@partnersincr1me​, @SeeleyJamesAuth, #Thriller

Jacob Stearne, ex Army Ranger and current Sabel Security operative, is about to propose to his girl when he discovers that "next generation" weapons are being shipped to our enemies. Some factions in the US government ask him to find the perpetrators while others work to make sure he fails. His intended fiancé does not understand his disappearance and he can’t give an explanation. When Jacob sets out to expose the billionaire intending to auction off national secrets, he is fired, expelled, and hunted by the government that once awarded him medals. If he ever wants to return to his homeland, he must insert himself into the dangerous world of technology smugglers. It’s a place where only the aggressive and ruthless survive. In the cutthroat world of modern-day pirates, every breath he takes may be his last. He must ask himself, can he outsmart the most corrupt billionaires in history before democracy is destroyed? Can he lose the woman he loves to save the nation?

A chambermaid is brutally beaten, raped, and strangled in a suite at the Roarke Plaza Hotel. The killer is quickly established, but Sylvester Yost is a killer of hire. Who would hire someone to kill a young, innocent chambermaid? But with the next body, the connection is suddenly clear. Someone has targeted people connected to Roarke and Eve fears he's targeted her husband as well.


The roles were slightly reversed in this one with Eve being the nurturing one, taking care of her husband in his grief, channeling his anger, letting him take swipes at her in his rage. It was a nice little change and rather heartwarming to observe how their relationship has changed, grown, and matured in just a little more than a year.

The initial mystery (who is the killer) was over and done quite soon, while the second part of it (who hired him and why), while longer and rather intriguing at the beginning, sort of fizzled toward the end once the true motive was revealed. I felt it was overkill, quite frankly. Too convoluted and complicated for the ultimate end goal of the "villain".
And yes, I saw through the ruse of the inside man rather early on, although that particular sub-plot ended on a satisfying note as far as friendship goes, while also providing some added gravitas and pathos to the story.

The Peabody/McNab part of the proceedings ended up being quite annoying and quite unnecessary to the main story arc, but since Eve and Roarke got along rather well in this one, some emotional and/or romantic drama was needed. It ended as it should have, with me cheering for McNab for actually standing up for himself, but Eve let me down a little for actually holding Peabody's hand instead of smacking the girl upside the head with the truth. I didn't particularly like Peabody in this one. I never particularly liked her juggling two guys at the same time without telling McNab the truth about her relationship with the LC.

While the story itself was solid and quite well-paced, the way it ended with the mystery/suspense fizzling out and the entire Peabody/McNab debacle not really gelling with the rest of the plot, I cannot say I'm satisfied with how this one panned out.

I like JD Robb. I don't like Nora Roberts. This book reads more Roberts than Robb, which just brings it down for me. One of the things I enjoy about Eve Dallas is how much her inability to innately comprehend things most people consider given, like why people use makeup or why someone would chose to live in the country with animals, affects people around her. Her straightforward view points out things that most people haven't considered.

" 'How the hell did she walk around in that?' Eve wondered. 'Looks like it weighs a ton.' He had to laugh. It was so Eve to see the inconvenience rather than the glamour." Things like this amuse me to no end. But since the book was uncommonly light on things like this, I was not amused.

After having some major upheavals this year, many involving my children, I need that levity in the books to keep them from cutting too close to the bone. I had trouble with this book because there wasn't enough escape for me. I'm re-reading it this time through and this is one of the books that I remembered all the twists to once I read the first few pages. I persevered because I prefer to read a series in order, but I really didn't get any enjoyment out of it.

Personal issues aside, the book itself seems rather bland compared to some others in the series. Eve's frustrations, Roarke's anger and grief, Peabody and McNab's jealousy all seemed rather two dimensional. I remember reading this through the first time and being fascinated with the steps taken to track down the murderer and the angles that I wouldn't have thought to follow. It's a very good thing I'm not a cop, cause I'd suck at it. Apparently that fascination was the redeeming feature of the book for me, and it's missing on a second read through.

If you're a fan of Robb I'd say read the book. It's not as bad as Ceremony in Death, not as good as Origin in Death. Really only good for a once through unless you HAVE to reread in series order.