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Nora Roberts, writing as J.D. Robb, treats us to another installment in her Death series, a scant six months after ORIGIN IN DEATH. This series is properly considered to be "futuristic suspense" --- the books take place in the mid-21st century --- but such a classification ignores the strong elements of mystery, police procedure, and romance that inform each of the titles. Readers familiar with the series have witnessed the evolution of Eve Dallas, a believably difficult NYPD Homicide Detective who's married to the mysterious, charming and wealthy Roarke.
Eve's past, always a shadowy presence in her life, comes back to haunt her when Trudy Lombard, her former foster mother, abruptly appears in her office. This has a dramatic and profoundly detrimental effect upon Eve due to the physical and emotional abuse Trudy heaped upon Eve while she was in her care. Trudy's intent is soon made clear. Attracted to Eve by Roarke's numerous and apparently bottomless pockets, she threatens to blackmail him and Eve with revelations about events that took place during Eve's childhood --- events that, it turns out, were engineered by Trudy. Roarke, who suffers neither fools nor thieves, quickly sends her packing. A few days later, however, Trudy is found brutally murdered in her hotel room.
Robb wisely avoids the classic plot vehicle of having either Eve or Roarke appear to be responsible for her death and then having to work to clear themselves. Rather, the focus is on the locked door (with open window) mystery that is the heart of the book. Eve does not lack for plausible suspects, given that she was far from the only foster child who Trudy abused or who would have ample simmering motive for revenge as adults. There is also, of course, Trudy's son and daughter-in-law, who were staying in the same hotel just a few doors away from her, and the mysterious, shadowy figure who was Trudy's partner in crime.
Veteran fans of the mystery genre --- even those without the resources of a Roarke in their life --- may well discern the culprit's identity ahead of Eve. Whether that is the case for you or not, however, the enjoyment of the novel is derived in large part from watching Eve, with invaluable assistance from Roarke, ferret out the clues and put them all together. What makes MEMORY IN DEATH unique from its predecessors is Eve's intimate though painfully acquired knowledge of Trudy's personality and motivation, a key factor in solving this particular crime.
Fans of the science fiction genre who rarely venture into the mystery section of their bookstore should enjoy MEMORY IN DEATH due to the futuristic setting of the novel specifically and the Eve Dallas series in general. The speculative touches that Robb furnishes are just heavy enough to make the series special and just light enough that we in 2006 can almost see them coming. And given the quality invested in MEMORY IN DEATH, this long-running series should continue to have a bright future indeed.
--- Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub
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