NAKED IN DEATH (IN DEATH, BOOK #1) BY J.D. ROBB: BOOK REVIEW

Naked in Death
In  Death book, Book # 1
J.D. Robb

Review by OBS Staff member Heidi

Naked in Death is the introductory book of the In Death series written under Nora Roberts’ pseudo name, J.D. Robb.

The year is 2058 and police Lieutenant Eve Dallas, just got called in on a murder case.  The senator’s granddaughter and licensed prostitute, Sharon DeBlass, has been murdered in her apartment and Eve has been assigned as the primary investigator.  Upon review of the scene she discovers a chilling note under the body that reads, “One of Six” that lets her know that her killer isn’t even close to being done yet.  Even stranger yet, the killer left the murder weapon at the crime scene and it wasn’t the usual laser or explosive but an antique—a gun from the 21st century!

With it being such a high-profile case Eve’s being watched closely and the murderer could be anyone.  But before she even gets through her short list of suspects the second victim is discovered dead, with yet another gun found at the scene.  Discs containing the entire murders keep showing up inside her apartment shortly after the murders….showing just how confident her murderer is that he’ll never be caught.

Roarke (just Roarke) is a successful businessman that owns just about everything, including the building Sharon lived in and the building that Eve herself lives in.  If he wants something, he takes it.  He quickly becomes a top suspect, having an extensive gun collection and admits that he’s a great marksman and he has no alibi for the night of either murder.  He also went out with the first victim shortly before she was murdered.

Everywhere Eve goes, she finds Roarke nearby and it’s not long before she finds herself in his bed.  She knows it’s a mistake but can’t help herself and now she has to prove that he isn’t the killer or risk losing her job.  Time is of the essence if they wish to save any of these before it’s too late.

I was a little nervous when I saw the futuristic aspect of this book but I ended up really liking it.  I loved the whole idea of this future world, and everybody being amazed at these old weapons from our current world.  I also enjoyed some of the laws they had that I could just imagine happening in the future, like legalizing prostitution, eliminating term limits for politicians and outlawing tobacco.  And I couldn’t help but love Roarke, something about cocky guys that I just can’t get enough of.  I enjoyed trying t o solve the mystery along with Eve and I didn’t want to stop reading this and was a little sad when it was over.  I can’t wait to dig into the next book in this series!