Reunion in Death

February 18, 2002
Seasoned author Nora Roberts, writing as Robb, delivers another exhilarating entry in her popular futuristic cop series featuring Eve Dallas (Seduction in Death, etc.). Dallas, a New York police lieutenant, is a hard-bitten warrior cop who buries the pain and anger of her early childhood by excelling on the job. In her latest adventure, all the usual suspects are back: Eve's charismatic husband, Roarke; her plucky assistant, Peabody; and hipster techno-geek McNab. For this round, their objective is to take down a woman Eve arrested 10 years ago, a poisoner named Julianna Dunne. Julianna's out on parole, and now rich old men are dying sudden deaths. What's more, the ex-con wants to exact a little revenge on her one-time adversary. Eve's search for Dunne takes her all over the country, and eventually to Dallas, Tex., the city that gave her both her name and a legacy of violent nightmares. This is a satisfying, well-paced novel that offers readers a little of everything—sex, death, family drama and well-orchestrated chase scenes. Although Robb's plot is tight and suspenseful, the real pleasure here comes from watching Eve struggle to maintain her distance from others, even as she finds herself tied ever more closely to her friends and family by the bonds of love. (Mar. 5)Forecast:It's a given that Roberts's books will grace the bestseller charts, but a stylish cover image depicting a ghostly, Manhattan subway entrance may attract new readers.

March 1, 2002
Robb's style is so edgy and raw that at times it's hard to believe that she is also best-selling romancer Nora Roberts. Shortly after wealthy older men with no known enemies start being poisoned, detective Eve Dallas determines that Julianna Dunne, a wily ex-con, is the perpetrator. The beautiful but chameleonlike murderess is using the killings to get to Eve, who had put her behind bars nearly a decade earlier. Eve's pursuit takes her back to her own traumatic roots, thus providing fans of the series with a more detailed description of her horrendous childhood. In addition, Eve mentors her protege, Peabody, with gritty advice: "And when you step down there, you remember you're one bad bitch cop, and you drink blood for breakfast." Fourteenth in the futuristic romantic suspense series, this novel takes place as the lusty marriage of Eve and her husband, the fabulously wealthy Rourke, approaches the one-year mark. (Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2002, American Library Association.)