* 1 star
I don't know what I hated more, this awful book, myself for reading it or myself for knowing that I will read #21, #22 and ad infinitum until either Janet or I die. I guess it's a battle of wills now at this point. I remember the early books with such fondness and I know it must be hard to keep a series fresh (Sue Grafton and Michael Connelly are the only two who come immediately to mind who manage to do this). But ye gods this book crossed a line for me.
Okay, you do have to approach these books with a certain attitude of acceptance that you are in a comic universe with unrealistic situations and characters. A couple things took me out of the book (cue the record needle scratching sound here) - SPOILERS (in case you would actually even care to read this book). So, a couple of thugs actually tie up Stephanie and not just threaten to throw her over a bridge into a river; they actually do it. This was a jarring move from "hilarious" (except not so much) to harrowing. And Lulu's plan to return to the streets to earn money to buy a handbag was just disgusting. There's nothing humorous (or heartwarming - says the only woman in the world who hates the movie "Pretty Woman") about prostitution.
The ridiculous subplot about Kevin the giraffe was resolved quickly at the end with an intriguing explanation. I found myself saying, "Wait, what? " I'd have rather heard more about an exotic animal restaurant plot than the same old same old bad guy in hiding plot we had here. I do understand the central mystery in these books is just a framework to hang the jokes on, but I also think a basically decent mystery at the heart of their books is why other authors (Grafton, Connelly, sorry to have to discuss you in the same breath as this train wreck) manage to keep their series books compelling.
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