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I’ve been reading Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum series since I was in year 11. We were studying crime fiction and my English teacher recommended ‘One for the Money’ as something different, fun, and feminine. Needless to say, I was hooked and have been reading her books obsessively ever since.

I’ve always been a huge fan of crime fiction and I read a wide variety of authors, although I have felt at times that it can be a bit of a ‘boys club’. Women were always femme fatales, damsels, or dead. If there was a female detective/police officer she was always painted as a superhero like character, flawless and unwavering. And I know it seems like I’m being picky here, but I feel like all of those characters can be dangerous for women. Women are not always broken and we are not always perfect. We are, after all, humans, which brings me to my point about Stephanie Plum. Stephanie is frustrating and flawed, terrible at her job, terrible with commitment and men, and not a very good cook. Ultimately though, she is human. Even though Stephanie and I are completely different (one major fact being she is fictional and I am not), I feel like I can relate to her in so many ways. She is unconventional and that is what makes her perfect to me.

For those of you who have not read the book, I should probably first explain who Kevin is… Kevin is a giant giraffe that is set loose in the streets of Trenton. Lula, the fun and friendly character she is, befriends Kevin quickly trying to draw him out with bags of lettuce left around the streets.

Stephanie is on the hunt for Uncle Sunny, which wins her no love from her boyfriend, Morelli’s grandmother. She is a hunched over one-million-year-old lady who can ‘put the eye on you’. Even from the pages of my book, this lady scares me.

In true Stephanie style she is almost thrown off a bridge, shot at, and almost sleeps with Ranger… again. But despite this, justice or craziness prevails and Stephanie solves the case of Uncle Sunny and gets her and her Grandma out of some concrete trouble.

I’m can’t wait until the new book comes out in June this year. Janet, if you’re reading: I think that there should be more guest appearances from Kevin.

What crime are you reading? What do you love about Stephanie Plum and other crime characters? As always, share the reading love.

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