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Seduction in Death
by
J.D. Robb
science fiction, police procedural, romantic suspense in a Kindle edition that was published by Berkley on March 3, 2007 and has 372 pages.
Explore it on Goodreads or Amazon, Audibles.
Other books by this author which I have reviewed include Indulgence in Death, Treachery in Death, Kindred in Death, The Other Side, New York to Dallas, Unquiet, Celebrity in Death, Delusion in Death, Calculated in Death, Thankless in Death, Mirror, Mirror, Festive in Death, Obsession in Death, Betrayal in Death, "Wonderment in Death", "Possession in Death", Down the Rabbit Hole, "Midnight in Death", Devoted in Death, Brotherhood in Death, Apprentice in Death, Echoes in Death, Secrets in Death, Dark in Death, Leverage in Death, "Interlude in Death", Vendetta in Death, Golden in Death, Faithless in Death, Naked in Death, Glory in Death, Immortal in Death, Rapture in Death, Ceremony in Death, Vengeance in Death, , Loyalty in Death, Witness in Death, Judgment in Death, Reunion in Death, Holiday in Death, Purity in Death, Portrait in Death, Imitation in Death, Divided in Death, Visions in Death, Desperation in Death, Abandoned in Death, Creation in Death, Survivor in Death, Concealed in Death, Origin in Death
Thirteenth in the In Death futuristic police procedural/romantic suspense series and revolving around Lieutenant Eve Dallas and her hunky husband, Roarke, in June 2059 New York City. She and Roarke have been married for a year now.
In 1997, Seduction in Death won the South Carolina Book Award for Junior Book Award. In 1998, it won the Grand Canyon Reader Award for Teen Book. In 2001, it won the Romance Readers Anonymous Award for Best Alternative Realities or Time Travel Romance. In 2002, it tied for the All About Romance Annual Reader Poll for Best Hero.
My Take
This story grosses me out. A couple of weak, entitled “boys” who think it’s okay to prey on women. They are so deluded! How they can think their actions are okay, I have no idea.
It’s through Robb’s use of third person global subjective point-of-view that we gain the perspective of a number of the characters with Eve’s perspective primary, then Roarke with Charles and Louise, Kevin and Lucias, and more.
The nightmares are part of Eve’s character journey through the series. It’s Roarke being so supportive and understanding of Eve, her job, and her stressors that simply amaze me. That’s her personal side. I absolutely adore her professional side. She doesn’t respect anyone and will stomp them into the ground, lol. Unfortunately, computers and those cars of the future do NOT respect Eve, *more laughing*.
Lordy, I adore Roarke. His sense of humor, his sense of self, his compassion, his enjoyment of Eve’s discomfort with life on his side of the lane, his generosity toward his employees, and more are so admirable. It’s too funny when Ian goes to Roarke for dating advice. It’s good advice, guys.
Dallas is such a crack-up. Totally confident in the world of murder, she is so impatient with the social swirl and the trappings of wealth that Roarke “forces” her into, lol. She’s always worried about what the guys at work will think, and how much they’ll razz her, *more laughter*. Of course, her core team loves Roarke’s wealth — real pig! real coffee! It does not help that Roarke seems to own everything, oy. Of course, she does tick me off with her stubbornness! Just take the meds!
Robb does well at pulling in various characters’ back history without making it an info dump and informing us of their characters through actions and thought, making it very natural.
I can’t remember, but I think references to the street drug Whore has come up in every story. It’s in Seduction in Death that we learn what the drug was originally used for. It just figures that, like weapons, its use would become a degradation.
It’s hard to say whether the characters or the action pulls me in. I adore the characters Robb has created and the progress on their story arcs, yet I also adore all the police procedural and personal action that peppers Seduction in Death. Then there’s the humor, lol . . .
“You coming onto me, Peabody?”
“My love for you is a fearsome thing, Dallas. But I’ve given up dating cops.”
There’s criminal seduction, victims, murders, cover-ups, scandals, snot-nosed kids, and plenty of police procedural in this story. There’s also a new twist for a couple of characters when romance heats up with Charles and Louise. Oh, yeah . . . It’s a love triangle that’ll end up as a battle.
As for the prose, it makes me wanna be in 2059 with all those fun toys!
I love it when Eve gets the bad guys into Interview!
The Story
Dante had been courting his victim in cyberspace for weeks before meeting her in person. A few sips of wine and a few hours later, she was dead. The murder weapon: a rare, usually undetectable date-rape drug with a street value of a quarter million dollars.
Lieutenant Eve Dallas is playing and replaying the clues in her mind. The candlelight, the music, the rose petals strewn across the bed — a seduction meant for his benefit, not hers.
He hadn’t intended to kill her. But now that he has, the game is even more exciting.
The Characters
Lieutenant Eve Dallas is the head of Homicide Division at Cop Central. Roarke is her gorgeous billionaire husband who is brilliant with computers and so much else. Galahad is their pudge of a cat. Summerset is Roarke’s majordomo who hates Eve — neither loses any opportunity to snark at the other.
Friends include Dr Louise Dimatto who runs the Canal Street Clinic for the homeless and hopeless. Charles Monroe is a very expensive Licensed Companion who is dating Delia. I love his reasoning for why he became an LC. Mavis Freestone, a superstar singer, has been Dallas’ best friend for years. Mavis is hooked up with Leonardo, a successful clothing designer. The nagging Trina is a friend of Mavis’ and is a miracle-working beauty stylist. Nadine Furst is an on-air reporter for Channel 75.
New York Police and Security (NYPSD)
Officer Delia Peabody is Dallas’ aide. Detectives under Dallas include David Baxter, who’ll play the stinky beggar while Officer Troy Trueheart is being mentored by Baxter. Detective Ian McNab with the Electronics Detective Division (EDD) had been Peabody’s significant other. Captain Ryan Feeney is in command of EDD and had been Eve’s mentor and is still her father figure. Commander Jack Whitney is Eve’s boss; she’s scared of his wife! Dr Li Morris is the chief medical examiner. The gross Dickie Berenski is the genius chief lab tech. Dr Charlotte Mira is the chief profiler and feels as a mother to Eve. Officer Young worked the first homicide. Officer Lewis was called to the scene where the confrontative Detective Matthew Renfrew will investigate a floater.
Roarke Industries is . . .
. . . worldwide, oops, nope, he has interests in outer space as well. The ill-tempered Dr Stiles is a chief chemist. Jamal is a waiter at The Royal Bar of the Roarke Palace Hotel. Jansen.
Byrna Bankhead had a romantic ideal in her head. CeeCee Plunkett is Byrna’s best friend. Grace Lutz was a shy sweet girl who worked as a page in the New York City library. Moniqua Cline was lucky. Stefanie Finch is a shuttle pilot. Alicanne Hargrove is Stefanie’s neighbor. The sweet, friendly Melissa Kotter fled the farm for New York. Wanda is a neighbor and friend. Bruno Biggs is a Good Samaritan.
Dante had a date with Byrna. Dorian had a date with Grace. Byron has a date with Moniqua. Wordsworth plans to date Stefanie.
Kevin Morano, who is good with computers, and the domineering Lucias Dunwood, with a gift for math and science, are best friends and constant companions — heck, they live with each other. Both raised in wealth and privilege, they feel entitled to anything they want. The overbearing, autocratic Dr Theodore McNamara headed up the Whore project and is Lucias’ disgusting grandfather. He’s now the very-important, busy head of J. Forrester, which had partnered with Alleghany Pharmaceuticals some years ago. Sarah Dunwood née McNamara is his daughter and the weak, overprotective mother of Lucias.
Treacle of Montblanc, Cisser and Treacle is Dallas’ unknown rep. Dochas is a new abuse center for women and children. La Belle Dame is a fictitious company. Whore and Rabbit are street drugs that “encourage” sex. Zoner is another drug that seems to be akin to marijuana. Coffee and a Byte is a cyber cafe where Bitsy and Tad work; Milo Horndecker is a customer. Dr Michaels is Moniqua’s medico. Mick Connelly had been and Brian still is some of Roarke’s childhood friends (Betrayal in Death, 12). Magda Lane is a famous actress (Betrayal in Death). Deke Jones is a dock hand. Blackburn is Kevin’s lawyer. Carlo is a dealer Charles knows. Otis Gunn is now serving twenty years.
The Cover and Title
The cover’s dark background contrasts with the white text and the romantic pink tablecloth with the pink-tinged glasses of champagne, the pink rose in a vase, and the border of pink petals surrounding the graphic. At the top is the true author’s name with her pseudonym below but above the graphic. The title starts at the lowermost corner of the table.
The title is the game, the Seduction in Death that turns them on.
