Two for the Dough - Book Review

Summary:

In this 2nd installment of the Stephanie Plum series Stephanie finds herself chasing Kenny Mancuso and his small gang of thug friends who are running a smuggling ring under the cover of...get ready...caskets!  Even though Stephanie is still learning the ropes of being a bounty hunter, she takes on this case with the gusto of a professional and the determination of a woman who refuses to be told no.  Of course Joe Morelli is on the case as well...Mancuso is his cousin...on the "bad" side of the family.  But, Joe still owes some loyalty to Kenny, and for the good of the family would like to see Kenny make things right if possible.

Unfortunately, Kenny is not interested in making things right...as a matter of fact before the chase is over, Kenny will try to make things as wrong as possible...especially where Stephanie and Grandma Mazur are concerned.  Kenny is not in the least bit happy that Stephanie is nosing around his business affairs and may have, in fact, meddled enough to cost him part of his profit.  Kenny "reaches out" to get Stephanie through Grandma Mazur...and brings out Stephanie's most ferocious side.

Stephanie and Joe's relationship heats up in this installment...family matters most of all to both of them and their commitment to those they love the most brings them together.  As rough around the edges as they both are, they both feel very deeply about the things that truly matter in life.

My Thoughts:

That Stephanie Plum!!! I love her!!!

She and Grandma Mazur...who absolutely cracked me up in this story!

Only Janet Evanovich can have you laughing out loud, give you the creepy shivers and have you rooting for the main character to consummate her tense relationship with another character...all at the same time!

What is usually an unenjoyable activity for must of us, visiting funeral homes and specifically going to viewings, is a social event for Grandma Mazur. Through hers and Stephanie's many visits to the funeral homes investigating the involvement of a shady funeral home director, the reader is shocked by cut off body parts (fingers and other male appendages), Gandma Mazur spilling a vase into a casket, and getting her scarf caught in a casket so that it "accidently" comes flying open...and yes, said caskets have bodies in them...just to name a few of the hilarious antics that take place as Stephanie puts this puzzle together.

As the story comes together, these visits get spookier and the last scene is just plain evil...*shivers*

My favorite scene, however, takes place with Morrelli standing on the side of the road in his shirt and socks bc of the wire he "forgot" to tell Stephanie about.

**Ahem, the following excerpt contains a couple of words that might be offensive to some...skip the excerpt if that's you ;) **

Morelli tried the passenger side door, but it was locked.  All the doors were locked, and they were going to stay that way.  He could freeze his stupid dick off for all I cared.  Serve him right.  I revved the engine and took off, leaving him standing in the middle of the street in his shirt and socks, with his woody hanging half-mast. p. 293

Tee Hee Hee!

I completely get this relationship...the mistakes you make when you're younger, but don't want to make when you're older routine...Stephanie and Joe have a colored past, and Stephanie is determined to keep the upper hand this time.  I have no idea how this relationship will play out at this point, but I know I'm rooting for Stephanie to "hold out" a little longer.

Can't wait for #3!!