If you want to start the Stephanie Plum series, One for the Money is an essential read. In this novel, you get all the background information needed to understand the rest of books that follow. Janet Evanovich is very good about making sure the reader knows the major reasons behind some of Stephanie Plum's references, but here you get to see the transformation from unemployed Stephanie to bounty hunter Stephanie. It is very humorous. ( )

Now some of you may be wondering what rock I crawled out from with this book, but hear me out. I finally got around to reading One for the Money by Janet Evanovich. And I have mixed feelings about the book. I know this is the first in what seems to be a perpetual series, so I’m willing to overlook how dull the first half of the book was, on the other hand, I can’t exclaim how impressed I was with her storytelling ability with the second half of the novel. The way she is able to pick up the pace and blend all her story lines are borderline perfect. And her characters won’t be forgotten anytime soon. I’m not sure I’m convinced to invest time in all the other novels starring Stephanie Plum, but when I need a break, you can bet I’ll read the sequel, Two for the Dough. This title is currently available in our library, so don’t miss out and read it today. Happy Reading! ( )

Stephanie Plum is flat broke - she was laid off from her job, her car was repossessed, and she's slowly pawning off everything she owns just to make ends meet. In order to get some much-needed cash, she starts working for her bondsman cousin as a bounty hunter. Her first FTA (Failure-To-Appear) is Joe Morelli, an old sorta-fling from high school. She finds him almost immediately, and he laughs in her face when he learns she's on his tail, easily and repeatedly slipping through her fingers. From there she meets a couple of smart-mouthed hookers, gets stalked by a rapist/champion boxer, and generally runs into a lot of trouble. I don't read many mysteries, so it was a little disappointing that I connected most of the dots over a hundred pages before Stephanie did, but it was a light, fast-paced story with a lot of humor and a fair bit of suspense (even if the biggest worry was that someone would walk in and embarrass Stephanie - again). If you want a quick read with some really funny narration, pick this one up, but don't be surprised if you're guessing much of the ending by about halfway through. ( )

Wanted to read this to see what Janet Evanovich was like. Not that impressed. I'm not going to bother reading any more books of hers. ( )

This book was my first Janet Evanovich book, I will be reading the whole series for sure. Its a total crack up! ( )