“Come closer, I want to talk to you. I’m going to tell you an astounding story.” Cue the fainting dames, the faceless gunmen, and a murder mystery that unravels under the silvery light of a full moon. Crime, murder, and mystery are elements of a smoky daydream only belonging to Hollywood noir. Humphrey Bogart never looked so good in black and white. Luckily, you don’t have to look far to get your fill in a tall mystery tale.
The Mandrake Bar, located in La Cienega Boulevard in Los Angeles, delivers that bit of criminal magic during their “Noir at the Bar” event. Held once or twice a month, co-owner Drew Heitzler has been inviting crime fiction L.A. writers for more than half a decade, reeling in established crime novelists such as bestselling author Tod Goldberg, author of Gangsterland and House of Secrets, along with TV writer, and author Hollie Overton, who has written and produced two seasons of Freeform’s hit series _Shadow Hunters_, and Lifetime’s _The Client List_.
Come January 21, you can find these renowned writers sipping their libations, wearing fedoras (okay, maybe not the fedoras) while listening in on emerging L.A.-based, noir writers who are taking The Mandrake stage, reading excerpts of their recently published works. You will find scribes like Ivy Pochoda, author of _Visitation Street,_ and her new book, _Wonder Valley_, and journalist, author, and finalist for the 2017 Killer Nashville Silver Falchion Award for Suspense, Christina Hoag, who debuted her noir novel, _Skin of Tattoos,_ last summer.
Drink, schmooze, and absorb the literary ambiance, you can come for the genre and leave owning that bit of criminal magic. Oh, and don’t worry, you can leave your trench coat and fedora hanging at the door.
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Written by Leslie Gonzalez
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