Takedown Twenty

Takedown Twenty by Janet Evanovich
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The whole gang is back and up to their usual tricks. Stephanie gets herself into dangerous situations, causing Ranger to race to the rescue. Lula develops a new obsession with a runaway giraffe she names "Kevin." Grandma Mazur is on the prowl for hot dates. This time around, Ranger enlists Stephanie's aid in scoping out bingo parlors & funeral homes in the hopes of turning up clues as to who keeps murdering little old ladies & leaving them in dumpsters. Stephanie is having no luck bringing in her big-ticket bad guys. And she still has commitment issues, despite her resolve to have A Talk with Morelli.

As always, it was a fast-paced read, thanks to Evanovich's signature style of dialogue and narration. Some chuckle-worthy moments in this volume. No real progress on the love triangle front, but that's no surprise.

For readers' advisors: story and language doorways. The usual swearing and sexual references, but no actual sex scenes.

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Explosive Eighteen

Explosive Eighteen by Janet Evanovich

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


It's really 3.5 stars, but she made me laugh out loud several times, so I'm rounding up to 4.

Stephanie is back from Hawaii and avoiding both Morelli and Ranger...since the last time she saw them was after she'd stun-gunned both of them and dropped them off at a Hawaiian hospital. A variety of folks are hounding her for a photo she accidentally arrived home with and then threw away, and at least one of the people is scary-violent. Meanwhile, Stephanie teams up with Lula to chase down some more skips so she can pay her bills. Lula + rocket launcher = disaster (and belly laughs)

For readers' advisors: story and character doorways, minimal sexual content (one sex scene that "fades to black")



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Smokin' Seventeen

Smokin' Seventeen by Janet Evanovich

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


Meh. I'd give it 2 1/2 stars, maybe. The whole Stephanie/Morelli/Ranger triangle is getting really stale. I think Evanovich wrote herself into a corner when she based so much of the humor and sexual tension of her earlier books on those relationships. Who can Stephanie choose, and who gets the shaft? And would either choice be believable, or would it kill the series? I understand Evanovich's dilemma, but if she continues to do nothing, she's going to alienate readers by the droves.

There were a few chuckles in this book, but no belly laughs. The bail bonds office hasn't yet been rebuilt since it burnt to the ground, so Vinnie, Connie, Lula, & Stephanie are sharing "office space" in Mooner's bus. Then a backhoe uncovers a body where the dumpsters used to be, and the search is on to figure out who did it and why. (I actually guessed really early on who the killer was.) More bodies turn up. Business slows down. Vinnie comes up with some...creative advertising.

Meanwhile, Stephanie's mom decides Stephanie will never get married at the rate she's going, so she fixes Stephanie up with Dave Brewer, recently returned to the Burg to live with his folks after his divorce and a scandal over foreclosure fraud. Now Stephanie has three men, not just two, vying for her attention.

For readers' advisors: story doorway. The character development is virtually nonexistent in this one.



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Sizzling Sixteen

Sizzling Sixteen by Janet Evanovich

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


The latest installment in the Stephanie Plum series is pretty much the same formula as the others: Stephanie & Lula bumble their way to rescuing Vinnie from the very angry bad guys who kidnapped him for ransom. A few appearances by Ranger, Morelli, Grandma Mazur, Connie, etc. Standard Stephanie Plum fare. The big laughs in this one come from Mooner & the Hobbits. :D

I wish there were more character development, but...oh well.

For reader's advisors: story doorway


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Finger Lickin' Fifteen

Finger Lickin' Fifteen by Janet Evanovich


My rating: 3 of 5 stars

There were a few laugh-out-loud moments in this one, but overall, I was disappointed that Evanovich hasn't developed the characters very much. How hard would it be for her to have Stephanie catch a skip as he crawls out a window? Or learn she actually likes some healthy thing Ella has cooked over at Rangeman? Or show some personal growth in one or more branches of the Morelli/Stephanie/Ranger love triangle?

This one felt a bit formulaic to me. And I had a hard time believing that Ranger would ask for Stephanie's help in figuring out how someone is breaching his security codes for his clients. I mean, he's uber-competent, and she's an utter screw-up--what could she possibly have to contribute that he hasn't thought of already?

Still, there were some funny parts, and Lula, Grandma Mazur, and the cross-dressing fireman made me smile. If you're reading it as a fluffy beach-read, it's still a good choice.

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Plum Spooky

Plum Spooky by Janet Evanovich

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars

I'm not sure what holiday this book is supposed to be linked with, although it does include an encounter with a retired Easter Bunny. This Between-the-Numbers novel features a lot of Diesel, a little Ranger, and very little Morelli (aside from phone conversations). Lula and Carl the Monkey spend a great deal of time "helping" Stephanie track down the socially inept (to say the least!) boy genius, Martin Munch, who has teamed up with Diesel's evil cousin Wulf. There are some laugh-out-loud moments, although not nearly as many as in Fearless Fourteen. It was light entertainment, but not my favorite of the Stephanie Plum books.


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