Glitter in the Dark

A noir thriller set in Roaring Twenties Harlem that brings to life speakeasies and a tough dame—a female advice columnist who faces dangerous foes to prove she has the goods to be an investigative reporter.

Welcome to the Roaring Twenties! Ginny Dugan, formerly from Kansas and now living in Harlem, writes the “Friendly Advice” column for Photoplay magazine. Her dream has always been to write an investigative feature, but Mr. Quirk, the editor-in-chief, laughs at this. Ginny makes so little that she must live with her sister Dottie, the reigning queen of the Ziegfeld Follies, who is living the life of diamonds, Rolls-Royces, and champagne. Because Ginny has been arrested twice during raids on speakeasies, Dottie has threatened to send her back to Kansas if it happens again. She doesn’t want her glamorous life tarnished.

When Ginny hears a rumor that Harlem’s biggest star, the mysterious Josephine Hurston, will be singing at one of Harlem’s hidden clubs, she grabs her friend Mary, hoping to see, hear, and meet the star. Everyone is aching for a look at Josephine, an “elegant black woman, draped and veiled in silver.” Josephine appears, and after the show, Ginny follows her outside, where Josephine is kidnapped and Ginny is superficially shot in the shoulder. When she wakes up in the hospital, she recognizes her opportunity—investigate the abduction and write a powerful story for Photoplay.

That’s the first chapter. The action explodes when Ginny finds herself investigating something more deadly than a kidnapping. She’s aware of the danger—dirty cops who call her a drunk slut, drug dealers pushing a white pep powder, and opulent society dames with questionable, exotic cocktails.

For those who love this historical era, you won’t be disappointed. The plot whips along with plenty of twists and suspense. The glamour and romantic liaisons cover dark secrets. The setting and personal conflicts of the characters ring true and are deliciously detailed. Author Olesya Lyuzna brings to life what feels like a true crime caper—or a darn good Netflix series. She delivers a tight mystery too, that includes exotic dancers, bootleggers, drugs, murder, and, importantly, the relationships between Ginny and her friend Mary, and another between the sisters. Ginny’s dream of being an investigative reporter and her ambition to chase it no matter the cost reflects the era’s suffrage movement, when women fought for and gained the right to vote. Like many women, Ginny wants to break out of a traditional woman’s role.

Olesya brilliantly flips the usual roles of the investigator and femme fatale, too. Ginny investigates, and Dottie’s handsome beau, Charles, provides the reader with a rascal of a homme fatale. And like many of the classic noir investigators, Ginny makes many bad choices before solving the crime.
The novel’s title paints a perfect image of a time of cultural change, with wild young things frequenting glitzy jazz clubs and speakeasies, mixed with the dark lawlessness brought forth by the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution—Prohibition. Highly recommend. And so much fun.

Thank you to Olesya Lyuzna and Mysterious Press for an advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review.