Leafing Through Pages - Portrait In Death (In Death # 16)
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For review of all books in the In Death series, go here.
Stars: 5 / 5
Recommendation: A futuristic urban fantasy mystery thriller throwing the readers into a world that they understand as well as can envision what it would be like; and at the same time keeping it grounded to the world they know so they get hooked. An emotion filled tale for Roarke and Eve, one dealing with the past that never was true and one dealing with a pathetic murderer. This brings out loads of tears even to the one who doesn’t shed a single.
Portrait in Death is the sixteenth book in the long running In Death Series by J. D. Robb, the alter ego of the famous American romance novelist Nora Roberts, first published in February of 2003. We continue to pursue Lieutenant Eve Dallas juggling her role as a Homicide Lieutenant and also being a wife to the Irish Billionaire Roarke.
The stories in the In Death Series are set in mid-21st century New York City, New York in United States, featuring NYPSD (New York Police and Security Department) Lieutenant Eve Dallas and her husband Roarke, an Irish billionaire, CEO of Roarke Industries, and one of the richest man in the world. First started in 1995, as of April 2024, 58 books have been written in this series. The first book begins in the year 2058 and showcases that technology completely dominates the world, yet Robb has her main characters still believe in human impulses, passion and emotions that are key to solving every single case she comes across or in her relationships with her husband and people. They complete their first year of their marriage in Reunion in Death (#14)
We continue to be in August of 2059 now - a good 64 years ahead for when the series began in 1995. This plot begins a month after when Purity in Death ends. In this episode, Eve comes across a charming photographer who wants to immortalize people by killing them and framing them in a portrait. And now Eve has to find them before more people are killed. At the same time Roarke's past comes in front tripping him causing an imbalance in their marital life.
This plot reminded me of one of the episode from Law & Order: Criminal Intent, The Posthumous Collection (Season 4 Episode 2), where the killer also creates portraits from people he kills. Although the reasoning is different there are similarities enough not to ignore. Incidentally this episode was aired on October 3, 2004; a full 18 months after the book was released. Perhaps the book inspired the story for the episode, I wonder.
It's a miracle that Roarke loves both Summerset and Eve so much that he bears with their constant bickering without flipping his gasket. It shows how much he loves them and protects them whether they want to be protected or not.
Interesting to note that Robb uses the word Portography for imaging and photography in future. Portography is technically assessing the venous return time of an injection of contrast in medical terms.
Roarke opens a center for abused families called Dochas meaning Hope in Gaelic, where people could find refuge and help. It is so appropriate when one hears of Roarke's past, his childhood and the hardships he had gone through. Roarke himself doesn’t realize that the did it for himself. It is not hard to feel sorry for that little boy who was battered; and for the man he has become who now knows his past mostly was a sham.
This particular plot is packed with so many sub-plots that could make several books in itself. Looking forward to see a few of the characters expanded in future. I must say though, this is one of the most emotionally drenching plot too. Specially the story from Roarke's past that surfaces and how he no matter takes it in stride, loses some balance before things set straight again. The whole episode got me crying buckets.
Robb continues to show us futuristic world in the various concepts and technology that may have been unimaginable in 1995, but are much more acceptable and some available now in 2024. And perhaps in a few years we might see more of her imagination in the series come to life. Check the Spoiler Alerts below for some of them that I identified and grouped them.
Incidentally most of the futuristic world and technology innovations that the book gives the reader, Robb had mentioned them to have begin since 2023. When this book was written in 1995, 2023 was 28 years ahead. However, I have started reading them in 2023 so for me some of the concepts seem very real or close to real for the way our world is heading now.
A futuristic urban fantasy mystery thriller throwing the readers into a world that they understand as well as can envision what it would be like; and at the same time keeping it grounded to the world they know so they get hooked. An emotion filled tale for Roarke and Eve, one dealing with the past that never was true and one dealing with a pathetic murderer. This brings out loads of tears even to the one who doesn’t shed a single.
Spoiler Alerts:
1. Plot Reveals:
a. Futuristic technology and concepts for the time the book is set in (2058) which Robb imagined in 1995:
i. For Security and Tools: Police Sensors and Porta-sensors; Seal It for hands and feet instead of gloves and shoe covers; laser weapons instead of guns and has ability to adjust it's power making it deadly yet less messier than a gun; Compuguard, a software to detect unregistered and illegal equipment; Force Fields and Security Shields; Sensor Bugs, to keep all food establishments in-check; Anti-mugging Spray; Detox Bowls and Radiant Heats used by ME's office; Space Traffic Control who control interplanetary traffic.
ii. Buildings and Landmarks / Travel: Multihabitation Buildings; Graves for loved ones is for rich; Flash Transport for interplanetary travel; minichopper by Roarke's company; EZ Tram and other airstreams, air transport service; medi-copters and ambu-jets; Air/Land Sports Streamer by Roarke industries; Traffic Hovercraft controlling air traffic; Land, Sea and Sky traffic.
iii. Electronics and gadgets: Body Driers / Drying Tubes; Automatic and voice controlled electronics, appliances and lights; AutoChef, like a vending machine that makes fresh food on order; Droids / Drones / all Robots of all kinds - working for humans in all walks of life, and even pets; Virtual Reality headphones; Moving Maps, People Glides and Glide-Carts ease a shoppers life; PPCs - Portable Palm Computers; Laser-faxes, holograms, holocards and holographs; send-receive units and tele-links; Gear to help fight gravity off-planet, like gravity boots; Rain Shields; SCAN-EYE, a security system for home buildings; Mood Screens; scan-cams; viewing discs like DVDs; palm-sized computer with holofunction; Identi-Pad for creating images for a forensic sketch artist.
iv. Money, Food, Sports and Health Related: Real food like coffee and meat is premium due to depletion of rain forests; twenty four hour facial cosmetics that wont smudge; Recycling is a must; Soda and Beer come in recyclable tubes; Rehydrated food is commonly used such as irradiated powdered eggs or soy burgers; Medicines such as SoberUp for being sober after a drunk night, Alert All to keep one alert and bright; Suturing Wand that would mend ripped flesh without any trace left; Cash is called credits and they are not paper money; human organs synthetically manufactured; anticancer vaccines; surgical freeze-coat to stop the flow of blood; Arena Ball Game, a new kind of game.
v. Global incidents that changed the course of the world to what Robb imagined - Population Adjustment Theory (Two Parents one Child); The Revisited Period (a new period for artists post whatever wars the world went thru); Genetic Engineering and in Vitro repairs; Urban Revolts / Urban Wars changed the world; Gun Ban introduced in 2022-2023; Depletion of Rain Forests.
b. Miranda rights are revised in this series. We don’t get to see the actual revision though.
2. Sub Plots:
a. Law Enforcement: Commander Jack Whitney, Eve's commanding officer, and his wife Anna, daughter Linda, son Steven; Chief Harrison Tibble, Chief of NYPSD; Prosecuting Attorney, Jonathan Heartly; Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Carla Rollins; Chief Tech Dickie Berenski aka Dickhead; Detective Crouch; Dr. Morris, Chief Medical Examiner; Detective Marion Burns; Lieutenant Medavoy from anti-crime; Detective Brinkleman with 4-1; Detective Darlymple; ; Detective David Baxter; Captain Desevres at one six-two; Detective Don Webster, IAB Officer; Detective Cartwright; Detective Zeno; FBI Special Agent Karen Stowe; Lieutenant Marks; FBI Assistant Director Sooner; Captain Hayes on 128 Precinct; Interplanetary Law Enforcement (ILE); Darcia Angelo, Chief of Olympus Police; Mayor Steven Peachtree; Sweepers - Lobar, Beaver, Tweeser (head sweeper); Officers - Carter, Carmichael, Miller, Troy Trueheart and his mother Pauline (he is being trained by Baxter), Clark, Rinsky, Briggs, Yancy Ident-artist; Morgue Staff - Chambers, Rochinsky, Herbert Fienstein, Feeno; Tomjohn Lewis from Maintenance; Media Liaison Lee Chang.
b. Close friends and family of Eve and her husband Roarke: Mavis Freestone, Eve's friend and her boyfriend Leonardo, the fashion designer; Galahad, their cat; Lawrence Charles Summerset, Roarke's valet and butler; Officer Delia Peabody, aide to Eve (has two brothers - Zeke and another one - and a sister; mother Phoebe and father Sam); Captain Ryan Feeney, Eve's ex-partner and head of Electronics Detectives Division (EDD) and his wife Sheila; Dr. Charlotte Mira, behavioral psychiatrist, has a Wiccan daughter living in New Orleans, son Anthony & his wife Deborah with a new born Matthew James Mira, husband Dennis; Nadine Furst, Channel 75's reporter; Detective Ian McNab, from EDD, in relationship with Peabody and are thinking of cohabiting as of this plot; Charles Monroe, an LC; Dr. Louise Anne Dimatto, doctor at the Canal Street Clinic and is dating Charles; Jamie Lingstrom from Ceremony in Death and Feeney's God child
c. Other characters frequently appear: Roarke's family - dead father Patrick Michael Roarke, dead mother Siobahn Margaret Mary Brody, step-mother Meg; Eve's family - dead father Rick; Siobhan's family - father Colin Brody and mother Patricia Carney Brody, brothers Edward "Ned" married to Mary Katherine with four childre and Fergus married to Meghan, twin sister Sinead and her husband Robbie with three children; Caro, Roarke's personal assistant; Ariel, Roarke's office person; Loreen, Roarke's receptionist; Larinda Mars, Channel 75's reporter for Social Information; Wilson Buckley aka Crack, a street dealer and runs the Down and Dirty Club in the East End; Biff, a fabric expert; Trina, hair stylist; Dr. Engrave, leader in horticulture; Dr. Ambrose, at Midtown Rehabilitation Center for Substance Addicts; Dr. Ward, on the Olympus Resort; Spirit Quest owners - Isis Paige and Charles "Chas" Forte; Cassandra, a palmist; Kevin, an abused child, along with his cat Dopey get adopted by Richard DeBlass and Elizabeth Barrister - characters from the very first book Naked In Death; Carmine, owner of Gametown; Ratso, a weasel; Rue McLean, manager at Purgatory, Roarke's establishment; Milo Horndecker; Dr. Stiles, works for Allegany; PA Spence taking care of Summerset in this plot; Moira O'Bannion, head crisis counsellor of Dochas; Dirk Hastings, an image artist / photographer; Brian Kelly, Roarke's childhood friend;
d. Off planet locations: Silas I; Silas Three; Taurus I - Alpha Colony; Taurus II; Taurus Three; Taurus Five; Refini; Arts Colony on Mars; Penal Station Omega; FreeStar One; Star 50; Stellar Five; Starlight Station; Eden Colony; Vegas II; Terra Colony; Olympus Resort, owned by Roarke, completed in Interlude in Death; Regis III; Regis Six; NASA Two; Space Station Delta; Travis II; Attica Two; Station Utopia; Rembrandt Station; Alfa Six; Planet Disney; Optima II; Nexus Station; Rexal facility for Mental Defectives; Flora; Planet Disney;
e. Wilson McRae, an ex-detective with CPSD in Chicago is introduced in Conspiracy In Death. He has a wife who is very pregnant with their second child, and they have a 5-yr old son, Will. Will he come back in future books?
f. Someone is stealing candy bars from Eve's desk at Cop Central. Wonder who that is?
g. From Immortal in Death #3: A new sect - Members of the Pure Sect - devotional and similar to monks. Perhaps we will come across them in future?
h. From Ceremony in Death #5: Isis mentions that she had met Roarke in another life and another time; and that he had saved her life. Roarke kind of gets a vague memory but that doesn’t complete to fruition to see if he remembers too. May be in another book Robb considers this as a focal point?
i. From Conspiracy in Death #8: Hans Vandervahen, one of the accused, is never caught at the end of the book. Will he surface again?
j. From Judgement in Death #11: Max Edward Ricker, Roarke's archenemy, vows revenge against Roarke and Eve. Wonder if he would surface again in a future book.
k. From Betrayal in Death #12:
i. Dominick J. Naples and his son Dominick II escape at the end of the book. See in another book?
ii. FBI Special Agent Karen Stowe mentions that she owes Eve a favor on account Eve handing her collar to him. Will she be back?
l. From Seduction in Death #13: Detective Matthew Renfrew from one-twenty-eight precinct has issues with Eve and he thinks she is an IAB mole. This is stemming from the time when Eve unravels the conspiracy and fraud at one-twenty-eight and unearthing corrupt cops in the 11th book Judgement in Death. Will he become a problem for Eve in future?
m. From Reunion in Death #14: As fun joke, Roarke names their fictional kids as Carlos Junior, Robbie, Anna and Alice. If ever they have kids, does Robb have them naming any one of these? I wonder.
n. From Purity in Death #15:
i. Mavis is pregnant in this plot.
ii. Mayor Bianci changed to Mayor Peachtree without any elections that we see happening.
o. From Portrait in Death #16:
i. Summerset gets injured at the beginning of this plot. He heals and goes on a three-week vacation much to Eve's happiness.
ii. McNab and Peabody who were hurt in Purity in Death seemed to have healed - Peabody is better and McNab has got his balance and movement, but he is still a bit slow.
iii. Roarke's birth mother Siobahn Brody, is abused by his father Patrick; and murdered.
iv. Eve puts Peabody's name for the next detective's test.
v. It is also revealed that Patrick Roarke was killed by Summerset which Roarke was never aware of.
p. From Secrets in Death # 45:
i. Garnet has a daughter Miranda; shows interest in Morris.
ii. Nadine is looking for an admin; Eve has someone in her mind. A past character surfaces perhaps!
3. Grammatical / Character / Plot / Geographical / Historical / Mythological Errors:
a. On Pg. 42, last line, shouldn’t it be "…she had know what was done…"?
b. On Pg. 254, Line 20 missing opening quote before "..The sixties…"
c. On Pg. 256, Line 7, shouldn’t it be "…That makes the…"?