Author: Janet Evanovich
Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons
Publication Date: November 2019
Genre: Contemporary Romance / Humor / Mystery
Buy The Book: Amazon | BN | Audible
Description: Stephanie Plum's career has taken more wrong turns than a student driver on the Jersey Turnpike, and her love life is a hopeless tangle. In order to save someone dear to her, she'll have to straighten things out in Twisted Twenty-Six the latest, novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Janet Evanovich.
Grandma Mazur is a widow...again. This time her marriage lasted a whole 45 minutes. The unlucky groom was one Jimmy Rosolli, local gangster, lothario (senior division) and heart attack waiting to happen...well, the waiting's over.
It's a sad day, but if she can't have Jimmy at least Grandma can have all the attention she wants as the dutiful widow. But some kinds of attention are not welcomed, particularly when Jimmy's former "business partners" are convinced that his widow is keeping the keys to their financial success for herself.
As someone who has spent an entire career finding bad guys, a set of missing keys should be no challenge for Stephanie Plum. Problem is, the facts are as twisted as a boardwalk pretzel with mustard.
My Thoughts: After finishing the last book in this series, I honestly thought I was done with the whole kit and kaboodle. I didn’t feel there was anything refreshing or original anymore, just the same old round and round with Stephanie, Lula, Grandma, Joe and Ranger. Stephanie still hates her job, still keeps her gun in the cookie jar, still dating Joe but lusting after Ranger and still can’t keep a vehicle longer than 5 minutes. She’s a hopeless mess and her life is a trainwreck on the best of days. Why do I keep coming back?
I keep coming back to this series because Stephanie is like family. You know, the cousin or sibling who is great fun to be around even though she’s a hot mess and disaster is usually three steps behind her. Maybe I’m just a glutton for punishment, but I know when I’m hanging with Stephanie and Lula, I’m going to be entertained at the very least. Perhaps, not quality entertainment, but there will be laughter and lots of food.
In this installment, we get to spend a lot of time with Grandma. She’s a widow again, after marrying Jimmy Rosolli, who drops dead not long after. Jimmy ran with a bad crowd…think The Sopranos and they are after a set of keys they believe Jimmy gave to Grandma when he died. Nobody will say what the keys look like, what they open or what using the keys will provide. Grandma says she doesn’t have any keys and a Molotov cocktail thrown through the front room window and an attempted kidnapping doesn’t change her mind either.
In between chasing down her FTA’s, Stephanie and Lula decide to look for the keys, which proves quite difficult as nobody seems to know what they look like or how many there are. And to make matters worse, several members of Jimmy’s family are less than pleased that Grandma stands to inherit Jimmy’s millions and are willing to fight dirty to get their hands on it.
I really enjoyed this adventure with Stephanie and the gang. I adore Grandma and, like Stephanie, don’t want to see anything bad happen to her. She’s such a hoot and the series wouldn’t be the same without her.
Lula brought a lot of comic relief to the story, as usual, and I laughed aloud many times at her shenanigans. I’m still wondering what Lula does for money because she’s not a licensed bond enforcement agent and she is always tagging along with Stephanie instead of filing in the bond office. How the heck is she making rent?!
I loved that there were many Ranger appearances and yes, he gives her another car. I love that he is there for her and yes, he has ulterior motives, but I know he cares for her. I honestly don’t know why Stephanie doesn’t go to work for Ranger since she loathes her job. I doubt she would have to worry about making her rent.
My Final Verdict: Overall, this was a lot of fun and though some of the stories have sunk like stones for me, this one has renewed my interest in Trenton, NJ and the quirky lives of its residents. I recommend the audio narrated by the very talented Lorelei King. She voices the characters splendidly, bringing their personalities to life.
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