Another fun outing for Stephanie Plum and her cohorts.

There was a scene in this book where Grandma Mazur joins up with Lula in a band. They of course have a practice session at the Plum family home. Absolutely hilarious! Made me laugh out loud more than once!

These books are ridiculous and that's why I read them....

Security expert and bounty hunter Ranger is used to catching wanted people, but now he's the one who is wanted. There's a woman looking for him who claims she is married to him. He has another big problem - someone who looks a lot like him has kidnapped his daughter. His friend, bounty hunter Stephanie Plum, has her own problems. Even though it's her job, she's not particularly good at bounty hunting and each apprehension is difficult. She's also dealing with her grandmother's decision to become a rock star. On top of that, she's being stalked by someone who wants everything that Ranger has, including Stephanie.

"Twelve Sharp" is an extremely funny book and much better than the last Stephanie Plum book, "Eleven on Top". Most of the regular characters are included: Stephanie's parents, Grandma Mazur, Stephanie's on and off boyfriend Joe Morelli, Lula, Connie, and Sally Sweet are all there. Readers will be happy that Janet Evanovich gives a little more insight into the mysterious Ranger's private life. Evanovich adds a new character, Melvin Pickle, who brings a lot of fun to the book. There are plenty of laugh out loud moments, especially when Connie, Lula, and Stephanie interview potential bounty hunters. Some of the captures that Lula and Stephanie make are equally funny. Evanovich wisely ditches some of the tired plot lines such as Stephanie's car always being blown up and breathes new life into other plot lines - especially an incredibly funny scene during a wake. Unfortunately, she does add a food fight scene - something that I wish could be banned from all books and movies! Still, most of the book is hilarious, even the tension filled ending has laugh out loud moments.

Twelve Sharp (Stephanie Plum #12) by Janet Evanovich

Synopsis /

Bounty hunter Stephanie Plum is spending her days chasing down the usual cast of losers and weirdos. Until, that is, the tables are turned and now someone's after her. The mysterious stalker, a crazed woman dressed in black, carries a Glock and has a secret connection to the dark and dangerous Ranger. Suddenly, the action turns deadly serious and Stephanie goes from hunting skips to hunting a murderer. The chase is one and Ranger and Stephanie must work together to find the killer, rescue a missing child and stop a rapidly rising body count. But they're getting too close for comfort - what will Joe Morrelli, Stephanie's on-again, off-again boyfriend, have to say?

My Thoughts /

Bounty hunter Stephanie Plum is back for another fast paced, madcap, chaotic, and donut fuelled adventure in Twelve Sharp. With currently twenty-nine books in the series, it’s heartening to know there is a lot more fun and craziness to come! I’ll be spilling cinnamon sugar and icing onto my kindle for a while yet!!

Yes, yes, I know - the plots are all basically the same - Stephanie Plum, bounty hunter and fast-food aficionado, blunders along with varying degrees of success and high degrees of mayhem, then ends up capturing her FTA. However, none of it matters to Evanovich fans as her books are all distinctly different in their own unique way, but each is peppered with your favourite (crazy) original characters and new even crazier ones, and plenty of Stephanie's cars blowing up in the process. And viewings. Lots and lots of viewings!

Some communities have country clubs, some have senior centres, some have shopping malls and movie theatres. The Burg has two funeral parlours. Only Thursday night bingo occasionally draws a bigger crowd than a well-run viewing in the Burg.

Now, if you were thinking that you might like to try your hand at a little bail bonding, let me just drop this little snippet here……Over the course of her career, Stephanie has been spat on, cursed at, shot at, firebombed, and stalked by crazed killers. And I’ve lost count of how many of her cars have been set on fire or exploded. There has been more than a person’s fair share of open casket viewings (thanks to Grandma Mazur); way too much spandex being stretched, and donuts being demolished – all in the name of fugitive apprehension.

Twelve Sharp is no different. There is the usual collection of eccentric FTAs which Stephanie and Lula have to chase down and convince to reschedule their court dates. In Twelve Sharp we are introduced to Melvin Pickle. Melvin has been branded a pervert, because he got caught trying to (ahem) self-satisfy himself in a movie theatre. Financially skint and scared still of going to jail; Melvin enters into an agreement with Connie to work in the Bond Office as a filing clerk, in an effort to make a good impression for the Judge. Turns out, Melvin is a filing whizz and is on his best behaviour in the office.

Returning characters include: Joyce Barnhardt; Sally Sweet, and Grandma Mazur. And Morelli. And Ranger. In this instalment Ranger has more of a presence, as a man claiming to be Ranger kidnaps Ranger's ten-year-old daughter, Julie, then tries to steal Ranger's identity. To solve this crime, roles will need to be reversed and Stephanie must step-up and put her life on the line for Ranger. As in previous books, their relationship remains extremely complex - brimming with sexual tension, there is also smatterings of bafflement, amusement, and loads of confusion. Stephanie's some-time partner Lula makes her mark in this one, by joining up with Sally Sweet to sing in a band. In true Lula fashion, there's plenty of spandex, leather, and feathers; lots of gyrating of hips, pouting of lips; but not much singing going on! The Rolling Stones references were well done.

Like the previous eleven novels, I finished this one with a smile on my face and contentment in my heart. All is right with the world, if I can enjoy a Stephanie Plum novel once in a while.

The mystery of Ranger is explored, and wow! Evanovich has a way of twisting you around so you laugh out loud at one moment and suck in your breath at the next. Twelve Sharp has a more than its fair share of these moments. A rollercoaster ride the whole time, and no one is left out. A fan favorite for sure. Three magic words are said by the end and yes, this book is smoking hot.

Favorite quote/phrase:
"I try hard not to do things that are stupid. I'm willing to make an exception in this case. I'm not leaving. And if you sleep with him while I'm here. I'll have to kill him." (p.204)

"GPS," Ranger said to Morelli.
"Probably I can find her breast without it," Morelli said. "But it's good to know there's a navigational system on board if I need it." (p.205)

I would actually like to give this one 4.5 stars. Evanovich really ramps up the action and intrigue in this one by adding a fake Ranger, Ranger's wife (What???) and we get to meet his daughter, too. Stephanie continues to be torn between Morelli and Ranger and at one time they are both staying at her apartment. The supporting characters do not disappoint. Lulu decides to join Sally Sweet and his band. Her costume choices really add flavor to the book as do the descriptions of the would-be bounty hunters who come to apply when Connie posts a job opening. They made me laugh out loud.

This is the twelfth in the numbered series about the continuing adventures of Stephanie Plum, who is still (as always) trying to make up her mind between Joe Morrelli, the cop who took her virginity behind the counter of the bakery at which she was working when she was sixteen (in response to which she drove her car up onto the sidewalk to nail him a few years later and broke his leg) and Ranger, a “real” bounty hunter, who is not the marrying type but is strong, dark, silent, dangerous, and mysterious to the core. The kicker in this book is that a woman all dressed up in black appears, declares that she is Ranger’s wife, and makes dire threats to Stephanie just before she gets blown away by a gunshot to the head while parked outside the bond office waiting for Stephanie to come out … and Ranger’s 10-year-old daughter by a 20-minute marriage when he was in Special Services gets kidnapped down in Florida, where Ranger has gone for a visit. It’s the usual frolicking adventure, with Grandma Mazur teaming up with Lulu and Sally to start a new singing act, and with Joe coming dangerously close to discovering that Ranger is hiding out in Stephanie’s bedroom while they all try to find the fellow who is posing as Ranger, along with Stephanie getting involved with the various weird assortment of FTAs (Failed To Appear bondees)

Easily the best book in the series.

From a blog post I wrote in 2006:

I readily admit my OCD tendencies and one of the stronger ones is that I hate putting a good book down until it's done.

Twelve Sharp is a good book.

I started reading around 10:30 last night and finished up around 1:30 this morning. I did look at the clock several times and contemplated going to sleep but sleep was not nearly as compelling as finishing the book.

Sometimes, series tend to get old and the characters stale. Not so in this series. Stephanie, while still far from the best bounty hunter around, is getting better at her job. There are always new characters who add to the story and the recurring characters have stories of their own so it's not always just about Stephanie, Joe and Ranger.

Hmmmmm, Ranger.

The summary: Ranger becomes a nationally wanted man after it's reported that he kidnapped his daughter from her Mother and Stepfather. Stephanie hides him out and helps him in his quest to clear his name and rescue the girl. Along the way, we have the expected, and entertaining, funeral home stories, Lulu and Grandma shenanigans, less than stellar skip captures and we learn more about Ranger.

Hmmmmm, Ranger.

Evanovich does a great job of balancing the humor (lots of stun gunning (trust me, it's funny), Stephanie falling down, Stephanie getting tackled, Lulu busting out of her clothes, etc.) with a mystery that has a very menacing feel about it. You don't ever expect that Stephanie's going to be killed off at any moment but you also don't expect she'll emerge from her adventures fully unscathed, either.

If you’ve never read the Stephanie Plum series, I suggest you start! Always a good laugh, & easy to read. This one was especially good as Stephanie had to help Ranger out, not the usual other way around. Read in four days.

Twelve Sharp by Janet Evanovich is the 12th Stephanie Plum mystery. Bounty hunter Stephanie Plum is being stalked by a woman claiming to be Rangers wife and when the woman is shot dead, it becomes apparent that a crazy Ranger wannabe is after Stephanie. Another fun and entertaining book in the series that never fails to make me laugh. This time Grandma Mazur joins Lulu and Sally in their band playing at senior centres. I always enjoy my time spent with Stephanie and her friends.

The 12th book in the Stephanie Plum series and I still find it pretty entertaining.