A
Genre: Romantic Suspense, Romance
This RITA® Reader Challenge 2015 review was written by Goodreads. This story was nominated for the RITA® in the Romantic Suspense category.
The summary:
In a decrepit, long-empty New York building, Lieutenant Eve Dallas’s husband begins the demolition process by swinging a sledgehammer into a wall. When the dust clears, there are two skeletons wrapped in plastic behind it. He summons his wife immediately—and by the time she’s done with the crime scene, there are twelve murders to be solved.
The place once housed a makeshift shelter for troubled teenagers, back in the mid-2040s, and Eve tracks down the people who ran it. Between their recollections and the work of the force’s new forensic anthropologist, Eve begins to put names and faces to the remains. They are all young girls. A tattooed tough girl who dealt in illegal drugs. The runaway daughter of a pair of well-to-do doctors. They all had their stories. And they all lost their chance for a better life.
Then Eve discovers a connection between the victims and someone she knows. And she grows even more determined to reveal the secrets of the place that was called The Sanctuary—and the evil concealed in one human heart.
Here is Goodreads's review:
I didn’t receive a RITA® Reader Challenge 2015 review for this book, so I’m compiling quotes from reviews online and using the grade average from Goodreads as a substitute.
This book has a 4.2 average, which I’m interpreting as an A.
And here are the review quotes, linked to the original sources:
This story started off interesting and I nestled in for what I thought would be an intriguing case. It didn’t take long for me to deduce the circumstances and who was probably behind the murders and why. Unfortunately, the procedurals from that point forward weren’t that interesting or compelling. I struggled to get through to the end of the case.
The highlights of the book, however, came from the personal aspects of the story. Mavis plays an extraordinary role, one that reveals more about her past and circumstances. After 47 books, this was pretty riveting. Eve also is continuing to experience the impact of having a family, what it means, looks and feels like. She’s changing, evolving and we see some of that in how she relates to some of the people she has to interview in the case. It’s appropriate and finely pitched…some may say her voice is different and I concur with that and say but of course! There was also a new character introduced, Garnet DeWinter, and I foresee some bumps in the road between her and Dallas. Bring it!
While this was just an average reading experience for me, it still was an interesting one for all the reasons highlighted. It was worth it just to revisit some of my favorite characters and getting more Mavis was an unexpected surprise. However, if you read these stories primarily for the mystery/suspense, you might find it underwhelming.
Twenty years into the series, JD Robb introduces a completely new and large personality, a forensic pathologist named Garnet deWinter. With her and a great reconstruction artist, Eve eventually solves the case. New conflicts and a new foil for Eve’s caustic personality are born. We the readers get to sit back and enjoy the show.
The murder(s) and case resolution make this book a solid 4 star read. What elevates this In Death edition to 5 stars for this reader is JD Robb’s understanding of roles. Her forensic pathologist aids and assists the investigation. She does not fight the bad guys. She does not run off and try to interview potential witnesses. SHE STAYS IN HER LAB.
She lets Eve solve the crime because THAT IS HER JOB.
I adore Eve and Roarke. Some of the books in this series are kick ass crime novels, some of the books in this series are relationship adult romance novels, some of the books in this series are future urban fantasy novels, and some of the books in this series are gut wrenching stories that carve you up and change you.
Concealed in Death was a solid crime story that kept me guessing and trying to figure out the who and why and how and when and I liked how the process moved through the investigation and how Eve as a character puzzled through the possibilities – it keeps showing that she is not “super cop” but a good cop who investigates and follows logical evidence.
Concealed in Death was a nice solid relationship fiction novel – Eve and Roarke continue to always work on their relationship because it matters, they matter, and it is refreshing and honest to read it and follow it – it makes it so real feeling.
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This book was ruined for me by the terrible editing. There were numerous typos, a continuity issue and in the final chapters, they got the name wrong for the bad guy.
Yeah, I think this one was my least favorite Robb novel. Didn’t like the pacing, didn’t like the tone, didn’t like the killer as a killer. The whole thing felt off to me. Obsession In Death was much, much better.
I’m a fan of the In Death series, but sometimes the writing team gets a little ahead of itself, or else they run out of time to have someone do a line edit.
In the last one out, there were so many variations/usages of “he’s not wrong” that I was truly irritated. It’s a contrived construction to begin with, it’s very trendy, it shouldn’t have kept popping out of the mouths of different characters over the course of one story set 35 years in the future (when it will be about as current as “groovy”).
Anyway. I liked “Concealed” though the mystery was not very mysterious. Am always happy when there is good character-building.
Personally, I would interpret 4.2 as a B+ and save the A for a solid 5.0 but I daresay no book will ever score a solid 5.0.
J. D. Robb is a team? Not Norah Roberts? I’ve been wondering how she manages to write so many books. Is Norah Roberts a real person?
I’ve come late to the In Death series. Twenty years of them? Forty-seven of them? I’ve only read ten and have loved them all because of the complex characters.
I know I’ve only read ten because I am engaged in a project, creating a spreadsheet of my Kindle content. I am making an attempt to make my Kindle Keyboard last a good long time. The Amazon techs are already surprised that it is still functioning. But several weeks ago, I was having to restart it at least once a day to get it to turn a page or to download new content.
So I came up with this idea of the spreadsheet to record author, title, series, if in an anthology or boxed set, a grade, did I review, genre. Once I complete a record, I delete the item from my Kindle. If a collection is emptied, I delete the collection. I have 1,272 entries and 2,377MB free and my Kindle is working as if it were brand new!
I have also discovered that I have duplicates and I am going to have Words with Amazon about that because clearly their whatsis that is supposed to warn me about that didn’t work. Of course, what I really want is store credit soI can buy more books.
My biggest complaint about the In Death series is that they are so expensive. I only have the ones I do because I was given an Amazon gift card.
I do not have legal proof that Nora Roberts uses a writing team. 🙂 It is purely an assumption based on volume and variability. Some of the In Death books feel like 90% Roberts, some more like 60% – there have been later stories in which all characters’ dialogue is in the same “voice,” which if you read the first two or three, you will see is not the case.
Nora is a real person. I’m a fan, and if indeed she does use a team I fully support that.
Oh, nothing wrong in using a team if it means getting important details correct. Since I am always harping about the appearance verisimilitude, I want details correct. After all, James A. Michener employed a team.
So far all the characters have the same voice.
It’s a shame that the editing is so sloppy in Concealed In Death. I really expect better from Robb/Roberts, especially considering how much they charge for the books and the Kindle versions.
I tried to get into this (maybe a bad spot to pick up the series??) but was just completely thrown by how bad the world-building was. Writing years into the future is always ambitious, and I feel like they either couldn’t or couldn’t be bothered to really put the effort into thinking about how things would change. It kept dragging me out of the book.
I think maybe you really need to start with the first book in the series because it think by the 47th book, it must be assumed the reader already knows a lot of the world of the In Death series.
Just want to make it clear. I don’t have a writing team–have never had one, never will have one. If my name’s on a book–Roberts or Robb–it’s because I wrote it. By myself. I have to ask, please, please, don’t speculate and phrase it, even initially, as fact.
Thank you for clarifying this issue, Ms. Roberts. Deeply appreciated.
I have only read two of the In Death series, but so far I love it. Though interestingly, Eve and Roarke together are the weak points for me – I much prefer the mysteries!
This is definitely a series worth following and Ms.Roberts is a wonderful author.
I appreciate that she cares and responds to reader concerns.
My real problem with this book was that no one was paying attention to the details. This was not some self published quickie. This was a release from a major publishing house from a consistent best selling author.
The errors that should have been taken care of by an editor took away from a decent story.
The next two books, Festive and Obsession were very well done and I look forward to the next release Devoted in Death.
I love all the Death series can’t get enough of them the characters are all so personable I like each of them an I love the reader her voice in the books you can put your self right there with all of them thank you for bringing them to life.