Set in 2061, PAYBACK IN DEATH opens as J. D. Robb’s popular futuristic detective, Eve Dallas, and her husband, Roarke, return from a long-overdue vacation. Before she has a chance to report to the office, she receives a frantic message. Retired Captain Martin Greenleaf, from the New York Police and Security Internal Affairs Bureau, has been found dead. Lt. Webster, another officer in the NYPSD, wants to make sure that Eve investigates.

"PAYBACK IN DEATH is a captivating story full of intrigue. Especially riveting are the interrogation scenes, where Robb executes skillful dialogue that highlights her protagonist’s expertise as an investigator."

When she arrives on the scene, Eve learns that Greenleaf’s death is an apparent suicide. But Webster does not believe that he would have killed himself. Eve agrees to look around, and it isn’t long before she’s convinced that Webster is on to something. The suicide looks staged, and even the note Greenleaf allegedly left behind doesn’t seem right.

Once Eve confirms that it is indeed a homicide, she and her team start digging into Greenleaf’s life on and off the job. Like any good internal affairs investigator, Greenleaf had his fair share of enemies. It was his duty to investigate officers who found themselves on the wrong end of all kinds of accusations, from excessive violence to bribery and fraud, and he had a strong moral compass. He always landed on the right side of the law and expected his fellow cops to do the same.

The list of suspects is long, and emotions are running high at the precinct. Eve is confronted twice by a fellow officer who seems to have a personal vendetta against her. When a violent attack results in his arrest, she becomes more determined than ever to find Greenleaf’s killer.

It turns out that several officers investigated by Greenleaf took their own lives in response to the accusations. Eve begins to wonder if someone close to one of these cops could have been angry enough to want to retaliate. So she and her team pay special attention to their friends and family members, though it’s slow going. But when Greenleaf’s son is rescued from an attack intended to look like yet another suicide, there’s no doubt that someone is out for payback. And Eve thinks she knows who it is.

PAYBACK IN DEATH is a captivating story full of intrigue. Especially riveting are the interrogation scenes, where Robb executes skillful dialogue that highlights her protagonist’s expertise as an investigator. When Eve Dallas is on the case, justice never sleeps.