Customer Reviews

Stalemate (Eve Duncan)

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(10)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

I cant believe the turn the author has taken with this book.Eve Duncan was my favourite Iris Johansen character.I have loved all her other books.To me this book did not portray Eve and Joe to be the same characters as we know and love.Idon`t think I will be able to read another Iris Johansen book if this continues. And I have read them all.

I have read every book that Johansen has written to date. One of the things I liked most about them was the relationships and committment to one another of her main characters. In this book it seems that suddenly Eve is mesmerized by this bad guy Montalvo and make no mistake, he is bad. He kills without compunction and sells arms to any and all takers. By giving into his demands, Eve put not only Joe at risk but also her mother and Jane as well as herself. He doesn't have anything in common with Eve. He knew where and who killed his wife. He knew where her body was and didn't need a reconstruction to identify her and "bring" her home. He wanted it to prove to his father-in-law that he was dealing with a sadistic killer even worse than the two of them were. Eve ran off with John Logan for months in an earlier book and Joe forgave her as he really loves her but if she gets involved with this Montalvo character, I for one won't read anymore books with her in it as a main character. I have never particularly liked her as I think she uses peoples love for her and manipulates them, not just Joe but also Jane. He gave up a lot for Eve and has been stedfast and pulled her chestnuts out of the fire more than once. Jane has also been there for her and never questioned her love but then she puts both in a position to be killed by this guy or someone trying to get to her by using them and almost succeeds in getting Joe killed. I am with some of the other readers, Johansen needs to bring Bonnie home and let Eve marry Joe and start being a bit more likeable. So far she won't commit to him and in this book was obviously thinking of shoving him out. More Montalvo in the future? No thanks. He isn't someone I admire nor is his young assassin in training. He would have killed Joe without blinking an eye. I hope this is the last we see of either of them.

I read this series from Ms. Johansen because her heroine is a strong woman. However, this book goes totally over the top and is so unrealistic that I would not recommend anyone to read it. Imagine a man/woman going into the hills and jungles of Columbia to deal with drug and gun dealers, some of the most feared criminals in the hemisphere. She not only does that but by doing so puts her family and Joe (in one book he's her husband and in another book he's a live-in boyfriend, so I'm not sure what their relationship is) in real danger. She also feels that she really can do this without anybody's assistance except one person (a character from another book.) Now after doing all that she becomes attracted to a head of one of these organizations and it looks like the series is taking a turn for her to connect with this guy. Joe, oh, he's only the guy that saved her life a few times and has stood by her for years. Sorry, if this is where the series is going, this is the last Eve Duncan book I am reading.

I am so tired of this Eve Duncan character. Please Ms. Johansen, write about someone else for a change. I have read all of your books and have never really understood why you picked this character to serialize. To me she is not a sympathetic character - meaning I don't really like her - not that you shouldn't feel sorry for her because her daughter has been presumably killed. She (the character) hasn't really committed to her husband/boyfriend (Joe)(Montalvo is the second "other man") and she whines and complains all the time. Let her find her daughter's remains for heavens sake and get on with her life. Maybe then if you feel like you must continue to write about her she will grow and become more interesting. I am really bored with this series and will most likely not buy another book with Eve as the main character in it.

I like Iris Johansen's books. I'm in the process of finishing all of her suspense collection. Writing is okay, characters are good & I find myself looking for the recurring characters. Johansen has a way of making the reader feel as if these recurring characters are old friends. One thing about her writing that really bugs me though is the over usage of some phrasing - almost makes me wonder if she has a saved list of these, that she just pastes in as needed: "She moistened her lips" "His lips tightened" "Her hands clinched into fists at her sides". Kinda drives ya nuts after reading several of the books. Also, fillers such as making & drinking coffee & taking showers, seem redundant.

Books are a quick & easy read, nothing too deep, & easy to figure plots. Descriptions of romance are well done, and Johansen keeps me turning those pages.

I liked Stalemate. I really like Eve & Joe, but if Joe really is Eve's soulmate & best friend, she didn't treat him as such in this book. I'd like to see Montalvo return & make good on his promise to Eve. I ALSO would like to see him become involved with someone other than Eve. I'm routing for my Eve & Joe!

As an avid reader of Iris Johansen, I was highly disappointed in this book. Eve who was always a smart, strong savy character, appears shallow and weak. After years of living and loving Joe, (who has stood by her through EVERYTHING) all of sudden she falls with another John Logan character. All because he lost somebody too (his wife), please... plot was predictable. Eve appeared unstable and not anything like the main heroine she has been in the series....the most interesting character in the book was 19 year old, Miguel...he seemed to have a story... not Montalvo, who like I mentioned before, reminded me of John Logan, who concidentally, also had a thing for Eve...Iris could do better..maybe she shouldn't be in a rush to publish her work.. She should take her time and be true to the series she started, which up to now has been great.

I was very sad at the path the author has taken Eve Duncan. She is a strong woman and deeply in love with her partner. She took along time confusing the readers with Montalvo, Diaz, and the Rebels. I read through this book several time and it just did not have the lively hood most of her books present. I felt let down.

with the Eve Duncan novels. The plots are a little unrealistic but usually entertaining. However, they just aren't great, and I finally figured out why.

The reason? I can't stand Eve Duncan. I think the attempt is to portray her as a strong woman, but she isn't. She's a woman who is incapable of a relationship with her boyfriend and adopted daughter due to her unhealthy obsession with a dead child. She needs psychiatric help, not adventures that feed her disorder. All of the cases she takes on in these books are classic self-fulfilling situations-she agrees to take only the cases that allow her to continue to destroy her chances at happiness and that give her an excuse to pursue her obsessive-compulsive behavior.

This book is a solid example of Eve's problems. I don't find myself rooting for Eve, I find myself rooting for Joe to cut his ties with her, since she lies constantly about what she feels for him, and thinks nothing of turning her back when he needs her, and shuts him out when he dares express concern for her well being. Eve's tunnel vision includes only her dead daughter, and to hell with the rest of the people trying to care about her. It's very hard to like a character as selfish as she.

I think I'm done with Iris Johanssen after this latest clumsy attempt. When the only thing you can do while reading is root for the main character to be committed to a mental institution for the help she desperately needs, how can you really enjoy the book?

My good friend told me about this book, since she knew I got "hooked" on the field of forensic medicine after watching a certain tv show. Tv is fine, but for me nothing is better than a good novel that can weave a story around a subject that I'm interested in. Anyway I thought "Stalemate" was a fantastic novel and the forensic professor Eve Duncan was just the character I was looking for to keep me hooked on the field of forensic science. I was thrilled with the author's detailed descriptions of this field and way she just pulled me into this fascinating story. In summary, I really enjoyed this novel and plan to buy more of Iris Johansen books.

I have seldom disliked a main character as much as i did Eve Duncan in this book. She was truly ridiculous and unbelievable. Montalvo was painted as a hard, cold, sinister character, but she starts bossing him around from the get go. It was bad enough on the phone, but once she is in his compound, it became ludicrous with her stomping and storming around, issuing ultimatums.

SPOILER

But when she insisted on going on the mission to the cemetery and Montalvo meekly giving in, that was it for me. These are hard men, trained, mentally ready for the terrible things that could happen, but they give in to this stupid woman at every turn, putting the lives of many men at risk with her self righteous nonsense.

And frankly, I have never felt any real love from her toward Joe. Just lip service. There is no chemistry whatever between them.

I've always liked Iris Johansen, but will never read an Eve Duncan book again.