Michael McGarrity, Night in the City, W.W. Norton & Co., May 2025

Thank you to NetGalley, Michael McGarritty and W.W. Norton & Co. for the ARC of this book.

Michael McGarritty brings the writing chops that made his Kevin Kearney series a pleasure to read to post Korean War Manhattan in this engaging and fast-paced novel. Sam Malone, an assistant district attorney with both a NY PI licence and a gun, shines in this 1950s Manhattan noir. Two years ago, Sam got dumped with no explanation by the love of his life, Laura Neilson. Tonight again wth no explanation, she has asked to meet with him for the first time since the breakup. Sam goes to the rendezvous point, but Laura never shows. Sam goes to her apartment, where he finds her dead, strangled by his dogtags to which is attached an ancient coin given to him by the men under his command during the war. Knowing that he will be the prime suspect when the police arrive, Sam quickly leaves the building telling the doorman to call the cops.

Sam is indeed the prime suspect in Laura Neilson's murder. What follows is an amazing tale of corrupt cops, daring PIs, romance, mystery, suspense and adventure. Night in the City pulls you in from the first word. It is impossible to put down this story that is sometimes convoluted, but which is never dull. I highly recommend Night in the City, and not just for those who love the noir novel. I am not a great fan of noir novels, but I am a fan of Mr. McGarritty's writing, and Night in the City doesn't disappoint. Five stars.

A Night in the City is often entertaining and Sam Monroe makes for an interesting lead character. To the extent that author Michael McGarrity sets the action in fifties New York City, I enjoyed the visit to the past. There just wasn't enough of it. As for the murder mystery, it seemed uneven in its unraveling. McGarrity made it complicated enough, especially casting an eye toward corrupt cops. Was New York really so corrupt in the fifties that robbery detectives would be doing some big time robbing themselves? Maybe, I just don't know.
There is romance in the novel as well. One PI, a woman going by her initials as DJ, comes across as flaky, making me wonder what her attraction was to Sam. Oh, well. It's fiction.
Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.