NORA ROBERTS has been writing the IN DEATH series as J.D. ROBB for 30 years. The first book introduced us to New York Police Homicide Lieutenant Eve Dallas in the future year 2058 and each book begins almost exactly where the last ended. In BONDED IN DEATH, the 60th installment in the series, it is September 2061. If you’ve never read the series, start at the beginning with number 1 NAKED IN DEATH, and go from there. You won’t regret it. Every book brings nuance and growth to the main and supporting characters and their relationships. Some, like the police detectives and forensic experts, are seen in every book and others pop in only on occasion.  

Recently arrived Italian cyber expert, Giovanni Rossi, is found dead in the back of a limousine with Eve’s business card and a cryptic message promising more deaths in his fingers. The cause of death is poisonous gas dating back to the Urban Wars of the 2020s.  Eve along with her gorgeous husband, Roarke, and partner, Peabody, determine the victim and killer are connected to a covert underground organization from the Urban Wars called The Twelve. As Eve tries to identify the remaining members before they too are victims, she realizes Roarke’s Majordomo, Summerset, is not just a resource as a former Urban War medic but one of The Twelve and his wife was killed in 2026 by a traitor in the group. Eve and the rest of the team follow the leads to locate the killer before he draws out another victim. As always, they are one step ahead.

Whenever a new IN DEATH book comes out, I stop whatever I’m doing to immerse myself back into the fantastic characters, storylines, and dialogue and don’t come up for air until I’ve read it cover to cover only to desperately wait for the next installment in six months.  This book builds on a storyline that is mentioned often throughout the series and featured in the novella MISSING IN DEATH #29.5 released in 2009.