Perfection can be deadly in the brand-new crime thriller starring homicide cop Eve Dallas from the #1 New York Times-bestselling author J.D. Robb.

Donald Quinland was a husband and father, a teacher and writer. Now, on a dark cobblestoned street where his naked, beheaded body has been discarded like trash, Lieutenant Eve Dallas wonders what happened during the nineteen hours since he went missing. Forensic evidence indicates that the killer had medical knowledge—could this be the result of illegal organ harvesting, or some sick experiment? Or does the atrocity of the crime suggest a personal vendetta?

After speaking with the grieving family, Eve and her partner, Peabody, visit Columbia University and Barnard College, where the late professor taught. In these Ivy League halls filled with sharp and occasionally devious minds, it isn’t so easy to get at the truth—and among Manhattan’s elite doctors and scientists, God complexes are an occupational hazard.