Rating: 
Summary: Worth neither the money nor the time!
Review: What a silly book. Stephanie could have had any number of funnier adventures that were also more believable.
Rating:
Summary: big disappointment
Review: What is it with lame holiday books? I like the Stephanie Plum books a lot and eagerly awaited this one. What a disappointment! Evanovich must be taking lessons from John Grisham, whose lame Skipping Christmas was a big stinker last year. The book felt rushed, the characters/plot were childish and silly. I sincerely hope this is not a view of things to come in future Plum books or I'll be dropping this series in a hot minute.
Rating:
Summary: Visions of Sugar Plums = Plum Waste of Money
Review: Save your money, people. I love the Plum series, but this book was nothing but a filler to make Evanovich and her publisher some easy Christmas money. The plot was plotless. The "new" character was never fully explained -- basically he was an alien, and of course, a good-looking one, who had skills the likes of which make McGyver look like an idiot. No Ranger. Tad bit of Morelli. The bottom line is: This book is a waste of your time and money. Don't get sucked in! Let's hope Book #9 gets back on track.
Rating: 
Summary: Started as a 2star book, finished as a 4 - Nice but yet...
Review: Ok, so as a die-hard Evanovich fan I had to go out and buy this, and read it immediately, and I found it a bit disappointing. It has most of the features of a traditional Evanovich bounty hunt, but for some reason the charm was not quite the same. I think I found the first bit off-putting which didn't help. Stephanie is kind of transported into a fairy tale when a guy called Diesel drops into her kitchen one morning - literally - pouf he is there. And she realises that something is wrong, and that this doesn't usually happen - and we all get to suspend belief (or is it disbelief) - but I still find it hard to fathom myself. Stephanie hasn't done any of her Christmas shopping, and there are only a few shopping days to go before Christmas - to get money she has to track down Bail skip, Sandy Claws who is making toys somewhere. She has to resort to using short person (from 5 or 6) Randy Briggs - who has a penchant for attacking people with Kitchen implements. Somehow, Diesel has been landed with her because he is on some kind of Cosmic equivalent of bounty hunter. Anyway - we are taken along for a ride with it all, and it does get better and better as things go on. Grandma Mazur has found herself a new studmuffin at Stiva's funeral parlour and he's a great kisser, but she's lost her teeth. Valerie is falling further and further into despair. Morelli is also there, but Ranger is out of town - somewhere. However with Diesel on the scene you wouldn't know it - in fact in the physical sense he is a pretty good Ranger substitute. A shortish story - 150 pages - which makes it a nice quick read and some genuinely laugh out loud moments in here too however not really well developed. It just seemed to be a bit of quick marketing thing for Christmas. A bit of fun, but if there are extra Plum books put out in future I can wait to get them second hand next time.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent too short read
Review: I am a speed reader, so this was extrememly short for me. I love Janets books though, they really make me laugh. I like a heroine (Stephanie)that is nobody's doormat, and she takes Diesels appearance in her apartment like any normal woman...suspiciously (truly her mothers daughter)! I loved the Christmas theme, and the fact that her niece "the horse" was given Christmas. If you like Janet, you'll love the book.
Rating: 
Summary: Visions of Sugar Bums
Review: I love Janet, but this was a real disappointment. It took me less than two hours to read this book...just about as long as it probably took Janet to write it. Were we trying to make some kind of production quota here? I can't even say it was a piece of "fun fluff." It was nothing. Janet, less cheese doodles and more "meat."
Rating:
Summary: An early Christmas present for Stephanie Plum fans.
Review: There are only 4 days to Christmas and Stephanie Plum hasn't bought a tree, or done any decorating, or even started shopping for presents. Sounds like a typical holiday for the hapless, but loveable Jersey bounty hunter. It's also not unusual for Stephanie to find a handsome man standing in her living room. What is out of the ordinary is how he got there: he just...well...materialized. Out of thin air. Also, he claims to be the Christmas Spirit. And he's here to help Stephanie find Sandy Claws, the elderly toymaker who's skipped out on his bail. If that all sounds a little silly, that's part of the fun. Evanovich has given her fans an early Christmas present in this wonderful little book. The plot works as both a fableistic Christmas story and an excellent mystery to boot. Stephanie Plum is a wonderful character, probably the best recurring female protagonist in the mystery genre. She's smart and spunky, always irrerverent, and a joy to spend time with. And if she's not enough, there's always Stephanie's pistol-packing, ribald and randy Grandma Masur! "Visions of Sugar Plums" is a delightful little tidbit, sure to delight all of Evanovich's fans. Reviewed by David Montgomery, Mystery Ink
Rating:
Summary: PLUM FUN
Review: This book was wonderful with all of the Plum's insanity. But it was way to short it left me wanting more. i finished the book in a few hours.
Rating:
Summary: Holiday Fantasy Fun.....
Review: Poor Stephanie...four days 'til Christmas and there's not a sign of it anywhere in her drab little apartment. No tree, no decorations, no holiday music, and no presents in colorful wrapping paper. In fact, she hasn't given Christmas a thought. Right now, she's sitting in her kitchen stewing over her latest bounty hunter problem, and she's in a real bah humbug mood. But all that's about to change as she looks up and finds a hunk of a guy, blond ponytail, tight jeans, and boots, standing right there in front of her..... It's Christmastime in the Burg, and Janet Evanovich brings her delightfully zany little holiday fantasy to life with humor and wit. The gang's all here and up to their usual fun-filled, manic antics, and things are really rocking and rolling over at the Plum household. Sister Valerie has a crisis, Grandma has a new boyfriend, and of course there's Christmas dinner to survive. Add to that an elusive old toymaker who's jumped bail, a posse of nasty elves, the usual car problems, tree trouble, and Joe Morelli, and you have the makings of an engaging holiday romp as only Ms Evanovich could envision. So put up your feet after a long day of fighting crowds and power shopping and give yourself a little treat, as you let Stephanie Plum and company raise your spirits. Visions Of Sugar Plums is a lot better than fruit cake!
Rating:
Summary: It's a novella, folks
Review: It isn't supposed to be a full-length Plum mystery, so I think the reviews that whine that it's too short aren't valid. Grisham has a small book like this-- Skipping Christmas-- so why not Janet E.? That said, I thought this was a highly entertaining diversion, but I knew where it was going from the second page. If you want to be shocked and surprised, or if you are offended at supernatural elements in a Plum story, skip this. Otherwise, you'll love seeing the gang celebrate the holidays Stephanie-style.
| 
