Justin Case: School, Drool and Other Daily Disasters

Justin Case: School, Drool, and Other Daily Disasters
by Rachel Vail

It’s the start of the school year, and nothing feels right to Justin. He didn’t get the teacher he wanted, he’s not in the same class as his best friend, and his little sister, Elizabeth, is starting kindergarten at his school. Elizabeth doesn’t seem nervous at all. Justin is very nervous about third grade. And to top it off, he’s lost his favorite stuffed animal, but he can’t tell anyone, because technically he’s too old to still have stuffed animals. Right? (description from Amazon.com)

Such a good book. I was a little surprised when I picked it up...for some reason I thought Justin was older than third grade when I checked it out from the Library, but it was still excellent even though it was really for a much younger audience.

Justin is a really lovable little boy. He is a full on worrywort. I had forgotten all of the things that had made me terrified as a kid! I loved that he had personalities for all of his stuffed animals and that he spent the year learning how to survive without his favorite, even though he missed it terribly.

In fact, Justin spends the whole year trying to become braver and watching him take this journey was very heartwarming. I rooted wholeheartedly for Justin as he made new friends, climbed the superhigh rope in gym class, and gets through the first few months of having a new and super drooly, excitable dog!

With cute illustrations and a great story, this book was really good. I hope that Rachel Vail plans to write another book about Justin's fourth grade adventures!

Smokin' Seventeen

Smokin' Seventeen
by Janet Evanovich
Stephanie Plum, book seventeen
(*not counting the in-between novels)

Dead bodies are showing up in shallow graves on the empty construction lot of Vincent Plum Bail Bonds. No one is sure who the killer is, or why the victims have been offed, but what is clear is that Stephanie’s name is on the killer’s list.

Short on time to find evidence proving the killer’s identity, Stephanie faces further complications when her family and friends decide that it’s time for her to choose between her longtime off-again-on-again boyfriend, Trenton cop Joe Morelli, and the bad boy in her life, security expert Ranger. Stephanie’s mom is encouraging Stephanie to dump them both and choose a former high school football star who’s just returned to town. Stephanie’s sidekick, Lula, is encouraging Stephanie to have a red-hot boudoir “bake-off.” And Grandma Bella, Morelli’s old-world grandmother, is encouraging Stephanie to move to a new state when she puts “the eye” on Stephanie.

With a cold-blooded killer after her, a handful of hot men, and a capture list that includes a dancing bear and a senior citizen vampire, Stephanie’s life looks like it’s about to go up in smoke. (description from Amazon.com)

OMG. How do I love this series? Let me count the ways!

1. Stephanie is both incompetent and surprisingly good at her job...
2. Ranger
3. Morelli
4. Lula...her crazy diets, her crazier wardrobe, and her propensity for shooting at suspects
5. Grandma Mazur...who doesn't love a "cute" little old grandma that carries a giant gun in her purse and wreaks havoc at funeral homes for fun?
6. Mooner...stoner extraordinaire
7. Stephanie's love of food...which will overcome the most extreme circumstances!
8. Bulgari body wash (Ummm...and the man who uses it...did I mention him already? Oh I did. Well...*sigh*)
9. Connie...the "connected" woman behind the scenes at the bail bonds office
10. Just to round things out --> RANGER. *omg*

These books make me snarf out loud! Every single time. I love poor Stephanie's propensity for blowing up cars, accidentally catching bad guys, and her understandable trouble choosing between two HOTT guys that want to be with her...

This particular volume caused me to laugh out loud so hard that I cried...within the first 50 pages! It doesn't get better than that. Let's just say that the perps Stephanie has to round up in this book are definitely hilarous (including a senior who thinks he's a vampire). The relationship drama heats up again...and I for one, LOVED it. The best part, though, is how even with all of the guy drama in Stephanie's life, she still knows that her girls mean more...the girlpower ending made me grin!