Eve Dealt With Jealousy and Finding a Killer in Innocent in Death by J.D. Robb
Written: Nov 18 '07 (Updated Nov 06 '09)
|
Product Rating:
|
|
|
Pros: Entertaining, engrossing story with returning characters.
Cons: Some of the characters not used much.
The Bottom Line: Innocent in Death was another wonderful book in the In Death series by J.D. Robb. It is a must read book for fans of the series.
|
|
|
| dragonfire88's Full Review: J. D. Robb - Innocent in Death |
I started reading the In Death series several years ago after I had heard a lot of good things about the books. I was hooked by the time I finished the first book, Naked in Death, and started picking up the rest of the books in the series. Once I caught up with the books, I kept buying the new ones as they were released. I have been meaning to review Innocent in Death for a while now.
I am going to share a little bit of general information on the series before I talk specifically about Innocent in Death.
The In Death series, made up of more than twenty full length books and four short stories, is a romantic suspense series set in the future in New York City. Innocent in Death took place in February of 2060 and almost two full years have passed since the events of the first book. The books follow Eve Dallas, a homicide detective, her cases and her life with her wealthy husband Roarke. Eve and Roarke have been in every book and short story along with several other supporting characters. Each book and short story has focused on a different case that Eve was investigating while taking at least a little time to deal with issues in her personal life. Most of the plots are resolved within one book, but there have been a few ongoing plot lines that have carried forward from book to book. Two of Eve’s previous cases that received a lot of media attention were briefly brought up again in this book.
Every book has shown how things have changed in Eve’s time and several futuristic items have been introduced. Cars drive on roads but also have the ability to fly. Traveling to space has become common and there are many resorts and colonies there. Guns are illegal and police officers carry tasers instead. Computers are much more advanced and used for many more things. I love reading about those things and think Robb has created some very interesting things for her futuristic world.
At first it seemed like some sort of bizarre accident when a well-liked history teacher, Craig Foster, was discovered dead in his classroom by two students. Eve and her partner Delia got the case and Eve decided fairly quickly that Craig had been poisoned. Eve didn’t have a lot to go on or any suspects since he was so well liked, but she jumped into the investigation and did slowly discover a few clues and the fact that some of Craig’s co-workers had secrets. Eve found it harder to focus on the investigation because one of Roarke’s former girlfriends, Magdelana Percell turned up in town. She seemed to want to restart her relationship with Roarke even though she knew he was married. Eve struggled to deal with her jealousy and the fact that Roarke was willing to meet with Magdelana didn’t help matters.
Most of Innocent in Death was focused on Eve’s investigation into Craig’s death. He had been well liked by basically everyone, so Eve didn’t have any suspects at first. As she worked on the investigation, she slowly started to uncover secrets that had the potential to be motives. Later in the book, another person with a connection to Craig was murdered in a way that first looked like an accident. The mystery was developed well and kept my interest throughout the book. The mystery was concluded in a way that worked for the plot and while a bit disturbing was believable. There was a decent amount of suspense in the book as well as a few surprises. There really wasn’t much violence in the book like there has been in some of the previous books of the series. Some of the things that were described in relation to Craig’s murder weren’t pleasant to read about and could bother some readers.
Innocent in Death was made more complex when Magdelana showed up. Eve didn’t like the woman and had a strange reaction to meeting her right the moment they were introduced. Eve had come into contact with women Roarke had been involved with before without falling apart like she did over Magdelana. Eve just didn’t know how to handle everything she was feeling related to the situation, especially the jealousy and insecurities. Eve actually had trouble staying focused on the case because of her feelings, something that really hadn’t happened to her before. She was really thrown when Summerset went out of his way to talk to Eve and actually tell her that he felt she was better for Roarke than Magdelana. Eve didn’t deal well with all the new feelings, which just made the entire situation worse. Roarke did seem oblivious to certain things and wasn’t understanding Eve’s feelings, something he was usually much better at doing.
Eve and Roarke’s relationship has been important to the books since the beginning of the series. The relationship has never distracted from the mystery aspect of each book. Their entire relationship, from their first meeting during an investigation, has been shared. I have loved reading about how their relationship has grown and changed over the course of the series. It has been very entertaining to read how they have adjusted to married life. Roarke did seem to adapt faster than Eve. They are usually able to deal with problems easier than they did earlier in their relationship. There were a few descriptive sex scenes between them that didn’t get too graphic. Similar scenes in some of the previous books have been more explicit. Delia has been involved with Ian McNab for a while. There really hasn’t been much of their personal life shared in any of the books, though every so often, Delia will make a comment just to annoy Eve.
Eve and Roarke have been in every book and short story, with Eve being featured more than Roarke. Both have been very richly developed and are full, well-rounded characters even while there are still some things not known about them. I really like the characters. Several other characters have been returning throughout the series as well. Summerset has known Roarke for years, since both men were still living in Ireland. Summerset has been working as Roarke’s butler and he basically ran the house. Summerset hadn’t thought that Eve was right for Roarke at first, but he has come around.
Eve’s best friend, Mavis, has been around at least briefly in many of the books. A continuing plot line has focused on her being pregnant and how Eve and even Roarke were a bit freaked out by that. It has been very amusing to see the two of them panic over the thought of Mavis having her baby. That was addressed in the last book, Born in Death. The birth was briefly mentioned and Eve was still not sure how to deal with going to see Mavis and the baby. Leonardo, Mavis’s husband, was only briefly in the book.
Delia has been working with Eve for a long time and the two women have become friends. Ian tends to be involved in the investigations as well because of his work in the EDD. He dresses and acts a bit flamboyant but he is a very good cop. I really like Delia and Ian and would like it if they were featured a bit more in the books. Other supporting characters like Feeney, Dr. Mira, and Nadine also turned up at least briefly in this book. Magdelana was the only character introduced in this book that received much in the way of development. She seemed very manipulative and I didn’t like her.
J.D. Robb is the name that Nora Roberts decided to use when she started the In Death series. I started off reading the In Death books and then moved on to the Nora Roberts books. Those books tend to focus more on the relationships and romance with some mystery and suspense. The In Death books tend to have stronger mysteries and more violence. Eve has been known to use colorful language at times as well. I have enjoyed all of her books regardless of which name is listed as the author. Since Robb and Roberts are actually the same person, people that like one group of the books may also like the other group of books. One of her books, Remember When, has both Robb and Roberts listed as the author. The first part of the book was set in current times and the second half was set in Eve’s time. The two parts of the book were connected by a mystery. Eve’s section of Remember When took place between Imitation in Death andDivided in Death .
Innocent in Death was another very entertaining addition to the In Death series. This is a must read book for fans of the series.
In Death Series
Naked in Death ~ Glory in Death ~ Immortal in Death ~ Rapture in Death ~ Ceremony in Death ~ Vengeance in Death ~ Holiday in Death ~ Midnight in Death (Short Story) ~ Conspiracy in Death ~ Loyalty in Death ~ Witness in Death ~ Judgment in Death ~ Betrayal in Death ~ Interlude in Death (Short Story) ~ Seduction in Death ~ Reunion in Death ~ Purity in Death ~ Portrait in Death ~ Imitation in Death ~ Divided in Death ~ Visions in Death ~ Survivor in Death ~ Origin in Death ~ Memory in Death ~ Haunted in Death (Short Story) ~ Born in Death ~ Innocent in Death ~ Creation in Death ~ Eternity in Death (Short Story) ~ Strangers in Death ~ Salvation in Death ~ Ritual in Death (Short Story) ~ Promises in Death ~ Kindred in Death ~
J.D. Robb and Nora Roberts
Remember When ~
Recommended:
Yes
|
|
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.