Even a book series. Naked in Death was the first book in J.D. Robb’s In Death series. This series is a cop – mystery – multi-book romance series set in the future. When I bought Naked in Death I honestly didn’t know J.D. Robb was a pseudonym for Bestselling romance author, Nora Roberts. It is gritty, brilliant, and yes, romantic. Eve and Roarke are mismatched lovers and completely unforgettable. She is a hard-nosed murder cop and he is a recovering criminal made wealthy and powerful. Most of his dealings are legal by the time they meet but he still had a few criminal undertakings—just to keep his finger in. What binds them together is their childhoods. They were each raised by deplorably bad fathers and it is fascinated to see how that shaped them. These books may be set in the future, but they drive home the fact that murder is still the same. Human nature doesn’t change.

What I love about the heroine:

Eve doesn’t care about her appearance and has no time for romance, what she does have time for is finding justice for the dead.

What I love about the hero:

Roarke is an Irish rogue who owns half of New York City. He carries a simple button in his pocket because it belonged to Eve—fell off her coast the first time they met. If that isn’t romantic, I don’t know what is.

Other stuff I like about the book:

Eve has a mentor who carries a bag of sugared nuts with him at all times and is forever offering them to her. There is a male prostitute that calls her Lieutenant Sugar. Her friend Mavis is an outrageous ex-junkie destined to be a big star as a singer. Eve rescues a crime victim’s cat and spars verbally with Roarke’s butler at every opportunity. All the little details add up to a vivid world populated by real characters and leave no doubt that the reader knows our tough-unapproachable Eve is a person who cares about people.

Genre: Romantic suspense

Sensuality level: Sensual

Primary format: Print

Publication date: 1995

What is your favorite book series with continuing characters?