SECRETS IN DEATH

4 stars out of 5

In some ways, I enjoyed this book more than others in the pile of 44 previous editions; for instance, I felt more "comfortable" - i.e., not on the edge of my seat waiting for something awful to happen to one or more of the main characters as I usually do. Besides that, I enjoyed the interactions among the characters here, some of which provided more insights into happenings in previous books.

Conversely, the overall atmosphere seemed a bit lackluster with not much real excitement. And, I confess I was a little bummed when I learned that my fairly early-on guess of the killer's identity was, in fact, not even close (I'm joking here, of course, since being a little surprised at the end really isn't a bad thing).

The saga begins as Lt. Eve Dallas meets up with a professional acquaintenance - a forensic anthropoligist - in an upscale bar (reluctantly for Eve, who isn't into the bar scene, especially a fancy-schmancy one). Just as Eve decides she's had enough, a woman staggers into the room from the downstairs, bleeding profusely. After crashing into a server who's carrying a fully loaded tray, she collapses on the floor. Eve and her companion rush to help, but they're too late to save her; the cut on her arm severed her brachial artery, assuring that she'd bleed out in minutes.

In addition to discovering that the bar is one of the hundreds of properties owned by her Ireland-born, uber-rich husband Roarke (one of my all-time favorite book characters, for the record), Eve learns that the victim is Larinda Mars, a major TV personality in the gossip trade - certainly not someone high on Eve's list of people to know, much less love. Still, murder is murder, so she and her department colleague, the effervescent Peabody, set out to investigate. Roarke gets a bit more involved in this case as well - he's not pleased that the murder happened in one of his properties, after all.

Early on, the team determines a possible motive: Larinda, it seems, has been raking in millions by blackmailing wealthy people on whom she's dug up serious dirt. As the number of victims grows, so does the number of potential killers - exponentially. Just whittling the list down to a manageable size is a daunting task, but necessary if they're to tag the culprit.

All things considered, this is another solid piece of work, and of course I look forward to the next. Here's another thought (admittedly wishful thinking at this point): How about a new series featuring that forensic anthropologist, Dr. Garnet DeWinter, and her capable assistant? Methinks there's plenty of room in the reading world for another Temperance Brennan (another of my favorite characters, BTW). I'd be a fan in a heartbeat!

Secrets in Death by J.D. Robb (St. Martin's Press, September 2017); 381 pp.