Customer Reviews

Hard Eight: A Stephanie Plum Novel

5 star:		(124)
4 star:		(75)
3 star:		(63)
2 star:		(34)
1 star:		(25)

 

 

Even knowing how most of the characters would react, knowing that Stephanie would fantasize over Ranger and Morelli, knowing that her car would be destroyed and that Grandma Mazur would be obnoxiously witty and smarty - it was still a good read.

I loved the introduction of new characters and Kloughn is one of the best.The handcuffs act got old after a while but the dialogues, inner thoughts and comments made up for it. The scene with Ranger was great although she will probably end up with Morelli in the end. The plot to this one was on the thin side but then everyone can't be an Elizabeth George.

Stephanie Plum novels are terrific to listen to while working out. A walk or a run goes by more quickly while listening to these light and funny mysteries. Sure, the characters sometimes don't seem to learn how to avoid their many mishaps, but their mishaps are entertaining!

Anyone starting the Stephanie Plum series with HARD EIGHT is sure to get hooked. It's Stephanie at her wackiest.

Plum is a disaster-prone bounty hunter working for her cousin Vinnie, a bail bondsman in Trenton, NJ. In this novel, Stephanie volunteers to help out her parents' next door neighbor, Mabel, who's put up her home to guarantee a child custody bond taken out on her granddaughter, Evelyn, who had one imposed on her by the judge in a recent divorce ruling. Now, Evelyn has skipped town with her daughter, Annie, and Mabel will be tossed into the street if the missing child isn't found. But, as becomes evident in all of Stephanie's adventures, there's more to the story than is obvious. Especially after the corpse of Evelyn's aggrieved husband, Steven, is left on the couch of Plum's apartment. Steven had been sawed in half.

The imagination of author Janet Evanovich worked overtime in making HARD EIGHT perhaps one of the craziest to date. It's a nice touch that Stephanie faces off against a virtual menagerie. And she's finally beginning to take her .38, usually kept unloaded in a cookie jar, seriously. And her unfortunate association with fire-bombed vehicles reaches a record high. Notwithstanding these plot devices, however, books one to eight in the series are basically interchangeable. (I'm struggling, perhaps unsuccessfully, to keep from writing the same review over and over.)

Evanovich needs to mature her heroine, who seems to have a slow learning curve. I suggest that Plum finally marry, or at least permanently set up house, with Detective Joe Morelli. It might not be a relationship made in heaven, but it would supply grist for any number of new episodes. And Lula, Stephanie's sometime partner in her Keystone Cop takedowns, is growing tiresome, as is the fact that the author refuses to bring Stephanie's Dad more into the limelight.

Mind you, I'm still finding the Plum novels immensely enjoyable in a mindless sort of way. But even the best of a good thing, like a premium chocolate chip cookie, begins to get stale after awhile. Perhaps I've read too many in too short a time, and should alternate with the likes of WAR AND PEACE and the works of Plato.

Like all of Evanovich's Stephanie Plum novels, this book is well worth the read. It's light reading, to be sure, but not without value...Stephanie is a memorable, real character with imperfections and insecurities that anyone can relate to as well as her own special variety of charm and courage. I just can't get enough of her zany adventures and the countless colorful individuals that inhabit her world. Laugh-out-loud funny, and with just the right amount of intrigue to keep your guessing. Ranger is a character that continues to draw me into the series, and all the other old favorites are a pleasure as always. I love classic literature, from "Jane Eyre" to Shakespeare, and I often scoff at the "popular" literature and "beach reads" I see topping the best-sellers chart. But from a discriminating fan of the written world, I give a round of applause to Evanovich for her fine writing...it might not go down in history, but it has a definite merit and I am grateful to her for keeping me consistently entertained. Don't miss this series...virtually guaranteed to please and amuse!

The answer to the question is "yes", because that is how I felt with this book. In it Stephanie has two more vehicles that get blown up plus Ranger's. It gets a little stale after awhile. This is still a pretty good book though because we see our old favourites - Lula, Gramma Mazur and of course Ranger and Morelli. Some unfinished business between Stephanie and Ranger gets finished too. I wish they could bottle and sell Ranger! Anyway, in this book Stephanie is trying to find a missing mother and her daughter for a friend of her family, and she is thrown against a really bad dude who begins terrorizing her and her family. Ranger really helps Steph a lot in this one because this guy is really scary! In fact, it makes Stephanie really consider a new line of work.

The eighth in the Stephanie Plum series, HARD EIGHT, has the bounty hunter searching for a missing mother and child. Though not an official assignment, Stephanie enlists the aid of Lulu, Ranger and off-again on-again fiancé Joe Morelli in the pursuit,
when the trail leads to the involvement of a scary and dangerous criminal Eddie Abruzzi and a deadly killer rabbit. HARD EIGHT will not disappoint Evanovich's fans. Nestled amidst the action and horror, readers will find episodes sure to double you over with laughter. HARD EIGHT continues to explore the sexual tension between Plum and Ranger and her fascination with Morelli. HARD EIGHT, another winner from the talented author Janet Evanovich.
Beverly J Scott author of "Righteous Revenge" and "Ruth Fever." Reviewer for Intriguing Authors and Their Books at http://www.funeralassociates.com/authors.htm

I have read the first 7 Stephanie Plum novels and liked them all. This one I liked the best. I laughed out loud many times throughout the book. It does help to have read the first seven books and to know the history of Stephanie's relationships with Ranger and Morelli and to follow their development.

The 8th book in the Stephanie Plum series is pretty much as good as the other 7. It's another page turning, action-packed, well plotted, well written novel. Most of the usual beloved characters are here as well as a new one - attorney Kloughn (Clown) - who I'd like to see remain as a regular. Stephanie's main task in this book is to find a missing woman and her daughter, as she is stalked by a relentless mobster. The problem I have with this book is that some of the situations are not believable. The author does not give Stephanie a really good reason to keep seeking the woman after the mobster keeps trying to kill her. The reader has to ask themselves, 'Why is she continuing with this??' I think Ms. Evanovich went a little too far stretching our imaginations in this book in several situations, to the point where she brings us out of the novel back into reality, darn it. On the other hand, things heat up between Stephanie and Ranger. That, and the general good read the book provides, as all of the "Plum" books thus far, makes this a must read.

In the eighth book of the Stephanie Plum series, Stephanie must track down a missing mother and daughter. Her task isn't made easy with the woman's ex and violent landlord breathing down her neck. Stephanie also seems to be having bad luck with animals lately. She must fend off snakes, spiders, geese, and a lunatic in a bunny suit. Also, with Morelli out of the picture, Ranger steps up his pursuit of Stephanie.

The thing that I love about this series is that it's dependable. You can always count on Stephanie blowing up a few cars and the Stephanie/Morelli/Ranger love triangle will probably never be resolved. It's also the only series that I can think of that is repetitive with out becoming boring or going down in quality. With Stephanie Plum you always know that you are going to get a zany, fun, mystery and that's a good thing.

I love Evanovich's books!! I have been a fan since she was writing those little romance series books. Great humor with quirky characters. And in the middle of all the action is this great male/female thing. Will she or wouldn't she? Stay tuned!!