The first of the long running series. A lot of fun. Looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

"[You say it's] 'nothing personal'? You've harassed my mother, stolen my car, and now you're telling people I've gotten you pregnant! In my opinion, getting someone pregnant is pretty ****ing personal! Jesus, isn't it enough I'm accused of murder? What are you, the bounty hunter from hell?" -- Joe Morelli, the initial 'failure-to-appear' case assignment, on page 160

Author Evanovich is doing something right, with a total of twenty-seven (!) Stephanie Plum dramedy crime adventures published over the course of twenty-seven years starting way back in 1994. In the debut One for the Money we meet Ms. Plum, an early-thirtysomething single gal from 'the burg' (the hardscrabble working-class section of Trenton, New Jersey) who has just lost her full-time gig as a lingerie buyer for a local department store. With limited job options she turns to her shifty cousin, who runs his own bail bonds operation. Very quickly Plum jumps head-first into service as a novice bounty hunter (a title which smacks of a Wild West origin - the position also referred to as a 'skip tracer' or, officially, a bond enforcement agent), as her cousin's usual go-to operative is on medical leave. Her initial 'failure to appear' fugitive retrieval assignment is a personal and complicated one - it involves a former classmate / one-time romantic fling named Morelli, who is now a scruffy vice investigator who has disappeared as he is suspected of a murder. Evanovich has crafted a very readable and occasionally suspenseful story that segues rather skillfully between the comic scenes and some fairly dark moments, and then populates it with a nice ensemble cast of characters.

Men are evil

In the larger scheme of things, my review at this point in time would be anti-climatic, since this book has been out for so long. But I did a re-read recently and felt that I just had to chime in.

I remember when I first read this back in the '90 when it first came out. Reading this book had me not only at the edge of my chair, but occasionally rolling on the floor with laughter. As time went by and more and more of these books came out, I found myself to be very invested in this series. Many people think that Ms. Evanovich should give up and pack it in I say - don't do it.

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Many reviewers might not agree with me, but I have certainly seen Stephanie grow from the bumbling near failure in book one to something resembling a real kick-butt bounty hunter, who just happens to be in love with 2 different men, in the more recent books. (I'm a Ranger fan myself!)

Anyway - this was a great book for the time period and it has withstood the passage of time and an attempt to make a movie out of it. One For The Money. The story is one of the best and pretty much one of the scariest since Steph is just learning the ropes. In this book, she bites off a bit more than she can chew when she takes on the bounty on Joe Morelli's head. Because he is a Trenton cop, he knows how to be slick and to stay in the wind, so to Speaker. These two had an interesting relationship while growing up in the "Burg" Joe was always trying to get into Stephie's panties and eventually he does. And then suffers a broken leg for his meager efforts!

There is a fabulous murder mystery going on as well as the faintest flame of romance. There is a lot of comical happenings too. Don't forget that this is the first book in the series and Ms. Evanovich is struggling to form the main characters, their backgrounds and also the secondary and tertiary characters too. Many of these we will see again in the coming books.

It is an enjoyable and fast read, just perfect for the beach or a rainy or snowy weekend

I have always heard of the Stephanie Plum series but I've never read it. Felt good to finally read this. It truly keeps you on your toes but also makes you laugh along the way. I love Stephanie and her personality, she truly makes these books worth reading!

One for the Money (Stephanie Plum #1) by Janet Evanovich

Synopsis /

You've lost your job as a department store lingerie buyer, your car's been repossessed, and most of your furniture and small appliances have been sold off to pay last month's rent. Now the rent is due again. And you live in New Jersey. What do you do?

If you're Stephanie Plum, you become a bounty hunter. But not just a nickel-and-dime bounty hunter; you go after the big money. That means a cop gone bad. And not just any cop. She goes after Joe Morelli, a disgraced former vice cop who is also the man who took Stephanie's virginity at age 16 and then wrote details on a bathroom wall. With pride and rent money on the line, Plum plunges headlong into her first case, one that pits her against ruthless adversaries - people who'd rather kill than lose.

My Thoughts /

I needed to 'read a book with a green cover' for a reader challenge. The Challenge Gods must have been looking down at me favourably that day because this one came into my feed. And well, in for a penny, in for a pound as the saying goes. And not only that, but the library copy was a largeprint version, so…..winning!! Yes, I'm blind as a bat without glasses and I hate when I get a library book that is less than an A5 in size and has a 6 point font - don't get me started.

One for the Money by Janet Evanovich is the first book in the Stephanie Plum series. And a thumbs up to me for actually starting a new series at book 1, because I usually come in anywhere and everywhere and wonder why I'm so confused!

Let's meet Stephanie Plum. Life's not been too kind to Steph of late and she's in deep……deep doo doo that is. Yep, basically, at the moment, her life is full of nothing but hard knocks. She's lost her job, her car has been repo'ed and she's been systematically selling off her furniture and appliances so that she can make the rent payment each month. What's a girl to do? Move back home with her parents? I think not - oh the embarrassment! But there's nothing to say that she can't go over and have dinner with them, especially if your mum happens to be a great cook - so there's that.

So when Step finally breaks down and tells her parents that she’s lost her job and is now trying to find work, her father points her towards her cousin, Vinnie, who runs a bail-bond business. Swallowing her pride, she goes to see Vinnie, expecting that he'd get her to do filing or admin. You can well imagine her surprise when he informs her all he has available is a skip tracer position - but, she can only have that on a trial basis for a week until his regular chap comes back on line. Well, a week is better than nothing right? You might well ask, what exactly does a skip tracer do? Well, a skip tracer or, bounty hunter, looks for those who have gone "walkabout", missed their court appearance or broke their bail conditions. You find them, bring them back to face a judge, court or the police station and collect the "bounty" for bringing them in. Sounds dangerous I hear you say? Well, what follows is an absolute riotous tale of comedic adventures and laugh out loud moments. Steph's first bounty is worth $10,000.00 - shouldn't be a problem for someone who knows nothing about tailing and catching a criminal right? Her first assignment: locate and bring in Joe Morelli, a former vice cop on the run from a charge of murder one. Here's a snippet from Steph:

I did a pocketbook inventory, making sure I had all my goodies - cuffs, bludgeoning baton, flashlight, gun, extra ammo (not much good to me since I'd already forgotten how to load the gun - still, you never knew when you might need something heavy to throw at an escaping felon). I crammed Dodd's file in along with a collapsible umbrella and a package of peanut butter crackers for emergency snacking.

Poverty is a great motivator for learning new skills…… all she has to do is become an expert bounty hunter overnight-and, keep herself from getting killed…..

I locked the Nova, hung my big black bag over my shoulder, and set out. I'd put the fiasco with Mrs Morelli behind me, and felt pretty damn slick in my suit and heels, toting my bounty hunter hardware. Embarrassing as it was to admit, I was beginning to enjoy the role, think there was nothing like packing a pair of cuffs to put some spring into a woman's step.

It turns out that her first 'suspect' worth that ten grand is the sweet-talking neighbour boy from her childhood. Uh oh, Joe Morelli spells trouble. From the time he first looked up her dress, to the time he… well, 'deflowered' her in the bakery where she worked as a teen, suddenly, the case is much more personal. Even now, in adulthood, Joe Morelli continues to embarrass and tease her and sometimes, yes - confuse her a little in the kissing department; but all the while continues to elude her. He claims he's innocent of all charges. We've all heard that before, right!

Throughout the book, we meet some awesome relatable characters – Stephanie’s parents, her grandmother, some of the other bounty hunters that work for Vinnie, and of course, family connections….

Intuition and desperation told me otherwise, so I called Eddie Gazarra, who was a Trenton cop and had been one of my very best friends since the day I was born. Not only was he a good friend, but he was married to my cousin, Shirley the Whiner. Why Gazarra had married Shirley was beyond my comprehension, but they'd been married for eleven years so I suppose they had something going between them.

Evanovich's writing is smooth, clever and, for me, laugh-out-loud. Her plot is ingenious and fresh, her dialogue breezy, bright, witty, and chock full of dry humour.

Does Steph end up catching her bounty? Well, you will just have to read this one to find out. Just please don't leave it for the challenge that says 'read a book with a green cover'……life is too short!

One of the many books I often reread. Not sure how many times I've read this book. Stephanie Plum is one of my favorite characters in literature. She's funny and vivacious.

2/2018. Another reread so I could visit with Stephanie and the Plum family. I love this series more every time I read them.

Entertaining mystery listening