Review – Brotherhood in Death by JD Robb

The new novel featuring homicide detective Eve Dallas from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Devoted in Death.

Sometimes brotherhood can be another word for conspiracy. . . .

Dennis Mira just had two unpleasant surprises. First he learned that his cousin Edward was secretly meeting with a real estate agent about their late grandfather’s magnificent West Village brownstone, despite the promise they both made to keep it in the family. Then, when he went to the house to confront Edward about it, he got a blunt object to the back of the head.

Luckily Dennis is married to Charlotte Mira, the NYPSD’s top profiler and a good friend of Lieutenant Eve Dallas. When the two arrive on the scene, he explains that the last thing he saw was Edward in a chair, bruised and bloody. When he came to, his cousin was gone. With the mess cleaned up and the security disks removed, there’s nothing left behind but a few traces for forensics to analyze.

As a former lawyer, judge, and senator, Edward Mira mingled with the elite and crossed paths with criminals, making enemies on a regular basis. Like so many politicians, he also made some very close friends behind closed—and locked—doors. But a badge and a billionaire husband can get you into places others can’t go, and Eve intends to shine some light on the dirty deals and dark motives behind the disappearance of a powerful man, the family discord over a multimillion-dollar piece of real estate . . . and a new case that no one saw coming.

This series is an auto for me. I adore Eve and Roarke and the whole gang. But, this is Book 42 in the series, and while the mystery stands alone and you probably COULD read this without the rest of the series, I would say it is inadvisable, because the STORY doesn’t standalone.

And this one features a favorite character that we haven’t had a whole lot of insight into. And I adore that part, although he was even more befuddled then I would have expected (it was a bit over done). I have to admit though, I am becoming frustrated by the increasingly fast and loose way Robb (AKA Nora Roberts) handles the police procedural part. Yes, the way Eve works with her husband and friends is part of the appealing aspects of the story, and part of watching her grow into herself, but now since so many of her friends are not cops, it is just becoming unsettling. Because the other part that is important about Eve, is that she is a great cop. The balance is getting shifted a bit too much in my opinion. If this is about the balance being shifted further to the home life and making the changes that will end the series, then I am OK with that, much though I will miss the series. But if we are going to hang out here for an extended length of time with Eve playing faster and looser with the police procedural side, I fear I am going to start getting very irked.

Anyway, beyond that, I really enjoyed this one. Mr. Mira (who it turns out is actually professor Mira) was a delight. There was lovely friendly banter between everyone, particularly noteworthy between Eve and Roarke, and Eve and Peabody. And the mystery part was fast paced, interesting, and it kept me engaged-even though the psychoses are horrifying. And we do get more character growth from Eve as she really talks to both Peabody and Dennis Mira.

And Eve and Roarke’s relationship seems to have reached a turning point. He’s not so perfectly inexplicably tuned to her as he has been before, and their relationship has become decidedly less adversarial.

So, as I’ve said before, much though I’ll miss this series, I’m hoping it’s a sign of things coming to a close and getting that final happily ever after for one of my favorite romance couples… before it loses the things that have made it so successful and wonderful. 42 books is one hell of a run, but I think it’s time to be letting go now.

Review – Devoted in Death by JD Robb

Book 41 in J.D. Robb’s (AKA Nora Roberts) In Death series is more police procedural than mystery or who-dun-it. We get to meet the villain right from the start and then the rest of the story tracks how Eve her husband Roarke, and the rest of the team solve the case and catch the killers.

I can’t imagine how hard it must be to keep things fresh 41 books into the series, but die-hard fans like me are likely to find this one kind of cozy. As opposed to Obsession in Death, Beloved characters aren’t really threatened, there isn’t a mystery for the readers since we already know the who and the where, we are just along for the ride to find out how. So yeah, despite horrific deaths etc, this one is cozy. We spend time with most all our favorite characters and see them interacting.

This particular story added some interest though with the inclusion of a new temporary character, a southern cop who was a nice bit of enjoyment. I wouldn’t mind him popping in again. And Robb just continues to push, or let DeWinters try to push herself into the group, so we have what looks like a new permanent addition. We also had the (relatively) happy situation of having victims that can be saved, which is something i always enjoy and which lends a bit more urgency to the story for me. We also had some fun with Eve being temporarily banned from coffee and a new marriage rule.

It is another solid entry for die-hard fans, but I can see where the bloom might be off the rose for some people. For myself, I am perfectly content to keep dipping into Eve and the gang’s lives. But I do sometimes wonder, am I content still because I am a re-reader? Would a person who isn’t a re-reader be more likely to be disaffected by this point in the series?