Leafing Through Pages - Vengeance In Death (In Death # 6)
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For review of all books in the In Death series, go here.
Stars: 4 / 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. Another intense plot with several emotional scenes blended in making the reader want to cry, at the same time fight along-side Eve and Roarke.
Vengeance In Death is the sixth 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 October of 1997. 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 2023, 57 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 people and husband.
We are still in 2058 - a good 63 years ahead for when the series began in 1995 - but we are in the Nov/Dec months now. The book begins a month after the previous book Ceremony in Death ends. This time Roarke is in the middle of everything when people he knew from his distant past are being killed. Someone is trying exact revenge on Roarke and everyone he loves. It is up to Lieutenant Eve Dallas to prove her husband has nothing to do with these murders and also at the same time unearth the killer before more people are killed.
Finally Robb gives us a book focusing totally on Roarke much to my liking. However we still don’t know a lot about him. The plot sticks to the little past we have already know about him in a couple of books ago in Rapture in Death. However, the plot delves into the psychopathic world of a religious fanatic and his misunderstanding of the writings from the Bible.
We also see that the marriage and relationship between Eve and Roarke finally is coming to equal footing. She also acknowledges that she needs him as much as he needs her. As much as she stands for the dead, when push comes to shove if her family, even the much disliked butler, come under fire, she goes to bat for their life with her.
I am surprised that after everything that Eve and Summerset go through in this book he still has his disdain towards her and looks her down his nose. I hope their relationship gets better as the series progresses. I was also totally surprised about the killer(s) at the end. Totally off base I was in guessing who that would be.
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 2023. 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 am reading in 2023 so for me some of the concepts seem very real or close to real for the way our world is heading now.
Surprisingly the book came with a lot of grammatical errors as well as situation errors. It is not normal with a Robb or Nora's books. Also the book is much larger than the rest of the books I read so far. Perhaps the editor rushed it given the number of pages and didn’t bother to correct these minor inconveniences.
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. Another intense plot with several emotional scenes blended in making the reader want to cry, at the same time fight along-side Eve and Roarke.
Spoiler Alerts:
1. Plot Reveals:
a. We come to know that Roarke can in fact sing, although he doesn’t showcase his talents in this book. May be in future books?
b. Futuristic technology and concepts for the time the book is set in (2058) which Robb imagined in 1995:
i. For Security and tools to aid cops / all cop related: Police Sensors and Porta-sensors; Land, Sea and Sky traffic is common; A Traffic Hovercraft to control air traffic; Seal It for hands and feet instead of gloves and shoe covers; instead of guns laser weapons are used that tag a person and has ability to adjust it's power making it deadly yet less messier than a gun (NS Laser is the weapon in this series); Compuguard, a software to detect unregistered and illegal equipment; Force Fields and Security Shields, to protect businesses and vehicles; Sensor Bugs, to keep all food establishments in-check; Anti-mugging Spray.
ii. Buildings and Landmarks / Travel: Multihabitation Buildings; Graves for loved ones is for rich only; Flash Transport, for inter-planetary travel; minichopper that Roarke's company is prototyping; EZ Tram and other airstreams, air transport service in NYC.
iii. Electronics and gadgets: Body Driers to dry your body after a shower; 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; Electronics such as laser-faxes, hologram send-receive units and tele-links; Gear to help fight gravity off-planet, like gravity boots; Elevators go vertical and side-ways; Rain Shields to protect from rain; SCAN-EYE, a security system for home buildings.
iv. Money, Food and Health Related: Real food like coffee and meat is premium and only for rich people due to depletion of rain forests; twenty four hour facial cosmetics that wont smudge such as lip dyes; Recycling is a must; Soda and Beer come in recyclable tubes rather than cans; 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.
2. Sub Plots:
a. Law Enforcement: Captain Ryan Feeney, Eve's ex-partner and head of Electronics Detectives Division (EDD) and his wife Sheila; Commander Jack Whitney, Eve's commanding officer, and his wife Anna, daughter Linda, son Steven; Dr. Mira, behavioral psychiatrist who works with police, has a Wiccan daughter living in New Orleans; Nadine Furst, Channel 75's reporter; Uniform Briggs; Chief Harrison Tibble, Chief of NYPSD; Beaver, a sweeper; Prosecuting Attorney, Jonathan Heartly; Chief Tech Dickie Berenski aka Dickhead; Lobar, a sweeper; Detective Crouch; Dr. Morris, Medical Examiner; Detective Marion Burns; Officer Carter; Detective Ian McNab, from EDD aiding Eve and team in this book; Tweeser, head sweeper; Lieutenant Medavoy from anti-crime.
b. Close friends and family of Eve (works for Homicide Division of Cop Central in NYC) and her husband Roarke (Irish Billionaire who practically owns most of NYC and many investments on and off planet): Mavis Freestone, Eve's friend and her boyfriend Leonardo, the fashion designer; Galahad, a cat Eve adopts from a crime scene; Lawrence Charles Summerset, Roarke's valet and butler; Officer Delia Peabody, aide to Eve (has two brothers and a sister).
c. Other characters frequently appear: Caro, Roarke's personal assistant; Larinda Mars, Channel 75's reporter for Social Information; 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 Olympic 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.
d. Off planet locations: Silas Three; Tarus Three; Tarus 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 (Roarke is creating this pleasure place since the first book in the series); Regis III; Regis Six; NASA Two; Space Station Delta; Travis II; Attica Two; Station Utopia; Rembrandt Station.
e. Robb talks about Urban Wars that had occurred before world changed into something futuristic world in her stories. However we are yet to hear about these Urban Wars more.
f. From Secrets in Death # 45:
i. Detective Peabody & her partner & lover Detective Ian McNab head off to Mexico for a much needed vacation.
ii. Garnet has a daughter Miranda; shows interest in Morris.
iii. Nadine is looking for an admin; Eve has someone in her mind. A past character surfaces perhaps!
g. From Glory in Death #2:
i. Roarke is trying to take over a reforestry company, Treegr.
h. From Immortal in Death #3:
i. A new sect is mentioned - Members of the Pure Sect - who are devotional and similar to monks. Perhaps we will come across them in future?
i. From Ceremony in Death #5:
i. Jamie Lingstrom is the godchild of Feeney and being an electronic genius. Will he surface in future books?
ii. 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?
3. Grammatical / Character / Plot / Geographical / Historical / Mythological Errors:
a. On Pg. 103, Line 6 from bottom, it should be "…with them in more than…" The extra "a" between "in" and "more" is not required.
b. On Pg. 131, Line 16, it should be "…plan given to me by…."
c. On Pg. 133, we see that Roarke is the one who guesses that the killer is in New York. But on Pg. 155, Detective McNab mentions that Lieutenant Eve Dallas had called it. It is mis-represented here.
d. On Pg. 141, Line 5, it should be "…four credits in his…". The extra "in" between "four" and "credits" is not required.
e. On Pg. 267, Line 12, the word should be "mussed"
f. On Pg. 278, Line 6 from bottom, the word should be "know" at the beginning of the line.
g. On Pg. 290, Line 6 from bottom, the word should be "where" in that line as opposed to "were".