Book Review: Finger Lickin' Fifteen

Author: Janet Evanovich
Title: Finger Lickin' Fifteen
Publisher: St Martin's Press
Publish Date: June 23, 2009
Rating: 5 Stars
Book Blurb: "Unbuckle your belt and pull up a chair. It's the spiciest, sauciest, most rib-sticking plum yet." "Recipe for disaster: Celebrity chef Stanley Chipotle comes to Trenton to participate in a barbecue cook-off and loses his head - literally." "Throw in some spice: Bail bonds office worker Lula is witness to the crime, and the only one she'll talk to is Trenton cop Joe Morelli." "Pump up the heat: Chipotle's sponsor is offering a million-dollar reward to anyone who can provide information leading to the capture of the killers." "Stir the pot: Lula recruits bounty hunter Stephanie Plum to help her find the killers and collect the moolah." "Add a secret ingredient: Stephanie Plum's Grandma Mazur. Enough said." "Bring to a boil: Stephanie Plum is working overtime tracking felons for the bonds office at night and snooping for security expert Carlos Manoso, aka Ranger, during the day. Can Stephanie hunt down two killers, a traitor, and five skips, keep her grandmother out of the sauce, and solve Ranger's problems and not jump his bones?" Warning: Habanero hot. So good you'll want seconds.

Review: Do you need to laugh? To really belly laugh and smile? If you do, pick up a copy of this book and start reading. There is something about Stephanie Plum's madcap antics that really draws you in, and this has to be one of Evanovich's best books in awhile. Book 15! And the characters don't get old, in fact, they feel like old friends you visit with once or twice a year.

Finger Lickin' Fifteen is all about Lula with a touch of Ranger thrown in to make things interesting. Actually a book that revolves around Lula has to be funny. The descriptions of her clothes alone will make you crack a smile and in this one she's got some yellow spandex! Plus she's making BBQ to catch a killer and she's doing it with Grandma Mazur! The thought of that combination should bring some smiles.

Like all Plum novels things get blown up. I think she loses at least 3 cars in this one! Note to self: when my next car gets old, hunt Steph down to get rid of it! Poor Ranger loses 2 Porsche Cayenne's in the space of 24 hours. That combined with a security breach @ Rangeman would be enough to make him cry, but not Ranger. This book does give a glimpse at some of his more human qualities.

Then there's the other man in Stephanie's life, Morelli. They're broken up in this one, but not for long, especially since he's on the case to see who killed the celebrity chef and who is trying to kill Lula!

This book was fun, fast paced and probably one of my favorite reads of the year. It had me in stitches in several places. Oh and for those of you that haven't read any Plum novels? Jump in and try one. That's the thing about these books, you don't have to read them in order, it helps but they stand alone quite nicely.

I can't wait to read the new one in the coming weeks!