The Midnight Taxi opens in the early morning hours of what should be a typical night for taxi driver Siriwathi Perera. A last-minute cancellation leaves her available for one final fare: a fidgety man in need of a ride to JFK. She hesitates—something feels off—but accepts the ride anyway. It will prove to be the most unexpected end to her night.

The trip is filled with oddities: a near-miss with a drunk pedestrian, rowdy New Yorkers blocking the route. When Siri finally pulls up to the airport, her passenger doesn’t get out. That’s when she discovers he’s dead—stabbed through the heart. And Siriwathi was the only other person in the car.

What follows is both terrifying and gripping: her arrest, the race against time as she investigates to either clear her name or seal her fate. Gunasekera has crafted a locked-room mystery set in the most unlikely of places—a moving New York City taxi cab—and pulls it off brilliantly.

But here’s what elevates The Midnight Taxi beyond a clever premise: Yes, it’s a mystery. Yes, it features a fresh new voice. Yes, it’s engaging and complex. And it’s something of a love letter to New York City, seen through the eyes of an immigrant whose appreciation runs far deeper than tourist spots. Gunasekera takes us through all five boroughs with someone who truly sees and loves the city in all its messy, complicated glory.

My sincere thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts and opinions.