Twenty four years is a long time to have an ongoing series of novels. But Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum has stood the test of time, selling millions of copies and gaining millions of fans. I came into the series with book eighteen, and I have enjoyed every installment that I have read. Evanovich's hilarious characters, daring adventures, and surprise twists have kept me interested in her Trenton, New Jersey bounty hunter for a few years now. I can always expect that I will have a fun time with this series.
Turbo Twenty-Three is published by Bantam Books, an imprint of Penguin Random House. In it we return to the life of Stephanie Plum. This unlikely bounty hunter works for her cousin, Vinny, at his bail bonds office. Her skips are dangerous, and Stephanie can be less than courageous when dealing with the more violent FTAs (Failure to Appears). Thankfully her detective boyfriend, Joe Morelli, and her ex-military guardian, Ranger, are there to see that she does not end up floating in the river with the other "problem" people.
Stephanie's "co-worker", Lula, is along for the ride, as Stephanie pursues Larry Virgil. This fugitive has a habit of stealing tractor trailers filled with product that he later sells. This time he has commandeered a Bogart Ice Cream truck. After the pursuit ends, the back of the freezer truck is opened, and the dead body of a man covered in nuts and chocolate tumbles out onto the ground... frozen solid. He also happens to be a very important man in the Bogart Ice Cream business.
Ranger's security firm has been hired by Bogart Ice Cream to look into disturbances that have been plaguing the popular plant. But to effectively catch any suspects, Ranger needs someone on the inside that can do surveillance on the job. Stephanie is hired to pose as a worker, and soon she is introduced to her very happy (and stoned) co-workers. The least happy is the Bogart Ice Cream Clown, who hates his job, hates children, and carries a gun under the seat of the ice cream truck that he reluctantly drives around the city. With a group like this, the suspects list is getting larger by the minute.
Meanwhile Randy Briggs has returned to Stephanie's life. Lula is getting set to film an inner-city version of Naked and Afraid. Randy is set to join Lula as her co-star, but true to his personality, he has to bug Stephanie for advice. The filming is less than stellar, and Lula and Randy embark on Naked Bungee Jumping as a second option. As you can imagine none of this bodes well for the four foot man.
In between posing as an ice cream employee and running around Trenton naked, Stephanie and Lula pursue a few criminals that have failed to appear for their court date. This includes the ominously large Eugene Winkle (stun guns tickle him); Dottie Loosey (who booby traps her house to prevent intruders from entering her home, or bounty hunters bringing her in); Simon Diggery (grave robber extraordinaire with a very large pet snake); and wise guy Benjamin Kwan (who has his hands in many illegal operations). Stephanie definitely has her hands full with this group of felons. Thankfully she has Lula and Ranger by her side to help her bring in her skips.
Janet Evanovich puts Stephanie through some of her funniest adventures to date. I laughed quite a lot during this novel, and wiped tears from my a eyes a few times. It is a fun romp through Stephanie's life in Trenton, bringing back many fan favorites, like Grandma Mazur (who has a new boyfriend). The mystery surrounding the Bogart Ice Cream murders (yes, there are more) left me guessing. The fugitives were fun to read about, with some of the craziest ones yet. I thoroughly enjoyed the story, the writing, and the humor on display in the narrative.
I read this book in part with the narration of actress, Lorelei King. After reading Plum novels since book seven, King has cultivated a massive archive of voices that she uses deftly in her production of each novel. Her Randy Briggs and Grandma Mazur still remain my favorites voices. I am always thrilled to find out that she is reading another Janet Evanovich novel, because the two work so well together. I have had several exchanges on Twitter with King, and I find her delightful. You can tell by listening to her that she enjoys her work on the series.
This book was a solid four stars for me. It was funny, adventurous, and had all the ingredients for a successful Plum recipe. I loved the story and laughed at Evanovich's unfiltered humor. And with the return of my favorite characters, I deem this a great Summer Read.
Have fun reading this week. Let me know in the comments below what you are reading.
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