Customer Reviews

Visions of Sugar Plums: A Stephanie Plum Holiday Novel (Stephanie Plum Novels)

5 star:		(58)
4 star:		(55)
3 star:		(50)
2 star:		(51)
1 star:		(70)

 

 

This book was not of the same caliber as One for the Money. Janet can write better than this. The stoy line is thin, of course the characters are zany as always and thats the one good thing about this novella. However the characters can't always carry the book you need a good strong story line as well. Stephanie is after an FTA named Sandy Claws. One morning she wakes up and finds a man in her apartment. It started off well, the idea was interesting and it could have worked. But in the end, the plot was rushed and I didn't feel like all my answers about the character Diesel were answered. Diesel would have been interesting but in the middle of the book he turned out to be a copy of Ranger. I don't recommend you buy this in hardcover. You will feel cheated. I paid for this in Canadian dollars and it was close to 30$. If readers are going to spend this much money the publusher, writer and editor better make damn sure its the best novella ever written. I think the publisher should stop rushing Janet to produce books because the quality of the writing and the story telling is declining as the series progresses. I rather wait for 2 years for an awesome book than 1 year for a book.

I love Stephanie Plum. And lucky for Janet E, I will still love Stephanie, despite this short, expensive fairy tale. I can suspend disbelief with the best of the, but Stephanie is supposed to live in a wild, wacky but somewhat real world. This book deals with a fantasy hero which is fine in fantasy books, but last time I checked, Plum books were classified as mysteries.

It was an expensive, totally unsatisfying read that smacked not of author intrusion, but publisher intrusion as a gambit to drain some holiday bucks from loyal Plum readers. A non-worldly hero who pops in and out of Stephanie's life, a missing Santa, a workshop manned by elves. Take the typical crazy Plum elements that we always love and take them two steps too far, making a parody of a parody of a parody. And now we know the defintion of "derivative."

Folks, we were used....

I'm still going to be first in line for the numbered books because I have faith that JanetE will deliver the goods. SMP, we'll forgive you this time, but we won't forget. Don't try our patience and make such a calculated attack on our wallets again without giving us anything substantial.

As a person who has read every book in the Stephanie Plum series, who has recommended them to a number of people, who has eagerly awaited the arrival of each new installment, I really wanted to love this book. Or, at least like it. Well, I can't say I don't like it, but that warm and fuzzy feeling I used to get when reading one of Stephanie Plum's adventures? It just wasn't there. I'm ashamed, and saddened to say that. No one could be more disappointed than a true fan. I have followed Stephanie since the first time she tried to apprehend a bad guy, and I will admit that the 7th and 8th installments haven't been as great as the first 6. But Visions of Sugar Plums just doesn't deserve to be called a Stephanie Plum novel. At a scant 149 pages, it's not worthy of it's price, nor is it really worthy of your time. There's none of that simmering sexual tension between her and Ranger, or her and Morelli for that matter. Instead, the main man is Diesel - a mysterious guy who just "appears" in Stephanie's apartment one day, and who can unlock doors like magic. It sounds a bit too supernatural to me, which is a little bit silly, considering that Stephanie Plum books have never even touched on the supernatural. Overall, the story feels rushed, and it feels like we've been there before. Her grandma is still crazy (along with the rest of her family), she's still got her cute hamster, she's still having Morelli issues, but...well...this novel doesn't make us care. I sure hope that this was just a bad fluke, and that Janet Evanovich will give more TLC to her next Stephanie Plum novel.

I was so excited to see a new book by Janet Evanovich that I bought it without reading much about it (except to ensure that it did involve Stephanie Plum). It was the first day it was available, and there were no customer reviews yet. I enjoyed reading it because I love her sense of humor, but I feel cheated. Twelve dollars (plus shipping) is awfully expensive for what is essentially an extended short story.
Guess I should have paid more attention to the fact there was no number in the title.

What is it with lame holiday books? I like the Stephanie Plum books a lot and eagerly awaited this one. What a disappointment! Evanovich must be taking lessons from John Grisham, whose lame Skipping Christmas was a big stinker last year. The book felt rushed, the characters/plot were childish and silly.

I sincerely hope this is not a view of things to come in future Plum books or I'll be dropping this series in a hot minute.

I have hurtled through the Stephanie Plum series this Summer. LOVE the books with their inept (just like me!) heroine(?). I was pleased to come across "Sugarplums" in the library, but I was extremely disappointed in its execution. It reminded me of the equally disappointing Christmas story that Patricia Cornwell wrote for her lead character Kay Scarpetta.
It seemed to be an effort to tide us over until the next fully fleshed-out book, but it was really kind of lame in its effort to be wacky.
No harm done, I just returned it to the library.
Waiting for #12...

As an avid Stephanie Plum fan since the publication of book one I was eagerly awaiting the publication of this book. I snatched it off the shelf the day it came out and read it that night. Highly disappointed is an understatement. This book fell far below the standards that one has come to expect of Stephanie Plum. The premise for the book was stupid and all the supernatural balony left one feeling cheated and used by the author. It did not belong in a Plum novel. This is an example of the author trading on the good name of her favorite heroine in order to make sales.

Save your money, people.

I love the Plum series, but this book was nothing but a filler to make Evanovich and her publisher some easy Christmas money.

The plot was plotless. The "new" character was never fully explained -- basically he was an alien, and of course, a good-looking one, who had skills the likes of which make McGyver look like an idiot. No Ranger. Tad bit of Morelli.

The bottom line is: This book is a waste of your time and money. Don't get sucked in!

Let's hope Book #9 gets back on track.

I love Janet Evanovich's previous 8 books in the Plum series, but this one was a total waste of time. I liked that in the regular series, there was always a shred of plausability, like this could really happen. This "story" had none of that for me. What she was thinking when she wrote this is beyond me. Is she planning to go into Sci-Fi now?
I hope she got whatever it was out of her system and will be back on target for book #9.
And where was Ranger?

This book is not worth the money. If you have never read any of the other Stephanie Plum books it would probably be okay. I found it tired/old/boring. Her other books are great!