A couple years ago when I was talking books with a friend, she encouraged me to check out Janet Evanovich novels. It took me some time, but this past month I've gone through eight of her Stephanie Plum series and eagerly await the next batch from my local library.
Stephanie Plum is, in word, hysterical. She's a bounty hunter in New Jersey - what a premise in and of itself - and she's terrible at it. Anti-exercise, pro-junk food, single with hamster for a roommate, Evanovich has created a female character more true to life than many others I've read. Her technique focuses on following her gut (which I can appreciate) and she tends to foul up and get wounded each novel. Which only makes it more laughable.
The books don't just depend on Stephanie for laughs - her family and co-workers are characters in and of themselves. I'm torn as to whether 80+-year old Grandma Mazur or Lula get more chuckles out of me. Grandma makes funeral parlor her social scene, while Lula and her spandex attire attempt to help Stephanie catch perps. Seriously. You have to check these out!
The mystery of the books are well thought out and engaging - I've found myself many a night staying up way later than I should to find out how in the world Miss Steph was going to get out of her latest mess. On-again, off-again boyfriend Joe Mazzoli, the mysterious bounty hunter Ranger, and the local police are always on hand to help.
So what's all that have to do with Italian food? Well, Stephanie is from a Polish-Italian family, and all the discussion of alfredo sauces, noodles, pasta, etc. had me craving before I realized what was happening. So last night I whipped open a jar of alfredo sauce (not the time to attempt my own), mixed it with fresh Italian sausage and poured it over snail shell pasta. Paired with a dry red wine it was the perfect way to finish To the Nines.
No comments:
Post a Comment