REVIEW: Kindred In Death by J.D. Robb

Title: Kindred In Death (In Death #29)
Author: J.D. Robb
Publisher: Putnam
Publication Date: November, 2009
Hardcover: 374 pages
Genre: Mystery / Suspense / Thriller
Rating: 10/10

Description: When the newly promoted captain of the NYPSD and his wife return a day early from their vacation, they were looking forward to spending time with their bright and vivacious sixteen-year-old daughter who had stayed behind.

Not even their worst nightmares could have prepared them for the crime scene that awaited them instead. Brutally murdered in her bedroom, Deena's body showed signs of trauma that horrified even the toughest of cops; including our own Lieutenant Eve Dallas, who was specifically requested by the captain to investigate.

When the evidence starts to pile up, Dallas and her team think they are about to arrest their perpetrator; little do they know yet that someone has gone to great lengths to tease and taunt them by using a variety of identities. Overconfidence can lead to careless mistakes. But for Dallas, one mistake might be all she needs to bring justice.

My Thoughts: What appears to start out as a random brutal crime quickly turns into a web of revenge and horror as a brutal killer is systematically killing the loved ones of people he blames for ruining his life. With the impending nuptials of Louise and Charles and Eve’s near panic at the thought of her matron of honor duties, she has very little time to find the killer but our Eve would much rather get bloody and chase down a killer than be subjected to the rituals of marriage and being within 100 miles of Trina and her devices of female torture.

As always, I loved this book and can’t get enough of Eve, Roark and the gang. However, I was expecting a more intense takedown of the subject. As usual, it played out flawlessly, but with the level of brutality the killer demonstrates, I expected him to go down fighting. Perhaps the author didn’t want her beaten and bloodied right before the wedding. Even so, Eve does get her hands dirty a few times and takes a few hits for the team. Not enough snark with Summerset this go around, but these two pace themselves beautifully and don’t disappoint when they do take the gloves off. I love how Peabody is developing as a character. She’s really coming into her own as a detective and with Eve’s mentoring, she will be a force to be reckoned with. What can I say about Roark that hasn’t been said a million times already? As Peabody and Mavis would say, he’s mag. I always enjoy seeing him getting to use his computer geek skills working with Feeney and McNab to assist Eve.

With 29 books in the series and no indication of slowing down, I am excited to see what Eve and the gang gets into next.