Devoted in Death

After going through the holiday season with a focus more on the holidays, family, and gratitude rather than Eve's murder cases, J. D. Robb takes off the kid gloves once again in DEVOTED IN DEATH. The perpetrators Eve hunts down are among the most brutal we've had in a long time. To make things worse, Ms. Robb does not fade to black during any of the murder scenes. The result is a story that is terrifying and deeply, deeply disturbing. If ever a book should come with trigger warnings, it is DEVOTED IN DEATH. And yet, Eve maintains her dignity, her determination, and even proves herself to be maturing as a friend. One step forward for Eve amidst some scenes that make me hope Ms. Robb sought therapy after writing them. These two murderers show more make Bonnie and Clyde look like angels. Whew. show less

It's been a year since I have picked up an In Death book so I was interested in where the characters have gone. This felt like slipping on a pair of comfortable shoes. Everything was pretty much the same except for the criminals. The description of what this futuristic Romeo and Juliet (or Bonnie and Clyde) get up to is not for the faint of heart though. Towards the end I was skimming anytime the book jumped back to Ella-loo and her boyfriend Darryl.

After finding a man who was reported missing, it's pretty obvious that all signs point to murder. But after seeing a tattoo with initials and a heart around it, Dallas suspects something even uglier than murder.

The book introduces a new character who comes along and brings his own insight show more into other murders that can maybe be linked back to Ella-loo and Darryl.

We have a DeWinter interaction (I am really tired of Eve not liking her for no reason) and we have DeWinter, Morris, and Mira joining together to tie crimes together that Eve may think are connected.

I have to say though that the ending does not quite stick. It feels like a letdown after everything you read to get to the end. And the asides about Bella's first birthday party were just not necessary. And I realized that after Born in Death (In Death #23) that means that there have been 18 books between that point and now and that means there must have been a murder every other week at this point that Dallas and Peabody were investigating. I really wish Robb would consider lengthening the timeline in the series. Things can jump ahead a month or two. Or we can actually have them taking place around other dates besides Valentine's Day, Christmas, or New Year's Eve.

Roarke felt largely absent in this one. At this point, there is really no need for Roarke to be "assisting" Eve on her cases. She has Feeney, McNabb, and others. I have yet to see something that says yes only Roarke could have found that. And I still want to know how no one has brought a civil lawsuit against the guy, I don't care if he's an expert civilian consultant or not.

There is the usual marriage angst between Roarke and Eve that really did not need to be included since it got done away with so quickly. Frankly if I was Eve I would have mumbled Magdalena and went about my business. show less

Ella-Loo and Daryl knew they were destined for each other, ever since they first laid eyes on each other. Add to that a set of particularly loose morals, and the first murder certainly doesn't come as a surprise to them. Their subsequent arousal in its aftermath however, 'surprises' the couple into becoming terrifying serial killers.

Famous violinist Dorian Kuper's demise in New York, is what eventually starts to lead to the murdering couple's downfall. The former musician is now the responsibility of Lt. Eve Dallas, who will definitely not just hand the case over to the feds.

All in all, a rather boring book in the series. As far as the reader is concerned, there is no mystery anywhere in sight. While it does take Eve a while to identify show more the killers, the reader is privy to their innermost fantasies. So now it's all a matter of when and how the culprit'll be apprehended.

Granted there were some "kickass" moments for most characters, my personal favorite being DeWinter's efficient wrangling of some exhumation permits. On the whole however, I couldn't even give a proper argument for its rating. Habit, most probably.

Score: 2.7/5

Taken on its own, it's not a bad book. Compared to previous ones from the series, I can't say there's anything special about it. Not a total disappointment for fans, but definitely not one I'd recommend for anyone new to the series.
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review of book 36: Calculated in Death
review of book 37: Thankless in Death
review of book 37.5: Taken in Death
review of book 38: Concealed in Death
review of book 39: Festive in Death
review of book 40: Obsession in Death
review of book 42: Brotherhood in Death
review of book 48: Connections in Death show less

The forty-first installment of this venerable series finds NYPSD Lieutenant Eve Dallas just returned from a post-holiday vacation with Roarke and thrown into the investigation of the torture-murder of Metropolitan Opera cellist Dorian Kuper. Braving winter snows and frigid temperatures, she sets out to track down Ella-Loo Parsens and Darryl Roy James, a pair of serial killers who have left a trail of more than two dozen bodies from Oklahoma to New York. Eve, in characteristic fashion, is determined to stop them before their demented, deranged killing spree can claim yet another victim.

There’s not much in the way of a mystery to be solved; readers meet the sadistic duo in the opening pages of the book as their murderous spree begins. show more The focus of the narrative, then, is on the process of the police work, on the tracking down of the culprits, on the friendship, loyalty, and intertwined stories of all the expected characters that readers of the series have come to know and love.

With the arrival of Deputy William T. Banner from Arkansas, Eve gets some necessary information about earlier victims and the deputy stays around to participate in the investigation. But the clock is ticking and time is about to run out for the latest victim. Can Eve work her investigative magic before the body count rises even higher?

Readers will appreciate that Eve, who is much more comfortable with herself than she was in the beginning of the series, has retained her quirky confusion with seemingly innocent things [“How can it be two hours earlier in Oklahoma than it is here, and be the same time it is here in the Bahamas?”]

“Devoted in Death” is a thrill ride of a tale; as the chilling story unfolds and the ensuing action ramps up the suspense, readers will find it difficult to set this one aside until the final page has been turned.

Highly recommended. show less

This In Death episode was definitely a police procedural as Eve and her team need to track down a pair of lovers who show their love for each other by torturing and murdering strangers. Eve comes in once the pair gets to New York. The first victim that Eve finds out about is a cellist named Dorian Kuper who was dumped on the street. Eve and Peabody do the usual checking out friends and family but it soon becomes apparent to them that he was a random victim. This starts Eve and Roarke trying to identify other similar cases.

Enter Deputy Will Banner from Arkansas who has also been tracking the pair on their killing spree across the country. He got involved because one of their earliest victims was an old guy that he was used to looking out show more for. The FBI has gotten involved but they don't believe Will's victim fits into their profile.

Eve calls in her friends and colleagues Morris, Mira, and McNabb to assist in the investigation as they rush to find something before the next victims are murdered. There was a lot of tension that kept building as Eve and her team uncovered clue after clue.

Outside of the investigation, tensions were high in the team because Carmichael was scheduled to take the exam to become a detective and both he and his trainer Baxter were nervous about it. Luckily, Eve had lots for them to do to take their minds off the exam. As usual the humor in the story came from Eve misunderstanding some idioms and especially becoming confused about time zones as she sent her detectives to Arkansas and Oklahoma to dig into out criminals' pasts.

It was also good to see the comparison between Eve and Roarke's love for each other and the love of the two villains. It is good seeing that Eve and Roarke are settling into a strong, deep love and that Eve is becoming more comfortable with her emotions.

All in all, this was another excellent addition to this long-running series. show less

The 41st novel (and 51st story overall) in a long series rarely surprises when you had read the whole series so far. And this one does not - it is a solid story, missing a lot of the diverse cast of the series and telling yet another dark story in the future.

Ella-Loo and Darryl are two damaged teenagers that manage to find each other; Ella-Loo even waits for him after he ends up in jail for awhile. And when they are back together, they decide to go to New York. Except a man dies and our lovebirds get a taste for murder. Noone connects the victims to each other - different states, different ways of killing, a lot of them even get classified as accidents. Until they kill someone in New York and Eve start looking.

You know that they will show more get caught - the only real question is how many will die before that. Add a victim that may be still alive when Eve learns about her and everyone from her team is racing against the clock.

It is not the strongest story in the series and a lot of the team dynamics is a bit subdued. It may be because of the case, it may be just because in real life, such lulls do happen - after all unlike most of the mystery series that cover a year or so per book, the In Death books are spaced a lot closer in the future of Eve Dallas. If you had never read a book in the series, starting here may not work - the backstory is there but mostly as sketches where needed - the full tapestry of the world just cannot be repeated every time. Which is why I like reading series after all - they allow for a lot more details. show less

This In Death episode was definitely a police procedural as Eve and her team need to track down a pair of lovers who show their love for each other by torturing and murdering strangers. Eve comes in once the pair gets to New York. The first victim that Eve finds out about is a cellist named Dorian Kuper who was dumped on the street. Eve and Peabody do the usual checking out friends and family but it soon becomes apparent to them that he was a random victim. This starts Eve and Roarke trying to identify other similar cases.

Enter Deputy Will Banner from Arkansas who has also been tracking the pair on their killing spree across the country. He got involved because one of their earliest victims was an old guy that he was used to looking out show more for. The FBI has gotten involved but they don't believe Will's victim fits into their profile.

Eve calls in her friends and colleagues Morris, Mira, and McNabb to assist in the investigation as they rush to find something before the next victims are murdered. There was a lot of tension that kept building as Eve and her team uncovered clue after clue.

Outside of the investigation, tensions were high in the team because Carmichael was scheduled to take the exam to become a detective and both he and his trainer Baxter were nervous about it. Luckily, Eve had lots for them to do to take their minds off the exam. As usual the humor in the story came from Eve misunderstanding some idioms and especially becoming confused about time zones as she sent her detectives to Arkansas and Oklahoma to dig into out criminals' pasts.

It was also good to see the comparison between Eve and Roarke's love for each other and the love of the two villains. It is good seeing that Eve and Roarke are settling into a strong, deep love and that Eve is becoming more comfortable with her emotions.

All in all, this was another excellent addition to this long-running series. show less