Mini Reviews: One For the Money & Two for the Dough

I have finally decided to pick up the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich and start reading it from book one! I've read a book or two here and there but I never had the guts to start a series that already has over 15 books out! However this all has changed. Lately, I have been in a need of some chick flicks with a bit of humor and this was it! I have already read the first two books and I will be reviewing two books for every post whenever I read them. 

This is a general synopsis of the series, if you are ever interested in picking it up. The series has a mystery in each book and full of laugh out loud (literally) moments.

Stephanie Plum is a bounty hunter with attitude. In Stephanie's opinion, toxic waste, rabid drivers, armed schizophrenics, and August heat, humidity, and hydrocarbons are all part of the great adventure of living in Jersey. She's a product of blue-collar Trenton, where houses are attached and narrow, cars are American, windows are clean, and dinner is served at six.

Out of work and out of money, with her Miata repossessed and her refrigerator empty, Stephanie blackmails her bail bondsman cousin, Vinnie, into giving her a try as an apprehension agent. And that’s only the beginning of series that will set her on the trail of fugitives. Stephanie will have to sharpen her sleuthing skills, because she's got many a mystery to solve. 

Title: One For the Money (Stephanie Plum, #1)

Author: Janet Evanovich

DOP: 1994

Genre(s): Adult (Chick Flick)

Rating: 4/5 stars

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I miss Chick Flicks and the true meaning of Adult Novels. Characters in their late 20s and 30s dealing with everyday life problems. This one stars Stephanie Plum, a 30 something year old unemployed woman who takes up bounty hunting and her first recovery job is Joe Morelli. Now there is a ton of beef and history between her and Morelli, in Morelli's family garage while they.. eh.. played train when they were young, at the bakery where she worked at, and while she was driving the Buick and "accidentally" went on the pavement and hit Morelli and broke his leg. Now, Morelli is a cop, but he's been accused of murder but is on the loose. Stephanie Plum ends up trying to learn how to use her gun without breaking into a full body sweat and actually physically bringing Morelli in when she finds him the next time. I loved the back and forth banter between Stephanie and Morelli, and also Grandma Mazur, who is unbelievably hilarious and kick butt. The mystery also kept me guessing throughout the whole book. I loved her italian community and the Burg where her parents and grandmother lived. This book was perfect for me because I was in a reading slump. It made me laugh so much and it was such an entertaining start for this series! 

Title: Two For the Dough (Stephanie Plum, #2)

Author: Janet Evanovich

DOP: 1996

Genre(s): Adult (Chick Flick)

Rating: 4/5 stars

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The second book in the series starts off close to when the first book ended. Morelli is off the hook and is back to being a cop and a pain in the butt to Stephanie, however he sees it the other way. Stephanie finally upgraded from only using a gun to getting pepper spray and a taser. Her and Rex, her hamster, are managing to stay afloat with the money she's getting from the petty FTAs (Fail To Appear) and when a 5000$ FTA arrives, she immediately picks it up and what do you know? it is Morelli's cousin. This novel has a lot more of Grandma Mazur and I am so happy for that. I have to warn you, whenever Grandma Mazur is around, there always seems to be at least a gun being fired or a shooting occurring. Ranger barely appears in this novel (another bounty hunter) but I'm sure we will see more of him in later installments. This particular mystery gave me the creeps because a psychopath was on the loose who enjoys cutting limbs off people. I honestly don't get how Stephanie can do this when she gets death threats and very disturbing packages. Nonetheless she showed Morelli who's boss and I also really enjoyed this installment!