Janet Evanovich always makes me laugh. Sure, the books aren't masterpieces, they aren't epic works of art, what they are? Fun and Fluffy. They are books that don't make you think, you just sit back and enjoy the ride. Metro girl is about Alex (Barney) Barnaby. She is a former garage guru turned insurance adjuster until her brother calls her at 2am and tells her not to worry about him, and not to talk to anyone who comes to her door asking questions... Right. Alex travels to Miami where she meets Nascar driver Sam Hooker in what turns out to be a treasure hunt and political fiasco.
Not as funny as her Stephenie Plum series, but I always look forward to reading Evanovich after I finish a serious series.
More like 3.75 stars for making me laugh. ( )

audiobook

Nancy Drew for grown ups

7.09

This book had lots of funny moments. The chemistry between Barney and Sam aka NASCAR guy is sweet and sexy. Action was not throughout the book, in fact there were moments when it was boring. It really sent you on a rollercoaster ride: one moment you are antcipating what is to come, but at the end it you end up saying, "really that was it." I continued to read it because 1. I wanted to see how it ends, and 2. I wanted to see if Barney gives in to temptation: Sam. ( )

Really enjoyable and laugh out loud funny. Alex Barnaby is very similar to Stephanie Plum, but not quite as big a chicken. Some unbelievable parts, but fun and well done. ( )

alexandra barnaby,janet evanovich,mystery,nascar ( )

I love Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series and read every book as it comes out, so I decided to try out another one of her books. I found this one in the library and somehow made it through the whole thing (I was desperate and had nothing else to read). The characters are boring and lifeless and there are NO interesting side characters. Oh well, I'll just stick to the Stephanie Plum books from now on. ( )

The trouble starts when Alexandra Barnaby, aka Barney, gets a phone call from her brother in Florida saying he's going to be out of touch for a while, that's abruptly cut off after a woman's scream. So naturally, she takes off for Florida to rescue him.

Once she gets there, she runs into NASCAR driver Sam Hooker, aka NASCAR Guy, whose boat is missing, presumably taken by Barney's brother.

They join forces to find the brother and the boat, NASCAR Guy flirting outrageously with Barney all the way. We run into the usual sidekicks, a shipwreck with missing gold, and a bit of international intrigue and danger.

There are some laughs, as you'd expect from Evanovich, but quite a lot of the book is dated or doesn't quite ring true, from the Cuban Missile Crisis-related plot to the name of NASCAR Guy's boat, The Happy Hooker, to Barney's improbable wardrobe.

When Metro Girl first came out, there was a lot of buzz about it, and the thing I remember most is that people were really irritated over the constant repetition of "NASCAR Guy." At the time, I was skeptical, and thought that was a really petty complaint, but I have to say, I see what they meant. ( )

A better title for this book would be 'Stephanie Plum in Miami'. Alexander Barnaby is a blond Stephanie Plum. They have similar type friends, love interests, mother issues. The only difference is back story: they both act and speak the same. And for a big Plum fan, I'm not complaining.
This book isn't as good as the Plum series, but it is still fun. I'm going to go pick up Motor Mouth while I wait for Plum #15. ( )

I
love the Plum novels, but having sampled one of the books in her other
series and found it definitely lacking, I wasn't anxious to waste money
on an Evanovich book that didn't feature Stephanie and her dysfunctional
group of friends.

This book was delightful, though. It introduced a whole new crop of
oddballs, starring Barney Barnaby and her NASCAR guy buddy. The plot
was shallow, as it usually is in a Plum novel, but well written and the
characters were interesting and funny enough to keep me reading. It was
a fun and very easy read and I enjoyed it completely. Barney heads from
Baltimore down to Miami looking for her brother, Wild Bill, who has
dropped off the face of the earth after a middle of the night phone call
to his sister that ended with a woman's scream. It involves
politicians, federal agents, Cuban nationals, blockade running, sunken
treasure, wrongful imprisonment, chemical warfare, kidnapping,
explosions, murder, mayhem.......oh yeah, and sex. How could it lose? LOL

I give it a 4.5 ( )

I really enjoyed this new series. Alex is in the 'Stephanie Plum Sisterhood'. Trouble just seems to find her. Hooker doesn't help either. What I love the most is that he is so laid back that he just goes with the flow. ( )

I ending up reading this after Motor Mouth instead of before. I didn't feel this one was quite as fun as Motor Mouth - maybe we needed another big goofy dog here. ( )

not as much fun as Stephanie Plum, unfortunately ( )

It was funny - I find most of Evanovich's books laugh-out-loud funny. Definitely light reading. Barney, the main character, reminded me of a less ditzy version of Stephanie Plum, and Hooker was very like Morelli. Except for the way he kept talking about himself in the third person, which I found vaguely creepy, possibly because the only character in the Plum books who did that was a psychotic killer who also had a dorky nickname for himself. ( )

Oh my god! I can’t stand this kind of material. I can’t believe so many women (and men) read this kind of *stuff*. This is full of clichés about women and men. It reinforces stereotypes about gender and power. It is belittling and patronizing. It masquerades as “modern” due to its female lead, but is really a Trojan horse that sucks out the confidence and power of women who eat it up. It is listed as mystery/romance, but it’s more like chick lit with a dash of fake mystery. This is like a book version of a sit-com. It rotted my brain. I had to watch some PBS to snap out of it. ( )

"The Nascar fear and the monkey fear might be redundant."

Sadly, this one did not work well for an audio book for me...either that or I had too much going on to pay enough attention. I need to read the book to really find out what went on. I do, however, know there was quite a bit of comedy as I found myself chuckling quite often. I just don't remember it.

http://iamagirldork.livejournal.com/2... ( )

Nascar driver, Sam Hooker has been fun and respectful of "Barney." ( )

Alexandra Barnaby has to save her brother "Wild Bill". She has done it before, but this time he is in a lot of trouble, even by his standards. She gets help from Nascar-guy Sam Hooker who wants his boat back and maybe just a bit extra. On their travels they encounter Cuban gold, cigars, violence and a very creepy relic of the Cuban missile crisis.

Good, uncomplicated read. ( )

New characters from Evanovich are fun and flirty. Action is well-paced, as usual for her novels. This is one of those books you read in the same way you eat popcorn, yummy handful after handful until it's all gone! ( )

A different character than her Stephanie Plumb series, this book takes you on a wild and fun ride through mystery and action as a drug cartel seeks a nuclear weapon underwater outside of Cuba. Our heroine and her quirky friends, almost accidentally, stay one step ahead of the bad guys the whole way. ( )

Buckle your seat belts. Number-one New York Times bestselling author Janet Evanovich is moving into the fast lane with Metro Girl, a thrilling, high-octane misadventure with high stakes, hot nights, cold-blooded murder, sunken treasure, a woman with a chassis built for speed, and one very good, very sexy NASCAR driver who's along for the ride.

I would have enjoyed this audio book even more if the reader had a better voice. I don't think that C.J. Critt really came across as young enough to convincingly play the lead character. In spite of that, it was a very enjoyable book. ( )

Fun book ( )

Not as good as the Stephanie Plum series, but still a light, funny, entertaining read. ( )

A great new character with humor. Barney (Alex) Barnaby finds herself trying to save her brother from the bad guys and falls for Hooker, NASCAR driver in the process. Could be less cute. ( )

I loved this book. This is the only book so far that I've read of hers, although I have another one that I haven't gotten to yet, and I look forward to reading all of her books. This book was very entertaining, and the characters were likable and well defined. The author has a style of writing that's easy to follow and captivating, you feel like you're actually there, in the story. I look forward to her other books. ( )