Twelve Sharp (Stephanie Plum Series #12) Book

Yes, they are formulaic. Yes, they are light. Yes, they don't challenge you. Well, so what. They're a lot of fun. I've read all of the Stephanie Plum series, and I enjoy the formula, the humor, and the zany family (Grandma Mazur's passion for funeral viewings is hysterically the opposite of the revulsion most of us have for such events.) I sooo empathize with Stephanie's father who is just trying to hold it together in the presence of Grandma Mazur, who, having shot the Thanksgiving turkey with a .45 in a previous book, has now joined Lula's band as a singer visiting retirement homes. They decide to practice at Stephanie's during dinner and all Dad wants to do is watch the Yankees, but the noise, the costumes (Grandma is wearing a studded color and an ice cream cone bra, you get the picture) are driving him to a state Morelli can only describe as similar to victims of a multiple vehicle accident. Very funny scene. The only thing worrying me is that I suspect Grandma Mazur isn't much older than I. That truly sucks.

In this volume, a Ranger wanna-be is stalking him and kidnaps his daughter, trying to become a pseudo-Ranger. He's killing people who get in the way; but who cares about the plot. We read these for quirky and very funny characters.

A final note. Several of the one-star reviewers on Amazon complained that Stephanie was immoral and needs to stop sleeping with both Ranger and Morelli. That's interesting because I had the sense (and my wife agrees) that that is not at all the case and that she has remained faithful to Morelli. Yes, in this one she "sleeps" with Ranger, but only literally and Platonicly. So to those who think Stephanie is immoral, get over it and go back to your Harlequins.