Reviews

Hardcore Twenty-Four by Janet Evanovich

daylilies13's review against another edition

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funny mysterious fast-paced

3.5

kirstie_waters's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted

3.5

joni7824's review against another edition

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3.0

I quit reading the Stephanie Plum books at around #17 however, picked this up at the library because the Plum books are always fast and fun to read. I was upset to read that Stephanie is stiiiiill bouncing between Joe and Ranger and though it seemed she had chosen Joe (yea I've always been a Morelli fan), apparently not. I understand that Janet probably doesn't want to have her make a choice to keep it spicy however, it just irritates me. Love Lula; she adds a lot to the series. Not sure if I'll read #'s 18-23 or #25 however, did enjoy this one

blove0312's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

 “Bad news,” I said. “It’s about your Lexus.”
(R) “One of my patrol cars drove by it an hour ago and said it was being circled by vultures.”
“There was an unfortunate incident with a dead groundhog.”
“I didn’t see that one coming,” Ranger said. “How bad is it?”
(S) “There are vultures circling. How bad do you think it is?”
Silence.
“You’re laughing again, aren’t you?” I asked him.
(R) “Do I need to send someone in a hazmat suit?”
“Yes.”
(R) “Do you need another car? I’m running a tab.”


Zombies have come to Trenton, NJ. (Remember my bio-hazard statement just last book… makes you wonder…)
Stephanie is “keeping an eye” on Ethel the snake for Simon Diggery the grave robber while he does a short stint in jail. Which results in a trailer full of raccoons who eat all the rats meant for Ethel, then I think there were cats, and then the zombies show up.
Grandma Mazur managed to get her a honey who lives in florida and who is absolutely catfishing her which is only fair as she’s doing the same.
Diesel shows up, though I’ll admit this one is vague for me. I don’t really feel like he added anything to it. Again though, these later books I have only read once and listened to now 2x, but I don’t recall all the things, and at work tend to zone out/lose track of what’s going on.

Wow I just read some of the reviews for this book, which are the first reviews I’ve read for ANY of the books since I’ve been reading them off and on since about 2006, and I cannot believe how many people are vehemently against this series… like, don’t fuckin read it maybe?
I’m disappointed in Stephanie same old story blah blah, their reviews all sound the same and are the “same old story.”

If you’re reading these books, you aren’t looking for something intellectually stimulating. You aren’t trying to find the meaning to life, learn how to make Greek fire, or find the formula for Roman concrete. You’re looking for entertainment. You want to laugh out loud, many times. You want to spend 300 pages/6 hours reading or listening to something fun and lighthearted to take you away for a wee bit. Maybe you have 3 lovers you can’t choose from too and find solace in Stephanie Plum. If reviewers are truly judging a fictional character for OCCASIONALLY having sex with someone other than Morelli (who by the way is the one lately to do the on-and-off-again thing). We do not slut shame around here. Get it, Stephanie Plum. 

abias94's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

susanr1129's review

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2.0

I used to love this series and the characters, always a laugh out loud read. However, this one just didn’t do it for me - too “out there” with the zombies. I used to love the whacky characters but this was too weird for me.

leonajasmin's review

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2.0

I felt the plot was rushed at the end and seemed a little unfocused, but there were plenty of little funny moments in the book

aspygirlsmom_1995's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

bdlish80's review

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funny medium-paced

4.0

manadabomb's review

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3.0

I thoroughly enjoyed this latest escapade of Stephanie Plum with only one exception: the words "She blew out a sigh" were repeated everywhere. I blame the editor on this one. That repetitiveness should have been caught. Otherwise, I was fully on-board for this ride with Stephanie, Lula, and zombies.

Zombies? Now that's a twist.

We're 24 books in to the Plum series and you know what you are getting. This time we added a third hot guy who wants to sleep with Stephanie and zombies. And Ethel. Don't forget Ethel. Stephanie just wants to be paid so she's trying to track down the skips for her cousin Vinnie's bail bonds business. She doesn't want to deal with giant, 50lb boa constrictors (Hi Ethel!), meth making idiots who blow up buildings (Yo, Zero Slick) and zombies.

I did figure out really early on how the zombies came to be but it was worth suspending belief to see Lula freaking the hell out every time she saw a zombie. I did lose track how many of Ranger's cars Stephanie destroyed in this book but no one seems to care. It's all suspended belief, junk food reading and pure fun.