Customer Reviews

Full Scoop (Full Series)

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

Beaumont, South Carolina is a hot spot again - boiling and bubbling with romance, comedy, and mayhem. Is it something in the air, something in the water? No, simply the combined talents of Evanovich and Hughes who put their imaginations, wits, and abilities to write crackling dialogue to work and, presto - Full Scoop.

A bit zany? Yes. But thoroughly entertaining. What eye candy is for the orbs, this book is brain candy for the mind. Nothing deep, nothing disturbing, just mischief enough to entertain.

Lorelei King delivers the narrative with charm and a voice that makes for mighty pleasant listening.

Many will remember recently married Max Holt and Jamie-Swift Holt. They'd very much like to produce an heir or heiress but there's little privacy in their antebellum mansion which has workmen all but hanging from the ceilings. However, rather than a Max and Jamie story this plot primarily concerns Maggie Davenport, a pediatrician with problems.

A former boyfriend of Maggie's has just escaped from jail and pops back into her life after over a dozen years. There's quite a bit about her past that Maggie doesn't want everyone to know, but what to do?

Help is on the way with the entrance of FBI agent Zack Madden. Of course, there are a few secondary plots adding to the potpourri of goings-on in Beaumont, even the romantic yearnings of a hound dog called Fleas.

Relax and listen - you can't help but smile.

- Gail Cooke

In all honesty, this book was severely lacking in just about every area. It wasn't horrible. I didn't mind reading it, but there were just so many problems with the story as a whole, so many poorly developed aspects that kept it from being a truly good read. The story was very two-dimensional, lacking development and depth. It was just very superficial.

The characters have very little depth or exploration. The authors give you some basic history, but fail to really explore them. They mention things but then never really tell you about them. An example is Maggie's pregnancy. You know that the antagonist got her pregnant at a young age, and you're told that there was some sort of cover-up to get her out of town so no one would know. But they never give you any details. You have no idea exactly how old she was, and you're not told anything at all about this cover-up. Where did she go? What did she do? How did she handle it all? Why did she make up a husband? It would have been nice to have these details and it would have given another dimension to Maggie's character.

Zack's was in a similar state. You know his FBI step-father was killed by the antagonist but you learn little else, other than that Zack was greatly affected by the slaying. I wanted to know how old Zack was when his mother married his step-father, what their relationship was like, how he dealt with the man's death, etc. Again, knowing all this would have made the character more full-bodied. The authors just failed to give these characters any depth at all.

The romance between them was poorly developed as well. It seemed extremely forced, with very little emotion involved. It was like, hey, let's kiss; hey, let's have sex; hey, I think I might have feelings for you. I wasn't feeling the chemistry between them at all. I had a really hard time believing that these two characters were in love.

There were also some minor areas where issues bothered me. One was that Zack, as an FBI Agent, was allowed to participate in the case at all. He was personally connected (his father being killed by the antagonist 14 years earlier). I had a hard time buying that that would be allowed. Also, Destiny, who had roles in the other books, is done a serious injustice in this book. She's paired off and engaged with hardly a whisper. A little more on that would have been nice.

As for the good points...well, I enjoyed the cameos of Max and Jamie. Fleas the hound dog and Butterbean the goat were great. And the actual plot wasn't too bad. But none of that could overcome the holes in the book. I was rather disappointed overall once I finished.

Rating: 2 / 5

As a teen Maggie Davenport fell in love with Carl Lee Stanton, who used her and deserted her. Maggie used her relationship with this bad boy as the impetus to turn herself around and make something of herself while also raising their child Mel with love. Meanwhile Maggie becomes a doctor while Carl Lee robbed a bank and killed an FBI Agent.

Life is good until Maggie learns that Carl Lee escaped from prison and is most likely heading to Beaumont, South Carolina to collect his hidden loot and to probably punish Maggie. To protect her and her now thirteen year old daughter, the FBI sends tired agent Zack Madden, who appreciate the opportunity to go after Carl Lee. The assignment should be easy as Zack appreciates the eccentricity of the townsfolk, but two things hamper him. First he is extremely attracted to the pediatrician he is to protect and second an Elvis impersonation convention has swamped the town with strangers.

The latest Beaumont mystery is as always "Full" of zany characters that cause havoc on the lead protagonists. Some consciously do so for instance the reporter seeking the FULL SCOOP on Maggie's past; others are in the cards just ask psychic Destiny; and finally those who unintended bring Maggie and Zack together like her killer teenage boyfriend and the Elvis crowd. Readers who enjoy a lighthearted regional romantic police procedural will want to read this tale and its full line of predecessors.

Harriet Klausner

I am a fan of Janet Evanovich's writing but this collaboration was one of the most boring books I almost read. I felt as though it was written by rote to meet a deadline. Definately give this one a pass, as for it being "brain candy" it's definately the discount bags of candy no one ever buys.

This was a fun book to read - the plot was full or action and suspense, and the romance was very cute and natural! I related to the way Maggie wanted to protect her daughter at all costs, and the rebellious, smart-mouthed attitude of Melanie was familiar to me too.

I listened to the audiobook of Full Scoop and was bored within the first 20 minutes. It was very predictable and the main characters did not have any chemistry. I have enjoyed some of her other romance books, including her Stephanie Plum series, but this one was a dud.

I started the Full series a few years back when I needed an Evanovich fix between Plum books. I loved the first 3, after that I can't say they have lived up to my expectations. This latest is the worse of all, it reminds of the 180 page romance novels of the early 70's, you know the ones you'd 6 of every month in the mail? Juvenile and unrealistic, sorry Janet but this one is a stinker for those of us used to the great Stephanie Plum novels and even the Barnaby series. Lorelei King does her best, but even a great reader can't help this book.

If you read this expecting the humor and fast pace of a Stephanie Plum novel, you'll be disappointed. It doesn't seem like JE did any more than wave a magic wand over these books.

The latest in the Full series takes us back to Beaumont, South Carolina, into the office of Dr. Maggie Davenport, pediatrician. Maggie has a 13-year-old daughter, Mel, the result of an ill-fated relationship with convict Carl Lee Stanton. Shortly after she broke it off with Carl Lee, he robbed an armored car and killed an FBI agent, sending him to prison. When he escapes, the FBI is sure he'll head for Beaumont, where they believe he stashed his loot, and where he can exact revenge on his ex-girlfriend, Maggie. Zack Madden, despite his broken arm, is the agent assigned to Maggie and Mel, and when he moves in to protect them, sparks fly between him and Dr. Davenport. Mel rebels against their safety restrictions, and Maggie's nurse, Queenie Cloud, is up to her elbows in putting spells on people, while Max and Jamie Holt, the original stars of the series, try for a baby. Meanwhile, Destiny Moultrie, the curvaceous psychic advice columnist who has appeared in the last couple of books, dodges romantic advances from the local bait shop owner.

Love, danger, and fun are in the air while everyone snarfs down Better than Sex chocolate ice cream and waits for dangerous killer Carl Lee Stanton to arrive in town and wreak havoc. The book is tame by Stephanie Plum standards, but on its own merits, it's a fun, modern romance that deals with mother/daughter issues at the beginning of the teen years, and brings back a cast of characters we've grown fond of. Though the focus has shifted from the original characters to fresh blood to keep the romance angle from going stale, in this story some of the original feeling of off-the-wall fun being had by people leading everyday lives has come back to the forefront. At the same time, a couple of characters who had grown a bit tired fade away or move on. There's an unnecessary, somewhat silly twist at the end, but for the most part, this was an enjoyable read. They shook some things up and went back to basics with others, and it worked. There is life in Beaumont, South Carolina yet.

A great book to read on a rainy weekend stuck inside. The storyline for the most part was a good one. I just was a little disappointed that Max & Jamie was not included in this one like the rest of the FULL series. And what Happened with Dee Dee and her nutty assistant.

Still worth reading