In my debut novel, Mystic City, the city of Manhattan is a character itself: this Manhattan is a magical, technological marvel. The rich and powerful live in the upper reaches of buildings—known as the Aeries—moving via bridges and magical “lightrails.” The poor live in the Depths, traveling the flooded roadways and tunnels—a result of global warming—via motorized gondolas, fearing and hating the ruling class. 

Although much of the landscape in Mystic City is fictional, parts of Manhattan do make special appearances throughout the novel. I’m a native New Yorker, and some of my favorite spots in the city inspired certain locations in the book.

I’m delighted to take you on a little “walking tour” of my top ten Manhattan highlights:

1. Central Park

Photo courtesy of IASPM

In a city with so much brick and glass, it’s a comfort to find a serene place full of greenery. I love to go to Central Park and sit out on the lawn or take a walk or run around the reservoir. In Mystic City, Central Park has been renamed the Magnificent Block, and it’s not exactly a place of grandeur: it’s where the registered mystics are forced to live in a ghettoized community. Check out Central Park when you visit New York and enjoy some relaxing time at the zoo or outside in the Delacorte Theater for a show.

2. Time Warner Center

Photo courtesy of Sipwithsocialites.com

In Mystic City, the Time Warner Center has been reimagined as the Circle, a shopping hub of several buildings enclosed by a glass dome to ward off the heat and connected by tiny bridges with mystic slidewalks that move beneath your feet. Although the actual TWC isn’t that high-tech, it is a great place to shop and have a few fantastic meals with your friends.

3. South Street Seaport

Photo courtsey of Gawker.com

A historic part of Manhattan, South Street Seaport is near the lower tip of the island, where Fulton Street meets the East River. In Mystic City, Aria follows her servant Davida down to the Seaport and discovers a secret entrance to the rebel mystics’ underground hideout. While you might not find that if you visit the Seaport yourself, you certainly will discover lots of fantastic places, like the South Street Seaport Museum and the Titanic Memorial Lighthouse. During the summer the Seaport Music Festival attracts thousands of people.

4. The Upper West Side

Aria Rose’s family dominates this side of Manhattan. If you visit the Upper West Side, you’ll be able to take a serene walk along the Hudson River, stroll through the quad of Columbia University, stop off for a cool beverage at the West 79th Street Boat Basin Café, or even attend a concert at Symphony Space.

5. The Upper East Side

Aria’s fiancé, Thomas Foster, lives on the Upper East Side, along with his family and their supporters. If you were to walk these streets, you might attend a lecture at the 92nd Street Y, stop in to examine some art in an intimate setting at the Frick Collection, absorb some history at the Museum of the City of New York, or even rest your feet at the famous Pierre Hotel.

6. Lincoln Center

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia

One of my favorite spots in Manhattan, Lincoln Center comprises several magnificent theaters, including the Metropolitan Opera House, one of the most famous opera houses in the world, which seats almost four thousand people; Alice Tully Hall, a fantastic concert spot; and the Walter Reade Theater, a movie theater used by the Film Society of Lincoln Center. Other theaters present Broadway shows, ballets, and more. If Lincoln Center existed in Mystic City, I bet Aria Rose would have loved it.

7. Chelsea Market

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia

Although Chelsea Market doesn’t exist in Mystic City, I draw on it for inspiration in Renegade Heart, the second book in the series (coming soon!). Chelsea Market is a food court, shopping center, office building, and TV production facility housed in what used to be the factory where Oreo cookies were first made! Go figure. I love going down to Chelsea Market on the weekends and taking a walk through the halls, visiting bookstores and card shops and tiny bakeries with delicious pastries.

8. The 86th Street Subway Stop

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia

In Mystic City, the underground subway system has been abandoned, and this is where the rebel mystics who have refused to have their powers drained hide out from the government. In real life, the subways in Manhattan work properly. This stop is my favorite because it’s the closest one to where I live, but if you visit New York, any subway stop will do—go through the metal turnstiles, take a ride, and see where this silver bullet full of passengers will take you!

9. Grant’s Tomb

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia

In my version of Manhattan, this historic place has been destroyed. But you can still visit it! One of my first apartments in Manhattan was right near the General Grant National Memorial, a stunning mausoleum containing the bodies of Ulysses S. Grant (eighteenth president of the United States) and his wife, Julia. For inspiration, I would visit the site and spend time in Riverside Park, sitting on a bench and watching passersby. The Hudson River is nearby, providing a beautiful landscape for daydreaming.

10. The Empire State Building

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia

To get an idea of what some of the skyscrapers in Mystic City might look like, why not end your tour at the Empire State Building, certainly one of the most famous spots in all of Manhattan. Built in 1930, this 102-story skyscraper is located in Midtown and is an American cultural icon. It was designed in the Art Deco style and has been named one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World. The beautiful floodlights that illuminate the building at night partially inspired the lightposts in Mystic City, where drained mystic energy is stored.

I hope you enjoyed this tour as much I did! And don’t forget to check out Mystic City!