Hot Six

Hot Six by Janet Evanovich
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

When her mentor is suspected of killing a crime lord's son, bounty hunter Stephanie Plum's not so sure her friend is innocent - but even less sure she wants to bring him in.

Stephanie knows better than to tangle with Ranger. First, he makes her pulse race a little too fast. Second, he's a ghost with no known address and an uncanny habit of getting past the locks on her apartment door. He's the expert, and she's still a bumbling beginner. But the wolves are sniffing after his trail, and it's Stephanie they're watching.

With a dopey dog in tow and Grandma Mazur snoring on her couch, Stephanie takes on the Mob with moxy to spare. Add to her woes a serious lack of sleep and sex, and it's just another day in the life of a Jersey-born bounty hunter.

Stephanie's still not quite sure how to work a gun, but she's getting a little better at fugitive apprehension. She even manages to make a respectable takedown, though with plenty of humorous flailing. Her luck with cars is still abysmal, and it's fun to watch her go toe-to-toe with the intimidating Ranger. A cliffhanger from High Five is resolved and replaced by another that will make ardent fans eager to see what's next in Seven Up.

Quotable:

"Nothing is ever simple with you. Men blow themselves up. Cars get flattened by garbage trucks. I've been in full-scale invasions that have been less harrowing than meeting you for coffee." - 240