About Roberta 

Roberta Mantell is the pen name used by author and longtime journalist Roberta Hershenson.

For over three decades, Roberta Hershenson worked as an arts reporter and photographer for The New York Times and other prestigious publications. As an arts and culture writer, she published hundreds of music articles in The New York Times over more than 25 years. She is an East Coast native who lives and works in Manhattan, the vibrant setting for her debut novel.

She launched her fiction career under the name Roberta Mantell after being inspired by the literate mysteries of the crime writer Batya Gur.

Her debut novel, Angels’ Blood: Murder in the Chorus, is the first in the Piper Morgan Mystery series. The story draws directly from her personal experience as a chorus singer, as it is a murder mystery set in the world of a present-day New York chorus. Roberta was a dedicated chorus member for over two decades, singing in the tenor section of groups like the Oratorio Society of New York and the Cecilia Chorus of New York. During this time, she performed dozens of times at Carnegie Hall and traveled on chorus trips to international cities, including Beijing, Prague, and St. Petersburg. She also contributes essays to the website NYCityWoman.com and leads a Manhattan writing workshop. She is currently working on the sequel to her debut novel.