Good Trashy Fun

Well, okay, maybe “trashy” is the wrong word. Maybe “tacky” would be a better one. Regardless, Janet Evanovich’s latest Stephanie Plum novel -- Fearless Fourteen -- has all the fun we’ve come to know and love.

There’s no point in me delving into the plot -- it’s the same old plot as it always is. Stephanie attracts trouble like trailers attract tornadoes. Ms. Evanovich takes you through the whirlwind of losers, loonies and lovers only to wind up with Stephanie standing on her own two feet again -- skint knees, mussed hair and smeared makeup intact.

I was in the middle of reading my usual serious fare (Lies My Teacher Told Me) when I found myself waiting around for my wife with nothing to do. So I stole the book she was reading -- Fearless Fourteen. Once you start a Stephanie Plum novel you can’t put it down. America’s educational problems can wait. Stephanie has a new car, Lula has a new outfit (leather !) and Grandma Mazur has a new do.

If you’re one of the unfortunate souls that doesn’t know what I’m talking about, you should probably start with the first book -- One For the Money. That’s how simple these books are -- you don’t even have to work at keeping up with the titles. One For the Money, Two For the Dough and Three to Get Deadly, etc.,etc. I’ve read them all. You can’t brag about it. But they are fun. Good, trashy fun.

Don Brown
August 5, 2008