Stephanie Plum and the gang are back in Fearless Fourteen by Janet Evanovich. When I saw this one in stores I wondered if anything could have changed since the last time we were treated to the wacky-wild adventures of Stephanie. This time last year it was Lean Mean Thirteen and I was disappointed with the lack of development in the characters. I was wary to pick up Fearless Fourteen but, overall, I’m glad I did.

Stephanie always seems to get herself into the middle of things and this time is no different. It’s her job to get Loretta bonded back in when she misses her court date and she does, with one hitch. Loretta has a teenage son who goes by the name of Zook and she’ll only let herself be rebounded if Stephanie agrees to pick him up from school and baby-sit.  

But not only does Stephanie have to deal with the teenager, she has also been hand-picked by Ranger to do security for Brenda, an over-the-hill music star. Brenda also comes with her very own stalker, Gary, who also happens to be a cousin. He’s convinced that he has to stay close to her to prevent danger, but somewhere along the way he latches onto Stephanie instead.  

And as if this weren’t enough we’ve also got Dom, Loretta’s older brother, who just got out of jail for robbing a bank for 9 million dollars. He’s unstable and when he finds out that Loretta’s son Zook is staying with Stephanie and Morelli, he flips out. Dom believes that Morelli ruined his whole life, and not only that his kid-sister’s life as well.  

How do all these loose ends fit together and where does the potato gun come in? You’ll just have to read to find out. The mystery really kicks off about half way through the book; up to that point Evanovich is building some new characters and delivering the to-be-expected funny one-liners. This is Janet Evanovich, maybe not at her best, but writing what we have come to love so much about her stories. There’s action, a pretty good mystery, great characters that make you laugh, and a hint of hot sex. Shazam!  

Overall, there was less Ranger in this one than there has been in the past. I have to admit that I enjoyed Fearless Fourteen more than I enjoyed 10 through 13. Don’t get me wrong, I love the character, but for me he’s only good in small doses. Anything more and he just starts to get on my nerves. So while Stephanie seems to have moved Ranger onto the back burner, Morelli has taken the front. I’m still waiting for him to kick Ranger out of the story completely, though. Wouldn’t that be great? Stephanie’s relationship with Morelli, everyone’s favorite cop, however, is comfortable with no forward momentum. The “M” word is brought up again but it doesn’t look like it’s going anywhere.  

Fearless Fourteen is entertaining and fun, even if it is the same old thing dressed up in something new. The series isn’t as serious as it used to be back in the days of One for the Money and Two for the Dough; it’s lighter and funnier but this doesn’t make it bad. So I’m not giving up on this series - I still believe that Evanovich has some great stories to tell about these characters and I’ll be reading them.