Velvet Was the Night was an interesting read about some of the atrocities that have taken place in Mexico in the 1970s. Although fictional, this book felt like it could've had similarities to real life. Well done.

another slam-dunk from this author. the cover makes me long for a cigarette. I cannot wait for more twisty tales from this talented author.

I enjoyed this but wasn’t fully enthralled. I like historical fiction and I like Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s writing. I couldn’t find myself liking any of the characters in this book, though. So it was hard to keep my attention on it when I wasn’t fully invested in what was happening.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this copy to read and review.

Set in Mexico during the 1970s with its dangerous political climate, two very different people go through life in parallel. Things become more complicated for Maite after her next door neighbor goes missing, and Elvis has to further navigate his way as a mobster.

A typical noir type novel with the added setting of Mexico and the cultural aspects applied, I think this very well could be a better movie or miniseries than a novel. The ease of which I got through it was great, although I kept getting confused as to what exactly was going on and became lost. And times where I couldn't tell if or how things were tied together. So it was a bit messy to me at times to keep up with what was going on.

Maite, although a touch annoying, she happened to be surprisingly realistic in her daydreaming and somewhat vapid ways. Which added to the noir atmosphere, it fit and felt right. And the same with Elvis.

The author does a fantastic job in creating atmosphere, as I've learned from a previous novel of hers, and I continued to be amazed by this and her characters. The nuance brought out hits all the right points of the genre she's writing in. I'll continue to read anything she puts out that interests me. Also I must add the afterword is a must to read.

content warnings for politics, gun violence, violence, sexual harassment.

This author really knows how to create an atmosphere.
Just like with her previous release, it’s very easy to slip right into the setting of this release.
This novel is a mix between a domestic suspense and a crime novel it was not exactly what I was expecting but in a good way,
The type of character our main narrator is, isn’t typically one I enjoy but the author did a great job of still making this character likable and relatable to me.
I also love a morally grey character which we definitely got in this book,
So all in all. Pretty fun read

This was a historical mystery set in 1970s Mexico. The novel started off well. However, I could not relate to Maine. She was very selfish. The romance was very dull. The story moved at a slow pace. The best feature of this book was the setting. 1970s Mexico seemed to come alive. Still, I recommend this for fans of Elizabeth Acevedo, Isabel Allende, and Chanel Cleeton!

Moreno=Garcia's work never misses. Tense and sprawling, Velvet Was the Night places you into the world of 1960s Mexico City and invites you to actively solve the mystery of the plot alongside Maite. I love that she is an older protaganist going through a main character, coming of age moment at a time in her life where she never expected it to occur.

Silva Moreno-Garcia knows how to write, from Mexican Gothic to this just proves that this was something she was meant to do. from the world that they're in, to the amazing plot and cast of characters I'll never stop recommending this book.

3.5

Short enough that I didn't get bored and the plot was mostly relevant.
The character views did jump around a bit and sometimes I was confused which person was working for who and watching who.

I'll admit I don't always like books set in other places (or worlds) because of all the words I have to use context clues for, listening to audio does seem to help with this so it doesn't interfere with the pace I have.

Thank you Netgalley for the advance reader copy of Velvet Was the Night by Silvia Moreno-Garcia in exchange for an honest review. I love how there is always a thread of truth and history in Silvia Moreno-Garcia's books. The history we are taught in school is so limited and centered around the country we live in and who is in charge. Wouldn't it be nice to get the real facts about atrocities that have happened and to know that the perpetrators were prosecuted fully, instead of given high level positions? I like how her books shine the light on little corners and show a snippet through different eyes. Wonderful story as always.

I had such a good time with this book - one chapter in sweet Elvis's narration and I was happily along for the ride. It's so delightfully atmospheric, like a film noir that's taking place under a disco ball, almost, mixing some classic tropes with the ambiance of Mexico in the 1970s. If this were a movie from that decade, it'd be a cult classic now. What fun.

VELVET WAS THE NIGHT by Silvia Moreno-Garcia is a Historical Noir; as a fan of Historical Fiction, I was immediately intrigued by the synopsis.

The novel is set in Mexico and opens on June 10, 1971, the day of the Corpus Christi Massacre. The story is told from the perspective of Elvis (No, not the King), who is a member of Los Halcones, and Maite, a secretary who works for a law firm and spends her free time submerged in romance comics—though aware of the protests going on around her—Maite deems politics as dull and chooses to ignore them.

Charged with watching her next-door neighbor Leonora’s cat for a couple of days and owed much-needed money for the deed, Maite has no choice but to search for Leonora when she never returns.

‘Swirling in parallel trajectories, Maite and Elvis attempt to discover the truth behind Leonora’s disappearance, encountering hitmen, government agents, and Russian spies. Because Mexico in the 1970s is a noir, where life is cheap, and the price of truth is high.’

As much as I am intrigued by the book's storyline, my need to know what happened to Leonora and one other character driving me forward, it was hard to stay invested in this slow burn. This one is a DNF for me at seventy-two percent.

Thank you, NetGalley and Del Rey Publishing (Penguin Random House LLC.), for providing me with an eBook of VELVET WAS THE NIGHT at the request of an honest review.

I generally really like Moreno-Garcia's books and this is not exception. I do wish that they came in more formats so that they were accessible for book club!

A pretty quick and enjoyable book. SMG's writing is as atmospheric as always, and I liked most of the plot (especially the ending) despite thinking the middle dragged at times. Though I wouldn't say I loved either of the main characters, they were still compelling and realistic enough to keep me interested. Sadly, I wasn't particularly attached to them and expected more interactions between them than there were in the actual book, which I think ended up affecting my overall enjoyment. Still, Velvet Was the Night is a solid read, and I would recommend it to fans of this author and noir in general. I just don't have much to say about it.

A gorgeous atmospheric historical noir set in the time of Dirty War, when the Mexican government used the Brigada Blanca to abduct, incarcerate, torture, and murder activists in the 70s . A secretary named Maite gets caught up in the disappearance of her beautiful neighbor and meets Elvis, a thug who’s also trying to find her. They discover that Leonora, the missing woman, kept dangerous secrets that those in power are willing to kill for. Gorgeously written, deeply psychological, at turns violent and sexy, Velvet Was the Night lives up to the stupendous cover and the high expectations I always have for her stories.

ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

For fans of slower mysteries with that old school noir feeling would enjoy this book.

This is not one of my favorites by Morena-Garcia, but I'm also not huge on mystery thrillers because they really have to grab me in the first chapter for me to keep reading. This was a little on the slower side for me.

Another brilliant book for Silvia Moreno-Garcia. I cannot rave about the characters enough. This author ALWAYS knows how to give you a brilliant heroine and Maite is no exception. Beautiful addition to my imagination and shelves.

This was a wonderful introduction to an authors work, especially one that differs from a huge book she had. I enjoyed the thrill of the chase, so to speak.

This book took me several tries to get into and finish. I know it's not fair to compare an author's books to each other but I was expecting something a little more like Mexican Gothic with this one -- more action, more weirdness -- but this was definitely not it. Though I ended up enjoying it in the end once I started to appreciate it for what it is instead of comparing it to what it isn't.

I absolutely loved the author’s previous book, Mexican Gothic, which made me even more excited to read VELVET WAS THE NIGHT!

This was more of a political thriller than horror, but had plenty of action. I still prefer the previous novels, but was glad I picked this one up.

*many thanks to Del Rey and Netgalley for the gifted copy for review