Woman of the future ensures justice is never delayed

What has contributed to the popularity of the books is the portrayal of Eve Dallas, she is complex and compassionate towards victims of crime

- DEEPA GAHLOT

he 6lst book in the ‘Death’ series by JD Robb— Framed in Death—has just come out and shot right into the bestseller charts. The protagonist of these futuristic novels is Eve Dallas, a New York cop, who is among the top female characters in crime fiction who have lasted the longest—30 years.

J.B. Robb is the pseudonym of popular author Nora Roberts, and she launched Eve Dallas in 1995 with the book Naked In Death. Eve is a tough police officer, with a strong sense of justice and unshakeable self-respect. Though she is married to Roarke, one of the richest men in mid-2ist-century New York, and lives in his palatial house, she never takes money from him, and if she needs to borrow some, she makes it a point to return it. He does, however, fill her closet with great clothes and takes pride in making sure she goes out well-dressed. Both Eve and Roarke have survived rough, troubled childhoods, and their relationship is marked with deep love and mutual respect. A tech wizard, he often helps Eve with her cases as a civilian consultant to the New York police department while also making sure she eats properly, because in the throes of solving a case, Eve tends to survive on coffee.