Dee Holmes

Midnight in Death:
It's the 8th in the In Death series, and Nora compensates for the shorter length by leaving out some of the secondary characters, and by having Eve know from the beginning whodunit.

The killer is a psychopath Eve helped put away some years ago, a spiritual heir of Mengele who tortures his victims to death to study their bodies' pain and fear responses. His mission since his escape from prison is both to further his "research" and to get revenge on those responsible for show more locking him up.

Despite its short length, Midnight in Death is a complete story, and we get some good character insights into the recurring characters. And the killer is a refreshing change from the serial killers who are killing their mothers over and over again. show less

A quartet of Christmas-related stories. Three are forgettable, but the fourth is finds detective Eve Dallas on a holiday outing with a serial killer who fancies himself a scientific prodigy in the study of pain. Escaped from his maximum security cell, he's made a list of his own... and Eve's name is on it.

Not a necessary purchase unless you want the complete set, but an enjoyable read.

I got this book mainly for J D Robb and was surprised that it was a short story with three others. Quite an accomplished feat for such a mini read, as the detail in what the serial killer was torturing his victims had me shuddering at times. Good story, though
The other 3 stories were OK. The first one by Claire Cross wasn't really much but it did, unexpectedly, tug at the heartstrings a little, dammit!

I gave this book five stars only for J.D. Robb's story, which is wonderful. I quite like "Christmas Promises" by Susan Plunkett. I didn't enjoy the rest of the stories.