Fearless Fourteen

The Stephanie Plum mystery-comedy formula is familiar to most everyone by now – a little mystery, a little sex, a bunch of lovable screw-ups on both sides of the law, a bit of danger, and some laughs at everyone’s expense. Fearless Fourteen doesn’t move an inch away from the formula. Why mess with success? Now, this is not highbrow stuff – the characters are one-dimensional, the “sight gags” are strictly Three Stooges, the sex hard “R”, the plot turns don’t stand up to much scrutiny, and the detecting is strictly elementary. It’s appalling to me that a sophisticated, sensitive, intellectual (like me) would find any appeal in a book like this. So why couldn’t I put it down? I guess it’s simply because it made me show more laugh out loud at the frequently inept Stephanie and her odd collection of co-workers, family, lovers and friends. I’m not sure I’d want any of these eccentrics in my house, but they’re fun to read about. I gobbled this book up like a bag of potato chips.

Janet Evanovich not only has mastered a genre that is very difficult to be consistent in, but she has avoided one of my cardinal sins in serial mysteries, trotting out all her past characters in each new book. You’ve seen it before, when characters from previous installments come into the current book for a few pages just so we catch up on their lives or something. Spare me. Evanovich has left behind her annoying sister and a host of other characters and I say bravo! I’m sure we’ll hear about them when Evanovich concocts a plot where they’re useful, not just ornamental. I’ll be waiting. show less

Once more, into the screwball world of Stephanie Plum I go.

Stephanie's relationship with Joe Morelli seems to be the pivot point of this madcap plot...or rather the house he lives in. He inherited it from his Aunt Rose. It seems to be a place that is being frequented by visitors to his basement at odd hours. Why?

Dom Rizzi is recently out of jail from serving his time for the nine million dollar robbery he did. The money is still out there and people are looking for it.

Stephanie is given the job of picking up Loretta Rizzi, Dom's sister, for a no-so on a court date. As a side assignment, Stephanie has to figure out where Loretta's son, Mario, can stay until Loretta can make bail...again. Mario is "sensitive and artistic" and is in high show more school. He goes by the name of "Zook" and is heavy into "Minionfire," a role playing on line game.

There is also a monkey named Carl, a sexy hot security guy named Ranger who is a big temptation for Stephanie, a stoner and 'inventor' named Walter "Mooner" Dumphy and Stephanie's work partner Lula, who used to be a 'ho before she got into the bail business. With this mixed cast of characters things are quite lively and unpredictable.

Will Morelli figure out why strangers are in his basement? Will Stephanie find out where Dom hid the nine million he stole? Will Loretta get bonded? Where does Carl disappear to?

The Stephanie Plum series are fun and fast reads. They make a good break when I find I'm reading a couple of more serious books at the same time. Sort of lightens things up! show less

The Stephanie Plum mystery-comedy formula is familiar to most everyone by now – a little mystery, a little sex, a bunch of lovable screw-ups on both sides of the law, a bit of danger, and some laughs at everyone’s expense. Fearless Fourteen doesn’t move an inch away from the formula. Why mess with success? Now, this is not highbrow stuff – the characters are one-dimensional, the “sight gags” are strictly Three Stooges, the sex hard “R”, the plot turns don’t stand up to much scrutiny, and the detecting is strictly elementary. It’s appalling to me that a sophisticated, sensitive, intellectual (like me) would find any appeal in a book like this. So why couldn’t I put it down? I guess it’s simply because it made me show more laugh out loud at the frequently inept Stephanie and her odd collection of co-workers, family, lovers and friends. I’m not sure I’d want any of these eccentrics in my house, but they’re fun to read about. I gobbled this book up like a bag of potato chips.

Janet Evanovich not only has mastered a genre that is very difficult to be consistent in, but she has avoided one of my cardinal sins in serial mysteries, trotting out all her past characters in each new book. You’ve seen it before, when characters from previous installments come into the current book for a few pages just so we catch up on their lives or something. Spare me. Evanovich has left behind her annoying sister and a host of other characters and I say bravo! I’m sure we’ll hear about them when Evanovich concocts a plot where they’re useful, not just ornamental. I’ll be waiting. show less

Stephanie Plum, America's favorite New Jersey bounty hunter, is back in her fourteenth adventure, along with a monkey named Carl, fan-favorite Mooner and his own brand of 'Homegrown Security', and a dead guy in boyfriend Joe Morelli's basement. Compared to other installments in this immensely popular series, FEARLESS FOURTEEN is dead weight. While Evanovich has never been known for heart-pounding thrillers or groundbreaking mystery plots, this foray into the softer side of cozy mystery fails to generate anything other than boredom and apathy when tested against the standards Evanovich has set for herself. Her writing, once clean and concise, is sloppy and amateurish, lacking the trademark humor, romantic tension, and suspense of the show more other books. I couldn't shake the feeling that the whole thing inconvenienced Evanovich somehow. It was like she really didn't want to be there, and neither did her characters. And if I'm to be completely honest, neither did I. This is the only book in the series that I feel like I could've stopped reading at chapter 9 and not really missed anything except 200 pages of...nothing. Oh well. Points for minimal effort, but disappointing nonetheless. show less

Fearless Fourteen is one of the best Stephanie Plum books so far in the series. The book is full of separate events, multiple story lines, and beloved characters running amuck and yet, everything fell into place perfectly.

The murder mystery is surprising, but seeing Stephanie in mother mode was even more unexpected. And she seemed to handle it better than she does most things in her life. When the question of Zook's (the teen in Stephanie's care) paternity comes up, readers will spend the rest of the book waiting desperately for the answer.

Lula and Tank's relationship progression is hilarious. As is Stephanie and Lula teaming up with older celebrity Brenda (one name only, like Cher) for a bounty hunter reality show. While all this is show more going on, people are trespassing on Morelli's property, looking for buried treasure: nine million dollars worth. And Mooner is back to guard Morelli's house, when he's not playing a computer game that seems to be the obsession of both Zook and Grandma Mazur.

I loved Fearless Fourteen and the way every page had some sort of action on it. Stephanie is always moving, juggling bounty huntering, working for Ranger, taking care of Zook, enduring Lula's craziness and still managing to find the time to have a little fun with Morelli in an alley. Fearless Fourteen may just be the perfect Plum novel. show less

Though I do always enjoy Stephanie Plum, I will never go back to reading it myself - Lorelei King does such a great job, I'm often nervous about listening to the Plum books on audio in public 'cause I laugh out loud.

In this one, Stephanie has to take care of a teenager who may or may not be Morelli's son, and the fallout from all of that is priceless. Add an aging, desperate country singer, her stalker, and 9 million missing dollars, well, you have comedic gold, my friends...

Dominick Rizzi has just gotten out of prison after serving 10 years for
stealing $9 million dollars that was never recovered. His sister
Loretta is a single mother out on bail for knocking over a liquor store
to steal a bottle of gin because she really needed a Tom Collins. When
Stephanie picks up Loretta for missing her court date, Loretta (who is
some kind of cousin to Stephanie's boyfriend, Joe Morelli) makes her
promise that if there's any delay is her bonding back out, that
Stephanie will pick her son Mario up from school. Of course there is a
delay, and Mario turns out to be a Goth kid with 20 piercings in his
head alone who insists on going by the name "Zook." The delay turns
into days and Stephanie brings Zook along with her to Joe's show more house to
help her look after the teenager. Dominick hates Joe Morelli with a
passion because he is convinced that Joe sweet talked their Aunt Rose
into leaving him her house when she died instead of willing it to Dom as
she had always promised. And there just happens to be something
extremely valuable hidden in Aunt Rose's house, the kind of something
that lures a series of shady characters to break in. When Loretta
finally bonds out of jail she is immediately kidnapped and Dom
disappears. It's going to be up to Stephanie to dig till she hits
paydirt and bring the case to an end before Loretta is killed by her
captors. And she's more than a little bit distracted by her buddy
Lula's wedding plans....

I love Stephanie Plum. This episode was as delightful as the best of
them with the zany cast of characters back and in fine form. I know
that some have given up on this series ages ago but I still
think it's hilarious. There were at least five places in this book that
I laughed so loudly that my kids came to see what was the matter. And
now that I'm done with this book, there are at least 6 other family
members and friends waiting in line to get their hot little hands on it! 5 show less