The Midnight Taxi

by Yosha Gunasekera

When the last fare of the night turns up dead in her backseat, a Sri Lankan American taxi driver works off the clock to clear her name in this mystery novel by debut author Yosha Gunasekera.

Siriwathi Perera doesn’t quite know where she’s going in life. She never expected to be a taxicab driver in New York City, struggling to make ends meet and still living with her parents at twenty-eight. The true-crime podcasts that keep Siri company as she drives don’t do much to make up for the legal career she imagined for herself, or the brother she’s grieving.

When public defender Amaya Fernando gets into her cab, they make a quick connection through their shared Sri Lankan roots. Siri, whose social circle is limited to her grade-school best friend, Alex, thinks things might finally be looking up with this new potential friendship. But she’s suddenly dropped into her own true crime when she discovers her next passenger murdered in the backseat, and she has to call Amaya sooner than she’d expected.

Pinned as the obvious and only suspect, and desperate to clear her name, Siri chases down leads across the boroughs of New York City with Amaya’s help. But with her court date looming, they have just five days to find out who really killed the midnight passenger—or Siri’s life will be over before she can even truly live it.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Cozy, Mystery Thriller, Cozy Mystery, Thriller

336 pages, Paperback

Expected publication February 10, 2026

Reviews

[Jayme C (Brunetteslikebookstoo) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Siriwathi Perera spends most of her time thinking about murder.

The Sri Lankan American taxi driver uses true crime podcasts as a lifeline to ease the stress of New York City traffic and undesirable passengers, focusing on the facts, means, motives and opportunities she listens to-but that doesn’t mean she would kill somebody!

It seems like a good night when public defender Amaya Fernando gets into her cab. They make a quick connection when they discover that they share Sri Lankan roots. As she drops her off and watches her safely enter her home, she hopes that they might become friends.

Her midnight fare is a young man that she had noticed earlier when she waited on a passenger who called but didn’t show. He was carrying a strange oblong box with holes in it, but when he enters her cab, he is only carrying a black and orange backpack. He wants to be taken to the airport quickly and isn’t interested in talking.

Upon arriving at the airport, she discovers he has been murdered in the backseat. Sure, his window was down, and there had been a “distraction” on the drive but surely she would have noticed someone stabbing her passenger, wouldn’t she?

She is the obvious and only suspect, and doesn’t know what to do, so she calls Amaya desperate for help. The police think they have the guilty party when they take her into custody, so the two women will have to team up to find the ACTUAL murderer on their own.

DEBUT author Yosha Gunasekera has penned a COZY mystery with intriguing amateur sleuths in this love letter to New York and the cab drivers who keep the city moving! 🚕

Somehow, Siriwathi manages to keep her sense of humor, and discovers she is pretty good at investigating so she may be able to continue to do this part time-if she can get herself cleared of wrongdoing.

And, if there is to be a sequel-she will have to succeed!

Interested in solving this puzzle? You can do so on February 10, 2026.

A buddy read with MarilynW! Be sure to watch for her amazing review for additional thoughts!

Thank You to Berkley for the gifted ARC provided through NetGalley. As always, these are my candid thoughts!

[Dorie - Cats&Books :) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Siriwathi had dreams of attending university but family struggles required that she take over her father’s taxi license. The family needs her paycheck. She spends her long idle hours listening to true crime podcasts.

One evening a midnight passenger flags her down - he needs to get to the airport. It’s a long drive and the passenger is quiet during the ride.

When she arrives at the airport she finds that the passenger has been stabbed and is dead in the back seat.

As a Sri Lankan-American and a woman - she is sure that she will be the #1 suspect.

Siri is frantic but she stumbles upon a public defender who is leaving the courthouse - she is Sri Lankan also and decides to help Siri find the murderer.

The novel continues with Siri and attorney Amaya working together to puzzle out the mystery of how the man could have been murdered in a closed taxi! There seems to be no obvious reason or culprit!

I enjoyed the characters who were realistic and likeable, I was certainly rooting for them to find the killer. Siri’s love of true crime podcasts may help her find the killer!!

This is the first in what is to be a series. It will be fun to read the future adventures of Siri and Amaya.

This is an enjoyable, quick read and I definitely recommend this one!

I received an ARC of this novel from the publisher through NetGalley. It was my pleasure to read and review this title.

[Sunny Lu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Written very simply like middle grade/YA level language and conceptions of how the world works. Nonetheless fun and gaggy


Also read this on the subway which made it better

3.5

[The Library Lady · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have not lived in the city for nearly 40 years, but I am still at heart a New Yorker. What I found here was another true New Yorker.

I loved the heroine's eye rolling reaction to out of town tourists who head for Times Square and a meal at the Olive garden. As a Bronxite by birth I grinned over the line about people of the Bronx being kind but not nice.
( I do have to say though that my bronxite parents were both!)

Combined with believable characters and plot, this is the sort of book that makes a really "good read" for me. I'll look forward to more books by this author,

[Janine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a cute, cozy mystery featuring Sri Lankan characters - Siriwatha “Siri” Perera and Amaya Fernando - working together to solve a mysterious murder, one in which Siri must prove her innocence.

Siri is a midnight taxi driver in New York City. She loves true crime podcasts and was hoping to go to law school. One night she picks up a fare who upon arrival at the airport is dead and Siri is the logical suspect. Fortunately for Siri an earlier fare had been another Sri Lanka, Amaya, and she’s able to secure an attorney quickly. Free on bond, Siri and Amaya join forces to solve the murder. No spoilers here; you have to read the book to find out what happened. It’s a good ending!

I enjoyed the characters in this book. Siri is particularly enjoyable with her love of the true crime podcasts where there are certain requirements involved for investigating and solving crimes which are reflected in the story - adding a light, comedic touch. Amaya serves as a nice foil to Siri - so no surprise! There will be another book with these two. I also liked the introduction of Sri Lankan characters, giving more diversity to the mystery genre.

I want to thank BookBrowse and NetGalley for allowing me to read this ARC.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. It was great from the first page. I enjoyed learning about New York City, and the Sri Lankan culture. The female protagonist was interesting and delightful. Great beginning to a new series. Highly recommend.

[Homerun2 · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great debut mystery featuring Siri, a Sri Lankan female cab driver in New York City. Her life isn't the easiest: aging parents, death of beloved brother, constant money problems, plus the added difficulties inherent in being a brown-skinned woman. Siri doesn't complain but she notices the world treats people like her differently.

She is maintaining pretty well when something horrible happens -- a man is murdered in her cab on the way to the airport. It's like a locked room mystery. How does that even happen? In a serendipitous way, her previous fare was a female Sri Lankan public defender who happened to give her a business card.

It's obvious immediately that the police will not be much help. The evidence is against Siri and they aren't investigating further. So Siri and Amaya start nosing around. They make a good team and soon turn up several leads.

I enjoyed this with its great characterizations and clever plotting. I will be watching for the next Siri mystery. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Kathryn E Hagen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Siriwathi Perera is a taxi driver with a penchant for true crime podcasts. Unfortunately for her, a true crime occurs in the back seat of her taxi. She was just taking a man to the Air France terminal at JFK airport. Her fare was murdered at some point during the trip, but Siri didn’t see or hear a thing.

The police believe that she must have killed him. Off she goes to jail. But, wait! Siri has
the business card of a fellow Sri Lankan attorney in her pocket. Will a good attorney be enough to free Siri?

“The Midnight Taxi” is an enthralling murder mystery. First, there’s the tragedy itself: who stabbed the fare? Second, another tragedy: an innocent woman being falsely accused.

I thought “The Midnight Taxi” was well-written– a real page turner. Siri and her lawyer look for clues and try to find the actual culprit. The characters seem like real people. Siri has known tragedy in her life, and I was rooting for her and her lawyer.

I recommend “The Midnight Taxi” if you’re in the mood for a tricky mystery with characters you’d probably like to meet. Personally, I hope it becomes a series.

Thank you to BookBrowse and NetGalley for the advance reader copy of this book. This is my honest review.

[Helen Beesley · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Midnight Taxi is a cute little mystery that i hope the publisher will tag as a cozy, otherwise the ratings may not be as good. Told in a simplistic, straight forward manner, the plot is full of some unbelievable moments with an ending that is even better than a fary tale. That said, once I decided to take it as a cozy, I was able to enjoy it for what it is. I did enjoy the characters, the Sri Lanks connection is very entertaining (although the food descriptions were a little over done.) I liked very much that Siri is a cab driver and close to her family and her life is not perfect. She deals with things in a realistic manner and you really can connect with her. While some things the character does is annoying..too many allusions to pop culture and going off on small tangents about things like how heavy the steel in in a Rolax watch is, she's loveable. I found the book entertaining and well thought out, and would read another, if it becomes a cozy series. Thank you Penguin Publishing, Net Galley and Bookbrowse.com for a ARC in exchange for an honest review. (This book comes out 2/26)

[Harvee Lau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sri Lankan-American taxi driver Siriwathi finds herself one of the few NYC female taxi drivers, but she is determined to help her struggling family. Her love of true crime podcasts, which she listens to while driving the taxi around the city, helps her in her investigation of a crime for which she is the main suspect. A midnight passenger in her locked cab is stabbed and killed while she is driving him to his destination. She teams up with public defender, another Sri Lankan in NYC, Amaya Fernando, who offers to defend Siri pro bono, gratis.

The two team up to investigate the crime for which there is no obvious reason or culprit. The dead man's past and his acquaintances probably hold to the key to his murder.

This is the first in what is to become a mystery series featuring Siri and I am looking forward to reading more about her and Amaya. The characters are realistic and likeable, and Siri in particular is a sympathetic and gutsy main characters. Her descriptions of NYC and its areas are an interesting part of the novel, as she is the narrator of the book.

[GK Daffu · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Midnight Ride Worth Taking

I really loved The Midnight Taxi. The writing feels so fresh and the whole thing captures NYC in a way that made me nostalgic for the city’s late-night pulse. You can practically hear the taxis and smell the street-corner food carts.

What made this book stand out for me was the perspective. Having the main characters be of Sri Lankan descent was incredibly refreshing. I don’t think I’ve ever read a mystery through that lens before, and it added so much texture and heart to the story — the cultural details, the family dynamics, even the quiet moments of identity and belonging. It felt new, grounded, and long overdue in the genre.

The plot itself is fast and fun. Siri is such an easy character to root for. She's resourceful, a little chaotic, and in way over her head. Overall, a smart, vivid, genuinely enjoyable ride. I tore through it and already can’t wait for the sequel. Thank you to the author and publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[MarilynW · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Midnight Taxi by Yosha Gunasekera

In my eyes, The Midnight Taxi isn't a thriller but more of a cozy mystery. We have two very likeable Sri Lankan American women who meet up by accident. Twenty eight year old Siri is a nighttime taxi driver, a job she never expected to be working. She was all set to go to work towards a law degree, when tragedy stuck and she needed to be the one in the family to work as a taxi driver She is extremely dedicated to this job she never wanted and even more dedicated to keeping her taxi clean, especially the back seat area which sees so much more than she would like to see and hear while she is driving fares around New York City.

Amaya, a public defender, takes Siri's cab one night and the two of them hit it off right away. It's not often that Siri gets to talk to someone who understand her background, her culture, the food, and the hovering mothers the way that Amaya understands. Siri gets a lunch invite and is pretty sure she's made a new friend by the time she delivers Amaya to her destination.

The next fare is where Siri lands in trouble. The extremely quiet guy seems to sleep the entire way to the airport but once Siri arrives she finds he is dead. How can a young guy hop into her cab and be dead by the time she gets him where he is going? This isn't "natural causes" kind of dead, it's murder kind of dead and now Siri is being accused of murder. Thank goodness she has Amaya's card because she needs help NOW!

Siri has been a long time true crime fan and that has been an advantage of her cab driving job. She can pretty much listen to true crime podcasts to her hearts delight. So while she is out on bail, she isn't about to sit still and let fate lock her up for murder, she's going to use her amateur crime sleuthing knowledge to try and save her freedom. Along the way we meet Siri's parents and I'd love to be invited to dinner at her house. Her mother loves to cook Sri Lankan foods and share them with everyone. I enjoyed discussing this story with Jayme, be sure to check out her review.

Expected pub February 10, 2026

Thank you to Elisha, Berkley Publishing Group | Berkley, and NetGalley for this ARC

[Rebecca Holliman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This debut mystery was a lot of fun to read. The characters have excellent depth, and the portrayal of the NYC criminal and legal system is eye-opening. The author's own experience as as a former public defender in New York and daughter of immigrants informs both the depiction of immigrant cultures in the city and of the struggles of the less privileged caught up in the system. I love Siri and Amaya and how their friendship develops throughout the novel as they gather clues as to who really murdered the victim killed in Siri's taxi, unbeknownst to her. Alex, Siri's childhood best friend supplies an interesting contrast to her as a member of a wealthy, socially prominent family. The suspects all seem like possible culprits most of the way through the story, keeping the pace and tension strong as the climax approaches. If I have one quibble, it's that one of the final twists is pretty clearly telegraphed quite early on and is not much of a surprise, but this doesn't detract much from the story, and I will definitely read the sequel (there's a teaser at the end of the book). All in all, this is a satisfying 'locked room' whodunnit and a strong beginning for some great series characters.

[mary k · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, I liked the book. It was interesting to read a story from a point of view you don’t often encounter, and I appreciated the uniqueness of the narrator’s voice. However, the mystery felt more like a side element and didn’t pick up steam until about halfway through. It was also fairly easy to guess the culprit, and some of the circumstances surrounding the crime felt implausible. The main character’s inner monologue and frequent flashbacks became distracting at times, and there was a lot of world-building that didn’t always feel necessary.
On a positive note, the story wraps up quickly and doesn’t rely on cliffhangers. If you enjoy a character-driven story (especially one with a rare perspective) and don’t mind the mystery taking a backseat, I would recommend this as a quick, easy read. The writing is approachable, with occasional touches of humor.

[E · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Midnight Taxi, Yosha Gunasekera creates a twist on the locked room mystery concept. The crime in this novel occurs in a taxi driven by a Sri Lankan woman named Siriwathi, who narrates the book. Siri’s descriptions of New York City, the unique personalities of true New Yorkers and the many local (i.e. non-touristy) eateries gave what could have been a dry mystery, an added layer of color and depth. As a former New Yorker, her commentary was both humorous and accurate.

The other main characters, Amaya, a Sri Lankan public defender and Alex, Siri’s childhood friend are all believable and likable. There are also numerous other characters to keep track of, at times too many!

I thoroughly enjoyed the book and look forward to a sequel.

[K · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed #themidnighttaxi, graciously given to me by @bookbrowse in exchange for an honest review. While I did find the writing and dialogue to be quite juvenile, Siri and her friends - Amaya and Alex - are good characters, and it's fun "watching" them solve the mystery (think Scooby Doo). I also appreciated Siri's internal monologue, and the author gives her backstory as appropriate. We learn how her brother's death has affected her, her parents and their home lives. She didn't strike me as a plus 25 year old (again, the writing...) but it seems churlish to criticize a character so full of heart.

A quick, lighthearted (despite the subject matter) read.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the very first page, this novel pulls you into the world of an intriguing Sri Lankan protagonist caught in the middle of a crime unlike any other. The author masterfully balances the tension of a classic whodunnit with the freshness of a unique setting, weaving together mystery, culture, and suspense in a way that feels both original and immersive.

It’s rare to find a mystery that feels both familiar in its structure and refreshing in its execution, but this book achieves exactly that. For readers who love crime fiction with a twist of cultural depth, this is a standout.

Strongly recommend.

[Reader R · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun, easy read for those days you need something simple. There were several things I found difficult to believe. A NYC taxi driver and public defender go on a detecting spree to solve a murder in only 5 days because the police won't investigate it themselves. Overprotective parents who have emigrated from Sri Lanka and mourn the death of the much favored son who was studying to be a doctor (what else?). The book is obviously set up to be a mystery series, but doesn't offer me anything different to keep me reading.

[Mehva · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book though had to suspend belief at numerous points. I liked the main characters and, found the premise interesting, how did the man get killed in her taxi and how she and the public defender who she just met were going to solve it and get her out of being the only suspect. While I appreciate the inclusion of racial/cultural/class issues, it was a little overdone in terms of reading the story, i got it and being told it over and over seemed more for the author's sake vs the reader. despite the issues raised, it was a light, enjoyable if somewhat unbelievable story.

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a free DRC of this book through Netgalley and the publisher. I wasn't sure what to expect from this book, but I really enjoyed it. The story was unique and the developing friendship between Siri and Amaya as they investigate the murder was warmly inviting. The writing style pulled me in immediately and the cultural and family references made the characters seem very real. The ending wasn't easy to guess immediately during all of the twists and turns. I am looking forward to more books from this author in the future.

[Alma · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author was a Sri Lankan NYC public defender, and her descriptions of Siri’s arrest and treatment by the police and the night court judge were eye opening. I thought Siri rambled too much, going off topic more times than I care to name, which is why I gave the book 3 stars. Read more on my blog about this ARC I received from the publisher in exchange for an honest review: https://shouldireaditornot.wordpress....

[Ashley Winstead · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's hard to describe the exact blend of genre in this book--it's somewhere between cozy and "light mystery" (shoutout to John from Murder By the Book for the phrase!), but whatever it is, it is pure magic. I haven't been this charmed by a book or its protagonists in a long time. Yosha Gunasekera has done something special!

[Adam Drucker · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was fun, well-written, and kept me guessing until the very end! It also dealt with some timely issues in an accessible way. Recommended for those who want a fun twist on the genre.

[Elle · Rating 5 out of 5]

A suspenseful and fun ride through New York City with Sri Lankan flair! A traditional mystery with a fresh twist.

[Barb · Rating 4 out of 5]

review to come

[Frances · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a charming story of two Sri Lankan young women, one a taxi driver and the other a public defender, who meet and become involved in a murder mystery that is beyond either of their experiences. I liked the book more than I thought I would. It is especially revealing for its takes on being a person of color on both sides of the judicial system and in the problems women face with family and expectations and life goals.
I received an e-ARC of this book from Net Galley

[Janae McNally · Rating 4 out of 5]

Siri is a true-crime-loving cabbie in New York who suddenly finds herself with a real-life crime unfolding right in the back seat of her cab. I enjoyed this whodunnit — it was a solid mystery with plenty of twists to keep me turning pages. Siri’s Sri Lankan heritage plays a big role in the story (the author leans into it pretty hard at times), but I appreciated seeing a strong, complex female lead. And honestly, Siri’s lawyer friend Amaya might have been even more kickass than Siri herself.

I can’t say this book completely blew me away, but it was a fun read — and if you’re Sri Lankan, you’ll probably love seeing such thoughtful representation on the page.