Back of the book:

Bounty hunter Stephanie Plum’s life is set to blow sky high when international murder hits dangerously close to home, in this dynamite novel by Janet Evanovich.
 
Before Stephanie can even step foot off Flight 127 Hawaii to Newark, she’s knee deep in trouble. Her dream vacation turned into a nightmare, and she’s flying back to New Jersey solo. Worse still, her seatmate never returned to the plane after the L.A. layover. Now he’s dead, in a garbage can, waiting for curbside pickup. His killer could be anyone. And a ragtag collection of thugs and psychos, not to mention the FBI, are all looking for a photograph the dead man was supposed to be carrying.
 
Only one other person has seen the missing photo—Stephanie Plum. Now she’s the target, and she doesn’t intend to end up in a garbage can. With the help of an FBI sketch artist Stephanie re-creates the person in the photo. Unfortunately the first sketch turns out to look like Tom Cruise, and the second sketch like Ashton Kutcher. Until Stephanie can improve her descriptive skills, she’ll need to watch her back.
 
Over at the bail bonds agency things are going from bad to worse. The bonds bus serving as Vinnie’s temporary HQ goes up in smoke. Stephanie’s wheelman, Lula, falls in love with their largest skip yet. Lifetime arch nemesis Joyce Barnhardt moves into Stephanie’s apartment. And everyone wants to know what happened in Hawaii?

Morelli, Trenton’s hottest cop, isn’t talking about Hawaii. Ranger, the man of mystery, isn’t talking about Hawaii.  And all Stephanie is willing to say about her Hawaiian vacation is . . . It’s complicated.

My thoughts:

After a string of 4 or 5 lackluster books, I feel like Evanovich has managed to breathe at least a little bit of new life into this stale series. Some things haven’t changed – Stephanie’s still not the greatest bounty hunter, has horrible luck with cars, and can’t make up her mind about either Morelli OR Ranger. Though after her disastrous Hawaiian vacation, she’s not particularly anxious to be face-to-face with either of them.

Stephanie actually does a fairly good job of fending for herself in this one, fighting off fake FBI agents and apartment intruders with no outside help. Unfortunately, this also meant we didn’t see nearly enough of either guy. And I could do with a little bit less Lula. She’s actually managed to become a caricature of herself, all tight clothes and buckets of chicken.

As for the mystery of what’s in the photo, I found that part of the plot more than a little implausible. It felt like Evanovich was making a jump into technology that she really wasn’t prepared for.

I think it’s going to take a lot to get this series back to where it was at its peak, but this one was entertaining enough to keep me reading until the end. But maybe Stephanie can find some personal growth in the next one?

Available from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | IndieBound | WorldCat

Other reviews:

• “I am getting off the crazy train. If I want to read cars getting blown up, her sneaky snarkness, and some hot glimpses of two actual men…I’ll read the early plum books.” – Badass Book Reviews
• “This is the worst Stephanie Plum yet; I’m so disappointed.” — Peppermint Ph.D.
• “If you’re looking for an entertaining read filled with mishaps, explosions/fires, funerals, mysterious people turning up in Stephanie’s apartment and Stephanie stuck between her love for two men this would be your read.” — Mrs Q: Book Addict

Past reviews:

2011: Heads You Lose (Lisa Lutz & David Hayward)
2010: What Do We Do Now? (Keith Malley & Chemda)
2009: Soul Catcher (Michael C. White)
2008: Twilight (Stephenie Meyer)
2007: Full House (Janet Evanovich)
2006: Judgement in Death (J.D. Robb)
2005: The Sigma Protocol (Robert Ludlum)

Where there’s smoke there’s fire, and no one knows this better than New Jersey bounty hunter Stephanie Plum.

Dead bodies are showing up in shallow graves on the empty construction lot of Vincent Plum Bail Bonds. No one is sure who the killer is, or why the victims have been offed, but what is clear is that Stephanie’s name is on the killer’s list.

Short on time to find evidence proving the killer’s identity, Stephanie faces further complications when her family and friends decide that it’s time for her to choose between her longtime off-again-on-again boyfriend, Trenton cop Joe Morelli, and the bad boy in her life, security expert Ranger. Stephanie’s mom is encouraging Stephanie to dump them both and choose a former high school football star who’s just returned to town. Stephanie’s sidekick, Lula, is encouraging Stephanie to have a red-hot boudoir “bake-off.” And Grandma Bella, Morelli’s old-world grandmother, is encouraging Stephanie to move to a new state when she puts “the eye” on Stephanie.

With a cold-blooded killer after her, a handful of hot men, and a capture list that includes a dancing bear and a senior citizen vampire, Stephanie’s life looks like it’s about to go up in smoke.

This had everything you expect from a Stephanie Plum novel: a couple of wacky captures, a destroyed car or two, Grandma terrorizing the funeral home, lots of Lulu, and some hot lovin’ between Stephanie and Morelli (or Ranger) (or both). Unfortunately, I really think it’s time to either shake up the formula a bit or to shut down the series completely.

Stephanie does a few things that are out of character when it comes to her love life, but I’m starting to wonder if the triangle (and I use that term loosely, since it’s mostly all talk no action with Ranger) will ever be resolved.

And while the serial killer storyline was vaguely interesting, it was also as transparent as a window. By the time the second body showed up, I knew who the killer was.

I suppose I’ll continue reading the series, but my excitement for it is waning.

Other reviews:

The Brazen Bookworm: Book Review: Smokin’ Seventeen by Janet Evanovich
Reflections of a Bookaholic: Review: Smokin’ Seventeen
Review: Smokin’ Seventeen {Stephanie Plum #17} by Janet Evanovich
Review: Smokin’ Seventeen « Bermudaonion’s Weblog
Duffbert’s Random Musings :: Book Review – Smokin’ Seventeen by Janet Evanovich

Page count: 320 (’11 total: 14,078) | Approximate word count: 80,000 (’11 total: 5,121,870)

2010: Pay Dirt (Rita Mae Brown)
2009: Sunny Chandler’s Return (Sandra Brown)
2008: Sharp Teeth (Toby Barlow)
2007: The Apprentice (Tess Gerritsen)
2006: The Winds of War (Herman Wouk)
2005: Four to Score (Janet Evanovich)

Used in these Challenges: 2011 E-book Reading Challenge; Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge 2011;

Trenton, New Jersey, bounty hunter Stephanie Plum has inherited a “lucky” bottle from her Uncle Pip. Problem is, Uncle Pip didn’t specify if the bottle brought good luck or bad luck. . . .

BAD LUCK:

Vinnie, of Vincent Plum Bail Bonds, has run up a gambling debt of $786,000 with mobster Bobby Sunflower and is being held until the cash can be produced. Nobody else will pay to get Vinnie back, leaving it up to Stephanie, office manager Connie, and file clerk Lula to raise the money if they want to save their jobs.

GOOD LUCK:

Being in the business of tracking down people, Stephanie, Lula, and Connie have an advantage in finding Vinnie. If they can rescue him, it will buy them some time to raise the cash.

BAD LUCK:

Finding a safe place to hide Vinnie turns out to be harder than raising $786,000. Vinnie’s messing up Mooner’s vibe, running up pay-per-view porn charges in Ranger’s apartment, and making Stephanie question genetics.

GOOD LUCK:

Between a bonds office yard sale that has the entire Burg turning out, Mooner’s Hobbit-Con charity event, and Uncle Pip’s lucky bottle, they just might raise enough money to save the business, and Vinnie, from ruin.

BAD LUCK:

Saving Vincent Plum Bail Bonds means Stephanie can keep being a bounty hunter. In Trenton, this involves hunting down a man wanted for polygamy, a turnpike toilet paper bandit, and a drug dealer with a pet alligator named Mr. Jingles.

GOOD LUCK:

The job of bounty hunter comes with perks in the guise of Trenton’s hottest cop, Joe Morelli, and the dark and dangerous security expert, Ranger. With any luck at all, Uncle Pip’s lucky bottle will have Stephanie getting lucky—the only question is . . . with whom?

Unfortunately, this series is losing its luster with me. Beyond a few laughs, I was kinda bored with this.  It’s really just the same ole, same ole, and I’m ready for Stephanie to grow more as a character.  And while the Stephanie/Morelli/Ranger triangle has the potential to add a little spice to any book, Stephanie and Morelli’s on-again-off-again thing is getting tiresome. Though maybe a little more Morelli and Ranger would have helped this book — they were both missing for large parts of it.  Really, Morelli is hardly in it at all. Things are really up in the air at the end of this book, so maybe my dreams will come true and Stephanie will find a new way to get into trouble.

Other reviews:

A Book Blogger’s Diary: Review – Sizzling Sixteen by Janet Evanovich
Book Series Reviews: Sizzling Sixteen (Stephanie Plum) by Janet Evanovich
MariReads: Book Review: Sizzling Sixteen by Janet Evanovich
YABOOKNERD: Mysterious Saturday Review: Sizzling Sixteen
Book Review: Sizzling Sixteen by Janet Evanovich – I’d So Rather Be Reading

Page count: 320 | Approximate word count: 80,000

2009: Jar City (Arnaldur Indridason)
2008: Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder (Joanne Fluke)
2007: Sacred and Profane (Faye Kellerman)
2006: A Certain Justice (John Lescroart)

Used in these Challenges: 2010 100+ Reading Challenge; E-book Reading Challenge; Pages Read Challenge Season 2;

Kick-ass bounty hunter and witch Rachel Morgan has crossed forbidden lines, taken demonic hits, and still stands. But the death of her lover struck her harder than she ever thought possible. She won’t rest until his murder is solved . . . and avenged.

But a new predator is moving to the apex of the Inderlander food chain—and now Rachel’s past is coming back to haunt her.

Literally.

Oh, Rachel Morgan series, how I love thee.  Let me count the ways:

1. You are full of rich, conflicted, and complicated characters.  Your good guys are just a little bad, and your bad guys are just a little good, which makes everyone a lovely shade of grey.  A reader can find themselves wondering if a demon or ruthless business man are really all *that* bad.
2. You are full of rich, conflicted, and complicated relationships.  In real life, there are layers to relationships, and Harrison knows how to show it in her novels. Rachel and Ivy are more than partners.  They’re best friends, and feel a deep loyalty to each other, often without thinking of the consequences to themselves (or thinking of them, and deciding they don’t matter).  Jenks has grown into much more than the spunky pixie side-kick.  He is a father figure packed into four inches of determination and love. Even Rachel’s relationship with the demon Al has many levels, from resentment to respect.
3. You take place in an incredibly different yet familiar world. Harrison has managed to build an alternate universe of sorts, one which might have been the same as our real world if not for some diseased tomatoes.
4. You seamlessly move the major series arc ahead while giving us an interesting immediate concern.
5. You don’t dilly dally with namby pamby background at the beginning of the story — you jump right in to the action! One thing that Harrison is especially gifted at is working the background information into the course of the story without it being overly intrusive.
6. You build upon current supernatural mythologies without changing too much and without adding cheesy elements. In Harrison’s books, the supernatural often feel more natural than the human.
7. You never ignore the past.  Events that happened in the first books in the series still have an impact in the last books.

This series is really one of the best paranormal series out there.  If you’re not reading it, YOU SHOULD BE.

Other reviews:

SciFiGuy.ca: Review – “White Witch, Black Curse” by Kim Harrison
Darque Reviews: Review – White Witch, Black Curse by Kim Harrison
White Witch, Black Curse by Kim Harrison : Book Review
Alpha Heroes: White Witch, Black Curse – Kim Harrison – Review
Beyond Books » Blog Archive » White Witch, Black Curse

Audiobook length: 18 hrs 33 min | Approximate word count: 144,000

2009: Breath of Scandal (Sandra Brown)
2008: Seduction in Death (J.D. Robb)
2007: Exile (Richard North Patterson)
2006: The Snake, the Crocodile, and the Dog (Elizabeth Peters)
2005: H is for Homicide (Sue Grafton)

Used in these Challenges: Four Month Challenge; 2010 100+ Reading Challenge; Audiobook Challenge;

Recipe for disaster: Celebrity chef Stanley Chipotle comes to Trenton to participate in a barbecue cook-off and loses his head – literally.

Throw in some spice: Bail bonds office worker Lula is witness to the crime, and the only one she’ll talk to is Trenton cop, Joe Morelli.

Pump up the heat: Chipotle’s sponsor is offering a million-dollar reward to anyone who can provide information leading to the capture of the killers.

Stir the pot: Lula recruits bounty hunter Stephanie Plum to help her find the killers and collect the moolah.

Add a secret ingredient: Stephanie’s Grandma Mazur. Enough said.

Bring to a boil: Can Stephanie hunt down two killers, a traitor, five skips, keep her grandmother out of the sauce, solve Ranger’s problems and not jump his bones?

Warning: Habanero hot. So good you’ll want seconds.

I have to admit, I was a little surprised to find Stephanie and Morelli on the outs when this novel begins, since they’d been getting pretty cozy in the last couple of books.  However, you won’t find me complaining, because less Morelli meant more Ranger, and I’m a Ranger girl through and through.  I thought this was the best out of the last few Plum novels.  It wasn’t quite as zany as some (after all, there are no monkeys in this one), but Stephanie still manages to destroy several vehicles, get shot at a few times, have her apartment firebombed, and give Joyce Barnhardt food poisoning. Sure, she doesn’t learn much from her mistakes, but isn’t that why we like her so much?

I can’t help it, I still love this series.

Audiobook length: 6hrs 18min | Approximate word count: 77,490

2008: The Finishing School (Michele Martinez)
2007: Lean Mean Thirteen (Janet Evanovich)
2006: The Sky is Falling (Sidney Sheldon)
2005: Jacob’s Ladder (Donald McCaig)

Used in these Challenges: 100+ Reading Challenge 2009; The 999 Challenge; What’s in a Name Challenge;

When a vampire serial killer sends Anita Blake a grisly souvenir from Las Vegas, she has to warn Sin City’s local authorities what they’re dealing with. Only it’s worse than she thought. Ten officers and one executioner have been slain—paranormal style. Anita heads to Vegas, where’s she’s joined by three other federal marshals, including the ruthless Edward. It’s a good thing he always has her back, because when she gets close to the bodies, Anita senses “tiger” too strongly to ignore it. The weretigers are very powerful in Las Vegas, which means the odds of her rubbing someone important the wrong way just got a lot higher.

I had such high hopes for this book! Anita was back to being an executioner! She’s on the road, so her stable of men will be smaller! Maybe there will be less of the metaphysical stuff!

And then I was so, so disappointed. If there was ever a book in need of an editor with a sharp red pen, it was this one.

The worst part of the book?  The talking, talking, and more talking. Everyone had to discuss every little freakin’ thing, at the most inopportune times, and ad nauseum. How many times do we need to revisit the “other people think Anita’s a slut cuz she has so many boyfriends” point? Or the “Olaf the serial killer/U.S. Marshall wants Anita and he makes her really uncomfortable” point? And in the middle of a supposedly fast-paced search for a serial killer?  There is just a ridiculous amount of discussion and pissing contests, for lack of a better term.  The sex is toned down quite a bit in this one, with the wildest scene actually only alluded to, but even that wasn’t enough to save this book.  I did enjoy the final confrontation, but it should have been about 200 pages sooner than it was. I’ve stuck through this series for 17 books, but I’m not sure I’ll bother with #18.

Audiobook length: 18hrs 52min | Approximate word count: 203,453

2008: Dead Witness (Joylene Nowell Butler)
2007: Plum Island (Nelson DeMille)
2006: Letters From An Age of Reason (Nora Hague)
2005: Therapy (Jonathan Kellerman)

Used in these Challenges: 100+ Reading Challenge 2009;

The evil night things that prowl Cincinnati despise witch and bounty hunter Rachel Morgan. Her new reputation for the dark arts is turning human and undead heads alike with the intent to possess, bed, and kill her—not necessarily in that order.

Now a mortal lover who abandoned Rachel has returned, haunted by his secret past. And there are those who covet what Nick possesses—savage beasts willing to destroy the Hollows and everyone in it if necessary.

Forced to keep a low profile or eternally suffer the wrath of a vengeful demon, Rachel must nevertheless act quickly. For the pack is gathering for the first time in millennia to ravage and rule. And suddenly more than Rachel’s soul is at stake.

I love, love, love this series! It is easily in my top two that I’ve read in the last couple of years.  There’s tons of action, a little bit of romance, and more witches, vamps, weres, and pixies than you can handle. Harrison has created some surprisingly complex characters that grow, change, and adapt in book after book. Especially Rachel, who continues to find out that some people aren’t what they seem, and that it’s hard to live your life in black and white — sometimes those shades of gray are necessary.  Jenks takes a pretty (ahem) big part in this one as he searches for his wayward son, something that could have been really gimmicky but instead worked seamlessly.  There’s so much packed into this book, it’s hard to believe it only takes place over the course of a week.  I have a feeling I’ll be listening to the next book sooner rather than later.

Audiobook length: 17 hrs 5 min | Approximate word count: 170,054

2008: Sick Puppy (Carl Hiaasen)
2007: Judge & Jury (James Patterson)
2006: The Killing Dance (Laurell K. Hamilton)
2005: Rosemary’s Baby (Ira Levin)

Used in these Challenges: The Countdown Challenge; 100+ Reading Challenge 2009; 2009 Audiobook Challenge; The 999 Challenge;

Turn on all the lights and check under your bed. Things are about to get spooky in Trenton, New Jersey. According to legend, the Jersey Devil prowls the Pine Barrens and soars above the treetops in the dark of night. As eerie as this might seem, there are things in the Barrens that are even more frightening and dangerous. And there are monkeys. Lots of monkeys. Wulf Grimoire is a world wanderer and an opportunist who can kill without remorse and disappear like smoke. He’s chosen Martin Munch, boy genius, as his new business partner, and he’s chosen the Barrens as his new playground. Munch received his doctorate degree in quantum physics when he was twenty-two. He’s now twenty-four, and while his brain is large, his body hasn’t made it out of the boys’ department at Macy’s. Anyone who says good things come in small packages hasn’t met Munch. Wulf Grimoire is looking for world domination. Martin Munch would be happy if he could just get a woman naked and tied to a tree. Bounty hunter Stephanie Plum has Munch on her most-wanted list for failure to appear in court. Plum is the all-American girl stuck in an uncomfortable job, succeeding on luck and tenacity. Usually she gets her man. This time she gets a monkey. She also gets a big guy named Diesel.  Diesel pops in and out of Plum’s life like birthday cake – delicious to look at and taste, not especially healthy as a steady diet, gone by the end of the week if not sooner. He’s an über bounty hunter with special skills when it comes to tracking men and pleasing women. He’s after Grimoire, and now he’s also after Munch. And if truth were told, he wouldn’t mind setting Stephanie Plum in his crosshairs. Diesel and Plum hunt down Munch and Grimoire, following them into the Barrens, surviving cranberry bogs, the Jersey Devil, a hair-raising experience, sand in their underwear, and, of course . . . monkeys.

This was the first full-length Between-the-Numbers book, and I think it was by far the best.  Unlike the usual Plum novels, here you have the addition of Diesel and his strange abilities, which makes for a different sort of adventure for Stephanie.  However, along the way are all your favorites — Morelli, Ranger (though it could have used more Ranger), Lula, Grandma, stubborn bail jumpers, and wrecked vehicles.  Oh, and Elmer the fire farter. I’ll say no more about him.  And let’s not forget about Carl the monkey, who was a much more pleasant addition than I expected. The scientific plot here is a little more confusing than the usual Plum mystery, but I really enjoyed this listen.

Audiobook Length: 6hr 28m | Approximate word count: 77,490

2008: Gone (Lisa Gardner)
2007: The Dark Tower (Stephen King)
2006: Whiteout (Ken Follett)
2005: Twisted (Jonathan Kellerman)

Used in these Challenges: The Naming Conventions Challenge; The Countdown Challenge; 100+ Reading Challenge 2009; 2009 Audiobook Challenge; 2009 Pub Challenge;  The 999 Challenge; A-Z 2009 Challenge;

There’s no witch in Cincinnati tougher, sexier, or more screwed up than bounty hunter Rachel Morgan, who’s already put her love life and soul in dire jeopardy through her determined efforts to bring criminal night creatures to justice.

Between “runs,” she has her hands full fending off the attentions of her blood-drinking partner, keeping a deadly secret from her backup, and resisting a hot new vamp suitor.

Rachel must also take a stand in the war that’s raging in the city’s underworld, since she helped put away its former vampire kingpin—and made a deal with a powerful demon to do so that could cost her an eternity of pain, torment, and degradation.

And now her dark “master” is coming to collect his due.

I really like this series.  In this entry, there’s a *little* less danger for Rachel and a little more romance. Along the way, there’s a lot she’s learning about herself, even if she sometimes doesn’t like what she learns.  There’s less Ivy and Jenks in this book, and I kinda missed Jenks, but at least Rachel wasn’t fending off Ivy every other chapter. There’s also a new character introduced into Rachel’s life, and I’m curious about what sort of role David the Were will play in the future.

Page count: 501 | Word count: 162,224

2007: Raise the Titanic! (Clive Cussler)
2006: Glory in Death (J.D. Robb)

Personal vendettas, hidden treasure, and a monkey named Carl will send bounty hunter Stephanie Plum on her most explosive adventure yet.

The Crime: Armed robbery to the tune of nine million dollars

Dom Rizzi robbed a bank, stashed the money, and did the time. His family couldn’t be more proud. He always was the smart one.

The Cousin: Joe Morelli

Joe Morelli, Dom Rizzi, and Dom’s sister, Loretta, are cousins. Morelli is a cop, Rizzi robs banks, and Loretta is a single mother waiting tables at the firehouse. The all-American family.

The Complications: Murder, kidnapping, destruction of personal property, and acid reflux

Less than a week after Dom’s release from prison, Joe Morelli has shadowy figures breaking into his house and dying in his basement. He’s getting threatening messages, Loretta is kidnapped, and Dom is missing.

The Catastrophe: Moonman

Morelli hires Walter “Mooner” Dunphy, stoner and “inventor” turned crime fighter, to protect his house. Morelli can’t afford a lot on a cop’s salary, and Mooner will work for potatoes.

The Cupcake: Stephanie Plum

Stephanie and Morelli have a long-standing relationship that involves sex, affection, and driving each other nuts. She’s a bond enforcement agent with more luck than talent, and she’s involved in this bank-robbery-gone-bad disaster from day one.

The Crisis: A favor for Ranger

Security expert Carlos Manoso, street name Ranger, has a job for Stephanie that will involve night work. Morelli has his own ideas regarding Stephanie’s evening activities.

The Conclusion: Only the fearless should read Fourteen.

Thrills, chills, and incontinence may result.

I think this is the best installment in the series out since it hit 10 or so. Really solid and entertaining. The cast of secondary characters in this one is exceptional, from Brenda to Moonman. Lula is in stellar form as she plans for a wedding. Grandma Mazur gets a new hobby. And Stephanie and Morelli seem to be moving further down Commitment Road — poor Ranger! Overall, I loved it. Also, this is the first of the numbered books I’ve listened to on audio, and I believe that will be my preferred method of "reading" these in the future… great audio production!

Page count: 320 | Approximate word count: 77,490

2007: Windmills of the Gods (Sidney Sheldon)
2006: The Weatherman (Steve Thayer)
2005: To the Nines (Janet Evanovich)