Body of Lies (Eve Duncan)
by Iris Johansen
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Book Summary Information
Author: Iris JohansenEdition: Mass Market Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2003-03-04
ISBN: 0553582143
Number of pages: 400
Publisher: Bantam
Book Reviews of Body of Lies (Eve Duncan)
Book Review: Wasted Potential
Summary: 2 Stars
I didn't know anything about author Iris Johansen before I picked up "Body of Lies" at the library, but as a thriller fan I thought I'd check out her brand of suspense. About fifty pages into the book I began suspecting that Ms. Johansen had a romance writing past. A check of her bibliography--with early titles like "Lion's Bride" and "The Magnificent Rogue"--confirmed my suspicions. Let me clarify that I have no problem with the romance genre, and Johansen certainly isn't the first romance novelist to make the jump to the thriller genre. But I prefer the thrillers I read to have a bit more edge, and Johansen's prose dulled that edge. Still, I kept reading because the story was intriging and fairly fast-paced. By page 200, though, I was starting to lose patience, and by page 300 my only motivation in finishing the novel was the anticipation of reading something else.
The characters Eve Duncan, her boyfriend Joe Quinn and Eve's adopted daughter Jane weren't terribly interesting to me and often seemed like they were all three the same person. Only the supporting character of Sean Galen seemed to possess any real personality. Too bad, because much of this story is told through dialog, which I don't have a problem with provided it's interesting dialog, but it isn't. Johansen--no Elmore Leonard she--prefers her characters in "Body of Lies" to spout off cliches or give us paragraph upon paragraph of exposition (between gazing, grimacing and moistening their lips, of course). In true detective show fashion, whenever the bad guys are cornered, they fill our heroine in on all their dastardly deeds, saving Eve the trouble of having to work too hard to dig it up on her own. Her story of an underground society of world leaders known only as the Cabal had potential, but it's wasted in this novel. Johansen seems on surer ground when dealing with Eve and Joe's turbulent, if irritating, relationship than political intrigue.
I don't want to be too hard on Johansen. Another disappointed reviewer mentioned her earlier thrillers being superior to this one, so maybe I just caught Iris when she wasn't quite on her game. However, I doubt I'll be reading another one of her books anytime soon. So now I'm going to wipe this grimace off my face, moisten my lips and turn my gaze to a different author.
Summary of Body of Lies (Eve Duncan)
A past she thought buried...a murder she was driven to solve...Forensic sculptor Eve Duncan has been summoned to Baton Rouge by a high-ranking government official to identify the remains of an unknown murder victim. Eve wants nothing to do with the project. She has finally found peace from her own tragic past, living a quiet life with Atlanta detective Joe Quinn and her adopted daughter, Jane. Then a stunning series of seemingly unrelated events turns Eve?s new world upside down.
A killer so deceptive, he leaves nothing behind but his victims...
Now, in a special government facility, she takes on the project of identifying the victim?s skeleton. But she hasn?t even begun when the first death occurs. Someone totally ruthless, someone who can strike anywhere at any time and with seeming immunity, is determined to put a halt to her work, her life, and the lives of those she loves. Eve has stumbled onto a chilling conspiracy. There is only one person who can give her the devastating truth...and he is already dead.
Just as there are sculptors who insist they liberate forms imprisoned within marble and granite, Eve Duncan, the strong-willed heroine of Body of Lies, is a forensic sculptor driven by a need to liberate innocence from the shroud of death. Tops in her field, Eve obsesses over recreating the likenesses of faceless, decomposed murder victims, using only their bare skulls as a guide. It's a spooky career that began when Eve's own daughter, Bonnie, vanished and was later discovered, the girl's remains unrecognizable.
In Body of Lies, a killer uncovers a shocking truth about Bonnie, driving a rattled Eve to take a dangerous assignment in the darkest heart of bayou country. There, at the weird behest of a shady senator, Eve rebuilds the visage of the politician's late rival, a challenge that nearly results in her murder, strains her romance with a hard-bitten detective, and uncovers a fantastic global conspiracy over energy profits and much else. Wildly ambitious, Iris Johansen's Body of Lies inspires paranoia about the rich and powerful, though it gets unwieldy when Johansen's action writing and characters don't plausibly sustain the image of a secret society hell-bent on world domination. More effective are her bright supporting characters (especially Eve's Liverpudlian protector, Galen), bursts of descriptive wit, and insights into her wounded but dogged heroine. --Tom Keogh
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