Terry
Terry’s Place
Romance with a Twist–of Mystery

One thing that did bother me (just a teeny bit, though) is that in one of books, it mentions that Roarke is worth 2 or 3 billion. In 1995-96 even that is less than some billionaires’ net worth and in 2008, with Bill Gates worth 50 billion, it wasn’t all that impressive to me. I had to tell myself there was no inflation or that there was an overhaul of the financial system so that 1 billion in 2058 (or whichever year the story takes place)is equivalent to 20 billion in 1995, making him richer than Bill Gates. Things like that should be left vague just as heroes shouldn’t be likened to some actor (just in case I don’t find Brad Pitt hot, know what I mean?)

I love the sniping between Eve and Summerset but hope NR gives me glimpses of a growing affection between the two. I enjoyed seeing a more realistic side of Roarke in Immortal where he got angry with Eve. Though I’d only read 2 books prior to that, Roarke was becoming a bit of a paragon and a tad unbelievable. You can’t love someone without that person bringing out a whole range of emotions and I was getting a little bored with Roarke always so calm and accepting of Eve’s snippy, insensitive ways.

While I agree with the repetitiveness of reading about Roarke’s emotional responses to Eve everytime he walks in on her working, I’m glad NR reminded me of the reason why she had to do that. Now that I am reading the entire series from the start and back to back, it’s important for me to bear these issues in mind.

I loved the fight about money. What couple doesn't fight about money?

When your husband, Roarke, owns a 28% share of global assets, you don’t argue about money. Well, I wouldn’t. And I’d roger him soundly every night I was with him. *G*

I loved SID – it was not intense – you could tell that Eve already knew who the killer was- How Nora tied it all together was awesome.

I think the reason Roarke is so often blown away by what he feels for Eve is what are the chances of someone with his mega billions of finding someone who really loves him for him, without a shadow of a doubt. The relationship between Ava and Tommy underscores this. The man lived with the woman for sixteen years without a clue. I think he recognizes the miracle of finding a woman who just loves him.

The secondary characters absolutely make these books. If it was about Eve and Roarke all the time, it would be very boring. I was gonna be very mad if Louise and Charles had broken up. I was also very delighted with the reappearence of that little boy, makes it all seem more real, and what a delightful character. I hope we see him again, and please Nixie, and I would lobby for Callendar from the last book, she seemed like a promising character who would shake things up a bit.
I think the reason this works for me is you think of a sitcom lets say, that is one character driven, where all the story lines evolve around one person, they tend not to work very well in the long run e.g. “Sybill” a while back, while the more ensemble casts like “Seinfeld, Cosby” are more successful.

I had also long wondered about Sebastian and Mel’s kids. In this one at the beginning of chap.3, …. “He’d teamed a rust-colored shirt with a dull gold shirt……” I think somewhere in there was supposed to be trousers.

Eve doesn't have any bad dreams in this book, nor does she get unglued by the sexual elements of the crime. That felts a bit off to me, precisely because she and Roarke have been together for a relatively short time and her emotional trauma has been portrayed as so acute.

This worked for me because it was kinda mentioned. Roarke said she was not “suffering” while working this case. So, she wasn’t haunted by the details and therefore did not have nightmares.

I felt stupid for not figuring out why the book as titled as it is. I did get it about half a page before it was obvious.

and I stand by my comment that Eve and Summerset care for each other. We’ve seen it from him in previous books and she had a brief moment of concern for him in this one. I think it would (has?) confuse both if them if their interactions changed.

Now that you’ve forced me to think about it , I have to say that, for me, the issue is that the same scene is repeated in every novel: Eve drives up to the house, leaves the car out front to annoy him, dumps her coat over the bannister of the staircase, exchanges nasty comments with Summerset and goes upstairs. There is nothing new or interesting about that scene. By the fifth or sixth telling, the repetition lost its charm.

One of the joys of this series for me is that all of the other relationships in Eve’s life are growing, changing and maturing. This relationship feels static. I welcomed the stories in which Summerset’s daughter came up and in which Roarke’s malicious ex-lover worried Summerset–just for the variety.

I read each book twice. Once for pure enjoyment and once for analysis–to see how Nora pulled the process off. To still engage readers after this many books is a remarkable achievement. The Summerset issue is tiny in comparison to how much I enjoy following Eve’s adventures.

“I would think that by now Eve and Somerset would have come to a more peaceful coexistence. I'm starting to get a little irritated by their sniping.”

I have to “disagree” here — I think Eve & Somerset know exactly how they feel for each other and are simply too stubborn to admit it, but the sniping is part of their ritual, something they expect of each other. And I hope Nora forgives me for not remembering the titles (I can’t remember which of my own books is which, and I’ve only writtn 6), but they’ve been there for each other enough times to show there’s a mutual respect.

I love that they snipe, I hope they never stop!

I haven’t read this book yet but I’m hoping it’s great. I always love all Nora Roberts and J.D. Robb books, and look forward to new ones. I have a hard time resisting buying them in hard cover trying to hold out for the cheaper paperback and most often fail to wait!

And I think it’s amazing that Nora Roberts checks these and actually comments on them, makes me love her that much more.