Eddie Muller's noir bar Cocktails inspired by the world of film noir

This beautifully designed, photo-filled cocktail book by Turner Classic Movies Noir Alley host Muller (Dark City: The Lost World of Film Noir) is an essential text whether readers are film noir buffs or budding mixologists. Before Muller became the "Czar of Noir," he was a bartender, so he's the perfect host for this book that pairs 50 vintage cocktails with 50 classic film noir movies. Each entry contains a brief and witty plot description, photos from the film, the reason why the drink and film are paired, the drink ingredients, and brief assembly instructions. Muller also offers tips (stronger drinks are often shaken rather than stirred because shaking draws water from the ice to dilute it a bit) and trivia (the Bloody Mary paired with Pickup on South Street was the preferred drink of the film's director, Sam Fuller). Among the other pairings: Champagne cocktail for Sunset Boulevard; a Merry Widow for Shadow of a Doubt; a Horse's Neck (ginger ale with a lemon twist, and sometimes rye) for In a Lonely Place; and the Hammett Martini for The Maltese Falcon. An index of ingredients helpfully steers readers to their favorite drink components. VERDICT An alluring and tasty drinking companion for lovers of film noir.--Kevin Howell