Two for the Dough

Rating:
Summary: A Great Read! Tons of Fun!
Review: "Two for the Dough" is the second instalment in Janet Evanovich's delightful Stephanie Plum series. An intriguing and suspenseful mystery is seamlessly blended with laugh-out-loud humour, to create one great read!

Stephanie Plum, possibly the most inept bounty hunter ever to hit the streets, is on a new case, now armed with a stun gun, pepper spray, and her .38 Smith & Wesson (of which she is terrified). Stephanie is looking for bail jumper Kenny Mancuso who just shot his best friend. Kenny is from the same neighbourhood as Stephanie, Trenton's burg. He is fresh out of the army and he seems to have recently come into a lot of money. Very suspicious.

With a little help from Ranger, Stephanie's mentor and fellow bounty hunter, Stephanie sets about finding her newest FTA. Of course, well meaning help comes from several directions. Stephanie's Grandma Mazur, whose favourite pastime is heading to a viewing of Trenton's latest deceased, comes in handy when Stephanie's search requires she check out all the local funeral parlours. Grandma Mazur provides great cover, but she is also absolutely hilarious as she causes all kinds of bizarre corpse related accidents. And vice cop Joe Morelli and his overactive libido are never far from Stephanie's side. With Stephanie's blind luck and Morelli's honed cop instincts, these two make a pretty good team. However their personal relationship is a whole other story, usually consisting of intense but terribly incomplete sexual episodes followed by confusion, distrust, teasing, and denial. The relationship between Stephanie and Morelli is always fascinating and never predictable.

But as we laugh our way through Stephanie's various misadventures, we are also kept riveted by a thrilling and fast-paced mystery. Stephanie, for all her mistakes, has good instincts, which lead her right into the middle of a very perilous situation. Stephanie finds herself knee-deep in corpses, caskets, and stolen military firearms. And things really get scary when she starts receiving embalmed body parts in the mail. If Stephanie doesn't watch out, the frightening threats she's been receiving could easily turn into reality!

Evanovich skilfully crafts her well-thought-out mystery, tying all of the threads together in an exciting and satisfying conclusion. I'm amazed at how seemingly effortlessly Evanovich can mix the gripping mystery with the hilarious and witty comedy. "Two for the Dough" is the perfect book for those times when you need a bit of a pick-me-up. Stephanie Plum is one heck of a gal, the kind of person you'd like for a friend. So don't miss out on all the fun, "Two for the Dough" comes highly recommended.

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Summary: SUE GRAFTON FANS TAKE NOTE!
Review: Kinsey Millhone just doesn't come around fast enough, so between Grafton's books...read Evanovich. Steph Plum is funny and real...not to mention not nearly as pickey as Kinsey, doesn't dress like Vic Warshawski, and can't cook as Kay Scarpetta. Janet Evanovich has a great series going and if you enjoy mystery/P.I. genre...this is a must read!

Rating:
Summary: Loved This Book!
Review: After reading "One for the Money" I couldn't wait to read the second book in the series. I found myself chuckling out loud. This book focuses more on Stephanie's Grandmother Mazur. She is very colorful and so funny! I love the way this chartacter was developed from the first book. You won't get a whole lot of suspense from this book or even the first book but what you will get is pure enjoyment. The books read smoothly and they are hard to put away. I don't think you will be disappointed.... I'm off to read the third book "Three to get Deadly."

Rating:
Summary: Just keeps getting better...
Review: If you liked the first of Janet Evanovich's One For the Money, then you'll love this one. Stephanie is back again with more hilarity and wild situations. Want more? Read the whole series - Three To Get Deadly, Four To Score, High Five, Hot Six, Seven Up.... Each subsequent book only gets funnier.

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Summary: Stephanie Plum Is Back!
Review: One is always careful (and sometimes skeptical) when reading the first book of a series. You read the first book as a test. If you like it enough, you'll read the second book. In all honesty, it's the second book that is the most important. If the second book in the series is up to your standards, you know the series is gold. You know you can run out to the book store (or sign online) and buy the remaining books of the series. At least, that's what I did. And in this case, I'm not sorry yet.

I loved 'One for the Money,' the first book in the Stephanie Plum series. It was funny, appealing and best of all, Stephanie immediately became one of my favorite fictional characters. She's funny and vulnerable, but sometimes lacking common sense. An everywoman, if you will. Someone I could relate to as well as admire.

Stephanie is back on her second case for cousin Vinnie in 'Two for the Dough,' trying to track down Kenny Mancuso. He grew up in Stephanie's neighborhood, a blue-collar area of Trenton called 'the burg.' He's wanted for the murder of his best friend and skipped his court date, so it's Stephanie's job to bring him back into the system. Kenny, consequently, is also distantly related to Joe Morelli, the vice cop who stole Stephanie's virginity behind a bakery counter in her teenage youth. This is the start of their working relationship -- as bounty hunter and cop. But theirs is never a 'working relationship,' it's war. He holds back information, sometimes uses her as bate, and Stephanie tries her best to get even. It's a valuable pairing, however, for with her dumb luck and his expert cop's intuition (and we can't forget Ranger, Stephanie's mentor who usually assists her with the takedown once she's found her man), they are able to crack a case.

All the characters you know and love from the first book return and I can tell you this book was just as funny as the first one. Add some new, wily characters to the mix for extra comic flair, a new car Stephanie will ultimately destroy (as I've read all the books I can tell you Stephanie changes cars like Elizabeth Taylor changes husbands) and you have a reader who couldn't wait for the third book of the series.

Survey says? Gold, baby. You want a fun, beach read? You want something to make you laugh? Go with Stephanie Plum. You won't be sorry.

Rating:
Summary: Stephanie Plum is irresistable
Review: Stephanie Plum is back in Two for the Dough. And she has brought her wild and funny Grandma Mazur with her. Stephanie is on the trail of Kenny Mancuso who has jumped bail on a shooting charge. As luck would have it he just happens to be vice cop Joe Morelli's cousin, so Joe is only to happy to help Stephanie track Kenny down. And so the fun begins. Funerals, stun guns, pot roast dinner,funerals, stakeouts in cars, funerals, this book leaves no Jersey stone or funeral unturned. Lots of laughs, and Grandma Mazur packing a pistol, at a funeral. Who could ask for more?

Rating:
Summary: Suburban Sass
Review: Stephanie Plum - bounty hunter - is employed to bring in Kenny Mancuso, accused of shooting his friend (Moogy) in the knee. But, Mancuso is cousin to Joe Morelli, the cop Stephanie loves to hate - and hates to love! Stephanie and Morelli investigate the shooting, which turns into murder when Moogy is found dead. Along the way, Stephanie is hired to find twenty-four missing coffins. There's also military weapons, (stolen from an army base where Mancuso was stationed), being sold on the street.
Witnesses disappear, threatening letters posted, Stephanie's apartment vandalized, and body parts (from corpses) chopped off and mailed to Stephanie. Finally Grandma Mazur is kidnapped, and Stephanie snaps, accidentally setting fire to the mortuary and grabbing Mancuso (giving him a few kicks and thumps) for the police.
The Stephanie Plum books are contemporary, fast-moving, and comic mysteries, set in suburban New York. This, the second in the series, fleshes out the regular characters, as well as the love/hate relationship between Stephanie and Morelli. Most of the action is set within a small-defined area - Trenton - which is shown to be normal at first glance. Evanovich is adept at finding those quirks which are taken for granted by the residents - the way almost everyone matter-of-factly carries a gun, funeral viewings are a social event, and the importance of family (and food).
Stephanie is an independent young woman (usually described as 'sassy'), who is tied to her family by unbreakable links -which she's tried hard to break! Her mother puts family and home before herself while her father is almost invisible - he works, eats and watches television. Grandma Mazur, widowed and living with Stephanie's parents, is tactless, indomitable, and effervescent - an embarrassing nuisance to those around her, but we all hope to be like her when we grow old.
Stephanie's jobs always seem to be so simple, but end up being complicated. She has a bad history with cars, is scared of guns, and tends to have few qualms about petty crime committed doing her job. She enjoys her job, but has a sneaking suspicion that she's not really suited for it. However, her determination, intuition, and luck help her solve the mysteries - along with an information system based on family and old school friends.
The plot is well-planned - we know Mancuso, the guns, and the caskets are somehow connected, but, like Stephanie, not sure how. The clues all join up into a satisfying conclusion, and while some of the events seem improbable - but they are still plausible. The comedy is also well-written - initiated from events and the characters - and is almost slapstick at times, for instance when Stephanie drives off, leaving Morelli naked in the street.
Janet Evanovich has created a world which is eccentric but recognisible, peopled by characters that are average but never boring. The crimes are usually minor, even petty at times. But Evanovich masterfully shows how enjoyable a trip through the ordinary can be.

Rating:
Summary: Two for the Dough, even better then one!
Review: I was told these stories would get better with each book and that was the truth! I LOVED Two for the Dough. Grandma Mazur is a hoot, I love that woman! I want her to be my Grandma :) I Love so much about these stories I don't even know where to begin. Buy them, you will love them.

Rating:
Summary: Stephanie Plum is back and funnier then ever.
Review: Well Stephanie is back and she is still the smart mouthed bounty hunter... This time she is after another creep.

From the start of this book till the end I was laughing. Janet writes with a great style that keeps the reader wanting more from the book.

I loved how Stephanie was always screwing up and getting into trouble. From her huge Buick that she manage to hit some cars to her and the stairwell incident.

Her Grandma is back and funnier then ever. All she wants to do it help out Stephanie in catching this bad guy and while helping Stephanie she gets into some trouble herself.

I can't wait to read more about Stephanie and her friends and family.

Rating:
Summary: Just too funny
Review: I really liked this one. I had read One for the Money and really enjoyed it. I like Janet's style. I couldn't quit laughing especially when Stephanie fall from the fire escape. I recommend Janet if you want a light mystery and tons of humor. I want her to keep them coming.