Top positive review
4.0 out of 5 stars(4+)The Narration of Susan Ericksen Makes This Story Come Alive
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on December 5, 2005
I have long been aware of the commercial success of author Nora Roberts but the storylines and writing style (a genre often characterized as romantic suspense with apparent emphasis on the romance) have never tempted me to read any of her work. However, I happened to pick up a copy of volume #21 (depending on how you count anthology inclusions) in the .... IN DEATH series written under the pen name J.D. Robb and was immediately intrigued by its premise of a futuristic police procedural series (the year is 2058) with a strong central character (Detective Lieutenant Eve Dallas) who had a continuing romantic interest (the mysterious Irish billionaire Roarke). I have long enjoyed the Spenser series by Robert Parker and the ensemble cast of Ed McBain's 87th Precinct novels; the reward of finding another such series to enjoy would only be increased by some speculation thrown into the mix regarding the future direction of science in the aid of police work as well as speculation concerning the evolution of New York City, an area very familiar to me. I was immediately hooked by SURVIVOR IN DEATH and despite some minor criticisms gave it a five star review (3/30/2005). I read ORIGIN IN DEATH, the next book in the series, as soon as it was released and also enjoyed it sufficiently to rate it five stars as well (7/26/2005). As with other series which I have enjoyed, I then decided to read some of the earlier books to fill in the backstory and see how the characters have evolved.
In my opinion, the early stories in the series can best be labeled transition novels as romance author Roberts attempts to transform herself into mystery writer Robb. My recent three star review (11/29/2005) of NAKED IN DEATH, the initial book in the series, discusses the specific positives and negatives of that attempt, so I will not go into detail again here. And in summary, I found this book a much better police procedural although with the major flaw that it seemed a little too obvious that Eve's pursuit of her initial suspect (although logical) would turn out to be a diversion from her identification of the real killer. I so greatly enjoyed Susan Ericksen's audio rendition (unabridged CD) of that book that I also chose to listen to the audio version of this novel; I highly recommend her narration as likely to add to your enjoyment of the story.
A wonderfully apt Dryden quotation concerning fame and death opens this story; then Lt. Eve Dallas is discovered at the scene of a shocking homicide. Prosecuting Attorney Cicely Towers, a powerful and widely recognized star in the District attorney's office and a woman with whom Eve has dealt on occasion, has been found with her throat brutally slashed in a nasty neighborhood far from her office and her home late one night. The final appointment in her datebook is for an earlier dinner with her good friend and long time lover George Hammett; Eve quickly establishes that she arrived safely home and subsequently received a mystery call of which she made no record but which obviously drew her to the scene of her death. Eve's investigation is complicated by the close friendship of Cicely's ex-husband Marco Angelini and their adult children (David and Marina) with her boss, Commander Whitney and his increasing concern as Eve's investigation concentrates on the family. Eve discovers that both David Angelini and Marina's fiancée Randall Slade have financial problems which could provide a motive for murder; as additional damaging background information surfaces she appears to be on a collision course with Whitney's understandable concern both for these children who have suffered the tragic loss of their mother; in addition, the stress increases when it appears that the friendship Whitney's wife with the family may lead to her potential involvement as a material witness. Finally, a further complication which brings into question Dallas' objectivity is the revelation that the Angelini family, Cicely Towers and Eve's lover Roarke are are partners in a business venture.
Additional murders soon occur which bear the signature trademark of the killer, and media pressure intensifies on Eve given the visible lack of progress in her investigation and the antipathy which she has evoked in C.J. Morse, who coanchors the evening news with her friend Nadine Furst. Eve is infuriated by C.J.'s actions and yet knows that in fact the only effective way to silence the slimeball's continual attempts to denigrate her investigatory skills during his broadcasts is identify and catch the murderer. Meanwhile, Eve is also involved in establishing the boundaries in her relationship with Roarke, both with regard to their personal lives and when his aid might be appropriate in her police investigation. After several twists, including one diversion which I had not anticipated, the story suddenly rockets towards a violent climax which it is not clear that all the central characters will survive.
In addition to Roarke, Commander Whitney, Lt. Dallas, and reporter Nadine Furst, this story contains all the series characters introduced in the first volume including Dr. Mira and the unique irrepressible Mavis Freestone and Summerset, all of whom play relatively minor roles in this narrative. Finally, the reader is introduced to Patrol(wo)man Peabody, whose observational skills in her relatively minor role in this case commend her to Eve. She will eventually become both Eve's good friend and partner on subsequent cases and their complementary styles and skills will combine with their dedication to speaking for the dead and their loved ones will serve them well.
If you plan to read several volumes of the series, I strongly suggest that you start with NAKED IN DEATH and then read this book even though they are inferior to the two later books which I have read. The later books include details concerning the mysteries of Roarke's and Dallas' childhood backgrounds and the impact on their individual lives which provide a context that I would have preferred to have gradually unfold as I completed the series in the sequence which the author intended. And certainly, if you want a romance/detective story then read NASKED IN DEATH. While this book still had some steamy sequences much more typical of Nora Robert's novels than the later stories in this sequence, they were much more infrequent and better integrated into the story. However, if you only plan to sample a few stories in the series, then I strongly suggest that you skip the early books and concentrate on some of the later novels, including either of the two which I mention at the beginning of this review. The characters and their relationships are much more developed as the series progresses and the plots are also more complex. Meanwhile, I plan to continue to pursue the dual goal of reading each of the new releases as they occur while gradually filling in my knowledge of Dallas' past cases.
Tucker Andersen
