Notorious Nineteen” , a Stephanie Plum novel by Janet Evanovich

Book Review

“Notorious Nineteen” , a Stephanie Plum novel by Janet Evanovich,  published by Bantam Books, New York,2012.

Once again Stephanie Plum is in the middle of it. With her sidekick Lula, Stephanie is on the hunt as a bounty hunter looking for Geoffrey Cubbin, who has run off with over $5 million from the Cranberry Manor nursing home where he was the accountant. He ended up in the hospital with an appendicitis, then promptly disappeared without checking out. Hospital security couldn’t find him, the police couldn’t find him, and Stephanie Plum, working for her cousin’s bond enforcement agency, could not find Geoffrey Cubbin . But that wasn’t the only case Stephanie was working.

Ranger asked Stephanie to work with him on a case very personal. Someone from his past Special Forces was stalking members of their team. One of Ranger’s good friends was about to be married and his wedding was being threatened. Once Stephanie was on the team, she was being threatened as well.

Working with Ranger complicated her personal life. Police officer Joe Morelli, with whom she had an on-again off-again love affair, was perfect as a potential husband and father to her future children. And they were currently on-again. Working with Ranger never made Joe happy.

 As always Stephanie’s grandmother played a vital role in her undercover espionage at the Cranberry Manor nursing home. That along with the rumor mill in the Burg, especially at the hair salon or funeral home, always provided Stephanie with good intelligence. Another character from past adventures was Randy Briggs, the hospital security guard desperately trying to keep his job. As a dwarf, Randy was full of personality and anger.

 Once again Stephanie managed to have at least five vehicles blown up in her possession. This time it included one of Ranger’s and one of Joe’s. Uncle Sandor’s Big Blue charmed Buick came through untouched.

 Lula was a lot of help between her binges of junk food. One apprehension was on the nude beach in Atlantic City and required both of them to strip down to get close to the suspect. As always Stephanie and Lula managed to get their man.

 Stephanie Plum novels provide an escape and easy reading to be enjoyed like junk food. Notorious Nineteen lived up to her reputation and was thoroughly satisfying.

Killing Kennedy: The End Of Camelot By Bill O’Reilly And Martin Dugard

Published by Henry Holt and Company New York 2012

 

Reviewed by LeeAnn Sharpe

Once again Bill O’Reilly and his team present a detailed analysis of the pivotal time in US history when the world was changed by the assassination of the president.

His previous book on Lincoln brought forth many facts of the case I was unaware of and changed my perception of what had led to his assassination. It seems many of the facts have been exposed by years of research and the honesty time can bring.

While an enormous amount of research has been done on the assassination of Kennedy, many of the files are still locked away until 2032, thus leaving the impression there’s more to be known. This of course has been the frustration of all Americans not knowing what really happened. Yes we hear all the conspiracy theories, and everyone seems to have their interpretation of what really happened. But in reality we still have many questions  unanswered.

“Killing Kennedy: the End of Camelot” does an admirable job of putting together all of the facts, all of the players and everything that is known to this point. But it still doesn’t answer the question, did Oswald work alone. Was he a patsy? Had he been trained by the US government? Was Kennedy’s death manipulated by the mob, by Castro, by the Russians, by forces within the government, or simply the result of a political fanatic wanting his place in history?

The book reads well and keeps your interest exposing intimate details that I may or may not have heard before and rounding out the story in a good telling. It brought back lots of memories for me not only of the day we all remembered, but of all the friends over the years who have expounded on their own conspiracy theory. There always seems to be some new evidence that pops up, or retelling of old stories, that motivates the most unlikely people come up with their own interpretation.

This book is well worth the time to red and enjoy. Perhaps that is why over 2 millions readers have already bought “Killing Kennedy: the End of Camelot”.