Product Description
Stephanie’s working overtime tracking felons for the bonds office at night and snooping for security expert Carlos Manoso, aka Ranger, during the day. Can she hunt down two killers, a traitor, and five skips, keep her grandmother out of the sauce, and solve Ranger’s problems and not jump his bones?
Amazon.com Review
Book Description
SAVE THE DATE: Tuesday, June 23, 2009 EVENT: The next Stephanie Plum novel, in which complications arise, loyalties are tested, cliffhangers are resolved, and donuts are eaten. WHERE: Wherever books are sold across America WHAT TO BRING: Sunglasses, insect repellant, a flotation device, suntan lotion, cheez-doodles, extra-large towel, fire extinguisher, baseball bat, lip balm, monkey leash, sixty three pieces of chewing gum, and one canister of oxygen (don’t ask). Hey, it’s a Stephanie Plum novel!
Janet Evanovich and Michael Connelly: Author One-to-One
In this Amazon exclusive, we brought together blockbuster authors Janet Evanovich and Michael Connelly and asked them to interview each other. Find out what two of the top authors of their genres have to say about their characters, writing process, and more. Michael Connelly is the bestselling author of the Harry Bosch series of novels as well as The Poet, Blood Work, Void Moon, Chasing the Dime, and the #1 New York Times bestseller The Lincoln Lawyer. He is a former newspaper reporter who has won numerous awards for his journalism and his novels. Read on to see Michael Connelly's questions for Janet Evanovich, or turn the tables to see what Evanovich asked Connelly.  Connelly: Let's get the business out of the way. What's Finger Lickin' Fifteen, the new Stephanie Plum novel, all about and what brought you to the story?
Evanovich: I wanted to do a book that featured Stephanie's wheelman, Lula. Lula is one of my favorite characters because she's pulled herself up from hard times and now is just more of everything. Fifteen opens with Lula witnessing a crime, and it all gets complicated after that. We're talking about barbecue gone bad, cross-dressing firemen, dancing hot dogs, etc. Connelly: You strike me as an author who is involved in every aspect of the publishing of her work. But the output--at least two solid novels a year--suggests otherwise, that you delegate all over the place so that you can focus on writing high-quality stuff. So which is it? (And if your answer is that you do indeed delegate, how the heck do you learn to do that?) Evanovich: You reach a point in your career where the business side threatens to eclipse writing time and you either delegate or power back. I delegate everything but the writing. My daughter and her staff manage the website, the fan mail, the book tour, the author publicity and marketing. My son is my agent and finance officer and chief problem solver. When no one else can solve the problem it gets dumped on my son's desk! I oversee all aspects, but I've had to learn not to micro-manage. Connelly: We have an author friend in common-- Robert Crais--who has steadfastly refused to sell or option his series character Elvis Cole to Hollywood. On the other hand, I've flogged Harry Bosch up and down the studio strip. (Interestingly enough, to the same effect--no movies made!) Where do you stand with Stephanie and will we ever see her on the big or small screen? Evanovich: Jeez Louise, I wish I knew the answer to this one. TriStar owns the Plum franchise with Wendy Finerman attached as producer, and Wendy has been trying to get this sucker off the ground for fifteen years. Probably somewhere in the vicinity of three million people read each of my Plum books, but for whatever reason, TriStar has yet to greenlight the project. Connelly: Speaking of that L.A. business, do you remember when we first met? Since you conveniently put numbers in your titles, it is easy for me to remember that it was fourteen years ago in L.A. I bet you don't remember the name of the restaurant, which sadly is no longer there. But, luckily, we're still here and my memory of that lunch is important to me because at the time we had probably sold a hundred books between us (not counting romance novels). Evanovich: What I remember is that what I consider to be my graduating class (you, Crais, and Jan Burke) would get together at all the mystery conferences, and you would be our fearless leader! Connelly: Did you know that in my most recent novel a very bad man plans to use a Janet Evanovich novel to get close to an unsuspecting, potential victim? It's scary stuff--the plan, not the Evanovich novel. Have you reached a stage where your work is part of the terrain and gets these sorts of little nods here and there? Evanovich: Every now and then my name or one of my character names pops up and it's usually in the work of a friend. I think it's fun and I always reciprocate...so live in fear.
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  pattyrow, 2010-03-04
I am sorry but Lula has to die. The last two books were frankly boring and were not at all about Stephanie, they were solely about Lula. I do think Lula's situations are funny but in small doses, this was to much to handle. I found myself skipping pages until I found different topics. I am happy that Stephanie is getting smarter at solving crimes. And what is the deal with her love life? Why would a man put up with her destroying so many cars without a relationship (not that either of them want a relationship)? And how long is she going to hold herself back from truly being with Morelli? I hope the next book has the answers to my questions.
Oh, How I miss Stephanie, 2010-03-08
I have read every one of the Plum books, but please Janet give us a break. Did you write this one while you were asleep, or driving? The material is old and has become boring and repetitive. Some of the characters are super, but the plots are very thin, and the humor has worn off. That hamster should have died by now. I really miss the quality of the early Plum books.
Last Book of a GREAT series, 2010-03-07
Couldn't wait to read this book as I had just finished the 14 that preceded it! Did not disappoint. Has already been passed on to someone else to read. Obviously came from (I am assuming), a now defunct library since it still had all of the info from the library in it. Didn't bother me, all I cared about was that it was in good enough shape to read and it was!
A Fun Read, as Usual, 2010-03-10
I really don't understand what the people who've been writing the negative reviews are expecting. If you want great literature, read War and Peace. If you want fun, light, hilarious insanity, then you can't do better than this and all the Stephanie Plum novels.
A plot synopsis would be a bit redundant in view of how many previous reviews contained synopses. I will say that I enjoyed having some emphasis on Lula, and definitely agree with those who compared the Lula-Grandma pairing to Lucy and Ethel.
I don't know if I really want the Joe-Ranger question to be resolved, although I am in favor of Stephanie's finally settling on Joe. In one novel Stephanie described Ranger as being "like smoke." I don't see him as a candidate for the long term.
The only thing I disliked about this book is how long I have to wait for the next one. Please, Janet, keep writing - I for one can promise you I'll keep reading!!
Another winner!, 2010-03-04
Stepahine Plum and Lulu strike my funny bone again! Number 15, for me, held a lot of the verve and energy of the first Plum novels and seemed to lag a bit in some of the more recent books. FINGER LICKIN' FIFTEEN, though, had me laughing out loud many times, and for all the right reasons.
Sure the books are formulaic and you can pretty much see what's coming, but that's part of the joy of this series. These books are like your favorite sweats and T-shirt. No, you don't wear them every day, but when you do, ah, the comfort and pleasure.
It is a special author that can make us laugh again and again. Please, Janet, keep 'em coming! Can't wait for No. 16!
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