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Velvet Was the Night di Silvia Moreno-Garcia
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Velvet Was the Night (originale 2021; edizione 2022)

di Silvia Moreno-Garcia (Autore)

UtentiRecensioniPopolaritàMedia votiCitazioni
7982527,473 (3.53)57
"From the New York Times bestselling author of Mexican Gothic comes a riveting noir about a daydreaming secretary, a lonesome thug, and the mystery of the missing woman that brings them together. 1970s Mexico City. Maite is a secretary who lives for one thing: the latest issue of Secret Romance. While student protests and political unrest consume the city, Maite escapes into stories of passion and danger. Her next-door neighbor, Leonora, a beautiful art student, seems to live a life of intrigue and romance that Maite envies. When Leonora disappears under suspicious circumstances, Maite finds herself searching for the missing woman--and journeying deeper into Leonora's secret life of student radicals and dissidents. Meanwhile, someone else is also looking for Leonora at the behest of his boss, a shadowy figure who commands goon squads dedicated to squashing political activists. Elvis is an eccentric thug who longs to escape his own life: He loathes violence and loves old movies and rock 'n' roll. But as Elvis searches for the missing woman, he comes to observe Maite from a distance--and grows more and more obsessed with this woman who shares his love of music, and the unspoken loneliness of his heart. Now as Maite and Elvis come closer to discovering the secrets behind Leonora's disappearance, they can no longer escape the danger that threatens to consume their lives, with hitmen, government agents, and Russian spies aiming to protect Leonora's secrets--at gunpoint"--… (altro)
Utente:TeriRenee
Titolo:Velvet Was the Night
Autori:Silvia Moreno-Garcia (Autore)
Info:Del Rey (2022), 320 pages
Collezioni:La tua biblioteca
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Velvet Was the Night di Silvia Moreno-Garcia (2021)

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Digital audiobook performed by Gisela Chipe

Adapted from the book jacket: 1970s, Mexico City, Maite is a secretary who live: the latest issue of Secret Romance. When her next-door neighbor, Leonora, disappears under suspicious circumstances, Maite finds herself searching for the missing woman – and journeying deeper into Leonora’s secret life of student radicals and dissidents. Meanwhile, someone else is also looking for Leonora. Elvis is an eccentric criminal who longs to escape his own life. As Maite and Elvis come closer to discovering the truth behind Leonora’s disappearance, they can no longer escape the danger that threatens to consume their lives.

My reactions:
This is the third book by Moreno-Garcia that I’ve read and by far my favorite. In this work she does NOT include paranormal, horror, or magical realism elements. Rather she writes a wonderful noir crime novel based on historical events in Mexico, with interesting characters, multiple twists and turns in the plot and an unlikely partnership that I’d love to see again.

Maite starts as a somewhat naïve, dreamy young woman, more interested in romance stories that what is actually happening around her. But once she’s caught up in the mystery of her missing neighbor, Maite shows her intelligence, grit and determination.

Elvis is a marvel. A street punk and henchman, who love literature and music. He’s not sure he is where he wants to be in life and the events that unfold help him find a better life path.

The action is fast and furious, and totally believable. Well done, Ms Moreno-Garcia!

Gisela Chipe does a marvelous job of performing the audiobook. I particularly loved how she interpreted Maite. ( )
  BookConcierge | Oct 26, 2023 |
Mexico City in the 1970s is such a gritty and crazy backdrop for this awesome pulp noir story. Amazing characters, political upheaval, an evil paramilitary boss, and when a mysterious beautiful neighbor vanishes, loner Maite suddenly is a part of much more than her comic book romances provide. Filled with just the right amount of tension and suspense this was a wonderful read. It reminded me a lot of the movie True Romance. ( )
  Andy5185 | Jul 9, 2023 |
So atmospheric and moody. I felt like we were waiting for the main plot to drop for most of the book, and finally realized I needed to take the plot at face value. The setting provides some good history, and the characters feel like they're reflective of their time ( )
  KallieGrace | Jun 28, 2023 |
Set in the 1970s in Mexico City, Velvet Was the Night follows what happens when lonely, bored secretary Maite and low-level enforcer Elvis are caught up in the events surrounding the disappearance of Maite's politically active neighbour, the art student Leonora. I enjoyed this more than another novel of Silvia Moreno-Garcia's that I've read, Mexican Gothic, but less than Gods of Jade and Shadow. It's readable with a decent sense of place, but I never found myself particularly invested in the characters or in the resolution of the mystery surrounding Leonora—since neither Maite nor Elvis really know her, neither of them are personally invested in what's happened to her, and I think that had a knock-on effect on the novel's sense of urgency. ( )
  siriaeve | Apr 15, 2023 |
The first thing you should know about Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s novels is that they are wildly different across genres and stories. While Velvet was the Night doesn’t reach the dizzying sense of urgency of Mexican Gothic, it’s unfair to compare the two. This is a smart, interesting noir set in 1970s Mexico City with more than a few history lessons as the city is in political turmoil.

There are two main characters, Maite and Elvis, who don’t meet until the very end of the novel. Their storylines are separate but linked, so it sort of feels like a dual narrative. Maite is the relative innocent in the whole thing. She’s a secretary with a thing for music and Secret Romance comic books, who mainly lives in her head because the real world isn’t that exciting for her. She’s being badgered by her family to get married, give up her car and settle down. She lives pay check to pay check, and is rather unknowledgeable when it comes to current events. (There’s a lot going on politically during the course of the book as students protest and political unrest continues, while various government departments seem to work in opposition to each other). Elvis is part of a secret, government approved group (the Hawks) who are there to bring the students back into line. It’s a bloody, secretive business. But then Maite’s neighbour goes missing and word has it that she has some film containing damning photos of the government. Elvis’s boss puts him in charge of finding Leonora, while Maite just wants the money promised by Leonora and to stop looking after her cat. Both of them get tangled up with a lot more than they expect, involving corruption, spies and those who are determined for this to all blow over…

Velvet was the Night is more a slow burn, which is fitting with the noir style. I must admit not to knowing a lot about the politics of Mexico during that time, but a quick internet search was helpful in understanding what was going on. I didn’t find Maite overly likeable – she’s looking for pity to extricate herself from her own messes (e.g. not being able to afford the repairs on her car) but she was fascinating to read about. Elvis, even though his line of work is really just thug, was a lot more likeable. Perhaps it was the way he styled himself after Elvis Presley and was able to separate his job from his enjoyment of music. I did like reading about the close misses and Maite’s eyes opening to the unrest and corruption going on locally. As the stakes got higher and higher, my interest grew. I did like the twists at the end. While the ending is kind of open, I thought it was befitting of the novel.

Moreno-Garcia writes well as always, painting a clear picture of the scene and having well-fleshed out characters. I’m looking forward to reading other novels from her in different genres.

http://samstillreading.wordpress.com ( )
  birdsam0610 | Jan 21, 2023 |
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It is well established that the Hawks are an officially financed, organized, trained and armed repressive group, the main purpose of which since its founding in September 1968 has been the control of leftist and anti-government students.
--United States Department of State, confidential telegram, June 1971
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Gracias por la musica, padre
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He didn't like beating people.
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"From the New York Times bestselling author of Mexican Gothic comes a riveting noir about a daydreaming secretary, a lonesome thug, and the mystery of the missing woman that brings them together. 1970s Mexico City. Maite is a secretary who lives for one thing: the latest issue of Secret Romance. While student protests and political unrest consume the city, Maite escapes into stories of passion and danger. Her next-door neighbor, Leonora, a beautiful art student, seems to live a life of intrigue and romance that Maite envies. When Leonora disappears under suspicious circumstances, Maite finds herself searching for the missing woman--and journeying deeper into Leonora's secret life of student radicals and dissidents. Meanwhile, someone else is also looking for Leonora at the behest of his boss, a shadowy figure who commands goon squads dedicated to squashing political activists. Elvis is an eccentric thug who longs to escape his own life: He loathes violence and loves old movies and rock 'n' roll. But as Elvis searches for the missing woman, he comes to observe Maite from a distance--and grows more and more obsessed with this woman who shares his love of music, and the unspoken loneliness of his heart. Now as Maite and Elvis come closer to discovering the secrets behind Leonora's disappearance, they can no longer escape the danger that threatens to consume their lives, with hitmen, government agents, and Russian spies aiming to protect Leonora's secrets--at gunpoint"--

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