Tag Archives: mystery

To the Nines by Janet Evanovich (2003) – BR00105 (2017) – 🐸🐸⚪⚪⚪

The PolyBlog
September 2 2017

Plot or Premise

To the Nines is the ninth outing in the bounty hunter on LSD series, starring Stephanie Plum, Jersey girl. This one has Plum chasing an immigrant on a work visa bond, all the way from Jersey to Vegas.

What I Liked

The girls’ trip to Vegas was awesome with Connie along, and Stephanie’s random wiping out of RangerMan employees is kind of epic.

What I Didn’t Like

The “there’s a psycho stalking me” subplot gets old pretty fast, and she’s done it in at least four of the books so far. This one is actually menacing for a change, but that’s about it, and the plot with Singh as immigrant is kind of bland. However, the main plot for the story is revealed only by happenstance, and that’s a giant no-no for me. Almost no way to figure it out until some random tertiary character reveals it all at once. Sloppy plotting.

The Bottom Line

Fun secondary characters but sloppy plotting.

Hard Eight by Janet Evanovich (2002) – BR00104 (2017) – 🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪

The PolyBlog
September 1 2017

Plot or Premise

Hard Eight is the eighth book in the Stephanie Plum series. In this one, she’s looking for a missing mom and daughter whose grandmother could lose her house if the custody bond is violated.

What I Liked

The story has the typical range of secondary characters, and an addition of a hard-core female bounty hunter along the lines of Ranger. And a hysterical attempted vehicular murder of the Easter Bunny.

What I Didn’t Like

I don’t much care for stories that involve moms/wives and children in jeopardy and being shuttled around like a tub of household effects in a move. Part of that is the ick factor, but part of it is the simplistic storyline and emotional range that is usually given to the characters — the new “damsel in distress” plotline where someone has to come rescue them. I also didn’t feel that the initial bad guys were fleshed out very well, particularly as they are easy to spot in fake masks and outfits, and the final boss felt like a comic book character.

The Bottom Line

Not bad but not the best.

Seven Up by Janet Evanovich (2001) – BR00103 (2017) – 🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪

The PolyBlog
August 31 2017

Plot or Premise

Seven Up is the seventh outing in the series about Stephanie Plum, bounty hunter. This time she’s after an old mobster who kills people and is dating her grandmother. 

What I Liked

As with many of the Plum stories, it is often the secondary characters that add spice and liveliness to the story. DeChooch, the old and inept mobster, is a hoot and we get to see a lot more interactions with Moonman. There are so many cute scenes — like when she finds a bunch of stolen merchandise in a bedroom, asks for an explanation, and ends up buying a toaster. Oh and there’s a little thing about planning a wedding.

What I Didn’t Like

The basic premise of why everyone is looking for DeChooch is a bit far-fetched, but whatever. In addition, the arrival of sister Valerie with two kids in tow adds little to the story. And don’t get me started on the kidnapping of Grandma.

The Bottom Line

Love the Moonman, hate the wedding talk.

Hot Six by Janet Evanovich (2001) – BR00102 (2017) – 🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪

The PolyBlog
January 20 2017

Plot or Premise

Plum’s got her latest assignment, no problem. She just has to bring in Ranger, a suspect in the death of a wanna-be gangster, the son of an arms dealer.

What I Liked

As with most things Plum, there’s a lot going on … Grandma has moved in, she gets stuck babysitting a wild dog, and there’s a killer running around who likes Stephanie. Plus we get to see an old high school pal, Moon Man, who is frequently fun since the elevator doesn’t go all the way to the top floors.

What I Didn’t Like

The whole sub-story with gun-runners and missing money, and Ranger being “wanted”, gets a little ridiculous after a while.

The Bottom Line

Plum vs. Ranger…talk about a mismatch.

High Five by Janet Evanovich (2000) – BR00101 (2017) – 🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪

The PolyBlog
January 19 2017

Plot or Premise

Plum is on her fifth outing, looking for her missing uncle and one angry little man. Uncle Fred was complaining about paying for garbage pickup, and the truck skipped his house. So he went into complain and disappeared. Of course, he’s in the Plum family, so the weird part is he left behind photos of severed body parts in garbage bags. Aunt Mabel wants Stephanie to look for him, although she’s not entirely sure she wants the cheap bastard found and brought home. Plus, a midget missed his court date.

What I Liked

Stephanie’s family is definitely on the wild side, and the uncle is pretty out there for 70. Fun to see all the pieces at play. Plus Stephanie decides she needs to “diversify” her income sources, so asks Ranger to help mentor her in new areas (i.e., to work for him), so we get to see more of his line of work and meet his crew/employees (like Tank). And Lulu and Stephanie chasing the short guy are hilarious to read.

What I Didn’t Like

Morelli’s family is not as much fun as the Plums, and fairly one-dimensional. Plus Benito Ramirez is back, and is just annoying. My biggest objection though is a “cliff-hanger” ending on the romance side that deliberately plays with point-of-view to keep it vague who Stephanie is talking with at her door.

The Bottom Line

Fully embrace the crazy.