12 girls dead inside a hostel in NY.
Good plot worth re- reading. 09:12:23

Concealed in Death
4 Stars

Another excellent addition to the In Death series as Eve and her team investigate the deaths of several teenage girls whose bodies were concealed behind the walls of a derelict children's home for 15 years.

The case is heartbreaking not only because the girls' lives were taken from them so early, but also because of the terrible abuse most of them suffered during their lifetimes. Although there is a sense of closure to the case and the resolution is realistic, it is somewhat disappointing that the perpetrator will never stand trial or truly suffer the consequences due to his obvious mental instability. My desire for justice is not truly appeased.

Eve and company are delightful as always, but it is the additional information and insight into Mavis's character that really resonates. She has never been a favorite of mine as her frivolousness tends to annoy me, so gaining this insight into her past helped me to understand her better.

Garnet DeWinter is also an interesting character reminiscent of Temperance Brennan in Bones. Hopefully, she will return in additional installments.
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This 38th visit to Eve and Roarke's world was a quieter episode than some. The story begins when Roarke finds some skeletal remains in a building that he has just purchased. It turns out that there are twelve sets of bones of young girls between the ages of 12 and 14,

Eve is determined, as usual, to find out who the girls are and to find out what happened to them. But most of all she is determined to bring the person who committed these crimes to justice. A new forensic anthropologist is introduced. She knows Roarke and is a beautiful, brainy fashion plate. Eve has to depend on her to identify the girls which rubs her the wrong way because it is giving up some control to a person she doesn't know or trust.

When tracing the history of the building, they learn that it was a shelter for young kids from abusive or disrupted backgrounds. The former owners - brother and sister Nashville and Philadelphia Jones - have moved their operation to a bigger and better space. Their operation is faith-based but in a non-denominational way. Their father was a missionary. Their younger brother was a missionary who was serving in Africa when he was killed by a lion.

As each girl is identified, the connections to the Jones' facility strengthen. But there is also a connection to a Fagin-like character who also helped girls on the street. However, his choice was to teach them to steal, pick pockets, and run various scams. Mavis was one of his protegees before she ran into Eve and became her friend. In fact, Mavis knows some of the girls who are discovered in the walls of the building. This case builds slowly to a conclusion I really didn't see coming.

On the personal front, Eve and Roarke are settling into their marriage. There were no fights or arguments in this one. Both were on the same page as they sympathized with the young victims and recalled that they could have been the same had they not been smarter, meaner, and luckier. It brought back uncomfortable childhood memories for each of them but showed how they have reached acceptance of their pasts.

I also really liked the dynamic of Eve looking at Dr. and Mr. Mira's marriage and wanting that sort of love and closeness for herself and Roarke. I really like her crush on Mr. Mira who is the role model for the father she didn't have.

Fans of the series won't want to miss this episode. I can't wait to see what happens for Eve and Roarke next. ( )

A lot of twists and turns with this one. I'm not sure I loved it, but it was still a good Eve Dallas murder mystery. Very sad in a lot of ways. And not the most satisfying of endings. There were a lot of "I didn't see that coming" moments. I like that about these books. Keeps me guessing to the end. I'd give this 3 1/2 stars. ( )

J D Robb sure doesn't disappoint. Eve & Roarke are awesome ( )