Good fun on balance, but only just - Rated 
I adored the earlier books in this series, but found I wasn't as gripped by the last couple, so I delayed buying this one. On balance I'm glad I got round to it eventually - I still don't think it's up to the earlier standard, but there were things I liked about it and overall I enjoyed reading it.
My main concern about the later books is sometimes the characters seem to be simply going through the motions, and this is no good thing when it's Stephanie and Joe - we're used to the lights being on and someone definitely at home and it wasn't quite there for me here - add that to an unconvincing villain and we're never really worried about Stephanie's safety. Just making the villain insane does not make him 3-dimensional or frightening - and Evanovich can do insane AND 3-dimensional AND frightening brilliantly (remember Benito Ramirez?)- in spite of some fairly gruesome executions there's no sense of menace here and that's something that has definitely been present in many of the other books and is the vital counterbalance to the humour.
What I did like was that Grandma (much as I enjoy her company) stayed at home more and that in general there were fewer people jumping in the car with Stephanie every time she went to investigate - it was definitely getting a bit overcrowded and a bit too Keystone Cops. In fact a number of the regular minor characters have taken a break from this book and I think it worked. The plot was fine, there were some entertaining one-liners and, unless I missed it, Bob didn't throw up once.
On the whole, it was a good way to spend a few hours, especially as the weather was foul at the time, but I definitely had the feeling that this was either written in a rush, or without the author's full attention. I know that these aren't heavyweight books - that's why I enjoy them so much - and I know that the characters are going to follow a particular path and that certain things are going to happen, but I don't want to recognise the formula while I'm reading it - even though I know Stephanie's going to be OK in the end, I want to be able to worry that it might not happen. Having said that, who could've predicted exploding beaver!? Will I read no. 14? I expect so, when it's out in paperback.
A Romantic Mystery Plum Full of Gags, Jokes, and Ironic Situations - Rated 
For my money, Lean Mean Thirteen was by far the best beach read of summer 2007. Although you could race through the book at high speed in a few hours, there is enough humor in here to keep you chuckling, guffawing, and rolling on the floor in tears from now until long past Labor Day. So another way to read this book is to stop every time you laugh out loud . . . and pick it up again the next day. I suspect that would be the best way to enjoy the book . . . but naturally, I didn't have that much self control. I did, however, keep track of where I laughed aloud when I read the book and the total exceeded 160 times!
To me, Stephanie Plum has emerged as one of the great comic heroines of crime literature. Could you love her any more? I doubt it.
Unlike some other books in the series, you'll probably enjoy Lean Mean Thirteen more if you've read at least One for the Money of the earlier books so you know the story of her former marriage to Dickie Orr before beginning this book.
Who will love this book? Anyone who cannot get enough of Stephanie Plum as bounty hunter, beloved of two sexy men, and granddaughter of Grandma Mazur.
Who will be disappointed in this book? Those who are looking for Stephanie to choose between Morelli and Ranger.
So what happens? A lot.
Let me tell you a tiny bit about how the book starts to get you in the mood. I'm reluctant to say very much because so much of the humor relies on surprises.
Ranger asks Stephanie to plant a bug on Dickie Orr, her ex-husband. In the process, Stephanie finds lots of reasons to be enraged at Dickie and the lawyer finds himself at risk of becoming a homicide victim at Stephanie's hands. Soon, Dickie has vanished and his girlfriend, the abominable Joyce Barnhardt, is out to punish Stephanie.
Nearly destitute, Stephanie is out trying to bring in bail jumpers . . . but without much success. Can she stave off starvation?
The bail jumpers are quite an unusual lot: One is a mild threat unless you light a fire around his house; another is most likely to be found robbing graves of those who are buried with jewels and clothes he can wear . . . when he's not playing with his 20 foot-long snake; and a third is a mild taxidermist with an unusual hobby who doesn't want to leave home because he's waiting for someone.
One of the delights of this book is that Janet Evanovich has taken off the handcuffs in bringing new weapons to the party that Stephanie can use to defend herself . . . and to threaten Stephanie's life.
Like all of the best Plum books, Lean Mean Thirteen is corpse-deep in ironies, unexpected turnabouts, and surprises. Don't miss it.
I must admit that I wanted to add another irony to the pile by reading the book on Friday the thirteenth. That added a final laugh for me. But don't wait until the next Friday the thirteenth.
Get your next laugh from this book today!
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