Veena’s review of Devoted in Death (In Death, Book 41) by J.D. Robb
Romantic Suspense published by G.P. Putnam’s Sons 15 Sep 15

A rash of murders in her city has Lt. Eve Dallas and her homicide team looking for the common link between the seemingly random victims.  Were these simply crimes of opportunity with the victims being in the wrong place at the wrong time?

I find it mind boggling that this series remains fresh and interesting despite being close to fifty deep. Who would have thought that there are so many variations to murder?  I love the detailed step-by-step police procedural work it takes to walk in the footsteps of the murderer and find the clues necessary to solving the crime and bringing the criminals to justice. Eve is a role model that any woman would be proud to look up to.

Some of the constants in the books are reassuring, like Eve’s impatience with people’s sensitivities or her misquoting of popular phrases, but the one that I thoroughly enjoy in this book is her bafflement with the time differences between the various places in the USA. Eve and Roark have definitely settled into their relationship. Eve is finally comfortable with his extreme wealth and using her home office with her team enjoying some of the benefits of her wealth.  Her team, be it the ME or the Geek Squad or Mira, have also all grown into a tight-knit group which works together seamlessly to form a great supporting cast.

A young couple cut a swath of murder through the country as they steadily progress toward New York City, after they accidentally discover the excitement a kill brings to their sexual relationship. Eve and her team have to find them and neutralize them before the body count rises beyond the initial few that they’ve been unable to save.

The team is supplemented by a young dedicated police officer who first discovered the pattern in his small town and followed the almost invisible trail to New York. Eve’s team also travels out of New York and it’s quite amusing to read their reactions to life in small-town USA. I like the way the suspense builds in the story with regard to the last set of victims and keeps the reader guessing whether Eve and her team will be able to save the victims.

As always in this series, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. This is one of my favorite series and I often find myself pulling out random books during the waiting period between books to revisit.

Grade: A

Summary:

Eve Dallas tracks a couple whose passion is fueled by cold brutality in the newest crime thriller from the #1 New York Times–bestselling author of Obsession in Death and Festive in Death.

When Lieutenant Eve Dallas examines a body in a downtown Manhattan alleyway, the victim’s injuries are so extensive that she almost misses the clue. Carved into the skin is the shape of a heart—and initials inside reading E and D . . .

Ella-Loo and her boyfriend, Darryl, had been separated while Darryl was a guest of the state of Oklahoma, and now that his sentence has been served they don’t ever intend to part again. Ella-Loo’s got dreams. And Darryl believes there are better ways to achieve your dreams than working for them. So they hit the road, and when their car breaks down in Arkansas, they make plans to take someone else’s. Then things get messy and they wind up killing someone—an experience that stokes a fierce, wild desire in Ella-Loo. A desire for Darryl. And a desire to kill again.

As they cross state lines on their way to New York to find the life they think they deserve, they will leave a trail of evil behind them. But now they’ve landed in the jurisdiction of Lieutenant Dallas and her team at the New York Police and Security Department. And with her husband, Roarke, at her side, she has every intention of hunting them down and giving them what they truly deserve . . .]

Read an excerpt.

Other books in this series:

Naked in Death, Jul 1995
Glory in Death, Dec 1995
Immortal in Death, Jul 1996
Rapture in Death, Oct 1996
Ceremony in Death, May 1997
Vengeance in Death, Oct 1997
Holiday in Death, Jun 1998
“Midnight in Death,” Silent Night, Nov 1998 (anthology)
Conspiracy in Death, Apr 1999
Loyalty in Death, Oct 1999
Witness in Death, Mar 2000
Judgment in Death, Sep 2000
Betrayal in Death, Mar 2001
“Interlude in Death,” Out of This World, Aug 2001 (anthology)
Seduction in Death, Sep 2001
Reunion in Death, Mar 2002
Purity in Death, Sep 2002
Portrait in Death, Mar 2003
Imitation in Death, Sep 2003
Divided in Death, Jan 2004
Remember When, May 2004 (novella)
Visions in Death, Aug 2004
Survivor in Death, Feb 2005
Origin in Death, Jul 2005
Memory in Death, Jan 2006
“Haunted in Death,” Bump in the Night, Apr 2006 (anthology)
Born in Death, Nov 2006
Innocent in Death, Feb 2007
Creation in Death, Nov 2007
“Eternity in Death,” Dead of Night, Nov 2007 (anthology)
Strangers in Death, Feb 2008
Salvation in Death, Nov 2008
“Ritual in Death,” Suite 606, Nov 2008 (anthology)
Promises in Death, Feb 2009
Kindred in Death, Nov 2009
“Missing in Death,” The Lost, Dec 2009 (anthology)
Fantasy in Death, Feb 2010
Big Jack, Mar 2010 (novella)
“Possession in Death,” The Other Side, Nov 2010 (anthology)
Indulgence in Death, Mar 2011
Time of Death, Jun 2011 (novella)
Treachery in Death, Jul 2011
New York to Dallas, Sep 2011
“Chaos in Death,” The Unquiet, Sep 2011 (anthology)
“Celebrity in Death,” Feb 2012
“Calculated in Death,” July 2013
“Thankless in Death,” 2013
“Concealed in Death” July 2014
“Festive in Death” March 2015
“Obsession in Death” August 2015
“Brotherhood in Death” February 2016