Book 45: Hot Six

Hot Six
Janet Evanovich

What can I say? These little suckers are addictive, and though it is not quite as strong as all of its predecessors, Hot Six is a fine addition to the ongoing adventures of oddball bounty hunter Stephanie Plum. The opening tone of this book is fantastic as Stephanie knows that she is in entirely over her head. Hot Six also turns in a wonderful set of performances from the supporting cast in and around Trenton. Grandma Mazur hasn't been this spot-on or this funny since she featured prominently in Two for the Dough, and it is nice to see her get some actual plot development. In fact, Hot Six is more a break from the norm than High Five ever was, even though we are back to Plum's familiar territory as a bounty hunter seeking an actual FTA. Because, however, that FTA is her mentor, friend, and possible love interest Ranger, Stephanie does little bounty hunting and allows Evanovich to add incredible depth to the story she weaves in between novels. This book gives readers a peek at Stephanie's life between blowing up borrowed cars and introduces a wonderfully spacey side character known as the "Moon Man." Evanovich uses Hot Six to showcase her incredible ability to draw a complex portrait of a modern Jersey that looks upon itself with as much disdain as the rest of the United States. Everyone and their grandmother packs heat while rude hand gestures outpace car horns as in-traffic indicators of temperament. And in the midst of all this normalcy Stephanie is at the heart of another crime mystery. If Evanovich can be faulted for the depth of her vision, it is only in assuming that Trenton possesses so many intricate crime circles, but they keep the narratives fresh and do, after all, create a nice (if a bit canned) plot for these wonderfully drawn characters to push along. Indeed, Evanovich's greatest fault in this book is when she resorts to painful stereotyping of an Arabic character, giving him dialogue that is downright offensive and really has no place in the printed word, let alone amongst a cast so richly imagined. Evanovich does, however, come out on top with another engaging mystery for Stephanie Plum that leaves readers again wanting nothing but more misadventures in this charming pip of a series.

Grade: B+