Hard Eight, by Janet Evanovich
Hard Eight is the eighth volume in Janet Evanovich's highly successful series, which has now reached number 24, I believe. So successful that the publishers have long since given up on covers with sexy girls and guns. See the cover of this one - they're slumming it, aren't they? It all began with One For The Money , which described how sassy young Stephanie Plum , native of Trenton, New Jersey, fell into the role of bounty hunter, to chaotic and generally entertaining effect. Evanovich quickly set up a regular supporting cast including ex-hooker Lula, pervy boss Cousin Vinnie, her entire mad family, notably eccentric Granny Mazur, and, most importantly, the two men in her life with whom she maintains off-again on-again relationships, one-time bad boy cop Joe Morelli, and dangerously shady ex-military Ranger. They're all there in Hard Eight , which like all the previous volumes has one ongoing big mystery, alongside a couple of Failure To Attend bond cases for her t