Taking place after Payback in Death (2023), and again set in the 2060s, Robb opens her futuristic police procedural with a tragic crime that claims the life of a Manhatten teenager.
Jenna Harbough had dreamed of seeing the legendary band “Avenue A” long before that dream ever became a reality. An aspiring songwriter, her plan—which she had to clear with her parents, who had their own concerns—was to slip one of her demo tapes into the hands of Avenue A’s guitarist, Jake Kincade. She never imagined when she entered the New York City club with her friends that the circumstances she initially believed would lead to the best night of her life would ultimately prove to be her last moments alive. Util that nightmare actually happens.
After being jabbed with a small needle by someone in the crowd, symptoms set in immediately. Moments later, Jenna stumbled outside into the club’s back alley in search of fresh air, collapsed, and died.
Horrified, Jack Kincade doesn’t know what else to do but to call his girlfriend, Nadine, who in turn is quick to ring her friend, Eve Dallas, a lieutenant with the New York City police department. Right away, Eve gets to work investigating Jenna’s death. But after talking with and interviewing witnesses and potential suspects, Eve can’t find any physical evidence or motive linking anyone to the sixteen-year-old’s murder. Eventually, lab results show that Jenna was indeed poisoned after her toxicology report showed a mix of toxic substances in her body at the time of her death. But before Eve can make sense of things, another body is found. Another teenager is dead. And just like Jenna, there appears to be no rhyme or reason as to why the teen was even targeted in the first place. For Eve, that can only mean one thing: the killer is choosing victims at random, which means everyone is at risk, and nobody is safe until the murderer is stopped once and for all.
Robb (which, of course, is the pen name used by the great Nora Roberts) continues to do an excellent job thinking up page-turning storylines. However, readers hoping this will feel like a futuristic Harry Bosch should expect more romance and time spent between Eve Dallas and her husband, Roarke, than the kind of experience you might get from Michael Connelly. Overall, the tone is much lighter than the majority of crime thrillers you’ll find at your local bookstore. Still, even so, Robb—whose messages, when she does layer them into her writing, are often subtle—does manage to touch on issues and topics that are relevant to today’s reader. And though it can no doubt feel intimidating to try a potential new series when you look up and realize it’s the 58th book in the franchise (which Random in Death is), newcomers shouldn’t have any issues following the story itself, even if some of the character interactions may be a tad confusing at first. Give it a few chapters, and you’ll see this one is surprisingly easy to settle into, as Robb wastes no time with fillers, opting instead to keep the story moving at a steady clip as Eve Dallas races to try and solve the murders before any other lives are taken.
J.D Robb delivers another strong entry in her long-running New York Times bestselling Eve Dallas series with Random in Death, a lightning-fast read with a surprisingly relevant plot that longtime fans of this franchise will no doubt devour.
Book Details
Author: J.D. Robb
Series: Eve Dallas #58
Pages: 368 (Hardcover)
ISBN: 1250289548
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Release Date: January 23, 2024
Praised as “One of the hardest working, most thoughtful, and fairest reviewers out there” by New York Times bestselling author Lisa Scottoline, Ryan Steck has “quickly established himself as the authority on mysteries and thrillers” (Author A.J. Tata). Steck also works full-time as a freelance editor and is building a growing community on Twitch. His debut thriller, FIELDS OF FIRE, which #1 New York Times bestselling author Jack Carr says “will leave you speechless and begging for more,” is now available. His second novel, LETHAL RANGE, is also in bookstores, and his third book, OUT FOR BLOOD, comes out on June 4th. For more information, be sure to follow him on Twitter and Facebook. To interact with other readers and talk about your favorite books and authors, join The Real Book Spy’s Discord server.