longform
The Night They Came for the Nonantum Street Lines
On June 26, 2025, in the dark of night, they came without warning. The dogs on Adams Street felt it first and started barking. Then […]
The Oldest Cold Case Murder Ever Solved in Massachusetts
The blue-and-white Chevy Impala was missing. Raymond Scheublin noticed it the moment he pulled up to his home on Pine Hill Road—a quiet street in […]
The Kids Are Staying Home: How a Generation Lost the Art of Getting Into (Formative) Trouble
One of my clearest memories from high school in the late 1980s isn’t a specific party, but the hunt for one. A car full of […]
Why Is Everyone So Obsessed with Nantucket?
Was it the first fight ever to break out at Nantucket’s annual Christmas Stroll? That we don’t know. But what we do know is this: […]
The Engagement Ring Is Having an Identity Crisis
The old script went like this: A lovestruck fellow would save his paycheck—for months, maybe years—to afford an engagement ring. Or a lucky heir would […]
Is the Massachusetts Economy About to Get Wrecked?
Here’s the thing about Cape Cod potato chips: They were always about much more than the chips. They were about that low-slung building in Hyannis […]
The Real Cost of One Michelin Star
In the weeks before Michelin announced its first-ever Boston selections, whispers among dining insiders spread across town faster than whipped butter. The first question—“Did you […]
When Did It Become So Hard to Make Friends?
I was on the T headed to one of my favorite restaurants in Boston when I found myself thinking about the last time I ate […]
The Beer-League Ski Race That Became My Unlikely Salvation
We were in the bland hinterlands of Greater Boston, skiing along the ho-hum Leo J. Martin Golf Course—otherwise known as the worst golf course in […]
Stranded in New Hampshire: A Rescue Mission at Franconia Ridge
A single beam of light bobbed in the darkness as Patrick Bittman, cold and winded from hours of hiking, hauled himself up the last stretch […]
How to Fix the Restaurant Industry
The city’s restaurant scene has never looked better from the dining room, but behind kitchen doors, the industry is struggling with thin margins, labor shortages, […]
The Crypto Con Woman and the Charlestown Houseboat Murder
It was nearing 11 o’clock on a February night when two Boston police officers stepped from their patrol car into the Charlestown Navy Yard. Biting […]
How to Win Friends and Lose Millions: The Aaron Sells Story
The man sitting across from me at lunch has been sued for millions by former business partners, among them some of Boston society’s more notable […]
How to Grab the Golden Egg: Seven Rules for Winning Negotiations in the Trump Era
One morning this summer, I burst through the doors of the Tesla showroom at the Prudential Center, announcing my arrival with authority. “Hello!” I said. […]
What Really Happened to Tom O’Brien’s Mayoral Run?
On a Monday morning this past March, Tom O’Brien was in his office at HYM Investment Group checking his emails when his phone rang. It […]