Rating: 
Summary: What?
Review: I think it's great that Janet Evanovich decided to write a holiday novel. It was cute, I guess, but it was also pretty pointless. Thank God I'm an avid reader of the series because if I picked this one up before I read any of the other novels, I definitely would've given up on Janet Evanovich. If you're a Ranger/Morelli fan (like me), you'll be somewhat disappointed because Morelli doesn't have a huge part and Ranger isn't even there. Ah well, on to 'To the Nines'!
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing
Review: Normally, I absolutely adore Stephanie Plum, but this book was not worth reading. They're always more about the interaction then the mystery, but ordinarily the mystery makes some kind of sense. "Visions of Sugar Plums" didn't really have a plot. Its two stars were salvaged by classic Steph moments, like the bathroom incident (You'll know what I mean when I get to it.) Skip to "To the Nines."
Rating:
Summary: Nice Christmas break
Review: This was a nice break in the usual action that didn't try too hard to further develop the characters in any meaninful way. It was light-hearted and fun reading--it purposely lacked reality and the "magical" elements were fun and a good read.
Rating:
Summary: Shockingly bad.
Review: I love the Plum series and have never given any book of the series less than 5 stars...until now. The plot of this book is too incredible to be even remotely believable. The supernatural twist doesn't fit in with the other books in the series. Where are Ranger and Morelli? How can you have a decent Plum book without them? Read this so you are up to date for the 9th book but expect to be disappointed.
Rating: 
Summary: -A quirky holiday with Stephanie & the Spirit of Christmas-
Review: One morning in December, Stephanie Plum walks into her kitchen and a great looking guy is standing there. She thinks she might be hallucinating since she had mushrooms on her pizza the night before. However, he tells her his name is Diesel and he's the spirit of Christmas. For some very strange reason she's not afraid of him, but knows that she should be terrified to be alone with a stranger. Locks and doors seem to be no problem for Diesel, but he does condescend to wait outside her apartment while she showers.As usual Stephanie is broke, no money for a Christmas tree, presents or decorations, but she still has her job as a bounty hunter. Well, well, who else would Stephanie Plum be looking for at Christmas time in Trenton, but Sandy Claws? He turns out to be in his 80's and a bail jumper. He also happens to be a toy maker. Since she can't get rid of Diesel, she decides to let him help her in her pursuit of Sandy. This story is absolutely hilarious; I laughed through the entire book. Don't wait until the holidays to read this one. .
Rating: 
Summary: Miserably, mind-numbingly awful!
Review: And don't think it makes me happy to say it. I was a relative latecomer to the Plum series, having been introduced to the first one in late 1999 and then, a woman in love, devouring them all. Lately, however, one can't help but notice that the series has taken a sharp decline. Glimmerings began in Hot Six, loomed large in Seven Up, and were absolutely undeniable in Hard Eight, a tremendous disappointment and most likely the end of Plum books worth reading. The formula is wearing quite thin; we're no longer shocked by Grandma Mazur's "studmuffins," it's not funny anymore when Stephanie's car gets blown up or she's (inexplicably) hit on by every handsome man within a ten-block radius. This slim entry into the Plum series is not scraping the bottom, but has burrowed a few inches into it. I read it in 45 minutes in the bookstore and was both annoyed at the waste of time and relieved at not having spent the money. Even Evanovich's sprightly writing, which was enough to keep me wading through Hard Eight, falls completely flat here. While describing the sudden, random appearance of a man in her kitchen, Evanovich actually writes, and leaves to be published, "It was like going to a birthday party and arriving one day early. It was like...what the heck's going on?" What the heck *IS* going on, Janet?! How could you publish this? I hate to give up on an author whom I loved so much, but when I read To the Nines I hope it's obvious that all her time and energy was going into that instead, or she'll be lost from my reading list forever. This one is as awful as the first one was fantastic. I have to wonder, by the way, whether all of you who click "no" below, are doing it merely because you disagree with me, or because you feel I could have been any more outspoken about how much I disliked this novel. Anyone feel free to drop me an email if you can shed some light on this.
Rating:
Summary: Hmmm
Review: Good, all though somewhat off beat. Had the standard Plum characters, etc, but I thought the departure from reality was bizarre, at best. Still funny, but I don't know if it was worth what I paid.
Rating: 
Summary: A Stephanie Plum Holiday Novel
Review: "My name is Stephanie Plum and I've got a strange man in my kitchen. He appeared out of nowhere. Fortunately, I work in bail bond enforcement and I'm sort of used to scary guys showing up in closets and under beds." His name is Diesel (very rugged and sexy) and claims to be the Spirit of Christmas (although he hates Christmas) and is assigned to bring Christmas cheer to Stephanie. Stephanie's looking for Sandy Claws, a 76-year-old guy wanted for a small burglary. Claws ("It was probably Klaus and got screwed up at Ellis Island") owns a toy store (u-huh) and makes a lot of toys himself at his workshop (u-huh). Stephanie hasn't had time to even get a tree. No time, no money, no ornaments, no presents. Only 4 days until Christmas, but this is typical for her. Diesel said he'd help her find Claws, then do the tree thing. But Diesel has another mission besides Christmas. "Away to the window they flew like a flash, tore open the blinds and threw up the sash. And what to their wondering eyes should appear, but Stephanie Plum and yet another of her cars burning front to rear." Only 149 pages, way too short. I wanted this very quick read to last longer. It's hard to put down, but take the time to savor it. It's really a riot!
Rating:
Summary: A True Gift!!!
Review: One of the funniest books in the Stephanie Plum series. A great Holiday edition with all the characters and laughter we expect. Stephanie is looking for Sandy Claws who jumped bail. It's four days before Christmas and she does not have a tree and her Christmas shopping has yet to begin. Then a sexy man named Diesel literally appears in her kitchen. He's some kind of superhuman, superficial, supernatural, kind of sort of. Her family is hysterically funny, her grandmother is still picking up "stud muffins " from the funeral home. Her sister thinks she may be pregnent ....again, from non other the " clown " himself.
Snagging Sandy is not at all easy, not when he's got an assaultive bunch of little people calling themselves elves working for him. Mr. Claws himself is really somebody special just like Diesel -- who, it turns out, has a special assignment here in Jersey, tracking down yet another Special person.
You have here the obligatory car bombing, some Christmas trees that don't make it home, some wild Christmas shopping , a lot of cookie making and throwing, and some of Grandma Mazur's famous humor and you have Janet Evanovich's latest gift to the fans of Stephanie Plum.
Don't miss this one, Christmas time or not!!!
Rating:
Summary: Holiday hilarity!
Review: Maybe you need to be a Plum fan to appreciate this book,
but my husband and I share the Plum series as a nightly read,
and we were getting withdrawal symptoms when we came upon this little morsel. It was a lark, we had a lot of laughs with it,
and now can't wait for the July offering. Thank you, Janet, for helping to get us through the holiday blues/blahs with this spicy number!
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