3.25. Although I really liked Mexican Gothic (which is not my general type of literary genre), I found this novel less captivating and engaging. This novel is set in 1970s Mexico City against a backdrop of a criminal syndicate and government crackdowns on journalists and leftists. Ms. Moreno-Garcias writing though was excellent as in Mexican Gothic. I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased and candid review.

After reading Mexican Gothic, I was eagerly anticipating the release of this book. When I was approved for an ARC I was ecstatic. What I felt after reading this book was disappointment. The book starts out very slow and it really does not get any better from there. The characters are fluff and like other characters in many pulp mysteries of times past. I found the plot to be lackluster. It was a struggle for me to get through it. All in all, it was just not an enjoyable read.

The cover is beautiful! Had to say that first. This book does not disappoint. I read it because I loved Mexican Gothic and enjoyed Gods of Jade & Shadow. This books is so different from both, with that being said, I enjoyed it just as much. Her writing is beautiful.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this arc in exchange for an honest review

I don’t usually read noir, but I was surprised by how much I liked this one! As always, Moreno-Garcia’s writing is phenomenal, as is her plotting and characters.

Mexico City, 1970. The city is in political turmoil and student protests are at a dangerous level. In this explosive atmosphere, the lives of two wanna-be’s are about to intersect.

Maite is stuck in a dull job and a duller life, has just turned 30 and feels she is now an old maid. Her only escapes are the serial romance comics that she craves and her music collection. Maite is reluctantly forced out of her self-imposed isolation by a chance encounter with a neighbor.

Elvis is a junior enforcer for the Hawks, a CIA trained group designed to quell the student uprisings. He longs to become like his leader: suave, debonair, smart, and wealthy. His daily goal is to educate himself in current events and improve his vocabulary. As the novel progresses, he slowly realizes that his admiration may be misplaced.

Both characters, along with many others, are searching for Maite’s missing neighbor.
I was originally drawn to this novel by the sensuous title, the stunningly captivating cover art, and the promise of noir. Silvia Moreno-Garcia kept me engrossed with her in-depth characters and a steady pace. At times I was reminded of Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction; at times I saw glimpses of Llosa’s Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter.

To enhance the Tarantino-esqueness of the novel, there is an accompanying playlist to put the reader in the proper mood. So grab your copy, plug in your earbuds and get ready for a great noir novel.
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7oUAqLnfPuRR3tdXV7tDGH

I received a free electronic ARC of this novel from Netgalley, Silvia Moreno-Garcia, and Del Rey Publishing. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me. I have read this novel of my own volition, and this review reflects my honest opinion of this work.

I had difficulties getting into this novel, featuring Mexico in the 1970s, as I found the protagonists wooden and not particularly sympathetic. On the other hand, the political background was most compelling. And the book cover was very attractive - as are most of Moreno-Garcias covers. Living less than a hundred miles from Mexico the political problems and cartel controls are something we all have to live with, as are the efforts of the peoples of Central American nations and Mexico to find a way to the United States for a better, safer life. It was interesting to see that even 50 years ago this cartel problem existed. As a native New Mexican, I had thought cartel control more of a modern problem.

Velvet Was The Night is a grim noir set in Mexico amid the turbulent 1970's. Completely different from the author's previous novel, Mexican Gothic, there are no supernatural elements, and the characters are mostly not likable. While Mexican Gothic shows the glamorous 1950's, but there is nothing beautiful about the grim reality of this story. Life is bland, and somewhat boring. Everyone is yearning for a more exciting life. But as bleak as the setting is, I found so much hope in the characters that Maite becomes involved in. The mystery and sense of danger makes this noir story a novel that you will not want to put down.

What I Liked:

Historical Setting:

Even though my heritage is Mexican, I confess I know little about the history of Mexico over the last fifty years. I did know that several Latin-American countries, such as Chile and Argentina, had decades of oppression from dictators. People were "disappeared" when they expressed any dissent. But I had no idea that this also occurred in Mexico in the 1970's. Learning about this from the novel, Velvet Was The Night, by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, was really profound for me. And that is what a good Historical novel does, puts us a time and place we don't know about, and shows us how people lived in extraordinary circumstances.

Historical Details:

From the clothing to the character's obsession with American music, this story is ripe with details that puts the reader squarely in 1970's Mexico. Seemingly small details, such as Maite having her car held in a repair shop, show how people in that era didn't have access to credit. Everything had to be bought with cash, making you instantly aware of how much money you had, or didn't have. There are also moments that show the disparity between wealthy and working class people. As Maite looks at the apartment of her neighbor, she notices the quality of the furniture, the type of foods and alcohol that are carelessly strewn about the rooms, and the general ease that her neighbor has in life. Leonora seems to not have a care in the world compared to Maite, who must watch every peso.

Supporting Characters:

It may seem strange that I liked the supporting characters more than the main characters. This is because the main characters are more challenging to empathize with. That's not to say I don't like them, they are just way more flawed than the other people in the story.

What I enjoyed about the supporting characters is their never-ending sense of hope. Maite becomes involved with a group of people who are activists. They want change for Mexico, and are willing to d the work to make it happen. Some of them are willing to bring in Communists to do this (something I would not agree with). But all of these characters are willing to put themselves at risk by protesting, and organizing against the ruling government. This takes an enormous amount of courage.

Story:

The plot centers around the disappearance of Leonora, Maite's neighbor. Has Leonora lost track of time in the arms of a dashing lover? Or is she in hiding from the secret police? Maite gets involved because she is watching Leonora's cat. As more and more people show up at Leonora's apartment, Maite is drawn into the mystery. But she only sees an intriguing puzzle to solve, not realizing that she is also in danger. Although she was selfish, and not very likable, I kept hoping that Maite would stop comparing her life with that of Leonora, and start taking charge of her own destiny.

Elvis is part of a goon squad for the government. A charismatic ex-military leader takes him under his wing, and gives him a purpose (although that "purpose" is beating up dissenters). And even though he knows he's being used, he is so hungry for attention and approval, he allows himself to be a pawn in the violent oppression of young people. I was rooting for Elvis to change and find a better purpose in life.



What I Was Mixed About:

Characters:

Maite and Elvis are not characters that were easy to like. Elvis is incredibly violent (he is hired muscle, after all). But at least Elvis understands that he wants a better life. I had a tougher time with Maite. She doesn't change much over the course of the story. I did feel bad for her. Her life is bland, and she is mostly overlooked by everyone. Even her family isn't terribly nice to her on her own birthday! She was so caught up in her romantic fantasies (based on reading a genre that was romance comic books) that she couldn't see she was in any danger until it was too late.

She also based her feelings about men on how attractive they were. If they were handsome, they were good. If they were not handsome, she wrote them off as unimportant. But wasn't that exactly how men were treating her? I was surprise she couldn't see the irony in that.

Set in 1970’s Mexico City, Maite spends her days as a secretary and her evenings alone with her favorite serial romance comics. As the city becomes consumed with student protests and political unrest, Maite escapes into her romances and crafting tales of a glamourous, but non-existent, love life to regale her co-workers with. When the glamorous and beautiful Lenora moves in next door, Maite is both intrigued and extremely put out by her request to watch her cat while she’s away for a few days. When Lenora doesn’t return on time, and with Maite’s payment, Maite has no choice but to track her down and collect the money owed to her.
What she doesn’t expect is to cross paths with a hitman who is also looking for Lenora and get drawn into the darker side of politics and dirty government officials. But Elvis isn’t just any goon, he’s a man tired of violence and wants nothing more than a life outside of crime.
Both Elvis and Maite are complex and intriguing characters. I found Maite very hard to like which made reading her character even more enjoyable. She was prickly, obsessed with the characters in her comics, and felt she was immensely better than the people around her. She constantly lied about her personal life, had a difficult relationship with her family, and was also a petty thief who regularly stole from her neighbors. It’s very, very hard to like or relate to someone like that but I found her absolutely fascinating. Add in a mob henchman who is obsessed with Elvis Presley, rock and roll, and is an avid reader, you get a fascinating combination of characters. The mystery behind Lenora, her identity and her disappearance, was really well done and I loved how Maite’s obsession with her drove the story.
Engrossing, thrilling, and filled with complex and interesting characters, Velvet Was The Night is a dark historical that will keep you guessing with every twist and turn.
Thank you to Netgalley and Del Rey for the opportunity to read and review this title. All opinions and mistakes are my own.

This is my fourth Silvia Moreno-Garcia book and probably my least favorite of the lot. Least Favorite feels like a ridiculous descriptor to levy upon a book one actually liked very much, but the author has set the bar very high.

This was labeled a Noir (or neo-noir), as was Certain Dark things. I’m not sure why this mislabeling of genre persists with Moreno-Garcia’s books, because neither of these is truly a noir (Certain Dark Things based on content and Velvet Was the Night because it lacks the truly harsh grit that comes with Noir. Which, for the record, was fine with me. I’m not a particular fan of Noir by the traditional definition, but I was a fan of both of these books.

Call this one Noir Lite, I suppose? The communism/political uprising component of this wasn’t my favorite, but I loved Maite so much that a lot of the bigger picture stuff didn’t matter. Moreno-Garcia always gives us a unique, fascinating protagonist, and Maite is no exception.

Elvis’ part of the story interested me far less than Maite’s. It’s less original and while Elvis seems like an alright guy, he’s a little short on the kind of nuance that makes for a good literary character. Fortunately Maite has that in spades, which more than makes up for Elvis’ banality, and the point at which their stories converge is well-rendered.

But in the end, the reader mostly leaves this one with the same feeling that always occurs when reading Moreno-Garcia’s novels: No matter the subject of genre, she always tells us one hell of a good story.

The Gist: 1970s, Mexico City. A city in political turmoil finds hapless citizens caught up in a dangerous mystery.

My Thoughts: Silvia Moreno-Garcia never misses, at least not for me. The pacing of this one is a little slow, but that’s the noir genre. I love learning the history of regions I didn’t know before, and this was fascinating to me for that reason alone.

I also enjoyed following two normies around as they get caught up in a conspiracy much bigger than themselves. Maite in particular is a fairly pathetic figure, but despite that I wanted her to find the adventure and love she always craved.

I still prefer Mexican Gothic and Gods of Jade and Shadow, but if you’re a fan of SMG or of noirs (think Veronica Mars, old 40s classics like The Third Man), then I think you’ll enjoy this one too!

CW: Murder, violence, civil unrest

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an e arc copy in exchange for an honest review.
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Velvet Was the Night was one of my most anticipated reads this year and while some parts of the story were quite enjoyable, I found the execution and climax underwhelming. I love the way that the Dirty War and the history surrounding it was seamlessly interwoven into the story. The afterword was especially illuminating and showed what the real horrors of this story were. I love when a book takes the opportunity to shine a light on a piece of history that is rarely discussed.
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This novel was very gritty and felt like it was encased in a smoky ambience. Very atmospheric. The two main characters had interesting backstories and kept me engaged in wondering if their paths would truly cross. The second half of the book had me enthralled, but unfortunately the climax of the story left me wanting more. I recommend to fans of pulp fiction and those looking for an incredibly atmospheric book.
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CW: violence, death, torture

This was a slow burn noir that had a solid background story of politics, a missing girl and lonely characters. I really enjoyed how the characters of Maita and Elvis were portrayed. They were both seeking a connection in the world and they couldn't seem to find it. I was very satisfied with the ending--perfect!

The storyline revolves around two POVs, Maite and Elvis, who are very different characters but are both searching for a missing girl.

Maite is a quiet secretary who only wants to escape into her latest issue of Secret Romance, but when her beautiful neighbor asks her to care for her pet while she goes on vacation but then never returns, Maite is thrust into her neighbor's secret life. On the other side of town, Elvis is also searching for Maite's neighbor who is the commander of a group trying to stamp out political activists. Both characters dreaming of different lives are thrust together to fight for a future they've been waiting for.

This cover is just beautiful! However, I felt as if it was really slow going and I had a really hard time finishing it. The book is well written but for me, noir genre just isn't one that draws me in. If you like noir, than I highly recommend this one.

I had high expectations for this book. But unfortunately it fell flat.
I read this book before reading Mexican Gothic. They are not a series, but based on friends' reviews of Mexican Gothic, I was excited for this one.
The story was very meandering and the plot was slow to pick up. The first half of the book was little more than sketching the characters and filling them out a bit. I had a hard time staying engaged even though I like the main characters. The book blurb promised an "edgy, simmering historical novel for lovers of smoky noirs and anti-heroes." Apparently lots of salty language and some physical violence qualify it as "edgy", and "simmering" means the plot is literally on the back burner until the very end. The author did get the historical part right. And the anti-heroes. Smoky noir? I don't know.
I assumed the two main characters described in the blurb came together at some point to solve the mystery. But they don't even meet until the book is almost over.

I just finished up Silvia Moreno-Garcia's latest book. It was....different.
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Having read her last release, 'Mexican Gothic', I went into this book expecting something similar, something supernatural and at least horror-adjacent. I'm not sure you can really say this newest book fits that category, but it was certainly an interesting read.
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If I had to put it in a category, I suppose it's more political thriller than anything else, with a bit of semi-romance and a dark, gritty, noir atmosphere.
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The basics of the story involve two main characters, secretary Maite who lives a secluded and boring life, and thug-with-a-heart-of-gold Elvis. The book switches back and forth between these two characters almost every chapter, and their storylines cross when Maite gets stuck caring for the cat of the woman who lives across the hall, the beautiful and Bohemian Leonora. It just so happens that Leonora has disappeared and more than one questionable person is searching for her. Maite, who has spent her life reading romance comics and living in a fantasy in her mind, finds herself suddenly caught up in Leonora's world, one of danger and romance, intrigue and mystery.
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Set against the backdrop of 1971 Mexico City, starting with the terrible events of the Corpus Christi Massacre, this novel weaves in and out of history, drawing in politics, revolution, and music.
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I found Maite annoying rather than sympathetic. She's not a terribly nice person, lying about her life and generally feeling sorry for herself. Elvis, however, is much more likable in spite of the horrible things he does.
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This is not generally the genre I would be reading, but I'm not mad about it. The story was intriguing and well plotted, the writing flowed and the musical references had me singing classic rock and roll for days.

This story follows two point of views: Elvis a gang member who loves American rock music, reading and sugar; and Maite, who is a lonely lover of the same music, romance stories and pilfering objects from her neighbors. Both characters were flawed but likeable. The two lonely hearts merge when Maite's neighbor goes missing and both main characters search for her.

This is a slow burn mystery with a political back story that went a little over my head. The beauty if this book is in the writing, the feelings it evokes, the depth of the characters and the tense atmosphere. I am not typically drawn to the noir genre but I am sure those that are will devour this novel.

Moreno’s new novel, Velvet was the Night, just drips noir. The title itself suggests the seedy, murky, and humid backdrop which is populated with a variety of characters possessing a sliding scale of scruples. The novel centers on the 1970s political tensions in Mexico and revolves around Maite, a plain woman of 30 who lives for her pulpy romantic books and high-end vinyl albums, and Elvis, a young enforcer in an anti-political freedom group, the Hawks. They both embark separately on finding a young woman who may or may not possess incriminating film of government higher ups. The story itself was just okay and a tad on the slow side, but all the characters were fabulous and really fit the mood of the novel. I also liked that the author included a playlist at the end of the book and a blurb about the importance of music during this period in Mexico. Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book!

Velvet Was the Night is such an enjoyable read! It follows Maite as she searches for her missing neighbor, Leonora. Along the way, she becomes more and more wrapped up in Leonora's world of political activists and maaaaaybe some criminals. One of these criminals is Elvis, who is also looking for Leonora and keeping tabs on Maite. This is a fun historical noir that has a lot to say about political dissent and protest.

Silvia Moreno-Garcia is becoming one of my favorite authors. Even though her books don't always hit for me, I love that she takes these huge swings, that she writes across different genres, and that her books are always unapologetically Latine. I always appreciate when a book does not try too hard to explain the culture it's set in, which can often feel like a BIPOC author is still writing through a white gaze. In Velvet Was the Night, there is some explanation around the political climate of this time, but it didn't feel heavy-handed. Instead, it felt like something that would naturally come up given what we know about Maite's character and her focus in life.

Speaking of which, I LOVED Maite as a character. Yes, I was increasingly frustrated by her, but I also found her endearing. Her naiveté felt honest, and I found it hilarious that she liked stealing trinkets from people. I don't know what that says about me, but it is what it is! She's quirky, she's flighty, and she's also curious and open to learning. And even as a naive character, she has a clear understanding about how power and corruption work in her society.

Elvis is impossible to dislike. While Maite wants to escape into romance stories, Elvis wants to escape into old movies and music. He's a reluctant tough guy who is clearly a marshmallow.

There are a couple of things that didn't do it for me and stopped this from being a 5-star read. The pacing felt off, although I also think it's similar to how most noir is paced. This book hooked me with the characters right away, but it was slow to start, and then the ending felt super rushed. The epilogue in particular felt like an after-thought; I would have liked more build-up leading into it. I knew exactly what was coming, but it just didn't feel satisfying to have all of that squished into the epilogue.

That said, though, I still had a good time with this! I can't wait for Silvia Moreno-Garcia's next book!

Velvet Was the Night by Silvia Moreno Garcia ✨

In Velvet Was the Night, Moreno Garcia has created a simmering noir adventure as beautiful as the book’s stunning cover art. Set in the Dirty War of 1970’s Mexico City, the story follows Maite, a young woman who becomes unwittingly drawn into a complex and dangerous hunt after her mysterious neighbor Leonora goes missing. Maite isn’t the only one looking for Leonora, and she soon finds herself entangled in a battle against the Hawks, a group tasked with quelling political uprising by any means necessary. Elvis, an enforcer with the Hawks charged with locating Leonora and the potentially damning information she may possess, lonely and looking for something more in life, may just find it during his newest mission.

As always, Moreno Garcia crafts a rich and gorgeous setting for her characters. To me, the novel was much more about the background, the music, the culture, the atmosphere, than it was about the characters or plot. Don’t get me wrong, the characters are fleshed out and fascinating in their own right, but the real star of the book is the setting, and Moreno Garcia’s excellent use of language puts you right in the middle of it all. You can smell the cigarette smoke and hear the records playing in Maite’s apartment (and you actually can with the help of the amazing Spotify playlist that was created for the novel). Like Mexican Gothic, Velvet Was the Night effortlessly transports you to a Mexico from the past, a Mexico often ignored in contemporary American fiction. Moreno Garcia is a must-read author for me, and she has yet to disappoint.

Thank you to the publisher for an ecopy of Velvet Was The Night by Silvia Moreno-Garcia.

I applaud the author for taking a risk and going a very different direction from her last year's hit novel, Mexican Gothic. Velvet was the night had none of the gothic theme of that one. Instead it was totally a Mexican crime noir period thriller. It had a Quentin Tarantino vibe for me...mixing humor with a lot of eccentricity and violence.

The two lead characters, Maite and Elvis were not at all the typical protagonists. Maite is the plain, perpetually broke secretary, who longs for a better lifestyle, but is stuck because of the the limitations of the time period she was living (early 1970's) as well as because she had turned down the opportunity to marry since she wanted to marry someone she felt more passionate about. She is also clearly the least favorite child of an overbearing mother who dotes on Maite's younger, prettier, MARRIED sister. All this might make her seem a sympathetic character, but you soon realize she is bitter and jealous of women who are better off financially or in beauty. She is also a kleptomaniac of the strangest things. Elvis is a soulful goon. He is a hired enforcer...at first by The Hawks, a group that works for the Mexican government to rough people up who the government perceives as dissidents. Then, when that group is disbanded, he works in a more unofficial capacity doing the same thing. He hates violence, but is not afraid to use it. He DOES have his limits, though: No beating ladies.

The plot of the novel had Maite coming into the path of Elvis's evil boss by fluke. She was watching her beautiful neighbor's cat for a few days. The neighbor doesn't come back when she said she would so Maite starts trying to track her down to give her back her cat and to collect the money she is owed for sitting. Turns out this neighbor, Leonora, has something Elvis's boss wants and he and his hired men think that Maite might know more than she is saying since she had access to Leonora's apartment.

In some ways, the Velvet Was the Night was a comedy of errors. It was well written and had a really great sense of the time period and location in which it was set. I love an author that refuses to "stay in one lane" with her writing style, too. While Noir is not a genre I love, I can't deny this one was well written and should be a big hit with those who like the genre and can get past expectations of this novel being similar to Mexican Gothic. The two could not be much more different from each other.