Another good story!

This is a “Ranger” book.

I love this series more with each book I read. I’ve chosen the audio version with Lorelei King, as narrator, and she is fantastic. She changes her voice with each character and really brings them to life. I love that Stephanie is turning into a better bounty, hunter, and even Lula is improving as well. I love the two of them together and the friendship they are creating. I enjoy all of the characters and they are quirkiness. The love triangle between Stephanie, Ranger, And Morelli is so entertaining and really keeps me coming back for more. I listen to these books in between others that are more serious and much larger and it is a nice break in between. I never thought these books would be for me, but since starting them last year, I have never been happier to be wrong. I get so much enjoyment and entertainment from them, and I always look forward to the next one.

Stephanie Plum bounty hunter and a quirky cast of characters made for an entertaining read. It's been a long time since I've actually laughed out loud while reading a book. As an added bonus this was a hardcover freebie from my local thrift shop.

Okay, here's the thing: I used to love this series with every fibre of my being. I was beyond excited every time a new book came out. I bought everything that Janet Evanovich published, and read them over and over again. And I still really enjoy the first handful of books in this series - they're actual crime novels with occasional humorous moments to lighten the mood. The first one, in particular, is ridiculously dark.

But.

The further into the series you get, the more slapstick-y and same-recycled-jokes-y and love triangle-y the series becomes. And when you add in the ridiculousness of the between the numbers novellas, I've basically been on the verge of giving up on rereading these books for a really long time. But I own the series through book 16, and I thought I needed to give them the benefit of the doubt.

Until I started this one. I made it all the way to page 8 and I read something that filled me with so much rage that I finally reached breaking point. And that something was this:
Not that long ago I needed a safe place to stay and sort of commandeered Ranger's apartment when he was out of town. Ranger had come home and found me sleeping in his bed like Goldilocks. He'd very graciously not thrown me out the seventh-floor window. And in fact he'd allowed me to stay with a minimum of sexual harassment. Okay, maybe minimum isn't entirely accurate. Maybe it was a seven on a scale of ten, but he hadn't forced the issue.

STEPH. GIRL. Are you seriously giving Ranger credit for NOT FORCING YOU TO SLEEP WITH HIM AS PAYMENT FOR USING HIS APARTMENT WHEN YOU WERE BEING CHASED BY MURDERERS???? What in the actual fuck. I can put up with a lot of shit in books, but not this.

I'm done with this series. Everything after book 7 is taking a trip to the second hand shop.

A little girl is kidnapped and Stephanie is a key player in finding her and getting her home safely. The usual antics ensue of course but this one had me wound a bit tighter. Stephanie makes some especially foolish assumptions that put both Ranger and Joe in peril. Despite one of them being seriously injured, apparently they all survive to entertain us in the next series of adventures. This book, like many of Stephanie Plum's adventures, ends quite abruptly at the final capture.

:: 4.5 Smokin Stars ::

As with any Evanovich novel I was hooked from page 1 all the way until the end. I can never get enough of Stephanie Plum, Grandma Mazur, and Lula. Once again, this book is jam packed with laughs, fun, and gun yielding woman (amongst other crazies). Readers cannot get enough of Stephanie’s eccentric family; specifically, grandma Mazur trying to open the closed casket on her favorite night of the week- funeral viewings. Some people ask if the stories ever get old? No they don’t. These reads are meant to be light and fun. Some also ask whether the lack of character development in Stephanie gets annoying? Again, the answer is no. When she is ready, she will pick a man… I hope. And if she “grew” any more than I can hardly believe she would be the same as she is in these books. This is another hit in the series (which is by far, one of my favorite series of all time). If you haven’t read it yet, start with One for the Money. I am sure you will get just as hooked as I was!

n  n    Book Reviewn  n
4 out of 5 stars to Twelve Sharp, the 12th book in the "Stephanie Plum" cozy mystery series written in 2006 by Janet Evanovich. I really enjoyed this book, given its focus on the mysterious Ranger. Stephanie is being stalked. She's not sure who it is, but the person is scary. She soon learns out this person has a connection to Ranger -- it's his ex-wife. At the same time, Ranger's daughter has been kidnapped, and someone suspects he's behind it all. But for what reason? As the book progresses, you learn how much Stephanie Plum is really torn up about Ranger, despite her feelings for Joe Morelli. While the back and forth is starting to bug me (which man will she choose!), given Ranger is my favorite character, it was a strong book full of information and subtle vibes. And sometimes not so subtle! Always a good book to curl up with on the couch, this won't disappoint. And at least it's a bit different from the normal shenanigans where Plum is trying to track down a kooky bail jumper. There's plenty of things happening here tho... between underlying tensions, fear and confusion, she's still her normal fun mess!

n  n    About Men  n
For those new to me or my reviews... here's the scoop: I read A LOT. I write A LOT. And now I blog A LOT. First the book review goes on Goodreads, and then I send it on over to my WordPress blog at https://thisismytruthnow.com, where you'll also find TV & Film reviews, the revealing and introspective 365 Daily Challenge and lots of blogging about places I've visited all over the world. And you can find all my social media profiles to get the details on the who/what/when/where and my pictures. Leave a comment and let me know what you think. Vote in the poll and ratings. Thanks for stopping by. I appreciate it.

This series just keeps on getting better and better. Never a dull moment and lots of laughs along the way.

I won't bother with my bitching again. It's all the same. Actually in this book Ranger ends up having to stay with Stephanie. So Joe decides that he needs to stand between the untrustworthy Ranger and his kind of slutty girlfriend Stephanie. When Stephanie says she thinks it's a bad idea, Ranger tells her, "I'm not leaving. And if you have sex with him while I'm here, I'll kill him." Take a moment. If Stephanie has sex with her boyfriend, Ranger will shoot him. So I decided that Morelli is the only good person in all this, and maybe Stephanie and Ranger deserve each other.

When will my Christmas presents be done?

Oh my word. Pick a side, would you? And make it Morelli...because picking Ranger would be stupid. Really, Janet...your readership will not fall apart if she makes a choice. Let them evolve. Please? By book 12 (assuming it's one adventure a year, 12 years...if we can even say she's having two a year, still SIX years) what triangle can survive that tension, that long? This one almost did me in...but I love the other characters, and I'm reading 13 out of sheer determination. Call me OCD. Gotta finish the series. Here's hoping that 16 (or is it 17?) starts to resolve the weirdness.

Please?

4.5 rounded up to 5
Fun with Ranger