Game On: Tempting Twenty-Eight (Stephanie Plum)

This Stephanie Plum series is one of my very favorites. Lots of laughing out loud, but also exciting and OMG moments. Stephanie and all the other characters are well drawn and feel like friends. They don’t need to be read in order as Evanovich does a nice job of briefly describing them in each book. Recommend them all.

I love Janet Evanovich! Her Stephanie Plum series is always entertaining!!Lulu is a classic character and Stephanie’s reactions are priceless.

Was it a 5-star, laugh-out-loud story reminiscent of the early Plums? No. But is was a solid, well-plotted story that I enjoyed very much. Stephanie is maturing. Crazy still happens, but it’s spreading to things around her instead of her being the crazy. Did she lose cars along the way? You betcha! This time, hacking was the central crime, although not all the hackers were the bad guys. Diesel makes an appearance (so hoping there will be a new Lizzy and Diesel book in the future).Stephanie is less of a mess in this book which does change the feel a bit. That could be what the 1 and 2 star reviewers are reacting to. I liked that Vinnie praised Stephanie following her recapture of an FTA that Vinnie was bringing back from Florida who escaped in the airport. It’s an acknowledgment of Stephanie’s determination and says that she’s in the right place in terms of work. Still teetering on the edge financially, but she’s getting there.Stephanie’s mom has added a “thing” to take the place of endless ironing when things get too nuts around her. You’ll just have to read the book to see what it is, but it’s got to have passed 30 feet by the time the book ends. Stephanie’s dad talks during dinner! This never happens! And what a surprise in terms of what it is that gets him talking.Stephanie also comes to some realization about the men in her life with respect to love, friendship, and being comfortable. It’s a good step, although you just know none of her three guys will ever leave her life. She’s just embarking on a better understanding about how to include them.Anyway, I liked this book. Some reviewers have posited that Janet Evanovich is stepping back and using ghosts (perhaps her daughter) to write these books. She has been doing this for a long time - perhaps an additional imagination can help keep things going for a while longer. Although, it takes a very special wit to dream up that scene back in the early Plums when the two carpet guys grab Bob the dog (who is about to explode because of all the bad stuff he’s just eaten), throw him in their van, drive a block down the street, and then race frantically from the van when Bob does, indeed, explode from both ends. Or the scene when Grandma tazes Stephanie’s dad, he farts, and then falls over out of his chair. Classics! Here’s hoping that, if Janet Evanovich is indeed working with a co-author, that she finds a partner with similar wit.

Laughter and laughter.It was fast paced. Lulu is a hoot.You wonder who she will end up with in the future.

Enjoyable storyline

Each one of these characters has stayed true to themselves, book to book. I hear them clearly. Love them dearly.

Always a great read. Twists and turns almost in every paragraph. Her books are hard to put down until you reach the last sentence.

Stephanie Plum is a bail bonds enforcement agent working for her cousin Vinnie. She lives in a small apartment in New Jersey, her parents and Grandma Mazur live nearby in the “burg”. Her love life is complicated, “I have a long relationship with my current boyfriend, Joe Morelli. And I have an unconventional relationship with a security expert named Ranger. My relationship with Diesel defies description. Morelli is a Trenton cop, Ranger is a security agent, and Diesel is a fellow apprehension agent working for, well nobody knows exactly. All 3 men are gorgeous, all 3 care for Stephanie and are jealous of the other, still, they begrudgingly work together to keep Stephanie safe.Stephanie is scared witless in the middle of the night by a noise outside her bedroom and is less than pleased to discover that Diesel is back. Diesel is a mysterious guy who comes and goes in inexplicable ways. After being away for 2 years he is back, and looking for the same fugitive that Stephanie is looking for, Oswald Wednesday, “OW". OW is an international computer hacker who, for fun, enjoys hurting others. Is it possible that Stephanie and Diesel can work together, or is Diesel using her to find OW and then run - leaving Stephanie without her fee?The books in this series are fun, fast, humorous and, occasionally, sexy. Stephjanie may not be the most skilled agent but she is smart, determined and often, lucky. Plus she has a couple of great guys who always have her back. Game On a/k/a Tempting 28 is the most recent book in The Stephanie Plum series. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Four stars because Diesel is my least favorite character in the series, his presence adds nothing. I haven’t missed him at all.