Ho-ho-ho! No, I’m not talking about Lula’s former profession. I’m talking about a holiday-themed Steph adventure. And my latest attempt to finish the whole Plum canon.

It’s a short one, and it feels that way. Diesel makes his first appearance in the most deus ex machina way I’ve seen so far. He gets kinda zapped, no lie, into Steph’s apartment. I’ve kinda backed into the Diesel chronicles, reading the most recent and getting to the first only now. He’s not Morelli or Ranger (in that order; come at me, Team Ranger!), but he does bring some literal magic to the series.



That said, I don’t remember him having those superhuman abilities to transport himself or sidestep locks in either Plum Spooky or Game On: Tempting Twenty-Eight. Then, Steph’s skip and another mysterious character had some electricity. It was a little surprising.

Also, her skip is “Sandy Claws”? Sure, it’s a riff on a real name, but eh…it felt a little gimmicky. And the Christmas stuff felt…rushed. The mystery was OK: not the most compelling thing ever. But I’d been warned: it’s a novella, and holiday-themed, so I just went with it. And yes, she blows up a car and eats too much. Lula’s there, and I loved the family-oriented ending.

Not my favorite, but what the heck. I love Steph, and I’ll read her no matter what shark she jumps.



And Merry Christmas, Trenton!

Another great read, Stephanie Plum's adventures really make me laugh, the other characters are so funny. I have just about got all the books in the series. If you like a good laugh with a bit of romance chucked in then I highly recommend them.

Being an avid Fantasy reader, my forays into other genres are quite sparse, but when I step away from my beaten path, I highly enjoy what I’m reading for I’m even more picky than is the case when reading fantasy. One of my all-time favourite non-fantasy series has to be the Stephanie Plum-series by Janet Evanovich. Throughout the past years, I steadily worked myself through the first half of the series. Most of the novels were highly enjoyable, one or two fell a bit flat. The latter group can welcome another member, however, cause Visions Of Sugar Plums wasn’t really my cup of tea.

This book is a Plum Holiday novella, the Christmas one this time around, but for Stephanie it’s all but Christmas. Things are going wrong all over the place and to top things off, there’s a strange man in her apartment. That man turns out to be Diesel, the male lead in this novel and he is some kind of supernatural being. Together they try to save Christmas, or something like that.
Note how vague my summary of this book is? That is because this book was vague. Like in all Plum-novels, there is some mystery, this time it’s got something to do with elves. Normally, I would have liked this, but the supernatural twist made it all weird. Clearly, I’ve got nothing against the supernatural, but for eight books, this world was one without magic. When you suddenly introduce these kind of things, you get me confused, even though your main character is confused as well. In some way or another, the whole addition of the supernatural felt really contrived and it didn’t really feel like it belonged it this world. Which it doesn’t, really, or at least that is my opinion. When it is used to get out of a situation that would be certain death otherwise, you lost me completely. It doesn’t help that nothing is explained, at all.
Remember how I described Diesel as a supernatural ‘being’? Well, I don’t know what he is. Witch, troll, powerful human,… I just don’t know and that’s the problem here. Some kind of magic is added to the world Stephanie lives in, but you never get an explanation as to why it is there, apparently all of a sudden.
The ending is also very abrupt. It is a novella, so it is way shorter than a regular Plum-novel, but that doesn’t mean you don’t have to work your way towards the ending, as a writer. Here, it was just rushed and when I got there, I was so disappointed. This wasn’t what I wanted it to be, at all.

I’ve read in some other reviews that the events in this novella aren’t touched upon in the other books, which probably is a good thing. I am pro pretending this never existed in the first place. Mind, it wasn’t terrible, but it was clearly below every Stephanie Plum she’s ever written. I’ve got the other Between the numbers – Plum Lovin’, Lucky and Spooky – but I have slightly higher hopes for those seeing as they are regular Plum-sized. Still, I think that Janet Evanovich does non-supernatural best.

I needed to read this book yesterday. Stephanie Plum serves as a huge pick me up for me. This book did not disappoint. A little different than the full lake Plum mysteries. There was even a bit of the supernatural, but otherwise pretty much true to Evanovich's form.

3.5 Stars Really, NOT 3.

I LOVE to read most all things... Supernatural, Paranormal, Preternatural,... just "Other" in general. Even some sci-fy, distopian and fantasy. But I do have a few "Non-Other" books and series that I enjoy and look forward to reading. The Stephanie Plum Books are some of those "Non-Other" books that I love.

This Stephanie Between the Numbers has crossed over a bit and I can't decide if I'm thrilled with the mix. Somehow "Other" in Stephanie's world just doesn't seem to fit to me. But I always enjoy Janet Evanovich's crazy cast of characters. And true to form, this book has its laugh out loud moments. I liked that it wasn't totally wrapped up in Joe and Ranger, and instead Diesel was a nice twist, he was awesome.

This Stephanie Book, had one two of the most emotional scenese I ever felt with this series, both including Stephanie's niece Mary-Alice. Short scenes, but had me all choked up none-the-less. Maybe it was the clever scene, or the idea of kids growing out of believing in Santa or just plain hormones. Whatever. I was a teared up wreck over these two parts. And that NEVER happens in the Plum Books.

So in the end, a good laugh, a teensy tear, a bit of "Other-ness" and all entertainment.

4 Stars for Visions of Sugar Plums: Stephanie Plum, Book 8.5 (audiobook) by Janet Evanovich read by Lorelei King.

It’s days before Christmas and Stephanie has fugitives to apprehend and she still needs to start her Christmas shopping. Diesel pops into her life to give her some help but he may be more of a distraction. There are elves to track down and her sister has a surprise to announce, but can Stephanie get ready for Christmas?

I needed this today. Stephanie just makes me happy

This story is really silly...but I still liked it.

It's very Christmassy with plenty of Grandma Mazur, a bit of Morelli and some Lula bits to keep me happy.

Recommended for Stephanie Plum fans but it is a bit ridiculous (I mean more ridiculous than usual haha!).

I love the Stephanie Plum books. So I thought I'd try this "between the numbers " book. In this book Diesel appears in Stephanies kitchen and insists she help him round up a bail skip. I had no problem with Diesel, even though I don't think Stephanie needs another man in her life. My problem is after so many books set in the "normal " world. Now all of a sudden the author throws in a paranormal twist. It does not work for me. Did not care for it.

It's five days before Christmas and Stephanie, the world's worst bounty hunter, has been tasked with apprehending Sandy Claws. Hunting down a toymaker just before the holidays isn't much fun but she needs the bounty he'll earn her so that she can afford to celebrate Christmas. As of right now she doesn't have any decorations, she's relying on her parents for dinner and she hasn't bought a single present so the situation is getting critical.

Visions of Sugar Plums is all the fun of a Stephanie Plum novel sprinkled with a whole lot of Christmas magic. I'd forgotten how much I love the Between the Numbers novels, Diesel is a great addition to the series and I love the mysterious vibe he gives off with the way he seems to appear and disappear at will. Throw in shopping with Lula, Grandma Mazur's new stud muffin, Valerie's surprise, a couple of appearances by Morelli and some elves starting a riot and you're in for a treat.

This book is slightly shorter than the main novels in the series but it's perfect reading for this time of year and it's pretty much guaranteed to put a smile on your face. It's definitely put me in the mood to dig out the Christmas decorations and put up the tree so perhaps I should have waited until december to read it :o)

Evanovich’s books are like sitting down to coffee with an old friend - it’s great to hear about the gang. The books are a bit formulaic but fun. Great characters.

#8.5 in the Stephanie Plum series

This was just silly. It wasn't up to Evanovich's usual standard of humor and entertainment, although there were flashes of her style from time to time. I'd probably rate it 2.5 stars, but because all the usual characters were there with the addition of Diesel (from the Lizzy & Diesel series), I'll round it up for GR. In this case, Stephanie is trying to find Sandy Claws, a skip who seems to be running a toy shop just before Christmas, hiring a number of little people to work for him, with a wife who is constantly baking cookies. The book is certainly a light and quick read, but it's almost too light. By that I mean that it seems like a short story that was written to emulate Evanovich, copying all of her signature humor with none of the warmth that is usually there. It seemed much too fluffy. But, it was fun and I enjoyed it.