Naked in Death

Book 57 of my 2014 Reading Challenge

Naked in Death by J.D. Robb 

Book 1 of the In Death series

Summary (via Goodreads)

It is the year 2058, and technology now completely rules the world. But New York City Detective Eve Dallas knows that the irresistible impulses of the human heart are still ruled by just one thing: passion. 
When a senator's daughter is killed, the secret life of prostitution she'd been leading is revealed. The high-profile case takes Lieutenant Eve Dallas into the rarefied circles of Washington politics and society. Further complicating matters is Eve's growing attraction to Roarke, who is one of the wealthiest and most influential men on the planet, devilishly handsome... and the leading suspect in the investigation.

My Opinion

I'll read most genres year round but for me, mysteries are best read in the fall.  As the weather changes, I'm searching for a paperback mystery series to work my way through under a blanket on a rainy day.  I've never read any of the In Death series but they've been around for awhile and I know there are quite a few of them, so I decided to give them a try.  In order, obviously...

This book had a nice pace, both from the storyline/action perspective and from the character perspective (there wasn't a lag between when I solved something as a reader and Eve solved it as the detective).  It was also nice not to have a love triangle, at this point at least.  Roarke and Eve look like they may continue to play cat and mouse for awhile but is it too much to hope that the romance settles down and either stays or goes after a few books?  Time will tell, I guess.

I had two other random observations about the book.  First, the section on profiling was very interesting.  Second, I was surprised to discover Eve was only 30; she 'read' older to me.

Overall, this was a perfectly passable way to spend a few hours and I'll definitely continue the series.   

A Few Quotes from the Book 

" "You like rules, lieutenant?"
   The question was mild, as was the insult under it. Her shoulders stiffened. "Without rules, chaos."
    "With chaos, life." "

"She stepped inside, closed the door. Eve, no longer a rookie, didn't feel her stomach revolt at the sight of the body, the torn flesh, or the blood-splattered child's toys.
 But her heart ached.
 Then came the anger, a sharp red spear of it when she spotted the antique weapon cradled in the arms of a teddy bear."

"Families are a source of comfort, and a source of irritation. No one outside can ever understand what goes on in the privacy of a home."