[Book Review] Velvet Was the Night (2021)

Velvet Was the Night by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (Mexican Gothic) transports readers to Mexico City on June 10, 1971, the day of the Corpus Christi Massacre. What began as a student protest quickly descended into the brutal killing of some 120 young people at the hands of the Hawks, a shock group created by the Mexican government to suppress dissidents. 

The story follows the parallel journeys of Elvis and Maite during the days following the massacre; one, a member of the Hawks with a passion for Presley and the other, a lonely secretary who lives vicariously through the romantic heroes of her favorite comic book, Secret Romance. 

When Maite’s beautiful and enigmatic neighbor Leonora goes missing and leaves her with the responsibility of caring for her cat, Maite begins investigating her disappearance and soon finds herself embroiled in Mexico City’s underworld of secret police, KGB agents, and young revolutionaries. 

Following the orders of his inscrutable boss El Mago, Elvis and his team of Hawks also search for Leonora, as well as a mysterious roll of film that could bring down the existing autocracy. 

Readers who are expecting a classic horror story won’t find one here. By its simplest definition, Velvet Was the Night is a gritty Neo-noir thriller, following two dreamers who couldn’t be more different, bound by the thread of a historic catastrophe and one missing girl. Upon closer inspection, it is a tale about the real-life horrors that people witness and endure at the hands of a corrupt government and the lengths that some will go to in order to survive it.

Moreno-Garcia has an incredible ability to draw readers into a time and place, but where she excels beyond measure is in the creation of fully realized characters with such rich inner lives. She seamlessly weaves together a large cast of characters, concealing and revealing motivations throughout like a seasoned magician. 

It is a rare thing to find a book without fault. Some might say it can’t be done. But Moreno-Garcia has managed to create a piece of noir literature that is beyond reproach. 

Reading this book is like eating a piece of chocolate cake; indulging deliciously in daydreams, in fantasy, in music, and the thrill of pursuing what is unknown. And in some ways, it’s like a vinyl record playing your favorite song, gifted to you by a lover; an exploration of all our own human insecurities, desires, curiosity, hopes, and deeply rooted fears. 

Velvet Was the Night hits bookshelves on August 17. 

A shadowy world awaits you.

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