Explosive eighteen a Stephanie Plum novel

Stephanie comes back from a trip to Hawaii early leaving both Ranger and Morrelli there with cuts and bruises and neither one too happy with Stephanie. She has a photograph put into her bag into the airport which every one seems to want. Plus Stephanie's usual antics trying to apprehend her bounties with Lulu and trying not to get killed. Loved this as much as all the other books. Series never gets dull.

(Review originally posted here at Fictionally Inclined.)

I started the Stephanie Plum series nearly 8 years ago and have been a loyal fan ever since. Explosive Eighteen is the latest in the series, so I obviously had to read it. Especially since Smokin' Seventeen ended in a cliffhanger. Also, the last few installments have not been quite up to par with the standards the series previously set, so I was interested to see what this one had to offer.

Any Plum book is going to be an enjoyable read, period. Evanovich has a knack for finding the most absurd problems, and the comments about said circumstances are unfailingly hilarious. The characters are crazy, in good ways or bad. You can't read a Plum book and not laugh. 18 was no exception to this rule. Stephanie and Lula continued to crack me up, and the one-liners abounded. My favorite one was probably the first one listed in the Quotes section below.

However, I have found myself getting frustrated in the last few books. I have been a steadfast Ranger fan from the very beginning. I never wavered for a moment. I nearly bought myself a “Babe” t-shirt at one point. However, with the ridiculous absurdity that was the Stephanie/Ranger interaction in 17, I found myself just wanting Stephanie to give it up and pick one. Of course I want it to be Ranger. Of course. But the triangle is nowhere as fun as it used to be. It's just getting old. Maybe that's just what happens after 20+ books (including the Between-the-Numbers novels).

There were some things I liked about 18. I love that Tank made an appearance! I've missed him. There was Steph/Ranger interaction that wasn't chock-full of WTF-ery, ala 17. There was a fun surprise that I can't mention for fear of being spoilery. I liked that the mystery about the vacation was drawn out, although it went on for a little long. Overall, 18 was definitely an improvement over 17, and I can only hope that 19 continues the trend.

❝I was driving a truck now. Appropriate, I thought. Empowering. I'd practically grown testicles.❞

❝Sometimes there's a fine line between a cowardly act and a brilliant decision...❞

❝It's like you're a reality show, all by yourself.❞

❝“He didn't impress me as much of a good time, so I didn't invite him in. Did he catch up with you?”
“Yeah. He was waiting downstairs.”
“And?”
“I shot him, and he left.”
“Nice. I was thinking we should put the frozen pizza in the oven. Is there any more wine?”❞