730 reviews for:

Takedown Twenty

Janet Evanovich

3.55 AVERAGE

adventurous funny mysterious fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Fun and engrossing

cute, but the story reminded me of all the other ones in the series (with the exception of the giraffe).

Always a light, fun read.
I wished Stephanie had been more capable in getting herself out of tight spots, instead of relying on others (especially Ranger).
adventurous dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

 My favorite scene in the entire book (and probably at least top 10 of the series):

He was very close. I saw his eyes focus on my mouth and I knew he was going to kiss me. I leaned into him, and his attention went from my mouth to something at the end of the block.
“I just saw a giraffe,” Ranger said. “He was walking down Freeman.”
(S) “That’s Kevin.”
Ranger grinned. “You know him?”
(S) “I’ve seen him around.”

There was shouting from the front side of the building and car doors slamming. An engine caught and tires chirped. Kevin skittered around the corner at full gallop, charged past us, and disappeared into the darkness. A black SUV with tinted windows rounded the corner, obviously chasing Kevin. It blew past us screeching to a stop at the cross street.

“They’ve lost him,” I said.
(R) “Hard to believe you could lose a giraffe.”
(S) “Kevin is wily. And the guys in the SUV might not be exceptionally smart.”
The SUV moved into the intersection and made a u turn.
“Smart enough to come back to run over us,” Ranger said.

He grabbed my hand, tugging me through the back door and into the social club’s back stairwell. We ran flat out through the club past four old men playing cards. One of them was Joe’s uncle Chooch.
“Hey Stephanie,” Uncle Chooch said. “Long time, no see.”
I looked over at him and stumbled, crashing into a rickety table holding a cappuccino machine. The machine fell off the table, coffee and cups went flying in all directions. Ranger grabbed me ad shoved me out the front door. We sprinted to the Porsche, jumped in, and Ranger drove off. I turned in my seat in time to see several men standing in front of the social club with guns drawn. Hard to identify them in the dark but I imagine they were the usual players. Maybe Uncle Chooch.

“So that went pretty smooth,” I said to Ranger.
He glanced over at me. “If you ever tell anyone about this I’ll have to kill you.”
I was almost positive he was kidding. “You could buy me off with the onion rings.” I told him.
“Deal.”



Someone is killing old ladies and dumping them in dumpsters. The cops can’t figure it out. But you know who can? That’s right, Stephanie Plum. Who survives on luck alone. But first she’s going to piss off half the city by shooting some beloved old guy. Except she wasn’t the one who shot him. But his cronies don’t care and Stephanie still winds up tossed over a bridge with a cinderblock tied to her. We also try out a new job: a butcher. It doesn’t go well and someone’s house is caught on fire. Story of Stephanie’s life, amiright?! 

The whole gang is back and up to their usual tricks. Stephanie gets herself into dangerous situations, causing Ranger to race to the rescue. Lula develops a new obsession with a runaway giraffe she names "Kevin." Grandma Mazur is on the prowl for hot dates. This time around, Ranger enlists Stephanie's aid in scoping out bingo parlors & funeral homes in the hopes of turning up clues as to who keeps murdering little old ladies & leaving them in dumpsters. Stephanie is having no luck bringing in her big-ticket bad guys. And she still has commitment issues, despite her resolve to have A Talk with Morelli.

As always, it was a fast-paced read, thanks to Evanovich's signature style of dialogue and narration. Some chuckle-worthy moments in this volume. No real progress on the love triangle front, but that's no surprise.

For readers' advisors: story and language doorways. The usual swearing and sexual references, but no actual sex scenes.

Grandma Mazur is still has a great attitude and is dating.
Lula is obsessed with her purse and Kevin the Giraffe.
And Stephanie, is a mess like always.
adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced
funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Nothing like a Stephanie Plum book to pick me up when I am down! Always good for a laugh or two.