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dan's Reviews > Velvet Was the Night
Velvet Was the Night
by
by
� 4.75
Synopsis:
Set in '70s Mexico, the story follows Maite, a secretary who, lacking romance and excitement in her own lives, lives for the latest issue of Secret Romance. The city boils with student protests and political unrest but, even that, Maite dreams with stories of passion and danger.
It's when her next-door-neighbour disappears under suspicious circumstances, Maite finds herself in a quest to search for the woman whose life she envied - and, by doing that, she dives deeper into the her neighbour's secret life of dissidents and radicals.
However, there's someone else searching for the neighbour. At the mandate from his boss, Elvis, an eccentric criminal who works for a squad dedicated to squashing political activists, yet he loathes violence and what to hear 50s-70s rock 'n' roll. As Elvies searches for the missing woman, he observes Maite from afar - and grows more obsessed about this woman who shares his love for music.
As Maite and Elvis join forces to discover the truth behind the missing woman's disappearance, they cannot longer escape the dangerous threat looming above their heads with hitmen, Russian spies an governments agents.
Review:
This is a political thriller, filled with action and intensity, it's still a story about two lonely hearts and even lonelier souls who, underneath, desire for someone who can understand them.
The writing is atmospheric, lush and fully immersive. The beginning is slow, and the reader is not entirely sure where it's heading but, as Elvis and Maite become in contact with each other and the missing woman's case further becomes embroiled in Maite's life.
I don't think this book was particularly high stakes - quite low for the type of political thriller but, then again, it's not sold as a political action/mystery but a thriller that develops slowly.
The characters were interesting and intriguing with a storyline that, although slow, still captivates your attention and curiosity. The blend of historical political climate in Mexico during this period to the fiction is one of the best things this author knows how to do. It creates a fully immersive atmosphere where the reader lives, hears and breathes '70s Mexico.
It was my 2nd Silvia Moreno-Garcia book and, though I read it 3 years before writing this review, I still remember how delighted I was at the end and how she added the glimmer of hope and satisfaction.
Others Reviews on Silvia Moreno-Garcia's Books:
� Gods of Jade and Shadow
� Certain Dark Things
� The Beautiful Ones
� The Daughter of Doctor Moreau
� Signal to Noise
� Mexican Gothic
� Silver Nitrate
“She loved the characters she found between the printed pages, and she suffered bitterly with them.�
“She had loved without restraint, and he'd left a stain upon her soul.�
Synopsis:
Set in '70s Mexico, the story follows Maite, a secretary who, lacking romance and excitement in her own lives, lives for the latest issue of Secret Romance. The city boils with student protests and political unrest but, even that, Maite dreams with stories of passion and danger.
It's when her next-door-neighbour disappears under suspicious circumstances, Maite finds herself in a quest to search for the woman whose life she envied - and, by doing that, she dives deeper into the her neighbour's secret life of dissidents and radicals.
However, there's someone else searching for the neighbour. At the mandate from his boss, Elvis, an eccentric criminal who works for a squad dedicated to squashing political activists, yet he loathes violence and what to hear 50s-70s rock 'n' roll. As Elvies searches for the missing woman, he observes Maite from afar - and grows more obsessed about this woman who shares his love for music.
As Maite and Elvis join forces to discover the truth behind the missing woman's disappearance, they cannot longer escape the dangerous threat looming above their heads with hitmen, Russian spies an governments agents.
Review:
This is a political thriller, filled with action and intensity, it's still a story about two lonely hearts and even lonelier souls who, underneath, desire for someone who can understand them.
The writing is atmospheric, lush and fully immersive. The beginning is slow, and the reader is not entirely sure where it's heading but, as Elvis and Maite become in contact with each other and the missing woman's case further becomes embroiled in Maite's life.
I don't think this book was particularly high stakes - quite low for the type of political thriller but, then again, it's not sold as a political action/mystery but a thriller that develops slowly.
The characters were interesting and intriguing with a storyline that, although slow, still captivates your attention and curiosity. The blend of historical political climate in Mexico during this period to the fiction is one of the best things this author knows how to do. It creates a fully immersive atmosphere where the reader lives, hears and breathes '70s Mexico.
It was my 2nd Silvia Moreno-Garcia book and, though I read it 3 years before writing this review, I still remember how delighted I was at the end and how she added the glimmer of hope and satisfaction.
Others Reviews on Silvia Moreno-Garcia's Books:
� Gods of Jade and Shadow
� Certain Dark Things
� The Beautiful Ones
� The Daughter of Doctor Moreau
� Signal to Noise
� Mexican Gothic
� Silver Nitrate
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Reading Progress
May 17, 2021
– Shelved as:
to-read
May 17, 2021
– Shelved
October 27, 2022
–
Started Reading
October 28, 2022
–
2.49%
"silvia moreno-garcia truly knows how to write each pov with their own unique voice, even though it is third person"
page
7
October 28, 2022
–
7.83%
"so curious as to when and how the two main characters are going to enter each other's lives and if there will be any romance between them"
page
22
October 30, 2022
–
32.74%
"elvis is constantly going from "this is the best life" to "this is the only life i can have" constantly and, honestly, i relate"
page
92
November 4, 2022
–
74.02%
"in terms of the story, i'm loving it but i'm so confused on whether the two main characters are going to have some sort of romance because they haven't interacted yet and only one of them knows the other exists
this is weird but i trust this author"
page
208
this is weird but i trust this author"
November 9, 2022
–
Finished Reading
February 9, 2023
– Shelved as:
demigod-tier
