Salvation In Death

I love visiting old friends. But visiting Roarke, Eve and gang is a special treat.

Here's the blurb for Salvation In Death by J.D. Robb:

In the year 2060, sophisticated investigative tools can help catch a killer. But there are some questions even the most advanced technologies cannot answer...

When Detective Lieutenant Eve Dallas confirms that the consecrated wine contained potassium cyanide, she’s determined to solve the murder of Father Miguel Flores, despite her discomfort with her surroundings. It’s not the bodegas and pawnshops of East Harlem that bother her, though the neighborhood is a long way from the stone mansion she shares with her billionaire husband, Roarke. It’s all that holiness flying around at St. Christobal’s that makes her uneasy.

A search of the victim’s sparsely furnished room reveals little— except for a carefully hidden religious medal with a mysterious inscription, and a couple of underlined Bible passages. The autopsy reveals more: faint scars of knife wounds, a removed tattoo—and evidence of plastic surgery, suggesting that “Father Flores” may not have been the man his parishioners had thought. Now, as Eve pieces together clues that hint at gang connections and a deeply personal act of revenge, she believes she’s making progress on the case. Until a second murder—in front of an even larger crowd of worshippers—knocks the whole investigation sideways. And Eve is left to figure out who committed these unholy acts—and why.

I know when I pick up a JD Robb book I will be entertained. And this book didn't disappoint.

The usual characters were all there, but mostly down-played, what really took centre stage was the crime, the need to discover who/where/why really ruled the book. I admit I missed some of the usual moments, Sommerset and Eve's banter, Nadine's need to get info first no matter what, Eve and Feeny's friendship, Dr. Mira's counseling, but the book was so fast paced that it didn't need all the fillers. And some of the characters introduced in this book were very interesting, especially Father Lopez. And I'm hoping that we'll see him in future books.

The issue of a layman impersonating a Catholic priest caught my attention, and I was hoping that Lino did it for the right reasons (even it's so wrong), but throughout Eve's investigation I was floored to know that he did it for selfish reasons. That he wasn't making up for the wrongs that he once did, it was just one big con. I also thought it was poetic justice in the end for both Lino and Penny.

After 29 full length novels with Eve Dallas, I wonder what the author can give us next. Good thing I don't have to wait too long, Promises In Death will be out next. I can't wait to get my hands on it.

Salvation In Death by J.D. Robb (4.5/5) Romantic Suspense; Alternate Future; Published: G.P. Putnam's Sons (08); Series: # 29, Eve Dallas; 2009 100 + Reading Challenge (13); 2009 Support Your Local Library Challenge (10);