Portrait in Death
by J. D. Robb
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Book Reviews of Portrait in Death
Book Review: Portrait in Death - an asset to the 'in Death' gallery
Summary: 5 Stars
Lieutenant Eve Dallas is a strong, courageous homicide cop in a futuristic New York of the mid-twentyfirst century. A great many things have changed from now till then, but human nature doesn't. Some people will always be sick or selfish, cruel or just plain evil in any era. Eve stands for the murdered innocents and is driven to stand between the killer and potential victims.'Portrait' forges another strong link in the chain which began with 'Naked in Death'. Eve's sizzling relationship with the powerful, incredibly handsome Irish-born billionaire Roarke steams off the page. Eve and Roarke both survived horrific childhoods by a determination to achieve independence and success. Now they struggle to harness their incredibly valiant wills and their intelligence to build up and trust their marriage. Love and sex light the hottest fires, but relying on each other is a new challenge and commitment every day.
Unlike many fans, I found "J. D. Robb" first, and only afterward read this author's other (Nora Roberts) books. With some other mystery writers, the reader homes in on the murderer by the middle of the book. 'Portrait in Death' kept me going and interested to the end -- I didn't foresee the denouement.
If this is your first J. D. Robb book, enjoy! I'm betting you'll fall for Eve and Roarke and their well-developed supporting stable of auxiliary characters, and that you'll next go to 'Naked in Death' and relish the whole series.
Book Review: Great Read
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought this book not realizing that it was part of a series. It is a good book for reading independently from the other books. Yes, there are some details that are from the previous books but the reader can get some ideas of the happenings. It is a very suspenseful read. For me, it started out slow but I stuck with it. It became such a fast and exciting read that I could not put it down. I have not finished the book yet, I cannot wait to find out who is the killer. It is a book that keeps me guessing. I will have to read quickly to find out who is the killer. I love the fact that this is a book written in the future. This causes you to imagine the futuristic plot and scenery. Eve Dallas is a very serious and good police officer. She takes her work home with her. Her dear husband, Roarke, found out the truth about his real mother and this has him trying to find out all about his real past. Eve Dallas is very demanding and gets the people and resources that she needs quickly. Now if we could only get that in real life! I cannot wait to read the rest of the series. I love her other books under her name, Nora Roberts. No matter what book you read; she is one of the best writers with a lot of descriptive writing. She sets the stage so well that she makes her readers crave for more. The book flows without any confusing details. The writing is clear and concise. The book is never boring. If you are looking for a thrill ride, this book is for you.Book Review: Intriguing mystery
Summary: 3 Stars
"Portrait In Death" is the first J.D. Robb novel I have read. It wasn't until I finished the book that I found there is a long series of "...In Death" books. There doesn't seem to be any significance, however, to my having started out at the end of the list.There is a decent amount of suspense in this book and it kept my interest to the end. This story takes place over 50 years from now. The year is 2059 and Robb appropriately incorporates innovations we will probably have in our lives 50 years hence.
There are many appliances in this story that respond to voice command, computers that talk in pleasant conversational voices, droids to act as servants, and other futuristic concepts. If you have already read some of this series this won't be news to you but it was new to me and I liked it.
As you can imagine, many futuristic computerized devices are used in helping to solve this murder mystery. Seeing advanced versions of equipment we already have, and that works, is interesting. Not once did anyone have to re-boot a computer.
Robb takes a "side trip" from the mystery and while it does serve to fill in some history related to the characters, I didn't especially like being taken away from the main story. The side trip was like a story within a story. Roarke, for example, had a personal event to deal with which was really its own story.
Like many mysteries, this one was good to read while exercising on the treadmill.
Book Review: Another good book in an excellent series
Summary: 4 Stars
Well, I did enjoy this installment after taking a break from the series around Seduction in Death. I had quit reading due to the ongoing predictable circumstances in this series. Roarke still is a billionaire who own everything in the world on/off planet and he will always be involved in Eve's cases and continues to provide Eve with the best sex she's ever had in her life. Without him, I guess we wouldn't have much a series (which I strongly disagree if more effort was put forth to make this series more original). In this installment, we learn more about Roarke's past, about a past he thought was true but turns out to be only a facade. When he investigates the truth about his heritage, he withdraws into himself and shuts Eve out. This is where the novel gets interesting in that Roarke almost always has Eve as his balance. In this case, he feels he must deal with this problem alone but Eve does aggressively knock down a few of the barriers that he puts up and together, they face the future and the truth and move on with their lives. The usual characters from previous books make an appearance. McNab and Peaboy are still burning up the sheets and Sommerset still gives Eve eye-twitches. A good book and my last. I wish there was more depth to these characters but I guess you can't have everything. This is a great series but I just wish Robb would do more.
Book Review: I was wrong! (WAS "Love the characters, where's the heart?)
Summary: 5 Stars
I don't know what to say about this book. I love the characters, and I enjoy the continued growth in Eve's acceptance of her role as friend and wife. (In my mind, the "mystery" is always secondary to the continuing saga of Roarke and Eve!) I also enjoyed the attempt to make Roarke more "real" and less the typical "beautiful-and-rich-ex-bad-boy-with-a-heart". But I couldn't help but feel that Nora Robert's heart wasn't in this one. Eve and Roarke, Peabody and McNab, Mavis and Nadine and Feeney - they're all there, but they seem 2-dimensional and the conversations seemed forced and stilted. If I wasn't already so attached to the characters, I'd probably have given the book a 3-star rating, but I'd be lying if I didn't say I truly enjoyed it anyway.***I did a re-read of the entire series recently, and I have to recant my previous negative comments. The secondary characters didn't get as much focus, but I now think it had more to do with giving us a much-more-human Roarke, than any lack of "heart" by the author. I think I'd grown accumstomed to Eve's brusque and heated personality, so as she swapped roles with Roarke (nurturing him, with him pushing her away), I originally felt it was missing "heat". On a second read, though, I found plenty of heart in Roarke's family revelations and Eve's stepping into the nurturing role.