Plum Spooky by Janet Evanovich

ISBN:  9780312383329

Publisher:  St Martin’s Press

Rating:  A

Diesel is back and he has Stephanie off balance as usual.  It appears that Stephanie’s FTA, Martin Munch and Diesel’s unmentionable cousin, Wulf are paired up to take over the world.  Vinnie’s got his tighty whiteys in a bunch because Munch skipped out on his bond and Stephanie has to deal with Ranger, Morelli, Diesel and a pawned off Monkey named Carl who likes to flip everyone the bird.  Will Stephanie and Diesel be able to catch Munch and Wulf before the world is taken over?  Stay tuned…

I love the in between the numbers stories that Evanovich writes because they are written I think purely for the fun and the fans.  I don’t remember the last time I laughed so hard, and it wasn’t funny ha ha, it was just funny to the point of how true Evanovich writes her characters.  There is a scene at the Plum’s dinner table and a burnt chair and how each guy from Diesel to Ranger reacts to the story just had me in stitches because I can imagine all the men in my life having the same reactions.

These between the numbers novels appear to be getting bigger and more intense plots which I love because it gives me as a fan the chance to just sit back and watch the story unfold.

Spare Change by Robert Parker *Sunny Randall #6*

ISBN:  9780641969812

Publisher:  Penguin USA

Rating:  B

When “The Spare Change Killer” comes out of retirement 3 decades after the perfect disappearing act, Sunny’s dad Phil has to do the same.  Phil enlists Sunny’s help on the task force and he soon begins to regret that decision when the killers choice of victims starts to resemble his daughter more and more.  The only problem is that the guy Sunny has her finger on appears to have his pointed right back at her.  How can she play the cat and mouse game when she’s not sure who is the cat and who is the mouse?

Although there was not truly any suprises in this plot, it had a paint by numbers quality, I still found myself wanting to see how it ended.  I was a bit disappointed that there truly were no shocks and that I wasn’t really taken on the ride I was hoping when I picked up the book.  However, Parker can always entertain me and although I felt that this latest installment lacked a certain polish it was enjoyable.  I think this series by Parker is taking the brunt of his lack of creation because I have a feeling his Spencer and Stone novels aren’t this formulaic, and I hope he starts to see that his writing profiency is causing his characters and storylines to be lack luster and blah.

Parker and Sunny Randall used to be on my MUST READ list, and I didn’t even know this book was published until a year after the fact which is sad to me as a fan, but I can also understand why he’s been relagated to my back burner when there are so many more books and characters out there that keep me begging for more.

The Seduction of the Crimson Rose by Lauren Willig

ISBN:  9780451224415

Publisher:  Penguin

Rating:  B+

Eloise Kelly is back in search of the ever elusive French Spy The Black Tulip and this time she’s invited Lord Vaughn and Mary Alsworthy to take part in this investigation.  The Pink Carnation puts Lord Vaughn on a mission to seek out the Tulip by presenting him with a petal for his Tulip; that petal being Mary.  

This installment in the Pink Carnation series felt a bit like a set up novel even though it was a bit more of a resolution.  We discover the identity of The Black Tulip, but it doesn’t feel complete.  We are more involved in Lord Vaughns personal life in this book and we learn more about his past which is full of more than enough intrigue to hold the story.  Willig was smart and didn’t focus the book on Lord Vaughns past, but kept us interested by tying all the elements of the story together.

When I started this series with The Secret History of the Pink Carnation I felt as if the pieces of the story with Eloise involved were a distraction, however as each book in this series progresses I find myself eagerly waiting to see what she has been doing since I have seen her in the previous chapters.  I am thrilled with how much I love this series and I only wish that I had the words to describe how much fun this series and the fact that I feel that it has finally lived up to what I hoped it would be.