Silvia Moreno-Garcia has quickly become my new favorite author. Velvet Was the Night is a fantastic noir set in 1970's Mexico City. It's about a shy secretary named Maite who lives for Secret Romance, where she can escape into stories of passion and danger. She also has a very enviable neighbor Leonora, who's a beautiful student. When Leonora disappears, Maite can't help but get involved.
This book was so good! I loved the bits about Mexico in the 70's! Terrific writing and the tory is so intriguing and so much fun! Thank you so much!

The definition of Noir is a genre of crime film or fiction characterized by cynicism, fatalism and moral ambiguity. Moreno has repeatedly emphasized that this book is a noir, not to be confused with the gothic or fantastical elements her other books are known for. Like many I wanted to read this book after 1st reading Mexican Gothic and have been super curious to see what this turned out to be after reading the synopsis.

I absolutely adored the retro Mexico setting and vibe with it’s gritty scenery, rainy days and overall feelings of desperation. I could definitely picture everything so clearly I felt like I was watching a movie. Picture moody music playing in the background, with characters smoking on a warm night.

The two primary characters of Maite and Elvis are pessimistic and bleak but unlike many other characters we see more in them, therefore we root for their journeys. They are both full of vices and questionable morals, Elvis as a part of a government sponsored group that roughs up agitators and Maite steals and lies to make her boring life more exciting. The more we see them we see their similarities and how their need for more out of life seems out of reach.

Enter Leonora, Maite’s younger neighbor who asks for a quick favor that pulls Maite into a larger fight between the government, KGB and dissenters. Maite is naïve on purpose but craves adventure that her romance comics don’t fulfill and so she must rely on others to navigate this new world.

Be prepared for lots of investigating, interviews and inner thoughts. In other words if you are not already a mystery lover this might feel a bit too slow for you. This is a mostly character driven story and if you don’t appreciate Maite and Elvis you might not appreciate the book.

I personally enjoyed this story immensely as it kept me intrigued and wondering how it would all end. I loved the atmosphere just like I loved the atmosphere of Mexican Gothic but the characters and plot are vastly different from that so don’t try to compare those parts of the book. I am definitely a fan of her writing and will be picking up more books by this author. Lastly I applaud that in writing this she is also calling attention to a real world issue of Mexico looking the other way when people go missing, especially the protestors.

Like other books I have read by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (Mexican Gothic) I felt the characters were developed fully, especialy Maite and Elvis. I wanted to keep reading to find out what happened next. I was not familiar with this period in Mexican history so that was also interesting to learn about.

Moreno-Garcia’s new book couldn’t be more different from her last book, Mexican Gothic, both in plot (a political thriller versus a mystic horror story) and in characters (a dull, unlikeable woman versus a pretty and charming one), but I enjoyed it all the same. This was a quick read, and the plot was engaging enough that I stayed up late to finish it. Moreno-Garcia has a talent for creating interesting characters. Maite, the aforementioned dull woman, was so unlikeable, yet I still looked forward to her chapters; Elvis, the hired political thug, was somehow turned into the romantic hero—and the character I liked the most. Overall, I’d definitely recommend this book and I look forward to reading both Moreno-Garcia’s next offering and her backlist.

This is a rather different genre than some of the other books Moreno-Garcia has written & I appreciate her versatility. If you're looking for a story set in the tawdry burnt oranges & avocado greens of the 70s, you'll find it here. The main characters may not be traditionally "likeable," but their longing to make their lives more extraordinary will resonate with many readers. The spotify playlist that goes with it is such a great bonus (and really helpful for jogging my memory of some of the songs).

Velvet Was the Night is, as with pretty much every Silvia Moreno Garcia book I’ve read, a highly accomplished and engaging novel. I truly believe that Silvia Moreno Garcia could write any genre she wished to and every one would be amazing.

The book follows two POVs: Maite, a secretary who ends up caught up in a missing persons case, and Elvis, someone who is also looking for the missing student, albeit with different aims in mind. It’s a twisty-turny thriller that keeps you on the edge of your seat as it becomes a race to find Leonora.

Let me start with what I loved about this book, because I don’t quite know how to articulate why I’ve rated it 3.5, lower than all of the other books I’ve read by this author. Firstly, there’s just how alive Silvia Moreno Garcia makes the world she’s writing in. Whether it’s been fantasy, historical, or horror, I always feel like I’m right there with the characters when I’m reading her books.

Part of that is also to do with the characters she creates. After reading a fair few books where I’ve felt the characters are ones you can sum up in a word or two, the ones here jump off the page. They’re not what you might conventionally call good people—they’re a lot greyer than that—but they’re compelling. You won’t always like them, but you’ll want to keep reading about them.

I think, if I had to give a shot at explaining just why I’ve rated this like I have, I’d say that perhaps there was just something missing for me compared to her other books. The others have stayed with me long after I’ve finished them—I am, on some level, always thinking about the sharks of Untamed Shore, for example—but I didn’t have that here. I can’t quite articulate it more clearly than that.

But on the whole, I very much enjoyed reading this one. It’s one you should definitely be on the lookout for this August, whether you’ve read anything by this author before or not.

(Although, Ms Moreno Garcia, if you could stop including such large age-gap relationships in your books, I would be most appreciative.)

I will start with this: the cover is beautiful and what initially attracted me to the book, and the synopsis also piqued my interest. The story takes place in 1970s Mexico during the “Dirty War” when the PRI-ruled Mexican government and the guerrilla groups were facing off during a time of political unrest. I don’t know much about Mexican history, especially this piece of it, so I was excited to see it incorporated into a book. Plus I love me a multi-POV story.

And that’s where the charm ends for me, unfortunately. I’ll probably be in the minority here, but this book just wasn’t my cup of tea. It felt painfully slow in parts (even with a decent amount of action), I didn’t connect with the characters and felt it lacked character development, and the historical/political elements in the book weren’t explained well enough, so without the World Wide Web to fill in the gaps, I would have been confused. Also, the synopsis plays up the relationship between Maite and Elvis, and their storylines were separate from each other for practically the entire book. It felt a bit misleading.

Maybe noirs just aren’t my thing, but I don’t think that’s the case. I do think a lot of people will enjoy this novel, I am just not one of them. Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

DNF. I really liked the premise but the writing did not work for me at all. It wouldn't be fair to the book if I finished reading and gave it a low rating.

A wonderfully written historical noir thrilled set in 1970s Mexico City that just wasn't quite for me. And I fully believe that's a me problem, not anything at all wrong with this book. I picked up Velvet Was the Night more for my love of Silvia Moreno-Garcia and everything she writes than for the premise. It was a really well written historical thriller, and I think people who are more into thrillers and historical intrigue will probably love it. I wish I could've been among them. Moreno-Garcis's writing is gorgeous as always.

I do enjoy Silvia Moreno-Garcia books. She has a way with words for sure! This one was just a little too slow for me. It felt like moving through molasses at times. The words were fabulous and atmospheric, but I just wanted to go a bit faster. I think this is something that many readers are going to savor and enjoy, it just didn't work quite right for me.

I wanted to love this book so much. The cover, the synopsis, 1970 vibes...it sounded like the perfect book. Maybe it was the writing style but the constant repeating of Maite not having enough money for her car and wanting to live in her comics and Elvis having sex with a girl in a cult and wanting to prove himself. It became very monotonous. It was also challenging to follow the political talk not having any background knowledge of Mexican politics or history. I wish the story had been more thrilling and more of a true historical fiction.

This book has a great historical atmosphere and explores a time/place that most American readers are probably not familiar with. I really felt for Elvis and his struggles (though the other protagonist, Maite, was a less sympathetic character for me, probably in part because of the negative way she sees herself and because I was constantly waiting for her to kill the poor cat who is probably the character I was most worried about in this whole book! Ha! Other cat lovers may rest easy, she does not kill the cat.) This is a slow burn thriller/mystery but the stakes are high, the twists do keep coming, and the ending was fabulous. Well worth reading.

I am not completely sure why, but this book fell flat for me. Maybe noir isn't my thing? The story seemed slow, and also had excessive details that I found unnecessary. The characters, however, seemed lifelike, which was reassuring.

2.5 stars. I really wanted to love this book. I’ve been intrigued by Silvia Moreno-Garcia but had never read any of her books until now. The cover is stunning, the premise sounds promising, and yet it just fell flat. No character was particularly likable, especially our female protagonist Maite, who was such a drab and pathetic stiff from start to finish. I also found the storyline was predictable before I was even halfway through the book, which is always a bit of a bummer.

What I did appreciate about this book was the author incorporating notable events in Mexican history as the basis for the story; it taught me something and piqued my interest. However overall I was left wanting more. More character development, more explanation to help me understand this part of history, more depth, more to pull me in and grab me.

Thank you to the publisher and author for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this read. It had similar vibes to the last book I read by this author. The vibe was eery and the plot was engaging going forward.

Thanks to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and NetGalley for a copy to honestly review.

I received an early copy in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and NetGalley. The full review will be posted on Goodreads on August 3rd and shared on Twitter. Review will be posted on Amazon after the book is released.
Goodreads; https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/17108692-paul-mcguire
Twitter: @pdmcguirelaw

Velvet is the Night starts off with a bang. A protest turns violent and one of the infiltrators is on his way to the hospital. Elvis continues as our guide to the world of the Hawks. Soon Maite, a music lover addicted to romance comics, finds herself sucked into a world of intrigue. Maite and Elvis both share a love for music not shared by most of the other characters, adding a deeper layer of atmosphere through their playlists.

Little do Maite and Elvis know they are both searching for the same missing woman, though for completely different reasons. This search sucks Maite into a world she could never have imagined existing around her all this time; a world of subversive elements and law enforcement tracking their every move. Soon Maite finds herself in the center of a conflict that rivals the dramas in her favorite comic books.

The story is based off a protest against government overreach in Mexico in the 1970s and the Hawks the government sent in to suppress dissent. Though many Americans may not be familiar with the Dirty War this story is based off, elements of the story will be familiar. Most Americans are have watched movies about various groups the FBI watched in the United States. The closest film I watched most recently is Seberg. But there are many others like it exploring the FBI's surveillance of the Black Panthers and other groups in the 60's and 70's.

Velvet is the Night builds the tension, introducing us to the various elements of the story, that explodes in a clash. Through all the energy are a few big reveals that I did not see coming. I found it refreshing to follow a main character who felt real thanks to detailed character development. Though early on I thought there was a bit much back story, it helped humanize Maite and made me care about her struggle.

Last year I was sucked into the horror of Mexican Gothic and the magic of Gods of Jade and Shadow. After finishing this, I read an early copy of her novella, Return of the Sorceress. Each book is so distinct that I am amazed that they are by the same author. Yet there is a talent for storytelling visible throughout all her works. Velvet is the Night rivals the excellent crime novels I have read over the past few years from Tana French and Peter James.

I was hoping this book would never end. Such an amazing world of Noir. Reminded me of "A Touch of Evil" but this was much much better. Great characters and full of surprises coming at you from from every dark corner! Cant wait to see where this author pops up next!

This was a slow burn thriller with and the mystery surrounding the mysterious disappearance of a neighbor and the backstory of the leader of the Hawks. The characters were developed and showed a modicum of growth through the story. What I would have liked to have seen more of was the historical aspects of what was happening in Mexico in the 1960s. I knew very little of the back story which was significant to the overall plot and felt I would have benefitted more from having the history woven into the novel as opposed to the brief blurb in the afterword. This is my second book by Moreno-Garcia and I preferred Mexican Gothic to this one but will continue to look for more works by the author.

I don't know enough about the Noir genre to assess how this fits into it, but I loved this book as historical fiction with a light layer of suspense. The two main characters progress in their own orbits, rarely crossing paths, but the reader knows how much they have in common and so it has the feeling of a long preamble to a romance. But, it's definitely not a romance novel. This story taught me a lot about a period of Mexican history I knew little about, and I loved the precise and flawed characters. The ending was phenomenal. Even if it feels like a slow start, the build-up is worth it. So many readers are going to love this next novel by Moreno-Garcia.

I really enjoyed Velvet Was the Night. It is truly unlike any other book I’ve ever read and I loved that.

I think for some people they may find it slow and boring, but it is a noir and is meant to be “simmering” as the author described it. I think simmering is the perfect word to describe this novel. It is slow, builds, but boils over rather than catching fire. I loved that about it.

I really enjoyed the characters and how they all interwove together and revealed themselves at the end. I found the ending to be incredibly real as well. The events and characters reactions to them as well as the choices they make felt so real. I didn’t particularly like any of the characters, but I think that’s part of what made them so real. Each one had unlikeable qualities like typical humans do. It almost felt like reading a true story but more interesting.

I also loved the authors ending talking about the true events which inspired her story. It is important to know true events happening to real people like those depicted in the novel.

Finally, I loved the playlist she included. As we learn at the ending, music was a huge component of the events during this time so I loved that the author included a playlist. Not to mention it was amazing!