I’ve been agonizing over this review for a while now. Do you have a favorite author you can’t wait for their latest book to come out? If you’re like me, right or wrong, you have certain expectations that you want to be met. Identity is one of the rare Nora Roberts books that I feel let me down a little. Don’t get me wrong – it’s not a bad book. It just didn’t resonate with me as so many of her other books have. If you have read almost all of an author’s books, again, for better or worse, you become familiar with their writing style, and Ms. Roberts has some pretty specific writing traits that she uses frequently. Unfortunately, I felt like she used every one of them in this book, which took me out of the story more than I would have expected.
I also felt as though the story arc was the same one she used in Angels Fall, The Witness, and The Liar, but with less effect. The biggest difference, for me, was the characters. I just didn’t connect with any of them. They all felt bland compared to her previous heroes and villains. In most of her books, the smackdown that the heroine deals the villain is really satisfying. And considering the amount of damage that this creep had done, I was hoping for a serious butt-kicking. Alas, the scene did not deliver the literal punch I anticipated.
Another of the many aspects that I enjoy when reading a Nora Roberts book is the behind-the-scenes look at what the main characters do for work. I typically find the descriptions very interesting, and the amount of research that Ms. Roberts must conduct to be so convincing in her descriptions must be extensive. She is usually great at creating a balance of giving just the right amount of background without drowning the reader in it or distracting them with too much jargon. Again, not the case here. I got to the point of wincing every time the bar was referred to as “the stick.” It was just another instance where I was pulled out of the story, which is not typical when reading NR novels. Normally, the house could be burning down around me, and I wouldn’t notice until I got through reading the book.
I’d like to thank Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read Identity in advance and in exchange for an honest review. Again, for those of you who are new to Nora Roberts, I encourage you to read Identity. As I mentioned above, it’s not a bad read, it’s just not up to my exacting standards, which I fully acknowledge as being borderline unreasonable. I’m looking forward to her next novel, and in the meantime, will go back and reread one of her Irish or witchy (or both) trilogies for the umpteenth time.