Published Feb. 2022

★★★★☆

Homicide detective Eve Dallas must untangle a twisted family history while a hostage’s life hangs in the balance—in the new In Death novel by #1 New York Times bestselling J. D. Robb.

The woman’s body was found on a bench in a New York City playground. She was clean, her hair neatly arranged, her makeup carefully applied. But other things were very wrong—like the tattoo and piercings, clearly new. The clothes, decades out of date. The fatal wound hidden beneath a ribbon around her neck. And the note: Bad Mommy, written in crayon as if by a child.

It seems clear the killer’s childhood was traumatic—a situation Eve is all too familiar with herself. Yet the clues point to a perpetrator who’d be around sixty, and there are no records of old crimes with a similar MO. What was the trigger that apparently reopened such an old wound and sent someone over the edge? When Eve learns that other young women have recently vanished, the case grows even more urgent—and to solve it she’ll need to find her way into a hidden place of dim light and concrete, into the distant past, and into the depths of a shattered mind. 

May be spoilers:

Abandoned in Death is the 54th in the In Death series. It has 22 chapters with no epilogue as it’s a continuous story/world. 

Definitely feel like you should read this series in order as you’ll miss something. 

I love this series, I love this world, I love Eve and Roarke. I just love every character, to be honest. 

I have to say, this was written a little differently than most, with the “before” chapters. I really loved that as we definitely needed to see and feel the past. 

Written very well. Another great addition to the story line. I did miss the bickering with Summerset in this one, but still great. 

I have to admit, I didn’t figure out the who, until they specified. 

Kept my attention from the start.

Great read. Great series. Great author. Great world building. Another great addition. I just love this series. You would think it would get old, but, it never does. Eve and Roarke are my favorites, but I love each character.

Always great world building. You definitely need to read the series in order.

Loved how the “before” chapters were written.

Just loved it.

No epilogue as it just continues on to the next. 

I gave it ★★★★☆. Have you read it? What did you think?

Goodreads shelves: continuing-storyline, favorite-author, little-no-steam, mystery, no-epilogue, no-sex-scenes-with-ow-om, read, safe-for-me, talk-of-rape