FEARLESS FOURTEEN by Janet Evanovich

Stephanie Plum works for her cousin, Vinnie, as a bail bond enforcement agent or bounty hunter in Trenton, NJ. She’s not great at it which is why she drives a very beat up car and lives in an older apartment building. This is also why she occasionally will work for Rangeman. Stephanie frequently goes out looking for her skip with friend and co-worker, Lula.

Lula use to work the streets but is currently hired to do the filing in Vinnie’s office. Though she has left that profession, she still wears clothes that are a little too small for her full figured figure. She prefers to go chasing people who have not shown up in court or skips with Stephanie.

Both women have boyfriends. Lula’s is a big guy called Tank. Tank is the number two man at a security agency called Rangeman. Stephanie’s regular boyfriend is Joe. Joe works for the Trenton Police Department and is fond of Ranger, the owner of Rangeman.

Ranger has been interested in Stephanie since she started working for Vinnie and Stephanie isn’t immune to Ranger either which is why Joe doesn’t really like Stephanie to work with or for Ranger. Ranger has pretty much gotten out of bounty hunting but he still will help Stephanie out.

Fearless Fourteen is the fourteenth full length book with these characters. In this book, Ranger asks Stephanie to help with security on aging rock star Brenda. Lula tricks Tank into getting engaged. One of Stephanie’s skips, Loretta asks Stephanie to baby-sit her son if she doesn’t make bail before school is out which Stephanie agrees to and finds a child that looks exactly like Joe! Loretta’s brother, Dom, believes it is Joe’s son and threatens to kill Joe. Dom is also on parole for armed robbery with 9 million dollars still not accounted for and several people interested in finding it with the clue in Joe’s house! When people start getting killed and showing up at Joe’s house in the middle of the night, things start getting interesting.

My husband and I have been patiently waiting for this book to come out. We’ve enjoyed this series and find the stunts that Stephanie does extremely funny. I love the interaction between Stephanie and her love interests, Joe and Ranger. I was very disappointed in this book.

Stephanie’s interactions with Joe and Ranger aren’t what I’ve seen in previous books. Though Stephanie stays at Joe’s house, they act more like an old married couple than a couple that can’t keep their hands off of each other. Though there are a couple of references and inferences, mostly its statements about work or food. The dialogs Stephanie has with Ranger seem stilted and forced. Never has Ranger actually stated that he doesn’t ask Stephanie for many favors, usually it’s just the word babe. Most of Ranger’s interaction with Stephanie almost seems like a very busy businessman making time for an old friend. The spark just wasn’t there.

Stephanie is known for getting herself into silly situations and having unique skips, in this book the opportunities are present but the dialog isn’t. It’s as if the characters no longer care or it’s happened so often that it’s normal. When Stephanie is turned blue, Joe’s statement is that she looks like a smurf and continues on with what he was doing. Ranger doesn’t even see Stephanie in all her blueness! Her skips are unique but that is not played up or used. When Stephanie has to take in a guy that won’t wear pants, she asks like its no big deal. She wraps a coat around him and has him sit on newspapers in her car. Usually readers would get more of her feelings or thoughts. This lack gave that book a flat feel.

Even Stephanie’s poor hamster, Rex is neglected in this book. Usually if Stephanie is not going to be in her apartment for a day or two, Rex comes with her. In this book, Stephanie gets clothes together for a couple of days but just gives Rex food and water; though she does ask Joe to take care of Rex if something should happen to her.

While this is not Ms Evanovich’s best effort, it was okay. I wouldn’t recommend this book to a reader wanting to see what the Stephanie Plum series is about. There are much better books in the series. I’m hoping that this is a one time fluke and the next book is back to Ms Evanovich’s normal standard.

STEP ON A CRACK by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge

I just finished this book the other day and thought like it would be a good idea to let the world know I like this book. Here is a review of the book that I think has all the potential for a Hollywood blockbuster.

Christmas is fast approaching. The former First Lady has been poisoned while sharing a romantic dinner with her husband in a posh New York City restaurant. A few blocks away, Maeve Bennett is dying of cancer. She and her husband Mike have adopted 10 children of various races and nationalities. Government leaders and celebrities fill St. Patrick's Cathedral for the funeral mass, attracting a massive crowd of spectators.

But, something goes terribly wrong and the entire congregation is kidnapped by an unknown group of gunmen who have no apparent means of success. Mike Bennett, a detective and former hostage negotiator is called in to assist. He quickly assumes the lead role in negotiating with Jack, the leader of the kidnappers. Cool, detached, and seemingly amoral, Jack simply asks for money and the stage is set. We learn quickly that he has help on the outside, the Neat Man, an obsessive-compulsive man who must always be clean.

James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge juxtapose the conflict Bennett endures as he faces a relentless and well-prepared foe while trying to cope with the impending death of his beloved wife and caring for a brood of children 3 - 12 years old. There are so many kids that a visitor at the hospital thinks he has brought some students from a school to sing Christmas carols for the patients. The authors of Step On a Crack deftly draw characters with the strengths and frailties of real people in real situations. The plot is not so unreal as to detract from our willingness to envelope ourselves in the story and "believe" in what we are reading.
It gives nothing away to say that Bennett brings resolution - after all, he is the protagonist. The best part is that the solution comes about through thorough, traditional police work. The focus and abilities of humans lead to the solution when one very logical thing goes wrong for the kidnappers. And, it was not the fortuitous discovery of a stray hair; Patterson does throw in a little dig at the plethora of CSI stories.

Step on a Crack is a sophisticated easy read. I read it in less than 3 hours, somehow compelled to continue reading about characters I wanted to learn more about and discover how things worked out. The language is simple and straightforward but that very characteristic lends authenticity to the telling of the story and elevates it beyond the last couple of James Patterson books reviewed on this site. The criticisms I leveled at Patterson for The Fifth Horseman simply do not apply here. As Shawn Stufflebeam, who first voiced some of the same criticisms as I, said in his review of Mary, Mary, "it will engage your imagination." Tim O'Brien, author of Going After Cacciato and The Things They Carried and Morgan Writer in Residence at the University of North Carolina, said in a recent address that in a good story, "the last sentence should beg the next one. The last incident should beg the next." So it is with this Patterson novel, his best among recent outings.
In an interview quoted on his web site, Patterson says, "At some point I'd like to develop another hero figure, but it's hard for me to top Alex in a lot of ways because he's extremely human and very sensitive." Detective Michael Bennett is a new character for the creator of the Alex Cross and The Women's Murder Club novels. Fans of Patterson will certainly look forward to future novels in this new series for he has created another very human character who is different but in the same mold as Alex Cross. Bennett is one to whom we can relate on many levels. There is the poignancy of a dying wife and Bennett's sense of loss. There is the tough detective who is able to compartmentalize his life and deal with a major New York City crisis and still be there for and sensitive to the needs of his children.

James Patterson, of course, is well-known, having written 39 books to this point, beginning with The Thomas Berryman Number in 1976. A dozen of them have been co-written with five different authors. Patterson's "voice" comes through clearly in this fine effort. This is his first book with Michael Ledwidge, a mystery-suspense author in his own right with The Narrowback, Bad Connection, and Before the Devil Knows You're Dead. His advice to all of those who wish to write a novel is, even if you have the worst of jobs (He started as a Park Avenue doorman with a degree in English.), take notes. "It might be the most fruitful research you'll ever do."

Review From About.com