Bestseller Post Mortem: Forgotten in Death
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This article is about the bones of this book. I don’t do book reviews. There will be spoilers ahead.
My guy is listening to Forgotten in Death by JD Robb when he runs errands in town. He’s vibrates with the need to tell me about the story, but I don’t like spoilers. In defense, I read the book while curled up under a blanket in two long segments of time. Had to beat him to the end!
The book is number fifty-three in the In Death series. All the books are revolve around a cop solving murders in the future. The location is almost always New York City. The book is ninety-five thousand words long. A full-length novel with the plot to match.
The beginning of these books always has famous quotes. I look forward to them and fitting them to the mystery. The first scene usually starts when the main character gets to the murder scene. The reader's first impressions are Eve Dallas’s. Something else I expect and enjoy.
“She lived unknown,
and few could know
When Lucy ceased to be;
But she is in her grave, and, oh,
The difference to me!”
“I do perceive here a divided duty.”
There are twenty-three chapters. They move fast. The pacing solid. You move with Eve as she tries to find all the pieces to give the victims their justice. The weaving of description and dialogue is balanced enough you aren’t slowed down by it.
The secondary characters make the story alive. These players who move in and out of the books have arcs of their own. This makes this series of books a must buy for me. I want to know what’s happening with all the people a reluctant Eve has taken on as she grows as a character. Can I just say I adore her for not knowing what to do with all the people in her life?
It helps that the mysteries are more than window dressing. I’m always in awe of the skill to make the mystery compelling and folding in the characters in a way that is meaningful and not trite.
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The writing is relatable. I didn’t get bogged down or lost. One thing I’m learning from these bestsellers is a brilliant book doesn’t struggle with word choices. If the word “build” works, then it works. The book has a construction element. The author did not trip me up trying to find fifty different ways to say construction. What serves the story is what is said on the page. Makes the reading a joy.
Bestsellers have at least one element in common. Great stories. I’ve heard a repeat bestseller say he has written over a hundred books, but only a fourth of them were bestsellers.
If you are a writer, take heart. There is a bestseller inside you waiting for you to let it loose.
