Travis Byrne is having a hard time. He traded his badge for a law degree and now most cops hate him. His courtroom opponent thinks he’s scum since he switched sides. And to prove her point, he’s just been appointed lawyer for Al Moroconi — an all-round scumbag with mob ties.
What I Liked
Then Al breaks out of prison, shooting a guard in the process, and starts gunning for his lawyer who he thinks hasn’t done enough to help him. Add in the mob and some crooked FBI agents, and this story gets complicated real fast.
What I Didn’t Like
It has the feel of a fish-out-of-water TV-movie and never quite pays off.
Megan McGee is a 30-something lawyer facing a quiet Christmas with her dog when a new crying client, Bonnie Cantrell, comes asking for a restraining order.
What I Liked
The restraining order is against an abusive ex, Carl, who’s also an ex-cop, and Bonnie is worried for the safety of not only herself but also her son and her new lover. The story starts as a simple textbook case, but starts to morph as it becomes evident that while Carl is unhinged, perhaps Bonnie isn’t telling the whole truth.
What I Didn’t Like
A thread of Christmas presents runs through the story showing that sometimes little miracles do happen, but it’s rather cliché.
The Bottom Line
A surprisingly light story given the dark nature of the case.
This time around, Plum’s got a dandy assignment: pick up Uncle Mo, the owner of the local soda shop who everybody thinks is a saint. He got picked up for carrying a concealed weapon (which everybody says is no real crime at all) and promptly jumps bail for no apparent reason. She no sooner asks the first person about Mo’s whereabouts, and lo and behold, her mom is getting complaints about her harassing poor Uncle Mo. Ah, life is just peachy. Add in a couple of vigilante types who keep warning her away from Mo, some more involvement with Jackie and Lulu (the hookers from book one), and life gets interesting.
What I Liked
I liked the expansion of the various characters again. As well, it’s kind of fun to see the relationship develop between Joe and Stephanie, even if it is not romance-by-the-book. 🙂 The grandmother is less pronounced in this one but Lulu more than makes up for it as she wants to kick butt too. Ranger is definitely an interesting presence, and fun for everyone.
What I Didn’t Like
This book is a little more hard-boiled, complete with lots of guns blazing, and some harder-core motives for stuff. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it detracts a bit from the otherwise amusing antics of Stephanie as she is still learning the ropes about being a bounty hunter.
This is the second book in the series about Stephanie Plum, new bounty hunter. This time around, her first love’s distant cousin, Kenny Mancuso, is supposed to be a relatively easy pickup. Sure, he shot a guy, his best friend, but he’s not all that bright. Except that he’s fresh out of the army and suddenly wealthy.
What I Liked
I liked the expansion of the role by Plum’s grandmother, even though I thought she was over the top in the first one. Here, it’s funny, as she is out of control. She goes to a funeral with a closed coffin for a guy who was shot, and she opens the coffin to see what he looks like. Another dead guy has a strange-looking ring so she touches the hand and the finger comes off. Don’t even ask about her shooting a gun. The love story with Morelli moves along a bit until he screws up (as all men do) and the brakes come on hard. Add in the sub-plot of 24 missing coffins, and the read is a riot. An improvement over the first book, and further expansion of some nice supporting characters.
What I Didn’t Like
There are a few too many guys running around with no real explanation, and the major baddie Kenny does a pretty good job of going wherever he wants to despite a large number of people looking for him (remembering that he wasn’t too bright to begin with).
This book introduces Stephanie Plum, a good girl down on her luck, who falls into bounty hunting to pick up some cash and avoid having to move back home. She lives in the suburbs of New Jersey, and dances around the question of whether she wants to bed Joe Morelli again — the local cop who stole her virginity when she was young and foolish, and then wrote about it on the bathroom walls and the stadium bleachers. She got revenge years later by almost running him down with a Buick. No cream puff here, she is also not exactly an expert at being a “fugitive apprehension agent”. More like an apprehensive agent, and the descriptions are hilarious.
What I Liked
Stephanie is supposed to find an elusive man — Joe Morelli! Yep, her cop foil and first love is wanted for allegedly shooting an unarmed suspect. Morelli claims there were other guys in the apartment, and there was a gun, but that doesn’t change the fact that Plum needs to bring him in to get the money. And she isn’t experienced enough to match wits with him for most of the book. But she has help from a lot of extra support characters — Ranger, the experienced bounty-hunter; Vincent, the bail bondsman; and Plum’s family.
What I Didn’t Like
Her grandmother is a little over the top but so are Lulu and Jackie, hookers in the downtown neighbourhood; and one seriously disturbed boxer, with a passion for hurting women.
