Read
September 12, 2018Synopsis: there's been a kidnapping of a six-year-old boy at the train station. Policeman Calhoun tries to solve it.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews