Nora Roberts as storyteller

The amount of shelving bookstores and libraries devote to the works of Nora Roberts testifies to both the prolific nature of this writer’s output and to the enduring interest readers maintain in her work. Regardless of which titles are displayed on these shelves, they will all share one common trait. They demonstrate Roberts’ ability to tell a compelling story.

Roberts gains her readers’ interest with plots that feature characters who are often engaged in a quest. In Tribute Cilla McGowan comes to the Shenandoah Valley to discover the truth about the death of her grandmother, a legendary Hollywood star. In The Three Fates the Sullivan family seeks three lost statues that have a history rooted in Greek mythology. In the Key trilogy Malory, Dana and Zoe search for keys that will release three goddesses who have been held in captivity for centuries.

In Roberts’ In Death novels, a detective series she writes under the name J.D. Robb, the quest becomes a search for a solution to a crime. This series highlights the investigative skills of Eve Dallas, a New York City police detective.

Many of Roberts’ romantic suspense works also focus on deduction. In Sacred Sins, Roberts features Tess Court, a psychologist who works with the police to identify a serial killer known as the Priest. Several of the characters in Secret Sins reappear in Roberts’ subsequent work, Brazen Virtue, yet another novel to combine crime solving and romance.

In Nora Roberts on her Novels, one of a series of videos produced by the Lifetime Movie Network, Roberts voices her own belief in the need for her novels to be held together by a strong storyline. Explaining the popularity of her works, she says, “I like to think it’s because they tell a good solid story with a blend of elements, but the relationships never get short shrift.” More of Roberts’ comments can be found in the rest of this video, which appears below.