Amazon.com: Customer reviews: Forgotten In Death: An Eve Dallas thriller (In Death 53)

Top positive review

Most of the Old Gang are Back in this Story

Reviewed in the United States on September 8, 2021

Overall, it was a wonderful story, with lots of twist and turns until the final murderer(s) were caught. We got to see everyone close to Eve, except maybe Mavis, even though she and her new house were on a lot of people's minds. I can't wait to see how it turns out with both Mavis and Leonardo being so very very creative.

Eve is called to the scene of one murder, and a short time later to the scene of another older murder, within a few blocks of the first. She decides to keep both of them, and sets out on a journey that takes her to a rich Construction Family, a Small Town Sheriff and the Russian Mob. I'll let you read the book to find out how they all tie together. A great read. I highly recommend.

23 people found this helpful

Top critical review

All critical reviews›

Venus

Not among the best

Reviewed in the United States on September 8, 2021

I've wondered if Nora Roberts was going stale on this series for several books now, and she hasn't broken out of her storytelling slumped with this one.

This book tells the story of two murders that really don't have any connection. I think she added the second one because there simply wasn't enough to the first to make an entire book. Eve knows who committed the 2nd murder after her first interview on the case.

There is also what feels like padding here, too, but though we hear much of all the decorating going on over at the place Mavis and Leonardo will share with Peabody and McNab, we don't get to see Mavis. Feeney and Nadine make merely obligatory appearances, as does Commander Whitney.

All of that said, this one wasn't as stale as the last several have been, but not one of what I consider the best in this series.

49 people found this helpful

Sort by

Filter by

Filtered by

3 starClear filter

537 total ratings, 39 with reviews

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

From the United States

Venus

Not among the best

Reviewed in the United States on September 8, 2021

Verified Purchase

49 people found this helpful

Helpful

Amazon Customer

Good not great

Reviewed in the United States on September 10, 2021

Verified Purchase

I don’t know, it’s not one of her best. In fact, I’m doubting if Robb even wrote the whole book. One of the things I love about the in death books is the unexpected comedy that pops up. This book had none. Nor was there any Mavis and Leonardo, Charles and Louise and there may as well have been no Mira and Summerset, their presence was so minor. JD Robb would almost definitely have gone into greater depth in describing the interaction between Eve and Alva’s brother and sister. I look forward to the release of each book and I have to say this one left me disappointed, almost cheated.

44 people found this helpful

Helpful

Karen

Good Storyline but Awful Editing

Reviewed in the United States on September 10, 2021

Verified Purchase

This story and plotline were better than the last 3-4 books in this series. I agree with all the other reviewers that this might not have been the most exciting plotline but it was definitely the most refreshing one compared to the more recent ones. This book weaves two stories/victims into one and while the crime itself might not be scintillating, I think the focus for this book was really less about writing about an amazing crime being perpetrated and more about the relationships. I think this book provided glimpses of what usually happens after the bad guy gets caught and Dallas grills them and closes the book. It shows what happens when we, as readers, end the book and the imagination begins. I know that, personally, I have always imagined what conversations the characters might have when a book ends and there were moments where I think the author really provided that behind-the-scenes look whether that was between Dallas and Peabody or Dallas and Roarke.

Now, you may be wondering why, if I thought this was a great book to add to the series, that I would rate it 3 stars. Great question. The reason why this is rated 3 stars is not because of the storytelling or plotline but mostly due to the editing or lack thereof. Now -- I know we're all human and this book was written and is published during a pandemic but that still doesn't excuse the punctuation and syntax errors.

There were two glaring errors...or one error and one awkward phrasing decision to keep. I got the kindle version so also not sure if it was an electronic error. Not sure if any other readers or reviewers noticed it also but while these errors might seem small, it makes reading really confusing at times and also detracts from the story. I'm also not sure if the publisher will ever read this review but I thought I should just throw it out there.

The error I noticed was in the line breaks and quotation marks in dialogue. It didn't happen in all the dialogue writing but definitely in 4-5 spots in the book where during the back and forth banter between characters, all of a sudden there would be a line break and then a sentence with opening and closing quotations but instead of it being what you expect (response from the other character), it would actually be a continuation of what was being said. I was always taught that if there was no interruption in a character speaking to not put additional quotations and I'm pretty sure that's still the reasoning particularly as this isn't the only book I've been reading these past few months and every other book uses that logic. It's not an awful error but it just means that there would be moments I would have to glance back up again and reread.

The other issue was in the use of commas and descriptors in places that don't make sense. For example "she's a malignant narcissist, classic, and..." -- this was something a character said. I think in reality, no one would quite phrase it that way. Instead, they might say "she's a classic malignant narcissist, and..." While it's not grammatically incorrect (I think?), it is very awkward, and rarely in spoken English would it have been said that way. There were a couple of other instances similar to this in the rest of the book.

Overall, I think it's a good story to add and flesh out the world of Dallas. I just hope moving forward the publishers and editing team really tighten up on the proofreading.

29 people found this helpful

Helpful

Christine McKinney

Disappointing - Where's the Heart?

Reviewed in the United States on September 10, 2021

Verified Purchase

Every once in a while, a JD Robb book comes out that lacks the essence of what usually makes these books so good. And that is heart. It's soul. It's feelings. I'm sorry to say that this is one of those books. The story is fairly interesting, although not particularly challenging, but there is not much to recommend it. There's little of the Eve and Roarke backstory that makes them such beloved and interesting characters. It's as though the author (was it really Nora Roberts? I wonder.) remembered the old Dragnet series and decided to give us "Just the facts". I actually had to force myself to continue reading it. I'm glad I did, as the ending did pick up some of that heart left out of the first part of the book, but too little, too late. Too bad.

31 people found this helpful

Helpful

sle-tx

Another Case Solved

Reviewed in the United States on September 8, 2021

Verified Purchase

Despite my rating of three stars, I actually enjoy JD Robb. This story wasn't one of her best thus the three stars. What I did like about this book was the lack of Peabody. This story was more focused on Eve herself. Personally I could do without Peabody as I find the character to be a very silly and immature young woman. I have always found Eve to be a very interesting character and there are still layers to be revealed. In this story the reader sees a maturing strength in Eve as she is more able to emotionally manage what I'll call crimes against women. Heaven knows the character has earned it. So for these reasons I would suggest JD Robb fans read this story.

25 people found this helpful

Helpful

ADF

Not Bad, Not Great

Reviewed in the United States on September 10, 2021

Verified Purchase

There are expectations when you buy a Roberts/Robb book. Especially if you have a decades long history with the author. (There are very few I have not read). This definitely did not rank in her top 50%. I won’t say that I didn’t enjoy it, but it certainly wasn’t an “all nighter”, “can’t put it down” kind of book. I actually got bored a few times and set it aside for other books I was reading. I’m hooked on Eve Dallas, so not buying them really isn’t an option for me. I just wish Roberts could find that hungry passion she used to have for writing. I still enjoy rereading those.

9 people found this helpful

Helpful

Velocity

Quality is falling

Reviewed in the United States on October 18, 2021

Verified Purchase

You'd think that the 53rd book in a series would have you in good practise. I mean, you'd expect to be writing in a really polished way. It's not happening though.
In this one Dallas and Peabody both behave in the most appalling and unprofessional way when interviewing suspects. They had my lips curling in disgust. There's no excuse for the characters, whom I love, or the writer responsible. Are the heroes going to start being a bit bad now? Is there going to be some moral ambiguity thrown in to how the heroes comport themselves? That would be a betrayal of the contract between reader and writer. Eve Dallas and her colleagues are the goodies and after 53 books it's not unreasonable for me to expect them to stay on the well established path.
I despise the writing of the scenes I've described. In all other ways number 53 is as entertaining as all the rest.

Helpful

Better than the last "in Death" but that's not saying much

Reviewed in the United States on October 10, 2021

Verified Purchase

I liked the pathos of Alva's story, but the basic problem remains: character development has stopped dead (pardon the pun). We're only speaking of Eve and Roarke, as hardly anyone else makes it into the story. There's still Peabody with her endless angst over calories (BORING!) and what's-his-name's loud ties, but very little else.

The tying-together of the two murders is so complex and drawn-out, the side character we see the most of is prosecutor Reo. Now, I like Reo; but she's so tangential in the overall In Death series that her inclusion doesn't help us warm up to the story. We know so little about Reo - and learn nothing more here - she's just a foil for Dallas threatening the bad guys.

Such a shame to see Ms. Roberts letting this great series peter out with a whimper, rather than wrapping it up with a bang the way it deserves. I really hope she can get back on track and give Dallas the ending this amazing literary detective deserves.

5 people found this helpful

Helpful

Sheba08

So far not her best (Revised Review)

Reviewed in the United States on October 7, 2021

Verified Purchase

I love this series. I love the mystery, the Eve and Roarke love story, the secondary characters and their stories. I couldn’t wait for this book and so far, only chapter4, it is difficult. Usually, by now I’m close to the end of the book. The writing and the language are just different. The initial interaction between Roarke and Eve is atypical. There are typos. The story doesn’t flow and I reread it just to understand. It’s like driving a manual transmission car and you keep popping the clutch. I hate to write this review but I’m so disappointed. I wish I waited till the price dropped after the release of the paperback. Right now I’m just hoping it gets better. I can’t understand the glowing reviews. Because I am such a fan, I will continue reading. I’m hoping the next book goes back to the glory days of the series. P.S. I like the series too much to give a 1 star
UPDATE: It did get better, much better. I increased my rating from a 2 to a 3. It could have been a 4 or 5 if done in the old style of writing. It was as though there were 2 writers. At times, it seemed like the old JD Robb, and other times not. I did like the storyline. It was the execution in parts of the book. Some parts just didn't seem like her writings. It was fragmented and at times the characters didn't behave as normal for no apparent reason. Wouldn't it be great, if the authors/editors could go back and make it better? I sincerely hope the feedback gets back to them and they tighten up things on the next book. If Nora is tired, maybe only 1 quality book a year or 1 every 9 months. I'd hate for the series to go down in flames.

4 people found this helpful

Helpful

Michelle S.

Excellent book, wish I hadn’t purchased audio

Reviewed in the United States on September 12, 2021

Verified Purchase

I am a longtime admirer of Nora Roberts/JD Robb and regularly purchase her books as soon as they come out. In the last few years I also started getting the Kindle version with Audible so that I can choose to read or listen depending on what all is going on in my life; however, I can no longer listen to this particular Audible narrator. I have never liked how she verbally portrays Peabody, it is actually hard to listen to, and now with Forgotten in Death I feel Ms. Erickson is so overly dramatic with the whole production that I no longer hear the author. I’m now reading the book myself and enjoying it very much, but after starting with the Audible narration it had put me off so badly that I really had to force myself to go back and pick it up. I’ve listened to Ms. Erickson before and while never a favorite, I could ignore the quirks and still enjoy the story she was reading. In Forgotten in Death, the narrator’s dramatic recital has actually Changed Ms. Robb’s story.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Need customer service? Click here

‹ See all details for Forgotten In Death: An Eve Dallas thriller (In Death 53)

5 star		84%
4 star		12%
3 star		3%
2 star		1%
1 star		1%

Forgotten In Death: An Eve Dallas thriller (In Death 53)

›

Customer reviews

Customer reviews

Forgotten In Death: An Eve Dallas thriller (In Death 53)

Top positive review

Top critical review

Filtered by

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

From the United States

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

Forgotten In Death: An Eve Dallas thriller (In Death 53) › Customer reviews

Customer reviews

Forgotten In Death: An Eve Dallas thriller (In Death 53)

Top positive review

Top critical review

Filtered by

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

From the United States

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

Forgotten In Death: An Eve Dallas thriller (In Death 53)

›

Customer reviews