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A review by annemaries_shelves
Velvet Was the Night by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Reading Velvet was the Night just sucked me into the atmosphere and world of 1970s Mexico City - a time of uncertainty, change, tension, political strife, protests, and oppression.
Like most noirs, Velvet was the Night has no true heroes - instead we have two main anti-heroes/heroines whose perspectives we follow in alternating chapters. Each are seeking a missing young woman, Leonora - a typical rich bohemian 'activist' slumming it with the poorer artist rebellious students. She has pictures that supposedly incriminate various people who were at a protest turned massacre in 1971, which is where our story opens. Our anti-hero El Elvis is a hired thug, a Hawk, who's tasked with finding the woman and her camera when all he wants to do is listen to his records and make something of himself. Maite is our anti-heroine, the almost 30-year-old (she basically considers herself a reluctant old maid) insecure woman who's prone to flights of fanciful imagination, and just wants to be paid for taking care of Leonora's cat.
In many ways, as the reader you don't care about Leonora - you're too absorbed in following these strangely compelling and unlikeable main characters as they spiral closer to the truth and to each other. And if you're like me, you're also very concerned about the cat that no one else seems to care about (though there's no animal violence).
Like with her other books, the first half is slower and the second half ramps up the tension and action. While I did guess the plot twists it was still very satisfying seeing it come together. The setting - a more realistic, working class, and 'gritty' Mexico City - was extremely well done and I loved learning more about the city, the time period, and the types of lives some characters (and real people) were living. I spent a lot of time reading on Wikipedia to contextualize the historical events that the text was referring to. You don't need additional research and knowledge to understand the story but I found it very helpful to support what Moreno-Garcia was including. Her Spotify playlist also made a great accompaniment as music features heavily in the book and listening to the songs referenced really added to the atmosphere and sense of time and place.
Overall, I really enjoyed this - it's a sub-genre I don't read often and I really appreciated a modern, fresh take on it. The mystery element was interesting enough but it was the main characters and the atmosphere that really drew me in and kept me engaged. I'd recommend for fans of noirs, slow-burn character-based mysteries, or more modern historical fiction.
CW: violence and murder on par with noirs and crime-focused stories.
Like most noirs, Velvet was the Night has no true heroes - instead we have two main anti-heroes/heroines whose perspectives we follow in alternating chapters. Each are seeking a missing young woman, Leonora - a typical rich bohemian 'activist' slumming it with the poorer artist rebellious students. She has pictures that supposedly incriminate various people who were at a protest turned massacre in 1971, which is where our story opens. Our anti-hero El Elvis is a hired thug, a Hawk, who's tasked with finding the woman and her camera when all he wants to do is listen to his records and make something of himself. Maite is our anti-heroine, the almost 30-year-old (she basically considers herself a reluctant old maid) insecure woman who's prone to flights of fanciful imagination, and just wants to be paid for taking care of Leonora's cat.
In many ways, as the reader you don't care about Leonora - you're too absorbed in following these strangely compelling and unlikeable main characters as they spiral closer to the truth and to each other. And if you're like me, you're also very concerned about the cat that no one else seems to care about (though there's no animal violence).
Like with her other books, the first half is slower and the second half ramps up the tension and action. While I did guess the plot twists it was still very satisfying seeing it come together. The setting - a more realistic, working class, and 'gritty' Mexico City - was extremely well done and I loved learning more about the city, the time period, and the types of lives some characters (and real people) were living. I spent a lot of time reading on Wikipedia to contextualize the historical events that the text was referring to. You don't need additional research and knowledge to understand the story but I found it very helpful to support what Moreno-Garcia was including. Her Spotify playlist also made a great accompaniment as music features heavily in the book and listening to the songs referenced really added to the atmosphere and sense of time and place.
Overall, I really enjoyed this - it's a sub-genre I don't read often and I really appreciated a modern, fresh take on it. The mystery element was interesting enough but it was the main characters and the atmosphere that really drew me in and kept me engaged. I'd recommend for fans of noirs, slow-burn character-based mysteries, or more modern historical fiction.
CW: violence and murder on par with noirs and crime-focused stories.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Gun violence, Blood, Death, and Murder