Plum Lucky

Janet Evanovich

When mysterious Diesel shows up in Stephanie Plum's neighborhood and life, she knows there's bizarre trouble ahead. This time he shows up after St. Patrick's Day. He is looking for a small man and money stolen from the Mob. Stephanie is looking for her Grandma Mazur, who appears to have gone to Atlantic City. Stephanie's mother wants Grandma brought back.

After closing the bail bond office for the day, Lula and Connie join Stephanie on her trip to Atlantic City. When found, it appears that Grandma has struck it rich. She had found a bag of money. She claims she found it at the end of a rainbow on St. Patrick's Day, so that makes it hers. She admits there was a small man in green pants claiming that he is a leprechaun and that the money is his. When Diesel hears this, he follows the women to Daffy's Casino.

Of course, things aren't easy. The "leprechaun", Snuggy O'Connor, stole the money to care for his ill racehorse. Snuggy says he can communicate with animals. Grandma uses half the money to gamble. The Mob wants all its money back, so kidnaps (horsenaps?) Snuggy's horse, Doug. Now they have to get all the money back somehow to return. When the payoff is too slow, the Mob is happy to snatch another hostage - one who is closer to Stephanie.

Janet Evanovich usually walks a fine line with her Stephanie Plum novels these days between laugh out loud humor to inane. Plum Lucky falls on the wrong side of the line. While I chuckled a few times, overall I feel this novelette is dumb. It's cute enough and belongs in the series. But I'm glad it was short; even then it was too long.

The Series:

One for the Money
Two for the Dough
Three to Get Deadly
Four to Score
High Five
Hot Six
Seven Up
Hard Eight
Visions of Sugar Plums
To the Nines
Ten Big Ones
Eleven on Top
Twelve Sharp
Plum Lovin'
Lean Mean Thirteen
Plum Lucky
Fearless Fourteen
Plum Spooky
Finger Lickin' Fifteen
Sizzling Sixteen
Smokin' Seventeen
Explosive Eighteeen