Are you like me, and ready to sit by the fire with a favorite blanket wrapped around you, a favorite drink by your side, and a good book in your lap? If you answered yes to any of these questions then I suggest CALCULATED IN DEATH.
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As fans know this is a long running series, and while there are often times that I personally feel that an author who has a series needs to wrap it up, the In Death series appears to be getting better and better. While each story does have a self contained story line I do suggest for those new to Robb and her long standing series they they begin with the first installment as relationships change and grow throughout, and you want to be on the ground floor for that
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CALCULATED IN DEATH is a story that could almost be pulled from the headlines; people with power and money who want more, and will do almost anything including murder for hire and to gain what they believe to be rightly theirs.
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As the story opens Marta Dickenson, a wife, mother, and accountant is found murdered. At first it appears that she is the victim of mugging gone wrong. However, as primary on the case Eve doesn't believe that things are as simple as they seem. Soon she finds that there are more threads to pull, and eventually they will all lead to the person or persons responsible for the crime.
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Eve is an experienced police officer, and highly respected by her underlings, but even the best smartest officer needs a team of people to help solve a crime. Here is where we get our all favorite returning characters, Peabody, McNab, Feeney, Nadine, Mira and of course Roarke. What I noticed most about CALCULATED IN DEATH was that Peabody has a large role, which as Eve's partner is natural. However, with the exception of Roarke the others seem to be an afterthought in the story. Not that when they appeared it seemed forced...rather that Eve is gaining confidence in her relationship with Peabody and Roarke, and doesn't need the others quite as much.
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For fans who love seeing Eve's interpersonal relationships grow and expand they might be disappointed. For fans who love seeing Eve put her superior police skills and knowledge to work they will turning page after page.
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For me CALCULATED IN DEATH started a bit slow, but picked up steam as the perpetrator began to realize that too many people knew his/her plans and they had to be eliminated. Thinking that the are beyond smart and above the law it's always fun to read the interrogation scenes as Eve is such a great character during them...leading the proverbial horse to water and making it drink.
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With the close of CALCULATED IN DEATH we see more evolution of the relationship between Eve and Roarke, and I for one can not wait until the next installment. Good that J.D. Robb is a somewhat fast writer and the wait should not be that long.
On Manhattan's Upper East Side a woman lies dead at the bottom of the stairs, stripped of all her valuables. Most cops might call it a mugging gone wrong, but Lieutenant Eve Dallas knows better.
A well-off accountant and a beloved wife and mother, Marta Dickenson doesn’t seem the type to be on anyone's hit list. But when Eve and her partner, Peabody, find blood inside the building, the lieutenant knows Marta's murder was the work of a killer who's trained, but not professional or smart enough to remove all the evidence.
But when someone steals the files out of Marta's office, Eve must immerse herself in her billionaire husband Roarke's world of big business to figure out who's cruel and callous enough to hire a hit on an innocent woman. And as the killer's violent streak begins to escalate, Eve knows she has to draw him out, even if it means using herself as bait. . . .
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