Faithless in Death by J.D. Robb

 

In Death #52

390 pages

 

Blurb

It's a beautiful Spring day in NYC when Lt. Eve Dallas gets an early morning murder call. A talented young sculptor hasn't had such a perfect day in May. Killed by her own hammer, at first it looks like an argument with a jealous partner but it soon becomes clear that there is much more to this case than a lovers' quarrel turned fatal.

Eve finds herself drawn into the dark and dangerous world of a secret order. A world in which white supremacy, misogyny and religious fanaticism are everyday activities. Eve has dealt with some tough cases before but is it too much even for her to take on a wealthy, influential organisation with friends in very high places.....?

 

Review

After 52 books I'm running out of things to say about the In Death books. Not because I'm loving them any less but because there are so many ways to gush about books and I think I've repeated myself often enough.

This instalment was especially harrowing because the premise felt all too likely in these days with right-wing and religious voices getting ever louder and more extreme. Sure, the theme was somewhat reminiscent of Margaret Atwood’s Handmaid’s Tale but given how scary and realistic that particular plot is, that is not a complaint. Quite the opposite in fact. Fiction is (one of) the most accessible ways of getting a message across or making people think, and that can only be a good thing.

While the mystery in this story was captivating, the suspense is only one of my reasons for reading this series and awaiting each new release with bated breath. I remain hooked on the In Death books because of Eve and Rourke and the fascinating cast of secondary characters and colleagues. Yes, the crimes are imaginative and the investigations thrilling, but I live for those moments when Eve gets frustrated about the English language and the updates on the personal lives of her friends. As per usual, this book didn’t disappoint on any of those aspects.

High praise again for J.D. Robb, the only author who has not only managed to keep my attention for this number of books, but also provides me with a 5-star read (almost) every single time.

When is the next In Death title landing?

Connections in Death (In Death #48) by J.D. Robb

370 pages

Blurb

When recovering drug addict Lyle Pickering is found dead of an overdose, it looks like a tragic accident. But his sister Rochelle knows better, and so does Lieutenant Eve Dallas. Lyle was murdered, and the evidence points directly to his old street gang.

As Eve and husband Roarke track the killer through the city’s dive bars, drug dens and strip joints, another body is discovered. With connections growing between the living and the dead, and the body count on the rise, Eve knows she needs to close this case fast, before the killer’s lust for power turns the city’s streets into a bloodbath.

Review

As you may know, I’m kinda addicted to the In Death series by J.D. Robb. I haven’t missed a single book in the almost 50 titles long series and can honestly say that I enjoyed every single one of them. Some of them I adored, some made it on to my ‘extra special’ list, and others were ‘just’ good reads but, if I remember correctly, not a single one of these books ended up disappointing me or warranting a score less than four stars, although the vast majority scored five.

Connections in Death was one of the rarer four stars stories. Not because there was anything wrong with the book, as such, but because it seemed to lack that wow factor. I mean, Eve is still as snarky as she always is, and still has her usual hang-ups about the English language, and hitting the nail on the head every time a saying exasperates her. Her interactions with Roarke remain clever, tender, sexy, and heartwarming, while her verbal exchanges with Peabody made me smile, as they always do.

And yet, somehow all of it was a little bit less than it usually is. The snark wasn’t as sharp, the intimate scenes with Roarke weren’t as sexy, and her verbal jousting sessions with Peabody lacked some of their usual fire. And the same can be said for the mystery in this book; it just didn’t have the depth I’ve gotten used to and I can’t help feeling a bit too much time was given to what happens after the arrests have been made.

I’m probably not making myself very clear here. If I’m honest, I have to admit it’s not easy to put my finger on exactly what didn’t feel right to me this time. I just know I didn’t feel the same desperate read to keep on reading. The story just didn’t keep me on the edge of my seat as the In Death books usually do. At the same time I have to admit that the last chapter, in which Roarke helps Eve find peace with everything that has happened, truly warmed my heart and ensured that I was satisfied and uplifted when I closed the book.

Having said all that, I would have read this book even if I’d known all of the above in advance. These are really minor quibbles. There’s nothing wrong with the story as such, it just wasn’t as fabulous as some other titles in the series have been. And I’m already looking forward to the next In Death book; it can come soon enough for me.

Dark in Death (In Death #46) by J.D. Robb

372 pages

# 46 In Death

Blurb

There’s always a reason for murder. But when a young actress is killed in a swift and violent attack at a cinema screening, that reason is hard to fathom—even for Lieutenant Eve Dallas and her team.

It’s only when bestselling crime writer Blaine DeLano arrives at the precinct that the shocking truth is revealed. Someone is recreating the murder scenes from her latest series, book by book. With six more books left in the series, Eve now knows how the killer will strike next. But why has Delano been targeted. Could her abusive husband be involved?

As fiction is transformed into bloody reality, Eve will need all her skill and experience to solve this unique case. Luckily for her, husband Roarke happens to be a fan of DeLano’s work. And he’s more than happy to work side by side with his brilliant wife—no matter how dark things become.

Review

Boy did I love this book. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve adored this series from book one, but every now and again there’s an instalment I like just that bit better; this was one of them.

On the back of plenty of crazy in the world of romance and its writers, J.D. Robb takes the obsession with writing and (a) writer(s) a few steps further to a somewhat horrifying level. I can’t imagine writing murder mysteries and having some crazy person replicating my murders in real life, but I’m fairly sure I’d never write another word if it happened to me (or at the very least switch genres).

But, apart from the gruesome nature (especially from a writer’s perspective) of the murders, this book is in many ways an ode to reading, to books and yes, also to writing. This is a thriller, a page-turner, but there was time to describe the delight of walking into a well-stocked library, the joy of sitting in front of a fire and read a book (with a cat draped over your lap). Even for the murderer it’s an obsession with the written word that motivates their actions—even if they do take it to the level of cray-cray.

As usual, all my favourites were present in this title too. I’m always delighted to reconnect with Eve, Roarke, Peabody, McNab, Mira, Nadine and all the others. Eve’s exasperation with the English language and her very sexy and always entertaining relationship and interactions with Roarke are staples I look forward to before starting one of the In Death books. Just as I’m always happy to see Peabody and Eve or Eve and Nadine verbally spar. In fact, a big part of my love for this series is probably how well I’ve gotten to know these characters. In many ways they’ve turned into friends I get to visit with twice a year; always wishing it would be more, always grateful for what I’m given. (And, oh my god, now I sound almost as delusional as the perpetrator in this book.)

I have to say I’m surprised and delighted that these stories still bring me so much joy, even after 46 titles. With other series I’ve become hooked on in the past, I sooner or later lost interest, either because the books felt too much like more of the same or because the author started taking the story-line to what in my eyes was the ridiculous. And there’s no denying that the In Death stories contain many familiar scenes (like those I described above) but in these books they don’t bother me at all; in fact, that familiarity is one of my main reasons for always wanting more.

On which note I only want to add that I’m now more than ready for the next instalment.

Secrets in Death (In Death #45) by J.D. Robb - Review

 370 pages

Publisher: Little Brown

Blurb

A new novel in the #1 New York Times bestselling series: Lt. Eve Dallas must separate rumors from reality when a woman who traffics in other people’s secrets is silenced.

The chic Manhattan nightspot Du Vin is not the kind of place Eve Dallas would usually patronize, and it’s not the kind of bar where a lot of blood gets spilled. But that’s exactly what happens one cold February evening.

The mortally wounded woman is Larinda Mars, a self-described “social information reporter,” or as most people would call it, a professional gossip. As it turns out, she was keeping the most shocking stories quiet, for profitable use in her side business as a blackmailer. Setting her sights on rich, prominent marks, she’d find out what they most wanted to keep hidden and then bleed them dry. Now someone’s done the same to her, literally—with a knife to the brachial artery.

Eve didn’t like Larinda Mars. But she likes murder even less. To find justice for this victim, she’ll have to plunge into the dirty little secrets of all the people Larinda Mars victimized herself. But along the way, she may be exposed to some information she really didn’t want to know…

Review

Part of me wonders if, after 45 previous books and reviews, I really need to write another one. Surely by now, people will have caught on to the fact that I adore the In Death books by J.D. Robb. But, in all fairness, this instalment isn’t quite like most other books in the series. While the earlier stories were mostly high tension thrillers with multiple victims and a race against time that started on the first page, Secrets in Death is told at a more leisurely pace and reads as a more or less (given that it’s set in the future) standard police procedural.

I enjoyed the change of pace. It meant there was more room for the interactions between the recurring characters in this series. While I thoroughly enjoy the mysteries in this series, my addiction to them has more to do with how hard I’ve fallen, not only for Roarke and Eve, but for all people in their immediate circle. I’ll never get enough of Peabody, McNab, and Nadine (to name just a few).

I also appreciated that in this book, the victim was a most despicable creature. In fact, she was the sort of character than in another instalment in this series might well have been the perpetrator. I loved how this fact was used to illustrate that justice is justice, no matter who the victim happens to be and that principles are only true if you apply them under all circumstances.

If I do have one complaint about Secrets in Death it is that I had the murderer identified as soon as they were introduced. I realise that the scene in question was written the way it was to emphasise Eve’s investigative instincts, but it was laid on so thickly even a blind person would have recognised what was going on. I can’t help think a that a softer touch, would and could have worked just as well without making the resolution obvious long before it was spelled out. Having said that, I can’t say that this ‘issue’ was big enough to affect my overall reading enjoyment or rating. J

One of many things I love about this series is that it shows the ongoing relationship between Roarke and Eve. And while it is described as one of those couplings that make you wish you might run into a partner you connect with in similar ways, it doesn’t pretend all is perfect. Eve and Roarke, like everybody else, run into misunderstandings and problems, but, thankfully, they and their relationship are ‘grown-up’ enough to solve these issues through communication, honesty, good sex, and humour.

“So here we are, all pissed off, and likely to give this particular dead woman more of our sweat than she deserved in life.” – Roarke

And I’ll never get bored with Eve’s literal approach to life and language. All too often she wonders about a staying or word I’ve used for years without ever giving it a second thought, only to find myself agreeing with her that it is, indeed, weird.

“What sort of a name is waffle—where they just not sure what it was, so they, you know, waffled? Or does it mean something?”- Eve

Overall I have to repeat something I’ve said numerous times before: J.D Robb/Nora Roberts is in a league of her own when it comes to telling a captivating story. She may appear to be breaking every single rule when it comes to her writing, and I’m aware that her shifts in perspective shouldn’t work, but for me it all contributes to the qualities that have brought her to the top of my list of favourite authors.