I really wanted to love this one. First, I'm a giant SMG fan. I've read everything she's written. I'm also a complete nerd for Latin American crime fiction. SMG labels this explicitly as a noir, which I feel like is part of that genre and is important to note. A lot of what I've read has been in Spanish, and written by dudes, so having one written by one of my favorite authors really excited me. And while this book does a great job of capturing the genre, and has two very well written POVs (Maite and Elvis), it just didn't quite capture my attention this time.

Velvet was the Night is a noir that takes place in Mexico City in the 1970s, but I was desperate for more detailed descriptions of the setting and the place that would make me feel like I was there. It does capture the specific time period well, and the story revolves around some very real crime and political repression in Mexico during The Dirty War. It is a great way to learn a little more about the historical significance of that time period, and the consequences it had for students and dissidents during that time. There are some fantastic descriptions of the music (rock music in particular) that were popular at the time, and I loved the accompanying playlist!

Noir is well known for being slow, and for drawing out this dark underbelly of a place and time, but unfortunately it didn't hold enough tension to want me to keep reading. While the focus is not characters, that was what I was most drawn in by -- as Maite, an office worker that gets involved in the mess when her neighbor (whose cat she is watching) goes missing, and Elvis, a member of a paramilitary group out of a need to belong but a desire to be something more, dig into the mystery. There is an air of romance, in that both characters are constantly mediating on it and imagining themselves as part of one, in escape from their solitary lives.

I want to encourage folks to give this one a try, especially if you haven't read any noir, and you want to explore more of the fantastic writing that SMG can create. (Also, if you haven't read it already, pick up Untamed Shore, which has a very Knives Out feel!) Overall, it was 3.5/5 for me, but it only makes me more excited for the next release to come. Thanks to NetGalley for the early review copy, all opinions are my own.

I feel the need to lead with the fact I have read, and LOVED, two of the author's previous books. There is no doubt that Moreno-Garcia is a wonderful author who takes risks by writing in different genres. In this case I really enjoyed how different and well developed the storylines for Gods of Jade and Shadow (one of my favorites of all time) and Mexican Gothic.

Unfortunately, noir just doesn't seem to be my genre. I commend the author for taking the risk and writing something in a genre that is different than her previous books. However, I just found it to be extremely boring and the characters even more boring and unlikeable. In all honesty - this review is mostly a review for those who do not like noir or slower mobster/gangster type books. I kept imagining the old detective movies in black and white with the jazzy music playing in the background and smoke everywhere.


I think I could have enjoyed this a lot more if it had been more face paced and if there were more plot twists/discoveries throughout the first half of the book.
If you love noir this may be a 5 star read for you

Thank you to the author, publisher and Net Galley for providing me with a free ebook ARC of this book.

I think I may have entered 'fan girl' territory for Silvia Moreno-Garcia! Each of her books feel a little different, a little unique from each other, but the writing and story telling flows through all of her books. I cannot start one of her books if anything is expected of me on that day because I cannot put these books down!

4 stars- I really enjoyed the book and would recommend it to others.

Velvet was the Night felt very different for Silvia. The closest it came to another story I have read would have to be The Beautiful Ones but you really can't compare them because the time-frame is different and Velvet is more of a noir where Beautiful Ones was a historical romance. Velvet was the night felt like reading a really old noir mystery, You know one of those cool black and white ones with the dame and the guy. There is cigarette smoke and everything is just so mysterious and cool in an effortless kind of way. I love movies like that so this was alot of fun to read because it reminded me of that. Leave it to Silvia to take something like this and make magic happen on the pages so easily.

Velvet Was the Night
Publish Date: Aug 17, 2021

Thank you so much to Netgalley & Del Rey for granting me an ARC of this book!

First, I think it is actually important to know what genre of novel this is. SMG is a story teller. She weaves background, intrigue and turmoil. This is a historical noir - which I was not sure what that meant so had to read up on it, but did realize that it is a genre that I do not read often. I went in thinking “I LOVED Mexican Gothic!” but be aware that this is totally different.

This book is still well written with dynamic characters that have edge to them - pretty much all of them have an edge.

I really enjoyed how music played a part in this book considering the historical references of how in “communist” Mexico, specific music was basically outlawed. It did add a fun dynamic and made sense with how the two main characters were “rebellious”. But otherwise, I feel like the main female character was a bit of a stretch. No spoilers, but I just didn’t feel that it made sense for her to be so involved. Also, there is a lot of violence - which I’m not opposed to in novels, but it was a lot. I get that it was important & how history happened, but it was pretty much half of the book.

I rated this book a 3.67 (2/3rds of a star) so closer to 4 - mainly because the genre was not my cup of tea, and I didn’t feel like the characters were people I understood, but I do like SMG’s style. The story was good & people that like historical fiction may enjoy it more.

This 1970s noir set in Mexico City is the perfect blend of crime thriller, mystery, and nostalgic drama. The plot progression feels well-paced throughout, and the crescendo into the climax was exciting and engaging. There may have been a few predictable moments, but for me that felt right given the mystery-noir-thriller story. Overall, an excellent book by Silvia Moreno-Garcia that I thoroughly enjoyed throughout.

A more detailed review will be released closer to the publication date on armedwithabook.com . Thank you Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for a copy of this eArc in exchange for an honest review!

As a lover of noir movies, I was very curious when I saw this labeled as the genre for Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s novel, Velvet Was the Night. I could definitely see the genre’s appearance throughout the book as we follow the enforcer, Elvis, who keeps trying to figure out what is right and wrong; and secretary, Maite, whose poor decisions draw her in as a victim of circumstance. Both are on a mission to find a missing woman who holds the key to taking down a powerful leader.

While reading this, I could imagine the smoky lighting, historical era, and almost hopeless tone. While it did well to provide the tone/mood I expected of the genre, there was still something missing to give it the “oomph” I wanted in a noir story. Another element missing for me was the romance aspect that I kept expecting in the novel. I wanted more development earlier on as the summary teased it into my head and I was let down a bit by that expectation.

There was a lot going on this novel but everything intertwined well and led to an ending that I enjoyed. This was a fun crime fiction story with extremely imperfect characters that I felt I should not have liked, yet did. I enjoy Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s writing style and stories, and while this was not my favorite of hers, it was worth the read.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

When Leonora goes missing her glamour outs life seems more dangerous to Maite and Elvis and as they search for her they realize the extent of her mysterious ways. Will Maite and Elvis find love on this dangerous journey or will their different worlds keep them apart? The history and music in this novel made the action even richer and it taps into a interesting “noir” style that is original to this author.

The author is extremely talented and I felt the atmosphere of being in that time and place. She captures the style of noir well; the pace and the back and forth between the points of view make this an incredibly slow build. I am a firm believer that books can be experienced differently based on what is going on in your life at the time personally and in the world. I’m sure I’m just not in the right place right now to read this one. It was just too slow for me. I needed a distraction, something that swept me up and doesn’t let me go. Maybe this one will grab you.

Velvet Was the Night by Silvia Moreno-Garcia is a superb book with an engrossing plot and well drawn characters. Well worth the read!

This was a bit of a letdown for me. I want to say that I love this author. Mexican Gothic, Gods of Jade and Shadow, The Return of the Sorceress, I devoured these stories. And what they show is that this author has a really good solid grasp of fiction. She knows what she's doing and does it well.

Most of the time.

This book was a slog. It was slow paced and by the halfway mark I was waiting for something to happen.

Set during 1970's Mexico City, political protests rock the city while those in power fear communism and the fist against speech and rights comes down hard, depending on whose side you're on.

Maite is a secretary and Elvis is a gang member, a Hawk. One of El Mago's boys. And with political intrigue a possibility, with riots and clashes, you'd think this book would be interesting.

It's not.

Maite is a klepto who steals from the people she pet sits for in her apartment. Never anything big, but it has to be something sentimental. Is she likeable? Not really but I was hoping she would make up for it by being interesting. Instead she's a girl with very little drive who loves listening to records in English because the covers don't sound the same and lives for her romance comics.

In essence, not a character you really want to follow.

Elvis is the most boring gang member I've ever read.

Both suffer from flat personalities and I didn't care what happened to them at all.

The book picks up around maybe the last 20% which was hard just to get to and then the ending is almost a slap with how lackluster it was. It too, was boring.

The author does a great job switching POVs. You can tell you're reading about two different characters with two different voices. It just doesn't matter because both are boring.

This one misses the mark for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC.

This is a slow paced, introspective noir novel. There are two POVs - Maite, a lonely woman who keeps her head down during the current political unrest in Mexico City, and “Elvis”, the member of a squad whose sole purpose is to squash political activism. Maite becomes unwittingly entangled in this clash of ideologies when she agrees to watch her neighbor Leonora’s cat and Leonora disappears.

While I do not usually enjoy mysteries, I can’t say that I’ve read any noir novels before. It was definitely intriguing, albeit slow in parts, and I’d definitely recommend it for anyone who enjoys the genre.

Review below is what will be shared to Instagram, where I share my reviews (BookishlyShan), in fact it’s already up. My review will stay up for good (i do not delete my posts) and I will reshare to my stories on day of publication! My review is also already up on Goodreads.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

After reading Mexican Gothic last year, I was super excited to be able read this book, and to get it early as an ARC was a real treat!

It definitely helps to read Garcia’s description of what a noir is before heading into it because it’s not like a typical historical fiction. This book was dark in all of the right ways, with complicated characters who aren’t the most morally correct but that is what makes this read exciting!

You can feel how lonely these characters are and how desperate they are to find their place in life. I kept routing for the two and was intrigued with each other their perspectives.

If you were a fan of Mexican Gothic, you’ll be a fan of this one!

VELVET WAS THE NIGHT by Silvia Moreno-Garcia is a historical noir that follows meek secretary, Maite, and the eccentric criminal, Elvis, and their journeys as they find themselves on the search for the same person.

I have to start off by saying that I don’t generally find myself reading historical fiction, so despite my thoughts, if those are your jam, this could become your next favorite.

However, I found this book to keep a rather slow pace, and it didn’t help that I found Maite to be extremely unlikable. This book didn’t really pick up the pace until the last 20% and WOW, I found myself cruising through those pages and wanting to find out what was going to happen next.

I did really love Elvis’ storyline and found myself wanting to skip over Maite’s parts to get to his, and I will also say that the Epilogue did pique my interest enough to want to know more about what may happen next!

All in all, Silvia is great at setting the scene, but this one wasn’t my favorite.

Publication Date: August 17, 2021

*** special thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group/Ballantine Del Rey for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review ***

The prose was beautiful but the mystery so so. It is definitely noir and not a thriller-- the pace is slow and the stakes are low, but if you adjust your expectations it's a good read.

Even though I think smoking is disgusting, I love the cover to this book. And the title. But it was just an ok book for me. But I'm also not much a fan of historical reads.

Loved every page. Great writing style. Recommend for a book club for women of all ages and races. Thanks for the opportunity to read this.

I enjoyed the author’s earlier Mexican Gothic. However, this one missed the mark for me. A mystery set in the 1970’s that has one of the most lackluster endings I can recall. At one point she writes, “Elvis was starting to believe his life was an unending circle, because they were back at Astrisk.” And, that is a pretty telling observation.

There’s been a lot of buzz in my library about Mexican Gothic so, even though I haven’t read it, the author was on my radar. When I found out that her new novel is set in the time of the Corpus Christi massacre in Mexico City in 1971 I was all in, as our 9th grade takes Mexican History for their first semester. Though it’s a really interesting novel in terms of its historical context, I did find the telling of it rather oblique.

Elvis is a member of a small cell of Hawks (a paramilitary group set up after the Tlatelolco massacre in 1968 to infiltrate and terrorize student activists) who are given orders by El Mago but have little idea of the context in which they are doing this. Maite is a naive frumpy secretary who lives through her syrupy romance comics and her record collection.

Their stories are brought together by Leonora, a student who apparently has taken some damning photographs of the response to the protest. Elvis and his comrades have been assigned to find the young woman and, particularly, the photos. Maite is a neighbor who Leonora ropes in to look after her cat while she makes herself scarce. As Maite searches for her missing neighbor, initially at least because she wants payment for her catsitting, she finds herself getting pulled deeper into the activist milieu.

The narrative switches between these two characters as they are inexorably drawn together though there are other forces at work here, which neither Maite nor Elvis are aware of, which really control their stories. Both of them have lived impoverished lives, both physically and emotionally, and their quest brings a romance and purpose that they have lacked. The links they share - their love of music (like the titular Blue Velvet), their interest in words - gives them more in common but also feels a bit like authorly effort to create that bond.

The author brings the time and place alive, evoking the activists’ desperation and commitment as well as the layers of distrust and betrayal. Though she states that the novel is “noir, pulp fiction” she does an excellent job of bringing to life a little known (to American eyes) point in time. It’s really only in the anti-climactic resolution that I felt she was bolting a story onto real life.

The author’s afterword gives some brief context to the political context of the Hawks and the activists. However, it also highlights the importance of music and the control of music as censorship as well as a way to show subversion - a topic I might suggest to a student or two for their research papers.

Thanks to Del Rey and Netgalley for the digital review copy.

If you have heard anything about this book, you should know that this is not another Mexican Gothic. Velvet was the Night is noir and honestly could not have been more perfect in my opinion.

This story has so much heart in some unexpected characters. There’s also action, adventure, mystery, and a big reveal. Another thing I really enjoyed was how place-centered this was. I really had a feel for where/when the story took place. Add in a dash of romance potential/romance references and I think that just about anyone would find something to love here.

I highly recommend this read! 5⭐️