I really enjoy this series of books.
Something quick, light and funny to read.

n  n    Hard Eightn  n
n  n    Stephanie Plum, Book 8n  n

n  I Picked Up This Book Because:n Continue the series

n  The Characters:n

Stephanie Plum:
Lula, Ranger, Joe Manelli

n  The Story:n

One of these days I might get tired of Stephanie making a mess of her life but today is not that day. Once again Stephanie has managed to piss off the wrong criminal and gotten herself into a whole heap of weird trouble that includes snakes, spiders and a giant bunny. Thank goodness for Ranger and his endless connections. I would really love to learn more about his character. There was less grandma in this book but that’s probably a good thing as she seems to bring as much trouble as Stephanie. She does it with flair and comedy though so I missed her.


n  The Random Thoughts:n



n  The Score Card:n



3.75 Stars

I love this series. I love Stephanie and all the side characters Lula, Grandma and even Vincent. I also love Ranger. Stephanie goes back and forth between Ranger (yay) and Morelli (boo). They keep saying Ranger isn't marriage material but he is the one of the two of them who has been married and has a kid. I am kind of thinking that maybe he never divorced his wife or something. This book had some pretty scary scenes but the book was one I couldn't put down.

I really need to stop picking these up. But I do love Stephanie's grandmother....sadly she wasn't in this one much. And....watch it, this one is risque! It mentions sex and boy parts...and heaven's to Betsy!! SOOOO shocking. I feel like Ms. Evanovich realized she needed to up the steam and romance, but can't figure out how to do it....

This one a woman and her child are missing. And Stephanie is trying to find them before the bad guys. It was lame. Morelli wasn't really around, Ranger was....

Read: Nah.

Stephanie’s investigating a case as a favor to her neighbor, missing kids. Not Vinne’s.
She manages to irritate the wrong people … blows up more cars than usual—and it’s hilarious every time, as is the commentary of her friends.

On a personal note: things heat up both with Ranger and Morelli. Good for her!

Fun as ever.
4 stars.


Audio:
I’m not fan of this narrator, but it’s tolerable.

3.75/5
Better than the last couple mostly because the bad guys were more threatening.

Ranger, Morelli, and all the things! There’s no way to choose.

This 8th in the series is a bit darker than some of the others with a truly scary villain, but is still a good adventure for Stephanie. She and Joe are on the outs, although he still comes running when she is threatened, and Ranger is moving in on her. There is a second story line where Stephanie is trying to help find the daughter and granddaughter of one of her parents' neighbors just in case she gets a free minute. Despite all that there are some genuinely funny moments as always.

“I knew there were no such things as death cooties. Unfortunately, that's an intellectual fact. And death cooties are an emotional reality.”

For a book about a bounty hunter, I find it funny that my favorite installments are the ones that aren't about a bounty. This one was really good and managed to tug on my heartstrings with a sweet story of a mother and young daughter trying to escape an abusive man and start a new life. Stephanie, as always, is fierce, compassionate, and in completely over her head. I love the hurricane of craziness that she brings with her to every situation, and she always manages to keep you frustrated with her poor decision-making skills but still rooting for her all the time.

This is my favorite of the series so far even though book 6 was pretty good as well. This is one of the most entertaining series I have ever read, and it was exactly what I needed. The mysteries are always crazy but the characters are so quirky and silly but I love it. This book had me laughing out loud and the scenes between Stephanie and Ranger had me blushing but it’s what I’ve been waiting for!! I put off reading these books for so long because of all of the silliness, but I’m getting so much enjoyment from these stories and it’s nice to know that I have so many yet to read. I chose the audio version with Lorelei King narrating, and she did a fabulous job with all of the different characters. I’m so glad I finally started reading these books and I can’t wait for book 9! They are my guilty pleasures!

Stephanie Plum, Trenton, NJ bounty hunter, always gets her man ... or woman. Well, usually, um sometimes. And there are the times God seems to be protecting the bond dodger and Stepanie needs help. Sometimes she uses Lula or Morelli or Ranger. But the best ones, the most entertaning are those where God seems insistence and Vince Plum, owner of the Bail Bond Company, decided the case ned his special touch assisting his incompetent bond enforcer. As if that is not enough, Stephanie catches the eye of a local vicious gangster, and not in a good way. Enjoy!

Probably the least satisfying of the run so far. I was always worried that we would end up running over the same old ground and Evanovich is never afraid of repeating a joke (Stephanie's car gets blown up) and then hitting it several more times in the same book. Until now the saving grace has always been some solid detective work among the slapstick and the tomfoolery. This time around there was more nutty japes than actual hunting of bounty and an off-screen execution at the end left me a little unsatisfied.