Stephanie Plum #5

High Five

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Stephanie Plum has a whole lot of trouble on her doorstep.

Her Uncle Fred has disappeared and Grandma Mazur is convinced he's been abducted by aliens.

Meanwhile, Cousin Vinnie has asked her to bring in the vertically challenged Randy Briggs who's jumped bail. But instead of coming quietly, he has taken up residence in Stephanie's closet. The mysterious man called Bunchy is trailing Stephanie in the hope of tracking down Fred. And Benito Ramirez is back from jail, quoting Scripture and vowing to introduce Stephanie to God - face to face.

Thankfully Joe Morelli, the irresistible cop, is still around to give her the odd sleepless night - though now he faces tough competition from the enigmatic Ranger...

336 pages, Paperback

First published July 16,1999

Literary awards
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This edition

Format
336 pages, Paperback
Published
June 1, 2000 by St. Martin's Press
ISBN
9780330371230
ASIN
0330371231
Language
English
Characters More characters
  • Ranger (Rangeman CEO)

    Ranger (rangeman Ceo)

    Perpetrator Name and Alias: Ricardo Carlos Manoso (aka: Ranger).D.O.B.: AugustWanted For: Thinking a salad is a meal and skipping dessert.Previous Offenses: Las Vegas, Nevada—Classified Information. Suspect is no longer allowed in state.Trenton, New Jerse...

  • Lula (Stephanie Plum series))

    Lula (stephanie Plum Series))

    Height: 5 5"Hair: Blonde, no red, no brown, it all looks good on meEyes: BrownJob History: Former ho, now file clerk and part time bounty hunterFavorite Fast Food: Chicken from Cluck-in-a-Bucket, burgers, donuts, subs, pancakes, pizza and baco...

  • Randy Briggs

    Randy Briggs

    Three-foot-tall annoying programmer...

  • Joseph

    Joseph Joe Morelli

    Current Position: Detective, Crimes against Persons, Trenton PDPrevious Positions Held: Patrol, ViceCriminal Record: Minor run-ins with the law related to intoxication/fighting and writing on bathroom walls in his youth. Previously wanted in connection wi...

  • Stephanie Plum

    Stephanie Plum

    Single young woman in Trenton, NJ who was raised by traditional, Roman Catholic parents but has a healthy libido nonetheless. On and off relationship with Joe Morelli, whom shes known since grade school, but finds it hard to resist Ranger as well. Half-It...

  • Tank

    Tank

    Real name Pierre, introduced in Stephanie Plum, book 5. Rangers right-hand man....

About the author

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Janet Evanovich is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Stephanie Plum series, the Lizzy and Diesel series, twelve romance novels, the Alexandra Barnaby novels and Trouble Maker graphic novel, and How I Write: Secrets of a Bestselling Author, as well as the Fox and O'Hare series with co-author Lee Goldberg.

Community Reviews

Rating(4.1 / 5.0, 100 votes)
5 stars
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100 reviews All reviews
April 17,2025
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*** 4.25 ***

An outstanding monthly buddy read with the coolest gang in town, The BB&Bs!!!


""Problem is, you aren't living up to your earning potential," Lula said. "We only got chickenshit cases these days. What you need is to have a serial killer or a homicidal rapist jump bail. Those boys are worth something."
"Yeah, I'd sure like to get a case like that." Big fib. If Vinnie ever gave me a homicidal rapist to chase down I'd quit and get a job selling shoes.""


I want to belong to the Plum family!!! Yes, they are insane, yes they are genetically challenged, but they are soooo much fun, all else pales in comparison!!!

Reading these books one a month is a great decision! It is so, because the books have a very specific feel to them and binge-reading them together would do a disservice to the comic relief they provide. I think of them as a giant chocolate candy-bar with nuts and taffy and everything most wonderful you can think of. Eating one of them is an orgasmic experience, but it does verge on suicide by candy. Attempting two is a death-wish come true! Spacing them and using them as the fluff between the dark, heavy reads we have delved into as of late, is the wisest thing our mods at BB&B came up with and I salute their responsible decision making - after all, they are very concerned with our healthy reading habits:):):) Burning out on a favorite series sucks and this is the best way to prevent it...

This is the 5th book in the Stephani Plum series and she is just as incompetent as ever. She is broke and for some reason, no one is jumping bail in Trenton! She has no money to pay her bills and rent and is looking for something to supplement her income. Enters Ranger, her new part-time employer. The job.... jobs, are varied, semi-legal and definitely not very fitting our luckless bounty-hunter... On top of that, she is working in close proximity with Ranger and Stephani is only human and uncomfortable attraction hums between the two of them... Not that there is anything wrong with that - after all, she and Morelli split a while ago over differences of how they perceive marriage and commitment...

"Not that it's any of my business," Lula said, "but what's going on with you and Morelli? I thought that was over with you two when you moved out."
"It's complicated."
"Your problem is you keep getting involved with men who have lots of potential in bed and no potential at the altar."
"I'm thinking of giving men up altogether," I said. "Celibacy isn't so bad. You don't have to worry about shaving your legs."


So single Stephani has attraction problems, money problems, family problems (her uncle Fred has gone missing and she is looking for him), bounty hunting problems, and worst of all, Ramirez is out on parole and has been looking for her... Needless to say, typical for our characters chaos ensues and at least two cars meet their maker... And Grandma Mazur steels the show every time she is on page:)

I love those books and you guys have to give the series a try, it is a very pleasant and fun way to spend an afternoon - the books read that fast!!! I recommend them to anyone who does not take everything too seriously - these books are only for entertainment and bringing laughter in your lives, not to make deep philosophical or socioeconomic statements, so do not judge them as such... There are stereotypes, there are tropes often used in comedy, and there are some mushy parts, but the overall product is totally worth the time!

So, I wish all wonderful time reading and many, many satisfying books!!!
April 17,2025
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Every one of these Stephanie Plum books makes me glad I'm a Jersey Girl. I enjoy each one of these light-hearted not to be taken too seriously thrillers.
April 17,2025
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I still love me some Ranger and this book did not disappoint. Still ridiculously over the top, especially with the wrap up, but I’m not mad about it.
April 17,2025
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High Five by Janet Evanovich is the fifth Stephanie Plum story I've read and I love them. Stephanie is sassy and funny getting herself in all kind of mischief. This one starts out with Aunt Mable looking for Uncle Fred. He went out to do errands locked his car and hasn't been seen since. As a favor for the family she decides to look into it. She visits Aunt Mabel and asks about Uncle Fred's errands. She makes a bee line for the check at CGR Trash Company. Then Mabel shows her the pictures she found in Fred's desk. They are body parts mingled in with the trash. Stephanie turns the photos over to Joe Morelli her on again off again boyfriend, who is a police detective. Then she has a mysterious guy calling himself Bunchie following her. Morelli tells her Ramirez the psycho boxer was released from prison. Bail bonding is slow. She has one failure to appear, a little person. She needs extra money and asks Ranger if he can help her. He does more than help her. This gets hot fast.
April 17,2025
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La vita di Stephanie Plum è come al solito bella incasinata.
A lavoro i MA scarseggiano e l'unico disponibile è "un uomo di bassa statura".
Ramirez è uscito di prigione e vuole regolare i conti con lei.
Lo zio Fred è sparito misteriosamente e i suoi parenti pretendono che lo ritrovi.
La sua famiglia è sempre fuori di testa, a partire dalla nonna.
E il suo cuore è diviso tra due uomini.

Io adoro la Evanovich, è riuscita a creare un personaggio fuori dalle righe, simpaticissima, con una famiglia strampalata, amici discutibili e sfigata in ogni settore.
Il caso giallo è ben strutturato e fino alla fine non avevo capito cosa fosse successo.
Stephanie non ne combina mai una giusta e abbiamo macchine che saltano per aria, macchine rubate, occupazioni di case, pedinamenti palesi, morti improvvise.
Ma alla fine quello che mi interessava di più erano gli sviluppi con Joe Morelli, l'eterna cotta di Stephanie. Ora i due sono in pausa ma l'attrazione è così forte e palese che sembrano due cagnolini che si girano intorno.
E poi si è aggiunto anche Ranger: Stephanie è molto tentata ma lui è sempre misterioso e poi non è facile rinunciare a Morelli.
Vogliamo parlare della scena finale? Chi avrà invitato Stephanie? Io punto sempre e comunque su Morelli.

Però voglio dedicare due righe anche alla mitica Nonna Mazur. E' esilarante, quando compare sai che se ne uscirà con qualche idea strampalata o combinerà qualche pasticcio. Il tour alle pompe funebri è epico, l'inseguimento con lo sceicco da piegarsi in due. Dovremmo avere tutti una nonna Mazur!
April 17,2025
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Ok.
Pretendo assolutamente una reunion di tutti i personaggi strambi e divertenti che si sono imbattuti in Stephanie.
Ma ci pensate?
Sally, Bunchy, Briggs, Lula e nonna Mazur tutti in un unico libro.
Fantastico. Sento che accadrà :3 #fiducia

Ma passiamo a pensieri un po' più seri.
Spero sia normale perdersi tra le miriadi di nomi che vengono fatti ogni volta. La Evanovich è un genio (ed io la amo IMMENSAMENTE per questo) ma la sua fantasia non conosce limiti, ed io spesso e volentieri mi ritrovo un tantino spaesata.
Ma non importa.

Quello che importa, adesso, è altro.
Quello che importa è STEPHANIE GUAI A TE SE NON È MORELLI!!
April 17,2025
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These books are getting better: characters are starting to develop, and our protagonist actually contributes to solving the who-dunnit. Stephanie's relationship with Morelli improves, the angst between them is bearable and their behaviours are believable, though it's still vapid. The attempted relationship/angst with Ranger was just wrong.

Not one pocketbook in sight, it's a shoulder bag now. Finally. Maybe the writing is improving, or maybe I'm becoming used to it... Here's my short list of American words from book 5:
1. “[Grandma] slid her uppers” - possibly to do with her dentures (?)
2. Sonovagun - Son. Of. A. Gun. (this had me stumped for longer than I'd like to admit...)
3. pokey - prison
4. town car - limo, chauffeured car
5. kielbasa - Polish sausage
6. wonkie - penis (?)
7. fireplug - short, stocky person

I do still need my notes to keep track of the number of characters in this universe - my count is now up to about 300 separate characters over 5 books...

Favourite quote:
"I rolled my eyes so far into the back of my head I saw myself thinking."
April 17,2025
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Typical Stephanie Plum. Grandma zaps dad with a stun gun, a Porsche is bombed, a bmw is stolen but the Buick lives on. And even I can’t eat six candy bars when I’m out of sorts! Good fun read.
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