In Death
The ...in Death series of novels and novellas is written by Nora Roberts under her pseudonym J. D. Robb. Set in a mid-21st-century New York City, they feature NYPSD ("New York City Police and Security Department") lieutenant Eve Dallas and her husband Roarke. The stories also regularly feature other characters, including Captain Ryan Feeney, Detective Delia Peabody, Detective Ian McNab and Dr. Charlotte Mira. The series was first published in 1995, and, as of 2025, includes over 60 novels. Roberts has stated that the series will never contain one of Eve and Roarke's children, as this would end the series.
 | This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (August 2022) |
The ...in Death series of novels and novellas is written by Nora Roberts under her pseudonym J. D. Robb. Set in a mid-21st-century New York City, they feature NYPSD ("New York City Police and Security Department") lieutenant Eve Dallas and her husband Roarke. The stories also regularly feature other characters, including Captain Ryan Feeney, Detective Delia Peabody, Detective Ian McNab and Dr. Charlotte Mira.
The series was first published in 1995, and, as of 2025[update], includes over 60 novels. Roberts has stated that the series will never contain one of Eve and Roarke's children,[1] as this would end the series.[2]
Deaths
[edit] | This section's plot summary may be too long or excessively detailed. (July 2012) |
 |
Below are all deaths – murder victims, murder investigations and others – that occur in the span of the In Death books, including weapon, cause of death and the perpetrator. This list does not include any attacks on persons that do not result in death.
| Book | Victim | Cause of Death | Weapon | Perpetrator |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Naked in Death | Sharon DeBlass | shot in head, chest and groin | Smith & Wesson Model 10 | Gerald DeBlass |
| Lola Starr (Alice Williams) | SIG 210, 1980 | Derrick Rockman | ||
| Georgie Castle | Ruger P90 | |||
| Gerald DeBlass | gunshot | suicide | ||
| Joseph Finestein | poisoned | custard pie | Hetta Finestein | |
| Glory in Death | Cicely Towers | slash across throat | long-bladed knife | C. J. Morse |
| Yvonne Metcalf | ||||
| Louise Kirski | ||||
| C. J. Morse's mother (pre-book) | ||||
| C. J. Morse | stabbed in throat | own knife | Roarke | |
| Immortal in Death | Boomer (Carter Johannsen) | strangulation & blunt trauma | thin baseball bat | Lt. Jake Casto |
| Hetta Moppett (pre-book) | blunt trauma to the head | |||
| Pandora | excessive trauma | cane | ||
| Cockroach (Lament Ro) | blunt trauma to the head | iron pipe | ||
| Jerry Fitzgerald | drug overdose | Immortality, morphine and Zeus | ||
| Rapture in Death | Drew Mathias | hanging | suicide by mind control via subliminals found in virtual reality goggles | Dr. Reeanna Ott |
| S. T. Fitzhugh | slashed wrists | |||
| Senator Pearly | jumping | |||
| Cerise Devane | ||||
| Dr. Reeanna Ott | electric shock to the throat | police stunner | suicide | |
| Ceremony in Death | Det. Sgt. Frank Wojinsky | cardiac arrest by drugs | Digitalis and Zeus | Selina Cross & Alban |
| Alice Lingstrom | chased into street and hit by car | paranoia | ||
| Lobar (Robert Allen Mathias) | removal of heart | athame | ||
| Thomas Wineburg | stabbed in heart | |||
| Louis Trivane | stabbed in throat & disembowelment | Mirium Hopkins | ||
| Selina Cross | slashed throat | Alban | ||
| Alban | stabbed in heart | Jamie Lingstrom | ||
| Vengeance in Death | Thomas X. Brennen | disembowelment, amputation | Liam Calhoun | |
| Shawn Conroy | exsanguination | |||
| Jennie O'Leary | slow hanging | rope | ||
| Liam Calhoun | overload of nervous system | stunner | Roarke | |
| Holiday in Death | Marianna Hawley | rape, sodomy, strangulation | Christmas garland | Simon Lastrobe |
| Sarabeth Greenbalm | ||||
| Donnie Ray Michael | ||||
| Brent Holloway | ||||
| Midnight in Death | 8 victims | unknown; torture | unknown | David "Dave" Palmer |
| Judge Harold Wainger | torture and hanging | nylon strapping rope (hangman's noose) | ||
| Carl Neissan | ||||
| APA Stephanie Ring | ||||
| David Palmer | electrocution | stunner; electric cage | Eve Dallas and misadventure | |
| Conspiracy in Death | Snooks (Samuel Petrinsky) | removal of heart | surgical instruments | Dr. Michael Waverly |
| Erin Spindler (pre-book) | removal of kidneys | |||
| Jilessa Brown | removal of liver | |||
| Officer Ellen Bowers | blunt trauma | metal pipe | ||
| Dr. Tia Wo | injection of barbiturates | drug overdose | ||
| Jan the nurse | blunt trauma to head, single blow | |||
| Dr. Westley Friend (pre-book) | injection of barbiturates | drug overdose | ||
| Loyalty in Death | J. Clarence Branson | drilled to the wall through the heart | Branson 8000 Drill | Lisbeth Cooke |
| Colonel Howard (Fixer) Bassi | beaten and drowned in river | Droids | Cassandra (Clarissa & B. Donald Branson) | |
| 300+ unlisted victims | bomb explosion in Tea Room of Plaza Hotel | terrorist bombs | ||
| Lieutenant Anne Malloy and "less than 400" unlisted victims | bomb explosions and panicked stampede for exits in Madison Square Garden | |||
| B. Donald Branson | fall from crown of Statue of Liberty | gravity | misadventure | |
| Clarissa Branson (Charlotte Rowan) | jump from crown of Statue of Liberty | suicide | ||
| Witness in Death | Richard Draco | stabbed in heart during stage performance of Witness for the Prosecution | butcher knife | Areena Mansfield |
| Linus Quim | coerced suicide | hanging | ||
| Judgment in Death | Detective Taj Kohli | blunt trauma to head | metal baseball bat | Sergeant Arthur Clooney |
| Lieutenant Alan Mills | chest cut, from neck to stomach; disembowelment | knife | ||
| Captain Boyd Bayliss | drowning | taped-down to bathtub | ||
| unnamed former NYPSD officer (pre-book)[3] | hanged | originally ruled self-termination | ||
| unnamed NYPSD officer (pre-book)[3] | drowning after slipping in bathtub | originally ruled accidental | ||
| Lewis | unknown drug | pressure syringe to heart | unknown female assassin | |
| 'Clarence Haggerty' Yawly | shot in the head | police issued weapon | Eve Dallas | |
| Officer Thad Clooney (pre-book)[3] | exsanguination | unspecified | unnamed (orders from Max Ricker) | |
| Betrayal in Death | Justice Thomas Werner | raped, beaten and strangled | two-foot sterling silver wire | Sylvester Yost |
| Monique Rue | ||||
| Nigel Luca | ||||
| Britt Hague | ||||
| Joseph Hague | ||||
| Winifred C. Cates | ||||
| Darlene French | ||||
| Jonah Talbot | ||||
| Sylvester Yost | slashed across throat | mug shard | suicide | |
| Mick Connelly | stabbed in stomach | knife | Michel Gerade | |
| Interlude in Death | Reginald Weeks | bludgeoned to death | metal bat | Bryson Hayes |
| Zita Vinter | suicide drugs | drugged in wine | ||
| Douglas Skinner (former Commander) | suicide | drugs | voluntary suicide | |
| Seduction in Death | Bryna Bankhead | rape and drug overdose | rape drugs Whore & Rabbit | Kevin Morano |
| Grace Lutz | Lucias Dunwood | |||
| Dr. Theodore McNamara | bludgeoning, drowning | lamp | Lucias Dunwood & Kevin Morano | |
| Kevin Morano | poisoned | unidentified drug | Lucias Dunwood | |
| Lucias Dunwood | suicide | |||
| Reunion in Death | Marsha Stibbs (pre-book) | hit to the head | glass table | Maureen Brighton |
| Julianna's three husbands (pre-book) | poisoned | cyanide | Julianna Dunne | |
| Walter C. Pettibone | ||||
| Henry Mouton | ||||
| Eli Young | ||||
| Spencer Campbell | ||||
| Purity in Death | Ralph Wooster | bludgeoned | baseball bat | Louis K. Cogburn |
| Louis K. Cogburn | police stunner(s) | light & sound frequencies, severe inter-cranial pressure driving victim to suicide | The Purity Seekers | |
| Detective Kevin Holloway | tranqed | |||
| Chadwick Fitzhugh | slit own throat | |||
| Mary Ellen George | hanged self | |||
| Nick Greene | stabbed self in heart | |||
| Hannah Wade | stabbed repeatedly | kitchen knife | Nick Greene | |
| Dru Geller | light & sound frequencies | The Purity Seekers | ||
| Portrait in Death | Rachel Howard | stabbed through heart | stiletto | Gerald Stevenson (Steve Audrey) |
| Kenby Sulu | ||||
| Alicia Dilbert | ||||
| Siobhan Brody (Roarke's mother, pre-series) | beaten to death | Patrick Michael Roarke | ||
| Imitation in Death | Jacie Wooton | slit throat, massive blood loss (killed à la Jack the Ripper) | scalpel | Niles Renquist |
| Lois Gregg | sexually assaulted and strangled (killed à la Boston Strangler) | robe sash/belt | ||
| Remember When | Andrea Jacobs | slash across throat | stiletto | Trevor Whittier |
| Tina Cobb | severe trauma to head, torso, set on fire | baton | ||
| Divided in Death | Felicity Kade | stunned, 14 stab wounds to chest | bread knife | Blair Bissel |
| Carter Bissel | stunned, 18 stab wounds to chest | |||
| Chloe McCoy | suicide pills | drugged | ||
| Joseph Powell | laser to carotid artery | military laser | ||
| Visions in Death | Jasper K. McKinney (pre-book)[4] | fall from apartment building | gravity | misadventure |
| Elisa Maplewood | beating, rape, strangulation, removal of eyes | red ribbon | John Blue | |
| Lily Napier | ||||
| Marjorie Kates | ||||
| Breen Merriweather | ||||
| Ineza Blue | ||||
| Lena Greenspan (pre-book)[5] | ||||
| Sarie Parker (pre-book)[5] | ||||
| 8 unnamed women (pre-book)[6] | ||||
| Annalisa Sommers | Celina Sanchez[6] | |||
| Survivor in Death | Inga Snood | slash across throat | combat knife | Sergeant Roger Kirkendall, Sergeant Isaac Clinton, Corporal Jilly Isenberry |
| Grant Swisher | ||||
| Keelie Swisher | ||||
| Coyle Swisher | ||||
| Linnie Dyson | ||||
| Meredith Newman | ||||
| Detective Owen Knight | ||||
| Detective James Preston | ||||
| Dr. Jaynene Brenegan (pre-book, 2055)[7] | multiple stab wounds | unnamed | ||
| Judge Thomas Moss and son Evan Moss (pre-book, 2057)[7] | explosion | car bomb | ||
| Karin Duberry (pre-book, 2058)[7] | strangulation | manual | ||
| Corporal Jilly Isenberry | broken neck | fall down stairs | ||
| Origin in Death | Dr. Wilfred B. Icove | stabbed in chest | scalpel | Deena Flavia |
| Dr. Wilfred Icove, Jr. | Avril Icove | |||
| Evelyn Samuels | Deena Flavia | |||
| Deena Flavia | laser blast | laser | Jonah Delacourt Wilson (clone) | |
| Dr. Wilfred B. Icove (clone) | ||||
| Jonah Delacourt Wilson (clone) | Eve Dallas and Roarke | |||
| Memory in Death | Rosie O'Hara and 150+ unlisted victims (pre-book)[8][9] | explosion in nightclub | bomb | unnamed terrorists |
| Max "Tubbs" Lawrence | jumped out of window under the influence of drugs | Zeus | misadventure | |
| Leo Jacobs | crushed by falling body | Max Lawrence | ||
| Trudy Lombard | fractured skull by multiple blows | sap | Zana Lombard (Marnie Ralston) | |
| Haunted in Death | Radcliff C. Hopkins III | bullets to torso, arm and head | 9mm Smith & Wesson | Maeve Buchanan |
| Bobbie Bray (pre-book) | single bullet to head | Radcliff "Hop" C. Hopkins I | ||
| Born in Death | Sophia Belego (pre-book) | unknown | unknown | Winfield Chase (all except the last on orders on conspiracy with Madeline Bullock) |
| Emily Jones (pre-book) | head trauma | |||
| Natalie Copperfield | strangulation after torture | manual | ||
| Bick Byson | ||||
| Randall Sloan | hanging | tranquilized then hanged | ||
| Madeline Bullock | broken neck | manually | ||
| Innocent in Death | Trevor Straffo (pre-book) | broken neck, head trauma | push down stairs | Rayleen Straffo |
| Adele Versy (pre-book) | overdose | sleeping pills | ||
| Craig Foster | poisoned | ricin | ||
| Reed Williams | paralyzed by poison, drowned | surgical paralytic substance | ||
| Creation in Death | Edwina Spring (pre-book) | torture, exsanguination by cut wrist | rope, knives, scalpel, needles, sap, blow torch, laser, dry ice, electric shock and drugs | Robert Lowell Sr. |
| Corrine Dagby (pre-book) | Robert Lowell Jr., a.k.a. The Groom | |||
| Melissa Congress (pre-book) | ||||
| Anise Waters (pre-book) | ||||
| Joley Weitz (pre-book) | ||||
| 18 unnamed women and unknown number of other victims (pre-book) | ||||
| Sarifina York | ||||
| Gia Rossi | ||||
| Eternity in Death | Gregor Pensky (pre-book) | exsanguination from twin puncture wounds in neck | artificial vampire fangs | Dorian Vadim |
| Tiara Kent | ||||
| Allesseria Carter | ||||
| Strangers in Death | Reginald Thomas Anders (pre-book) | fractured skull | shoved in the shower and slammed head into Italian marble | Ava Anders |
| Ned Custer (pre-book) | slit throat and castration | knife | ||
| Thomas Aurelius Anders | strangulation | tranquilized then strangled by rope | Suzanne Custer | |
| Salvation in Death | Nick Soto (pre-book) | multiple stab wounds | knife | Lino Martinez and Penelope Soto |
| Ronni Edwards (pre-book) | bombing at a school auditorium in 2043 | bomb | The Soldados/Lino Martinez & Penelope Soto | |
| Kobie Smith (pre-book) | bombing at convenience store in 2043 | |||
| Quinto Turner (pre-book) | ||||
| Three unnamed minors (pre-book) | ||||
| Joseph Turner (pre-book, year 2044) | hanging | Suicide | ||
| José Ortega (pre-book) | drug overdose | unnamed drugs | unintentional suicide | |
| Miguel Flores (pre-book) | stabbed | unknown | Steve Chávez | |
| Steve Chávez (pre-book) | unknown | unknown | Lino Martinez | |
| Lino Martinez | poisoning | potassium cyanide | Juanita Rodriguez Turner | |
| Jimmy Jay Jenkins | Billy Crocker | |||
| Ritual in Death | Ava Marsterson | ritual killing, slit throat, multiple stab wounds | multiple drugs, knives | Silas Pratt, Ola Pratt, Lawrence Collins, Bria Collins, Leah Burke, Kiki, Rodney, 6 others |
| Brian Trosky | hammer to cave in his own skull | drugged and hypnotized | ||
| Promises in Death | Amaryllis Coltraine | full impact to throat | police issue stunner | Detective Cleo Grady (on command of Max Ricker) |
| Rod Sandy | stabbed through torso | stiletto | ||
| Kindred in Death | Deena MacMasters | raped, beaten, sodomized, strangled | Darrin Pauley (masterminded by Vance Pauley) | |
| Karlene Robins | ||||
| Missing in Death | Dana Buckley | slit throat | bone dagger | Ivan Draski |
| Fantasy in Death | Bart Minnock | beheaded | sword (holo game) | Levar (Var) Hoyt |
| Indulgence in Death | Holly Curlow | strangled | manually | Kevin Donahue |
| Melly Bristow (pre-book) | broken neck | manually | Winston Dudley IV and Sylvester Moriarity III | |
| Sophia Ricci (pre-book) | unknown (body never found) | unknown | ||
| Linette Jones (pre-book) | beaten | tire iron | ||
| unnamed architect (pre-book) | garroted | wire | ||
| Larinda Villi (pre-book) | stabbed through heart | unknown | ||
| Jamal Houston | bolt through neck | crossbow | Sylvester Moriarity III | |
| Ava Crampton | stabbed through heart | bayonet | Winston Dudley IV | |
| Luc Delaflote | impaled through heart | harpoon | Sylvester Moriarity III | |
| Adrianne Jonas | hanged | bullwhip | Winston Dudley IV | |
| Possession in Death | Gizi Szabo | stabbed | dagger | Sasha Korchov |
| Vanessa Warwich, Allegra Martin, Lucy Quinn and five others (pre-book) | slit throat | |||
| Treachery in Death | Charlie Ochi | electrocution | homemade Jammer | Bruster Lowe, a.k.a. Skid; Leon Slatter, a.k.a. Slash; and Jimmy K Rogan, a.k.a. Smash |
| Rickie Keener, street name "Juicy" | poisoned | apparent (manipulated) overdose | Detective Carl Bix (on orders from Lieutenant Renee Oberman) | |
| Detective William Garnet | slit throat | military knife | ||
| Detective Gail Devin (pre book) | broken neck | unknown | unknown (on orders from Lieutenant Renee Oberman) | |
| Detective Harold Strumb (pre-book) | stabbed | unknown | unknown, possibly Detective Marcell) (on orders from Lieutenant Renee Oberman) | |
| New York to Dallas | Alice McQueen (pre-book) | slit throat | knife | Isaac McQueen |
| Carla Bingham (pre-book) | ||||
| Patricia Coppley (pre-book) | ||||
| Nancy Draper (pre-book) | ||||
| 4 unnamed victims (pre-book) | ||||
| Riker's Nurse (pre-book) | ||||
| Sylvia Prentice (a.k.a. Stella) | ||||
| Officer Malvie | laser scalpel | Sylvia Prentice (a.k.a. Stella) | ||
| Chaos in Death | Jennifer Darnell | strangulation | manual | Dr. Chaos (alter ego to Ken Dickerson) |
| Coby Vix | bludgeoned | pipe | ||
| Wilson Bickford | multiple stab wounds | 4-inch, jagged-edged knife | ||
| Eton Billingsly | multiple stab wounds and bites | knife and teeth | ||
| Celebrity in Death | Cecil Silcock | head trauma | cast-iron skillet | Paul Havertoe |
| K. T. Harris | head trauma, drowned | pushed, dragged into pool | Joel Steinburger | |
| A. A. Asner | smashed skull | Maltese falcon statue | ||
| Bryson Kane (pre-book) | broken neck and other injuries | fall/pushed down stairs | ||
| Marlin Dessler (pre-book) | internal bleeding and other injuries | fall/pushed off cliff | ||
| Angelica Caulfield and unborn fetus (pre-book) | overdose | drugs | ||
| Jacoby Miles (pre-book) | beaten | ten-pound dumbbell | ||
| Sherri Wendell (pre-book) | fall, drowned | drugs, pushed | ||
| Buster Pearlman (pre-book) | overdose | drugs and alcohol | ||
| Allys Beaker (pre-book) | fractured skull | slipped in shower | ||
| Delusion in Death | Lance Abrams, John Burke, Joseph Cattery, Paul Garrison, D B Graham, Travis Greenspan, Evie Hydelburg, Wendy McMahon, Cherie Quinz, Cate Simpson, Hilly Simpson, Macie Snyder, Amie Stewart, Gwen Talbert, Brenden Wang, Katrina and 68 unnamed victims. | multiple and varied injuries from weapons of opportunity | psycho-active chemical warfare gas | Lewis Callaway |
| Jeni Curve, Brenda Deitz, Carly Fisher, Allison Nighly and 40 unnamed victims. | ||||
| Calculated in Death | Marta Dickenson | broken neck | manually | Clinton Frye (on orders from Sterling Alexander) |
| Chaz Parzarri | asphyxiation | manually | ||
| Jake Ingersol | blunt head trauma | claw hammer | ||
| Thankless in Death | Barbara Reinhold | multiple stab wounds | kitchen knife | Jerald "Jerry" Reinhold |
| Carl Reinhold | blunt trauma | baseball bat | ||
| Lori Nuccio | strangulation | cord | ||
| Edie Barrett Farnsworth | asphyxiation | taped plastic bag | ||
| Taken in Death | Darcia Jordan | multiple stab wounds, slit throat | ritualist knife | Maj Borgstrom |
| Concealed in Death | Linh Carol Penbroke, Shelby Ann Stubacker, Angel West (Jane Doe), Lupa Dison, Mikki Wendall, Iris Kirkwood, Merry Wolcovich, Crystal Hugh, LaRue Freeman, Carlie Bowen, Kim Terrance and Shashona Maddox | drowning | bathtub | Montclair Jones |
| Festive in Death | Trey Ziegler | blunt head trauma | trophy | Natasha Quigley |
| Catiana Dubois | fractured skull | marble ledge (pushed) | ||
| Obsession in Death | Leanore Bastwick | strangled | garrote | Lottie Roebuck |
| Wendall Ledo | stabbed | pool cue | ||
| "Wonderment in Death", Down the Rabbit Hole anthology | Marcus Fitzwilliams | stabbed | scissors | Darlene Fitzwilliams |
| Darlene Fitzwilliams | fall from height | defenestration | suicide | |
| Devoted in Death | Robert Jansen (pre-book) | blunt trauma | tire iron and fists | Ella-Loo Parsens and Darryl James |
| Melvin Little, Noah Paston, Ava Enderson, Jacob Fastbinder and 24 unnamed victims (pre-book) | torture then exsanguination | variety of tools | ||
| Samuel Zed (pre-book) | blunt trauma | |||
| Dorian Kuper | torture then exsanguination | variety of tools | ||
| Brotherhood in Death | Edward Mira | hanged | chandelier/torture | Women assaulted by "The Brotherhood" |
| Jonas Wymann | ||||
| Frederick Betz | ||||
| William Stevenson (pre-book) | hanged | suicide | ||
| Apprentice in Death | Susann Prinz Mackie (pre-book) | hit | car | Brian T. Fine |
| Ellissa Wyman | shot | tactical laser rifle | Reginald and Willow Mackie | |
| Brent Michaelson | ||||
| Alan Markum | ||||
| Fern Addison | ||||
| Officer Kevin Russo | ||||
| Nathaniel Jarvits | ||||
| David Chang | ||||
| Jonah Rothstein and 17 unnamed victims at Madison Square Garden | Willow Mackie | |||
| Echoes in Death | Anthony Strazza | blunt force trauma | vase | Daphne Strazza |
| Xavier Carver | slit throat | scalpel | Kyle Knightly | |
| Miko Carver | strangled | rope | ||
| Secrets in Death | Larinda Mars | stabbed in arm | scalpel | William Hyatt |
| Kellie Lowry | stabbed in leg | |||
| Dark in Death | Rosie Kent | strangled | white ribbon | Ann Elizabeth Smith |
| Chanel Rylan | stabbed in the neck | ice pick | ||
| Loxie Flash | poisoned | cyanide | ||
| Leverage in Death | 12 people including Paul Rogan | suicide bombing (Rogan forced to commit attack) | bombs | Lucius Iler and Oliver Silverman |
| Jordan Banks | broken neck | manually | Oliver Silverman | |
| 5 people including Wayne Denby | suicide bombing (Denby forced to commit attack) | bombs | Lucius Iler and Oliver Silverman | |
| Connections in Death | "Low-Rent Illegals Dealer" | stabbed in throat | knife ("sticker") | "Dobber," a junkie |
| Stuart Adler | broken neck, knife to abdomen | pocket knife, trip and fall (down stairs while peeling apple with knife while intoxicated) | Self, Accidental | |
| Lyle Pickering | apparent (staged) drug overdose | tranquilized, then forcibly injected with "Go," "Out" | Dinnie "Banger" Duff, Barry "Fist" Aimes, Denby "Snapper" Washington and Burke "Ticker" Chesterfield (performed the injection); performed on the orders of Kenneth "Bolt" Jorgenson (and recommendations of Samuel Cohen) | |
| Dinnie Duff | beating, gang-rape, manual strangulation | manual | Barry "Fist" Aimes, Denby "Snapper" Washington and Burke "Ticker" Chesterfield; performed on the orders of Kenneth "Bolt" Jorgenson (and recommendations of Samuel Cohen) | |
| Barry Aimes | slashed throat | knife | Denby "Snapper" Washington, Burke "Ticker" Chesterfield and Kenneth "Bolt" Jorgenson; (performed on the recommendations of Samuel Cohen) | |
| Vendetta in Death | Nigel B. McEnroy | torture/electrocution, castration | various tools (torture), ceremonial blade (castration) | Darla Pettigrew (as "Lady Justice") |
| Thaddeus Pettigrew | ||||
| Arlo Kagen | ||||
| Golden in Death | Lucas "Loco" Sanchez (pre-book) | stabbed | kitchen/steak knife | Stephen "Steve" Whitt and Marshall Cosner |
| Dr. Kent Abner | poisoned | mix of sarin and sulfur trioxide (gold plastic egg filled with chemically engineered nerve agent (aerosolized sulfur trioxide and sarin gas, with additive for quick death and minimal dispersal)) | ||
| Elise Duran | ||||
| Marshall Cosner | drugged and poisoned | mix of sarin and sulfur trioxide (drugged, then convinced to handle improperly sealed nerve gas egg) | Stephen "Steve" Whitt | |
| Shadows in Death | Smuggler, unknown name | beaten to death | manual | Frankie Nalley |
| Galla Modesto | slashed throat | knife | Lorcan Cobbe, (professional hit; hired by Jorge Tween) | |
| 443 murders (pre-book) | stabbed or slashed throat | knife | Lorcan Cobbe (professional hit) | |
| Ellen and Thaddeus Solomen (pre-book) | slashed throat | knife | Lorcan Cobbe and Thomas "Big Tom" Ivan, (professional hit; hired by Colin "Boss" Boswell) | |
| Adam Solomen (pre-book) | tortured, gutted | |||
| Thomas "Big Tom" Ivan (pre-book) | stabbed | knife | Lorcan Cobbe | |
| Sweetie (cat) | slashed throat | knife | ||
| Ingrid Frederick (pre-book) | unknown | unknown | ||
| Kaylee Skye | beaten, manual strangulation | manual | ||
| 400+ (unknown number of) murders (pre-book) | unknown | unknown | Lorcan Cobbe | |
| Faithless in Death | Ariel Byrd | blunt force trauma | mallet | Mirium Wilkey (daughter of Stanton Wilkey, head of Natural Order) |
| Keene Grimsley (pre-book) | unknown | unknown; cremated post-mortem[10] | Unknown (on orders of Natural Order) | |
| Karyn Keye (pre-book) | suicide by hanging | unknown | Suicide (Guilt from involvement with Natural Order's human trafficking, etc.) | |
| Marcia Piper | blunt force trauma/beaten to death | manual | Lawrence "Larry" Piper | |
| Forgotten in Death | Alva Quirk (Alva Elliot, Alva Wicker) | head trauma | crowbar | Alexei Tovinski |
| Carmine Delgato | apparent (staged) suicide by hanging | tranquilized with Dexachlorine, then forcibly hanged with rope | ||
| Johara Murr, pregnant with male viable fetus (pre-book) | shot | 32-caliber handgun | Elinor Bolton Singer | |
| Abandoned in Death | Lauren Elder | slit throat | pocketknife | Andrew "Andy" Dawber
(John McKinney, John Church) |
| Anna Hobe | ||||
| Dr. Joseph "Joe" Fletcher (pre-book) | car accident | "drunk driver" | Unknown, DUI | |
| Violet Fletcher (Lisa McKinney)
(pre-book) |
overdose | prescription medication, "sleeping pills" | Self, Suicide | |
| Desperation in Death | Mina Cabot | Speared in chest | Plank of old wood | Devin Kunes (night security) |
| Jonah K. Devereaux | stabbed in throat | Knife | Amara Gharbi (aka: Luna) | |
| Marlene Williamson (Matron) | unknown | body disposed via cremation | ordered by "Auntie" Iris Beaty/Iris Swan | |
| Unnamed Nurse | unknown | |||
| Encore in Death | Brant Fitzhugh | poison | cyanide in glass of champagne | Eliza Lane |
| Debra Bernstein | poison | cyanide in glass of vodka | ||
| Rose Bernstein
(pre-book) |
accidental overdose | pills placed in bottle of vodka | Assisted by Eliza Lane | |
| Payback in Death | Captain Martin Greenleaf, Retired | Electric Shock to the throat | Police Stunner | Denzel Robards
(Planned and ordered by Elva Arnez) |
| Brice Noy
(Pre-Book) |
Hanging | Rope | Suicide | |
| Captain Louis Noy
(Pre-Book) |
Electric Shock to throat | Police Issue Stunner | Suicide | |
| Random in Death | Jenna Harbough | Overdose | Drugs/STDs cocktail injected while distracted at concerts | Francis Bryce |
| Arlie Dillon | ||||
| Passions in Death | Erin Albright | Garroted | Piano wire | Greg Barney |
| Bonded in Death | Giovanni Rossi aka Wasp | Poison | Toxic Gas Phosphine | Conrad Potter aka Shark |
| Leroy Dubois aka Hawk (pre-book) | Shot | Gun | ||
| Alice Dormer aka Fawn (pre-book) | Bomb Explosion | Terrorist Bomb | ||
| Framed in Death | Leesa Culver | Strangulation | tranquilized with barbiturates and then strangled with hands | Jonathan Harper Ebersole |
| Robert Ren | ||||
| Janette Whithers |
Note: "stunner" and "laser" are both terms used interchangeably for the fictional weapons that the NYPSD carry in the In Death books; they release a strong electrical, laser-like stun that can do anything from incapacitating to killing the victim.
Bibliography
[edit]In Death series
[edit]| # | Title | Publication
Date |
Included
In |
ISBN | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Naked in Death | Jul 1995 | ISBN 978-0-425-14829-7 | ||
| 2 | Glory in Death | Dec 1995 | ISBN 978-0-425-15098-6 | ||
| 3 | Immortal in Death | Jul 1996 | ISBN 978-0-425-15378-9 | ||
| 4 | Rapture in Death | Oct 1996 | ISBN 978-0-425-15518-9 | ||
| 5 | Ceremony in Death | May 1997 | ISBN 978-0-425-15762-6 | ||
| 6 | Vengeance in Death | Oct 1997 | ISBN 978-0-425-16039-8 | ||
| 7 | Holiday in Death | Jun 1998 | ISBN 978-0-425-16371-9 | ||
| 7.5[11] | Midnight in Death | Nov 1998 | Silent Night | ISBN 978-0425219713 | |
| 8 | Conspiracy in Death | Apr 1999 | ISBN 978-0-425-16813-4 | ||
| 9 | Loyalty in Death | Oct 1999 | ISBN 978-0-425-17140-0 | ||
| 10 | Witness in Death | Mar 2000 | ISBN 978-0-425-17363-3 | ||
| 11 | Judgment in Death | Sep 2000 | ISBN 978-0-425-17630-6 | ||
| 12 | Betrayal in Death | Mar 2001 | ISBN 978-0-425-17857-7 | ||
| 12.5[11] | Interlude in Death | Aug 2001 | Out of this World | ISBN 978-0425210628 | |
| 13 | Seduction in Death | Sep 2001 | ISBN 978-0-425-18146-1 | ||
| 14 | Reunion in Death | Mar 2002 | ISBN 978-0-425-18397-7 | ||
| 15 | Purity in Death | Sep 2002 | ISBN 978-0-425-18630-5 | ||
| 16 | Portrait in Death | Mar 2003 | ISBN 978-0-425-18903-0 | ||
| 17 | Imitation in Death | Sep 2003 | ISBN 978-0-425-19158-3 | ||
| 17.5[11] | Remember When | Sep 2003 | ISBN 978-0-399-15106-4 | with Nora Roberts | |
| 18 | Divided in Death | Jan 2004 | ISBN 978-0-399-15154-5 | ||
| 19 | Visions in Death | Aug 2004 | ISBN 978-0-399-15171-2 | ||
| 20 | Survivor in Death | Feb 2005 | ISBN 978-0-399-15208-5 | ||
| 21 | Origin in Death | Jul 2005 | ISBN 978-0-399-15289-4 | ||
| 22 | Memory in Death | Jan 2006 | ISBN 978-0-399-15328-0 | ||
| 22.5[11] | Haunted in Death | Apr 2006 | Bump in the Night | ISBN 978-0749958480 | |
| 23 | Born in Death | Nov 2006 | ISBN 978-0-399-15347-1 | ||
| 24 | Innocent in Death | Feb 2007 | ISBN 978-0-399-15401-0 | ||
| 25 | Creation in Death | Nov 2007 | ISBN 978-0-399-15436-2 | ||
| 25.5[11] | Eternity in Death | Nov 2007 | Dead of Night | ISBN 978-0749958480 | |
| 26 | Strangers in Death | Feb 2008 | ISBN 978-0-399-15470-6 | ||
| 27 | Salvation in Death | Nov 2008 | ISBN 978-0-399-15522-2 | ||
| 27.5[11] | Ritual in Death | Nov 2008 | Suite 606 | ISBN 978-0749958497 | |
| 28 | Promises in Death | Feb 2009 | ISBN 978-0-399-15548-2 | ||
| 29 | Kindred in Death | Nov 2009 | ISBN 978-0-399-15595-6 | ||
| 29.5[11] | Missing in Death | Dec 2009 | The Lost | ISBN 978-0-399-15595-6 | |
| 30 | Fantasy in Death | Jan 2010 | ISBN 978-0-749-94078-2 | ||
| 31 | Indulgence in Death | Nov 2010 | ISBN 978-0-399-15687-8 | ||
| 31.5[11] | Possession in Death | Nov 2010 | The Other Side | ISBN 978-0349400563 | |
| 32 | Treachery in Death | Feb 2011 | ISBN 978-0-399-15703-5 | ||
| 33 | New York to Dallas | Sep 2011 | ISBN 978-0-399-15778-3 | ||
| 33.5[11] | Chaos in Death | Sep 2011 | The Unquiet | ISBN 978-0349400563 | |
| 34 | Celebrity in Death | Feb 2012 | ISBN 978-0-399-15830-8 | ||
| 35 | Delusion in Death | Sep 2012 | ISBN 978-0-399-15881-0 | ||
| 36 | Calculated in Death | Feb 2013 | ISBN 978-0-399-15882-7 | ||
| 37 | Thankless in Death | Sep 2013 | ISBN 978-0-399-16442-2 | ||
| 37.5[11] | Taken in Death | Oct 2013 | Mirror, Mirror | ISBN 978-0349400563 | |
| 38 | Concealed in Death | Feb 2014 | ISBN 978-0-399-16443-9 | ||
| 39 | Festive in Death | Sep 2014 | ISBN 978-0-399-16444-6 | ||
| 40 | Obsession in Death | Feb 2015 | ISBN 978-0-399-17087-4 | ||
| 41 | Devoted in Death | Sep 2015 | ISBN 978-0-399-17088-1 | ||
| 41.5[11] | Wonderment in Death | Sep 2015 | Down the Rabbit Hole | ISBN 978-0515155471 | |
| 42 | Brotherhood in Death | Feb 2016 | ISBN 978-0-399-17089-8 | ||
| 43 | Apprentice in Death | Sep 2016 | ISBN 978-1-101-98797-1 | ||
| 44 | Echoes in Death | Feb 2017 | ISBN 978-1-250-12311-4 | ||
| 45 | Secrets in Death | Sep 2017 | ISBN 978-1-250-12315-2 | ||
| 46 | Dark in Death | Jan 2018 | ISBN 978-1-250-16153-6 | ||
| 47 | Leverage in Death | Sep 2018 | ISBN 978-0-349-41791-2 | ||
| 48 | Connections in Death | Feb 2019 | ISBN 978-1250201577 | ||
| 49 | Vendetta in Death | Sep 2019 | ISBN 978-1250207173 | ||
| 50 | Golden in Death | Feb 2020 | ISBN 978-1250207203 | ||
| 51 | Shadows in Death | Dec 2020 | ISBN 978-1250207234 | ||
| 52 | Faithless in Death | Feb 2021 | ISBN 978-1250771827 | ||
| 53 | Forgotten in Death | Sep 2021 | ISBN 978-1250272812 | ||
| 54 | Abandoned in Death | Feb 2022 | ISBN 978-1250278210 | ||
| 55 | Desperation in Death | Sep 7, 2022 | ISBN 978-1250278234 | ||
| 56 | Encore in Death | Feb 7, 2023 | ISBN 978-1250284082 | ||
| 57 | Payback in Death | Sep 5, 2023 | ISBN 978-1250284099 | ||
| 58 | Random in Death | Jan 23, 2024 | ISBN 978-1250289544 | ||
| 59 | Passions in Death | Sep 3, 2024 | ISBN 978-1250289568 | ||
| 60 | Bonded in Death | Feb 4, 2025 | ISBN 978-1250370808 | ||
| 61 | Framed in Death | Sep 2, 2025 | ISBN 978-1250370822 | ||
| 62 | Stolen in Death | Feb 3, 2026 | ISBN 978-1250414533 | ||
| 63 | Fury in Death | Sep 1, 2026 |
Anthologies and collections
[edit]| Anthology or collection | Contents | Publication
Date |
ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|
| Silent Night | Midnight in Death | Nov 1998 | ISBN 978-0-515-12385-2 |
| Out of this World | Interlude in Death | Aug 2001 | ISBN 978-0-515-13109-3 |
| Bump in the Night | Haunted in Death | Apr 2006 | ISBN 978-0-515-14117-7 |
| Dead of Night | Eternity in Death | Nov 2007 | ISBN 978-0-515-14367-6 |
| Three in Death | Interlude in Death
Midnight in Death Haunted in Death |
Jan 2008 | ISBN 0425219712, 9780425219713 |
| Suite 606 | Ritual in Death | Nov 2008 | ISBN 978-0-425-22444-1 |
| The Lost | Missing in Death | Dec 2009 | ISBN 978-0-515-14718-6 |
| The Other Side | Possession in Death | Nov 2010 | ISBN 978-0-515-14867-1 |
| Time of Death | Eternity in Death
Ritual in Death Missing in Death |
Jun 2011 | ISBN 0425240827, 9780425240823 |
| The Unquiet | Chaos in Death | Sep 2011 | ISBN 978-0-515-14998-2 |
| Mirror, Mirror | Taken in Death | Oct 2013 | ISBN 0515154075, 9780515154078 |
| Down the Rabbit Hole | Wonderment in Death | Sep 2015 | ISBN 978-1-501-22377-8 |
Major characters
[edit]Eve Dallas
[edit]- First Appearance: Naked in Death
Eve was found in an alley in Dallas, Texas with severe injuries and evidence of extensive physical and sexual abuse. Her social worker named her and put Eve into a foster home. After reaching the age of majority, Eve has a big desire to move to New York City, where she hopes to become a police officer. Throughout the series, her memories return, mostly through a series of nightmares, revealing a history of incestual rape and the patricide of her father, Richard Troy.
Roarke
[edit]- First Appearance: Naked in Death
In his mid-thirties, Roarke is an immigrant from Dublin, Ireland; in New York City, he is the CEO of Roarke Industries. He owns an old mansion off Central Park that he remodeled to his specifications with very high-tech security. He convinces Eve to move in with him in Glory in Death and then proposes at the end of the book.
Captain Ryan Feeney
[edit]- First Appearance: Naked in Death
Eve's former partner and the man who trained her. He no longer works Homicide, but is instead the captain of the Electronics Detection Division (EDD). Feeney likes to dress a bit messily and loves his electronics. He is a dedicated cop and a good husband to his wife, Sheila. They have several children and grandchildren. He is often seen eating a bag of candied nuts, which he may offer to Eve when they are deep in conversation about a case.
Mavis Freestone
[edit]- First Appearance: Naked in Death
Mavis is Eve's best and first real friend. The two met when Eve arrested her for being a con artist and they ended up becoming friends. Mavis is described as a tiny, pale woman who radically changes her appearance daily, sporting different lengths, styles, and colors of hair with often matching or contrasting eye color. She has an almost innocent personality which belies the very real street knowledge she possesses; she is also very loyal to Eve.
Lawrence Charles Summerset
[edit]- First Appearance: Naked in Death
Summerset is the major-domo of Roarke's home, and his most trusted friend (after Eve). He used to go by the name 'Basil Kolchek' back in Ireland in the 2030s. He and Eve have an adversarial relationship.
Commander Jack Whitney
[edit]- First Appearance: Naked in Death
Eve's police commander; her immediate superior. He is one of the few characters in the series, along with the Chief of the NYPSD, Tibble, who is identified as black. Eve respects him greatly. Whitney is a solid, excellent police officer, and for the most part is always on Eve's side. He has at least one daughter (a lawyer) with his wife, Anna Whitney, and endures stoically the parties his wife loves throwing. Surprising Eve, he gets along very well with Roarke and the two have, on rare occasions, smoked and drunk together.
Nadine Furst
[edit]- First Appearance: Naked in Death
Nadine is one of the intended victims of the murderer in Glory in Death, but is saved by Eve, who is the primary investigator on the case. She is an ambitious but ethical reporter, who will always protect her source. Nadine is a sharp dresser, a fact Eve finds odd.
Dr. Charlotte Mira
[edit]- First Appearance: Naked in Death
Mira is the resident psychiatrist and profiler for the NYPSD. She has several children with her husband, Dennis, and has grandchildren as well. She is a pretty and feminine woman whom Eve often consults on her cases. Eve loves Charlotte very much but has not admitted it to her face; nevertheless, Charlotte knows. Charlotte thinks of Eve as a daughter, a fact which annoyed Mira's own daughter at one point, and throughout the series has gotten Eve to open up to her more and more.
Officer (Detective) Delia Peabody
[edit]- First Appearance: Glory in Death
- Temporary aide in Glory and Immortal in Death
- Permanent aide: from Rapture in Death through to Imitation
- Partner: Promotion to Detective, third grade in Imitation in Death
Although her first name is Delia, she is referred to by her surname 'Peabody' throughout the books, as is standard for other police officers. Peabody has a very close relationship with Eve. Peabody comes from a family of "Free-Agers", which is a fictional extension of the New Age movement from the 1980s. Her family is peaceful and pacifistic, but Delia prefers exercising justice the police way. She is a responsible officer, but as the books continue, she becomes more confident in her cases and in teasing Eve, particularly about her sex life with McNab and her sexual fantasies.
Detective Ian McNab
[edit]- First Appearance: Vengeance in Death
Of a Scottish background, Ian is a detective in Feeney's Electronics Detection Division. He is particularly good with computers, though not as good as Roarke. Ian is a flashy dresser who, in Eve's words, "prances" rather than walks. Feeney describes him as a known candy thief, and he has been caught at least once pilfering candy bars from Eve's office.
Detective David Baxter
[edit]- First Appearance: Vengeance in Death
Another detective from Homicide. Baxter enjoys teasing Eve about anything he can, usually relating to her relationship with Roarke and associated changes; despite this teasing Roarke views Baxter as a solid cop and easygoing person.
Chief Medical Examiner Li Morris
[edit]- First Appearance: Rapture in Death
Chief Medical Examiner Morris is the medical examiner Eve requests on all of her high-priority cases. He is mentioned as having 'oddly exotic almond-shaped eyes', and sports a small tattoo of the Grim Reaper on his left pectoral. He has a long black ponytail, which he often ties back with fasteners that match his clothes. He plays the saxophone and sometimes plays gigs at various clubs. He listens to music while performing autopsies and calls Eve his prize pupil for her quick-witted deductions.
Notes
[edit]- ^ Roberts, Nora (18 April 2014). "Eve And Roarke With No Body". Fall Into The Story. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
So, no babies, not now. No charming orphans of any age. No pregnancy scares, no miscarriages, no foundlings, no street-wise kid who needs a good home. Did I leave anything out? If so, fill it in, then answer no.... I'm sorry some readers are disappointed I'm not taking the series and the characters in this direction, but I'm not. Repeat: I. Am. Not. The readers who insist on telling me why this could/should work are wasting their time. I don't agree, and I write the books.
- ^ Robb, J.D. "FAQ". J.D.ROBB.
When will Eve and Roarke have a baby? Nora has said repeatedly that a baby would signal the end of the series. In her opinion, a baby changes everything (for the better) and the focus of the series would change radically. In no way does this mean Nora thinks a mother can't be an excellent police officer (or attorney or any other type of professional). It does mean that many of the things readers love about Eve and Roarke's life together would change (i.e., leaving home for hours on end only to return to continue working in their home offices).
- ^ a b c Robb, J.D. (2000). "Chapter Twenty". Judgment in Death. Penguin Publishing Group. ISBN 9781101203798.
- ^ Robb, J.D. (2005). "Chapter One". Visions in Death. Penguin Publishing Group. ISBN 9781101204979.
- ^ a b Robb, Visions in Death, Chapter Twenty-two.
- ^ a b Robb, Visions in Death, Chapter Twenty-three.
- ^ a b c Robb, J.D. (2005). "Chapter Thirteen". Survivor in Death. Penguin Publishing Group. ISBN 9781101205006.
- ^ Robb, J.D. (2006). "Chapter 21". Memory in Death. Penguin Publishing Group. ISBN 9781101205488.
- ^ Memory in Death, "Chapter 16".
- ^ Laura (2021-02-09). "Faithless in Death discussion spot". Fall Into The Story. Retrieved 2021-04-26.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Fiction DB".
Further reading
[edit]- Little, Denise, & Hayden, Laura, The Official Nora Roberts Companion (New York: Berkley, 2003). ISBN 0-425-18344-0
- Ali, Kecia, Human in Death: Morality and Mortality in J. D. Robb's Novels (Waco, Texas: Baylor University Press, 2017). ISBN 9781481306270
- Steinberg SS, Zaleski J. Vengeance in Death review. Publishers Weekly. 1997;244(34):89. Accessed January 8, 2026. https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lkh&AN=9709036025&lang=ru&site=eds-live&scope=site