contemporary

Yes, Divided in Death is different from the other books in the series. You have your typical Eve driven investigation of murder with someone she or Roarke knows and need to prove innocent. You've got your people who misunderstand Eve's ways which hurts her but she remains silent. McNab, Peabody, Mavis, Feeney and Trueheart are all there, which makes for a nice continuity.

This time we've got spies and government intrigue at the heart of the murder case. But Divided is more personal than the other books. Eve and Roarke have always had heated arguments but have been solid with their marriage because of their love for each other. This time, they each struggle with something inherent to their make up and it's not so easily moved past.

A great part of the book, contrasted with the others, Eve and Roarke cannot find their way to each other, they are estranged by their different reactions to some information that comes to light about Eve's past. It's this struggle which makes the heart of the book so compelling because you want them to make it, they are the other half of the other but at the same time, some things can't just be moved past.

I won't give spoilers but I found this intensely personal approach a nice refreshing change from the other books and I thought Robb wrote it well and threaded it into the mystery in such a way that you don't get bored with one or the other.

There were a few scenes in the book where I must admit I did get a bit weepy. Eve, without Roarke's strength, without his love and support is very empty and sad and it reminds you of who she was in Naked In Death and how far she's come.

A very worthy read for those who've followed the series and the growth of the characters and the marriage between these two unlikely lovers.

When she gets the pictures in the mail of her husband and best friend in bed together, security expert Reva Ewing goes over to the house where they are having their tryst to confront them. She breaks in and marches into the bedroom only to find them murdered. She is gassed by someone in the room and when she comes to she calls her mother who is Roarke's administrate assistant.

Since he knows and likes both women, he asks his wife Lieutenant Eve Dallas of the NYPSD to take the primary lead on the case. When she arrives on the scene, she sees strange anomalies and thinks Reva was set up to take the fall. Although she has to arrest Reva based on the circumstantial evidence, Eve doesn't stop looking for the real killer. This case is one of Eve's toughest because she has to deal with Homeland Security, double agents and techno terrorists while trying to convince Roarke not to do something that could destroy their marriage.

J.D. Robb, also known as Nora Roberts, has written one of her best books in the Death series. For the first time in their marriage Eve and Roarke have a problem that neither can compromise on and it distracts Eve in her investigation, which is difficult enough because she is dealing with Homeland Security. There is plenty of action, enough fresh twists to keep the storyline fresh, sizzling and a moral dilemma that must be resolved to keep readers enthralled with this extraordinary police procedural romance.

Harriet Klausner

As always, part of what I love with Robb is the development of Eve and Roarke. Parts of the book dragged (as most books sometimes do) but I still love how things are between Eve and Roarke. Favorite part of the book is when they resolve their differences.