Kisses on a Postcard

I am a regular reader of a blog called, Random Jottings of a Book and Opera Lover. It is written by an erudite and witty woman named Elaine. She writes an eclectic array of posts but her focus is on book reviews. She is an avid reader. One happy benefit of reading her blog, besides enjoying her writing and getting leads on some great books; is that she sometimes holds drawings with books as prizes. I am the lucky winner of one such drawing for Kisses on a Postcard by Terence Frisby. As I recall the conditions for winning were that you needed to read the book, love it, and post about it. No problem. I read it. I loved it. Here is my post about it.

Kisses is one of those rare books that takes you back to childhood and yet by the strangeness of the childhood you experience it in a whole new way. As the subtitle of the book tells us, it is "A Tale of Wartime Childhood" being Terence Frisby's memories of his evacuation from London to Cornwall during World War II. To me the book had the wonderful tone reminiscent of the movie "How Green Was My Valley". (I'm wishing that I had read that book now, by the way.) Terence went on to a career as a playwright and actor/director/producer which completely explains the gifted way he was able to evoke the era, describe the scenery, and present the unique characters of Cornwall. The music of their speech echoed in my head and I was able to visualize the time and place even though I have never been there. It was a multi-sensory experience. Words fail me, as I try to describe how well he was able to take me (a forty-nine year old Midwesterner) and drop me in rural England during the war.

The story is this: Terry and his older brother Jack are sent into the countryside of England at the start of World War II, along with thousands of other children of that time. Because their parents have no idea where they will end up or with whom, Mrs. Frisby invents a kisses code for the postcard they will send when they get to wherever they end up. One kiss if it's bad, two if it's okay, three kisses if it's good. If it's bad, she promised to come and get them right away. After ending up in Cornwall, chosen by Auntie Rose and Uncle Jack, (who works for the railroad just like their dad) Jack and Terry send the postcard back to their mother with kisses all around the card. They were motivated by their happiness in their placement with Auntie Rose and Uncle Jack and a unusually thoughtful streak for boys of that age (7 and 11), they wanted to ease the minds of their mother and father back in London.

What follows is a engaging recollection of the three years that Terence Frisby spent in Doublebois, Cornwall. It is about War from the perspective of a child, as well as, his interactions with an array of the village inhabitants--complete with their flaws, inner sadnesses and their kindnesses. I'm not fond of crying while reading--but I have to say when the lump started in my throat and the tears filled by eyes, it was worth it. I was fascinated that the Terry who made sure there were kisses around the postcard, still groused about having to write a weekly letter to his mother, and was the tender-hearted boy who tries to arrange with his brother Jack that one of them should stay behind to live with Auntie Rose and Uncle Jack after it became time to return to live with their parents in London. Neither boy wanted to see Auntie Rose and Uncle Jack left alone, you see.

Perhaps the best sign of how enchanting this book was to me, I didn't want it to end. As Jack and Terry got on the train and waved goodbye to Auntie Rose and Uncle Jack, I wanted the story to continue. I wanted to learn how Jack and Terry would handle living once again with their parents after three years with foster parents who perhaps had different behavioral expectations. How did they handle being in suburban London after three years in the spacious outdoor cathedral that Terry described as Cornwall? How did Terry become an author? What career did Jack follow? Did Terry and Jack get to see Auntie Rose and Uncle Jack again? If Mr. Frisby writes the next part of his autobiography, I am so there. You should be too.

Strangers In Death

Strangers in Death is J. D. Robb’s take-off on the movie “Strangers on a Train”. Eve and Peabody are assigned investigate the murder of a man who seems to be universally liked. He has no enemies. At first glance, his wife appears to be completely in the clear because she was in the Caribbean when the murder occurred in New York. Eve, however, becomes convinced that the wife is guilty and eventually uncovers the how of it all.

For the first time in this book, we get a sense of the fact that Eve is actually the head of the homicide division—the ranking officer under Commander Whitney. There is no equivalent to Captain Feeney—the head of the EDD division—so I’m surprised I haven’t wondered who has been running homicide before now. I don’t know how the duties are split between Commander Whitney and Eve, though, because Eve has never seemed to have any duties in this regard before this book.

Our old friend Detective Baxter and his faithful sidekick, Trueheart have been investigating a murder for more than two months and still have no real evidence or clues to lead them to the murderer. Baxter asks Eve (as his supervisor) to take a look at his murder book and the lines of investigation that he has followed to see if fresh eyes on the case can help break it open. Since getting this case, Baxter has been given and solved six or seven other cases. In fact, he has multiple open cases right now, which he is juggling. (I have to mention that just because it is what Eve used to have to do too, early in the series--but never seems to have to do anymore.)

Conveniently, while running a list of names looking for a possible conspirator in her murder, Eve sees the name of the wife of the victim in Baxter’s murder and puts the pieces together. Wife 1 murdered Husband 2 and vice versa.

This was a good book—with no high highs or low lows. It was a solidly interesting mystery. When the wife finally got nailed for the murder it was very satisfying. (The second conspirator is an abused wife who was just a sad woman. I felt badly that her children would be essentially orphaned.)

The fun personal part of the book was that Louise and Charles got engaged. Charles decided to change careers and will now be a sex therapist. He bought a big house and he’s ready to settle down. Now maybe Eve won’t show up at his house at 10:00 o’clock in the evening in order to question him because one of his gazillion clients has some connection or involvement in a murder. Hasn’t she ever heard of business hours? I give the book a solid four out of five stars—a good, solid book—not a great one.

Origin In Death

As the observant reader will note, my planned reading program has kind of gone by the way-side. I started the year out alternating between re-reading an old book and reading a new book. I have had to abandon my course however, because Judy is chasing me with the J. D. Robb re-reads. I don't want her to lap me so I've been forced to read just In Deaths for the last little while. I also just realized that a brand new J. D. Robb, Promises In Death is coming out February 24th and I want to have finished the complete re-read before it comes out. So, now I have to book it or the whole scheme will go down the drain. (Pun unintentional but funny, imo, just the same.) I need to read five more--which is very do-able. Interestingly, (also, to me) I am now in the books that I have only read once. They actually read faster than the familiar ones because I don't really remember them and I feel an urgency to see what happens next which keeps me reading.

The latest book review is on Origin In Death. Two prominent plastic surgeons, with the reputations of saints, are murdered and it seems like there is just no possible motive. Philanthropists, who are loved by everyone, and have spent their lifetimes helping people in need don't seem like the type of people to be killed by a professional. Fortunately, Eve is a cynical woman and she doesn't believe that people who seem so snowy white pure are really that snowy white and pure. Turns out they aren't. They've been helping to run an illegal cloning operation whose goal is a post-evolutionary superior breed of human. The operation amounts to little more than the manufacture of female slaves. The girls are brainwashed from birth and have no say in their futures. Girls who don't measure up to the standards of the creators are terminated--ruthless creeps, indeed.

Highlights--It's Thanksgiving time in New York and Roarke invites his Irish family over for the holiday. They also invite Nadine and date, Mavis and Leonardo, Louise and Charles, and Crack and his date. Peabody and McNab were invited, as were Feeney and family but they had other obligations on the day. Sadly, we don't really get to experience the holiday since the book ends on the Wednesday. Robb did the same thing with the wedding so I'm used to it by now. I don't like it, but I'm used to it.

Low-lights--well, the second murder victim Icove, Jr. has a wife who is a clone. Turns out Icove father and son, cloned three versions of Avril (the wife.) Plot-wise I don't know why the men did that except for the need to have Avril in more than one place at once to establish an alibi. Why would you need three wives? One had to live in Italy and one had to live in France, while the third got to spend her year in New York with the children the three women shared. What purpose the three wives served never made any sense to me. Also, apparently the Icoves and thei other guy in on the scheme were cloning themselves. They viewed it as living "forever". Uh, not to be argumentative--but that's not YOU living forever, dude--just someone who looks like you living on after you. Even assuming that 80% of personality is genetic, the clones/replica would still not be YOU because it would have different life experiences that couldn't be duplicated. If you think too hard about the whole thing it just kind of falls apart on you.

All in all. Origin was a good book. I whizzed through it in one day. The ending is pretty exciting, you know Eve and Roarke are going to survive but it's a bit tricky for a while there. I'll give it four and a half out of five stars.

Visions In Death

I've been waiting to get to this particular book, Visions In Death, for several books now. I knew that the book in which Peabody is attacked and brutally beaten was coming soon but I couldn't exactly remember which one it was. Well, this is it. And what a book it is.

Eve and team are on the hunt for a serial killer who is brutally beating and raping women, then ritually killing them and mutilating them. There are a number of very sad scenes as the relatives, friends, and lovers of victims are notified. In an attempt to catch the killer, Eve has to work with a psychic which as you can imagine, does not start or end well. After predictably trying to incite the killer to attack her, Peabody is badly injured. The scenes with McNab racing to Peabody's side---then the vigil at the hospital are tearjerkers. I kept the Kleenex handy the whole time. The ending is a complete surprise, blindside. I did not see it coming the first time I read the book and I will not spoil that for those who haven't read the book.

Pros of this book--Eve and Roarke are in perfect accord in this book. There are no annoying connections or conflicts of interest. Mavis makes an appearance. Summerset helps out with the case. And Eve finally gets a new vehicle which is brand-new and in perfect condition.

Cons--None. Nada. Zip.

The book from start to finish is great and then two-thirds on--from when Peabody is attacked the book rockets toward a great finish. It's a bit grim but great.

This is a five stars out of five book.

Imitation In Death by J. D. Robb

Imitation In Death by J. D. Robb is a pivotal book in the series. It is the last book published in paperback alone, and it marks the end of Peabody’s tenure as Eve Dallas’ aide. It is also a gruesome book.

Someone is imitating infamous serial killers. He starts out as Jack the Ripper, segues into the Boston Strangler, unsuccessfully attempts Ted Bundy and is finally caught attempting to imitate a fictional serial murderer. The amazing thing about Nora Roberts writing under the name J. D. Robb, is that she can really make you feel bad for the victims. She tells you just a little about the doomed character, but with such vividness that you cannot feel detached from their murder. I’ve ready many (many, many, many) mysteries from Agatha Christie to Dorothy L. Sayers to Joan Pickart. Usually the victim is just not that well-fleshed out, imo. I can keep a reader’s distance. Not with an In Death book though, which is why I skipped a few of the pages that detail the Boston Strangler Murder. It’s very upsetting.

Nitpicks: Eve interrogates one suspect pretty brutally. I mean, she has the guy sitting in the puddle of his ruined life and destroyed illusions at the end of the interview. Why? As she later tells Roarke, she knew in her gut who the murderer was from the get. So was a writer’s ploy to keep us guessing about the murderer? Is that why Eve had to rip the non-murderer guy to shreds in interview? It doesn’t make Eve likeable when she does stuff like that. At least Eve kinda, sorta explains that she has to investigate everyone—I just don’t know why she couldn’t investigate the guy she thought did first.

Fun Facts: There’s lots of Peabody in this story as she is preparing to take her Detective’s exam. And when she passes and Eve puts on her actual uniform---something I never dreamed she even had—it’s a great moment! The ending when she fakes Peabody out that they aren’t going to work together anymore only for Peabody to realize that she and Eve will now be Partners—is hilarious too. Other fun moment in an otherwise rather grim book—Eve and Roarke attend a family barbeque at Dr. Mira’s house. It’s pretty funny to see Eve reacting to toddlers. After the bbq, Roarke decides he has to have the ultimate guy-toy; an outdoor grill. His attempt to cook on it the first time is pretty funny. Usually Roarke is uber-competent at everything so his befuddlement is nice.

The theme over the last couple books has been mothers. Last book, Roarke’s world was rocked by the knowledge that his mother wasn’t the nasty old hag he thought, but rather a wonderful loving woman who was murdered by his father. In this book, Eve has another recovered memory during a dream. This time the dream is about her own mother. What she learns is very sad. There’s no happy ending for Eve—her mother was a prostitute and a junkie who didn’t want her and hated her. Fortunately, Eve has the sense to go to Mira about it. The result is sweet. When Roarke realizes that Eve has kept the dream/memory from him in order to protect him--what seems to be a headed for a fight moment--becomes a moment when the two grow closer.

As I said at the start, Imitation In Death has some gruesome murders. The capture of the murderer is a satisfying moment. There’s nothing like a woman bringing down a woman-hating serial killer. They never seem to like that too much, but I always do. The personal side of this book is what makes it a must read. It was really hard making myself keep to my book reading schedule after I finished it because I wanted to head right into the next one. I award the book four and a half stars out of five.

Portrait In Death

Portrait In Death is the sixteenth book in the Eve & Roarke saga. It is a interesting mix of personal and professional. The mystery, while complex and multi-faceted, is not the sole focus of the book. We get an interesting up-close and personal view of Roarke from inside his head. I don’t remember spending so much time following Roarke around in any previous book. (Admittedly my memory isn’t what it used to be.)

The professional focus for Eve is a serial killer who murders three innocent young adults and takes their portraits after they are dead. He communicates with the public via Nadine Furst. The murders while not “brutal”, are sad because the victims are college age and seem to be those most noble of individuals—well-liked, dedicated, popular, talented, hardworking...well, you get the idea. Their families are devastated and it’s painful to read about their devastation and grief. The third murder is the worst because it turns out that the victim is the sister of Crack—a bouncer at the D& D who is known to Dallas and Peabody. He’s been a very minor recurring character since the second book. His reaction to his baby sister’s murder made me cry. It was very well written.

The murderer turns out to be an insane young man who has somehow come to believe that by killing these people he can preserve their “light” forever by taking it into himself through his camera. He’s completely insane and at the end of the book, I felt sorry for him. Still wanted him locked up, mind you, but I felt bad for him.

On the personal side of things, the book starts with a bang when Summerset falls down the stairs and breaks his leg. We have a whole lotta upset on the home front as a result. Then Roarke goes bonko when he finds out that the abusive old besom he thought was his mother---wasn’t his real, actual mother. His real mother turns out to have been a sweet country lass who was killed by Roarke’s horrible father. She loved him like crazy and wanted to give him a family. Roarke goes off the deep end with this discovery. It’s the first time we see a big chink in his armor, I think. He and Eve have a major breakdown in communication. Eve ends up trying to figure out how to handle the marital meltdown by calling Mavis (her only appearance in the book), talking to Dr. Mira, Summerset, Peabody and Nadine! She got around. I was happy with the way Eve handled the problem—she finally put Roarke first. Whew. Sometimes you get the impression she thinks she’s the only one who can catch a murderer, but Feeney sets her straight. She left the case in the middle to fly to Ireland and help Roarke through his personal crisis. It was nice and their relationship became a little less lop-sided as a result.

Other fun tidbits—Eve recommends Peabody for Detective. Peabody freaks out a little and begins to start studying for the exam. Trueheart and Baxter have a role in the big finish and Trueheart finds himself in jeopardy again. Baxter’s reaction was pretty neat. He was just wigging out with guilt since he and Trueheart have partnered up (sorta).

All in all, Portrait is a great book. I am willing to award it five out of five stars. My reasons were, first, because I was surprised by the identity of the murderer. I didn’t see it coming the first time I read the book. Secondly, because the personal stuff with Roarke was so good. And thirdly, because Crack’s reaction to losing his sister made me cry.

Fire and Ice by Julie Garwood

Fire and Ice by Julie Garwood is the latest book that I have read for part 1 of the 2009 Book Challenge. This book is a stand alone, but there are secondary characters from a previous book. I suspect there will be a third book with other secondary characters. The book is in the genre of romantic suspense.

Sophie Rose is a journalist working for a small, local Chicago paper. She is somewhat notorious because her father is a notorious. He is suspected of being a Robin Hood type thief. Thus, Bobby Rose is often a person of interest to law enforcement. No one has ever been able to link him to any actual crime, however. Sophie has spent years being bullied by various law enforcement agencies that would like to use her to get evidence from her to use to arrest him. Sophie is a loyal daughter though, so she protects him fiercely--at the same time, she's a moral daughter. She has come to realize that she shouldn't profit from her father's ill-gotten gains so she no longer accepts money or gifts from him. She also gives any extra money she has to charity in a sort of penance. Since she grew up rich, this is difficult for her. (I found it difficult too---I mean a Fendi bag---c'mon, her father only steals from criminals!! What could it hurt?)

In a convoluted story line, events converge to place Sophie in danger. The police and FBI think she is being threatened because of the latest scam involving her father. Turns out it's something completely different. Jake MacAlister, an FBI agent, ends up protecting her. While laying low, Sophie and Jake fly to Alaska to investigate a story for Sophie's paper. Those scenes in Alaska were hard to take, I don't mind telling you because--the cold, oh, the cold. How do people live with it? Anyway, while running from killers and trekking to Alaska, Sophie and Jake fall in love. Together, they figure out why she's been shot, shot at, kidnapped and bashed on the head. And they all lived happily ever after.

This was a pleasant book with no emotional highs or lows. The characters are all likable. Sophie's character and motivations are well-explained while Jake remains an enigma. Early in the book it's mentioned that Jake has no intention of ever marrying and a throw-away comment at the end mentions that his mother is on her fourth or fifth honeymoon. Those two things may be related but Jake's motivations and character are never really fleshed out. The mystery was bizarre and confusing. Just when you thought the story was over, Sophie was kidnapped again. The bad guy comes out of nowhere and acts rather ruthless with no back-story to explain his behavior. The relationship between Sophie and Jake was pretty shallow and the decision to marry happens abruptly at the end. While I enjoyed the book, I would give it a three of five stars, I can't place it on list of potential best of the year. It was pleasant and forgettable--and hey, sometimes that's exactly what you are looking for in a book.

Seduction in Death by J. D. Robb

My latest re-read of the Robb oeuvre is Seduction in Death. It's number thirteen, I believe. Although the murder storyline is unpleasant (to say the least) the story is one of my favorites because of a number of advancements in story lines. Really--when I think about it--my least favorite part of any J. D. Robb is the mystery. Ironic, really. Which is not to say I don't love them, just that I like the relationships best. Peabody and Dallas, Dallas and Roarke, Peabody and McNab, Dallas and the Commander...well, you get the idea.

The basic story is this--two rich and spoiled boy/men with a whole bunch of issues from their childhood begin a game of seduction using date rape drugs. They seduce women over the internet, stalk them, and eventually drug them for points in the 'game'. The very first time out one off the fellows accidentally kills his date. This leads to an escalation in the game, since for our sociopaths the accidental death leads to deliberate murder.

Nit picks 1: Even in 2009, women who meet men from the Internet are surely not so stupid as to drink from a glass that was poured by a stranger before they arrived at the scene of the meet. Yet these woman from fifty years in the future apparently don't notice anything weird about a drink being poured for them before they get there. (And it's champagne--which goes flat, so your really don't want to pour it early. ) Isn't it SOP in bars and such to never leave your drink unattended? Nit pick 2: It just happens that Roarke owns the drug laboratory where the date rape drugs where developed twenty-three years earlier--thus allowing him to access information that would likely never have come to Eve's attention until the end of the case. Frankly, it was an unnecessary step in the solution of the murders since Eve identified the murderers through other evidentiary clues.

On to the good stuff--notable moments in this book. First, Louise Dimatto meets Charles and they begin their romance. Secondly, Peabody's fight with McNab is resolved when he goes to punch out Charles for supposedly dumping Peabody and disrespecting her. They end up agreeing to an exclusive dating relationship. Yea! Thirdly, Eve has some great opportunities to interact with the Commander. Finally, Eve voluntarily agrees to go on a two week vacation with Roarke which represents a big step forward in their relationship. She is learning to put their relationship first, slowly but surely.

As I said at the beginning of the post--Seduction is one of my favorite J. D. Robb books. I give it a four and one half out of five stars. What does it take to get five stars? I generally need to cry at some point in the story. There's definitely a five come up in one of the remaining re-reads. Trust me.

Queen of Dragons by Shana Abe'

My latest read for the book challenge is Queen of Dragons by Shana Abe'. This was my first experience with a Shana Abe' book. Apparently, I came into the middle of a book series without realizing it. The first and second book in the series are The Smoke Thief and The Dream Thief. I'll be looking for them on my next trip to the bookstore.

Anytime you read a new author there is a learning curve at the start of the book. You have to get used to the way the author writes. Andd when the author is establishing a new world with unique qualities, like say, oh--people who can turn into dragons and also smoke--there's definitely a lot to figure out about the world. Even though this was book three of a series (unbeknownst to me) the book gave me enough information to figure out the basics of how this alternate world operated--without bogging down the opening chapters with boring description and back story.

The main characters are the leaders of separate dragon tribes, Maricara and Kimber. The dragon tribes seem to be similar to a wolf pack, in that the alpha male is the head of the tribe. The alpha male also weds the alpha female automatically. Over the years that dragons have existed--their blood has been diluted through intermarriage. Therefore, dragon-blooded people who still have the ability to turn into dragons and also smoke are highly valued. For the alpha, having a wife who's innate dragon skills are still intact is essential in order to produce the next generation of dragon-powerful children.

When Kimber's tribe learned about Maricara and her tribe, they immediately determined to wed Maricara to Kimber and to acquire the other dragon tribe and bring its assets and members under their control. This was a decision made, not out of greed or lust for power, but rather because of a belief that keeping the dragons together in one unified group was necessary for their survival. Maricara feels differently. She wants to be free, along with her tribe. Thus, Kim and Maricara have conflicting goals setting up a distrustful relationship made complicated by desire.

Lest you have the impression that this book is mostly a romance, let me set you straight. It is classified as fiction. While the book does contain a central theme that involves the two main characters falling in love, there is a lot more going on in the story than just that. For starters, the dragon race is in danger from a group of 'others' who want to exterminate them. Dragon people are being killed and kidnapped. The group has a powerful jewel which allows them to control dragon people. Kimber's father, from whom he inherited the running of the tribe, has left with his wife in search of their runaway daughter. After he disappeared, Kimber was left with the responsibility of being the Alpha during dark times for the tribe. Oh yeah, and--turns out the runaway daughter's new human husband is part of the group trying to exterminate the dragons. Yikes. That's a lot of plot threads to keep from getting tangled.

The full story arc had its beginnings in the first two books--and the ending is still to be published. I get the feeling the plot is only going to get more complicated with additional books. Meanwhile, in this book, Kim and Maricara must deal with the attacks against his tribe and the loss of people they care about. They must learn to come to grips with their passion for each other. And they must learn to work together and trust each other even though it seems like their needs and goals are in opposition.

This book has been reviewed by others with high compliments about the lyrical language and graceful storytelling. I cannot disagree with those comments. For me, though, the interesting thing about the story was that I was intrigued by Maricara and Kimber. They were not one-dimensional characters. The author revealed some things about them, hinted at others and concealed still other elements. They had strengths, weaknesses and flaws. They seemed real. By the end of the book, I wanted to read more still--and isn't hat the ultimate high compliment about a book? You want more of the characters, more of the world, and more of the story. I rate the story a four and one half out of five stars.

Betrayal In Death by J. D. Robb

Betrayal in Death by J. D. Robb is the twelfth book in the In Death series. It is a particularly brutal entry as the two murders are presented as they happen and are extremely graphic. My empathy level for the victims was very high. I confess, when re-reading it, I skipped those pages. I just don't need to experience the trauma of the attack from the victim's point of view. I prefer my murders after the fact, with limited detail, and a little distance. Call me a wimp, I'll own it.

The premise of this story is that a professional killer is knocking off people with a connection to Roarke in order to distract him from a huge auction of millions of dollars worth of jewelry and memorabilia being sold by a legendary screen actress. Of course, Eve et. al., don't realize that's the motive for the murders for a good while. Once again our murders have a connection to Roarke. The first murder occurs while Eve and Roarke are at the opening of the display of the goods to be auctioned. Eve is decked to the nines in an evening gown and diamonds. If Eve is dressed up, you can almost guarantee that she's going to be called to a crime scene or end up chasing a criminal. Her outfits frequently do not survive her job--good thing that Roarke's a billionaire. Weirdly, Eve travels to New Jersey in this same outfit to inform the next of kin about the murder. I'm thinking even devastated by my grief I would wonder about it, if the cop delivering the bad news was wearing a couture gown and diamonds sprinkled in her hair.

Have I mentioned lately that I write my book "reviews" in a stream of consciousness kind of way? I'm not pretending to be a professional here--this is just my reaction to the book. The next thing that struck me as hinky; the contract killer, the professional killer is...well, a sociopath. As a result, he can't just kill the victims in a business-like way. He's gotta have a whole serial killer m.o. That's what makes the murders so awful--the torture and other stuff. Now I don't claim to be an expert on killers, but it just seems to me you either kill as a job or as a hobby if you fall into one of those two types of killers. (I can't believe I'm explaining my thinking here...) It seems to me a true contract killer has to be cold and dispassionate and have a get in and get out mentality. You don't want to get caught, right? Also, since it's a business you don't want to be spending anymore time on it than necessary. A job that is done quickly is more profitable than a job that takes more time. Our contract killer does extra stuff which takes longer and increases his risk.

In this offering, McNab and Peabody's relationship hits a speed bump. McNab has reached his tipping point regarding sharing Peabody with Charles. Mavis has a minor walk-on when she helps to identify some make-up and we have the obligatory scene where Trina gives Eve a beauty treatment.

Taken altogether, Betrayal is not my favorite book in the In Death series. That said, I still recommend it as an essential read if you are a Eve and Roarke fan. I rate it a three out of five starts mainly due to the extreme violence.

The Shadowdwellers: Ecstasy by Jacquelyn Frank

Ecstasy by Jacquelyn Frank is the first book in her new series. It is connected to the Nightwalkers series (Jacob, Damien, Noah, etc.) as it occurs in the same world and with a cross over of characters. The Shadowdwellers are the newest supernatural culture to be introduced. They are notable because they are vulnerable to light and live in total darkness. I confess I found that idea to be difficult to comprehend. The heroine of the story is a human woman, Ashla, who has a horrific past involving abuse by her mother and siblings because she can heal others. The hero is a shadowdweller, Trace, who also experienced torture in his past as a prisoner of war. Ashla and Trace meet in Shadow-scape, an alternate reality or dimension where Ashla has been stranded. These two damaged individuals meet and become connected through Ashla's healing of Trace's mortal wounds. Because a healing by Ashla, involves taking on the injury, she essentially risked her own life to save Trace. (That totally made me think of an original Star Trek episode about a healing empath played by the actress who played Kim Hughes on ATWT..oops, I digress.) When Trace understood the nature of what Ashla did for him, he also realized that they are part of a "Sainted" pair--a relationship highly revered in his culture because greater love hath no man...well, you get the idea. Trace and Ashla are caught up in a powerful connection that overwhelms them. There are mysteries to be solved: how did Ashla come to be stranded in Shadowscape; who is trying to assassinate Trace; and what is the identity of the traitors trying to bring down the Shadowdweller government. This was an excellent, intensely emotional book with a satisfying conclusion. The next book in the series, Rapture, comes out in June 09 which is just too far a way in my opinion. I rate this book four and one half out of five stars.

Judgement in Death by J.D. Robb

In my continuing quest to re-read all of the In Death series by J. D. Robb, I just finished Judgement in Death, which is book number 11 of the 27 (so far) books. Like so many of the first books in the series, the murder of bad cops somehow manages to be connected to Roarke. This annoying plot "twist" has been used way too frequently for plausibility. Robb connects the murder to Roarke in two ways: first, when the first victim works as a bartender in a business he owns, and secondly, because of a connection to the evil organized crime boss who has his fingers into all the bad cops. Roarke knew him and did business with him once upon a time. A third odd connection springs up when Eve has a flashback about her father and realizes he did some errands for this same crime boss. The murderer was a bit of a surprise the first time I read the story back in...hmmm, lemme check the copyright...2000.

What makes this a nice entry into the series is the fight that Eve and Roarke have. First she lies to him--a big mistake--then she pulls a weapon on him--also not a bright move. After the first fight when she lies, Eve amusingly goes to confide in Mavis about the fight and ends up having a girl's night out and getting smashed on screamers, while hearing typically hilarious guy-advice from Mavis. After the girl's night, she has an encounter with an old "boyfriend" who makes a pass at her which is interrupted by Roarke. Not surprisingly, this is followed by a fist fight between the two males. Eve draws her weapon and actually shoots it, in order to break up the fight. Roarke naturally objects to his wife pulling a weapon on him. I laughed every time this incident was discussed because Eve couldn't' understand what the fuss was about it. She had it set on stun after all. The capper of the book is a scene in which Eve confides in Dr. Mira in a sweet interaction where Mira confides that she feels maternal towards Eve. When Dr. Mira hears the full story with gloriously private and personal details, her reaction is a hoot. The Peabody and McNab story gets little advancement in the book which is disappointing but you can't have room for everything. All in all, an excellent entry in the series and a great little comfort read. I give in four and one half stars out of five. I do love Eve & Roarke. (Oh yes, and my page count is 396 in part three of the book challenge.)