Murder She Wrote: Westchester Edition

Those of us in the community remember Roberta Hershenson who, for more than 25 years was a cultural reporter for The New York Times Westchester section. Then, seemingly overnight, she disappeared. Not long after, the entire New York Times Westchester section vanished as well from our Sunday routines.

Now Roberta has reemerged as Roberta Mantell, novelist and author of Angels’ Blood: Murder in the Chorus. The mystery, part whodunit and part backstage drama, draws on her years as a tenor with the Westchester Choral Society, where she sang Handel’s Messiah season after season. Mantell clearly knows her way around a stage—such as the one at the Purchase College Performing Arts Center, which makes a cameo in the novel under the name “Anderson University.” And in true Murder She Wrote fashion, her fictional reporter, Piper Laurie, discovers a soprano named Angel, lying dead by the backstage stairs.

Mantell’s love of music began early. She played the oboe and flute, tolerated the piano, and adored classical broadcasts on WQXR. That passion grew into a creative life spanning many roles: artist, photographer, journalist, musician, and performer. She loved being on stage, dressed to the nines in a tuxedo, singing by ear and feeling the rush of performance. It’s no surprise that her path eventually led her to storytelling in a new form—murder mysteries steeped in music. Angels’ Blood is available on Amazon, where it has already earned enthusiastic reviews. And Roberta Mantell isn’t stopping there—book two is already in the works. Stay tuned.