By the time you’re up to the 18th book in a series, I’d think you wouldn’t pick it up without having read at least some of the earlier books in the series. Explosive Eighteen, as it says, is the eighteenth book in author Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum series. I would say you definitely need to know who Stephanie Plum, Ranger, Joe Morelli, Lula, and Joyce Barnhart are. Evanovich does a good job recapping a bit for each character, but the previous books contain a lot of character development.

Stephanie Plum steps off a plane from Hawaii at Newark Airport. The “vacation” was somewhat abbreviated thanks to both Ranger and Joe Morelli showing up in Hawaii and getting into a fight. On the way back, there was a layover in Los Angeles. The man sitting next to Stephanie never got back on the plane. Now both the good guys and the bad guys are after Stephanie, believing she’s in possession of a photograph the man was carrying.

You call that a plot recap? Well, yeah. If you have any familiarity with these books, the zaniness is predictable at this point.

Through the course of the book, Stephanie has her car stolen multiple times by the same man. Her answer is to trade it in for a new car. Have Morelli take care of it since it’s a felony? Nah, that’d be too simple. When Stephanie’s arch-enemy Joyce Barnhart has a target drawn on her, she sets up housekeeping at Stephanie’s place. Why doesn’t Stephanie just kick her out? She’s supposed to be some bad-ass bounty hunter, yet she’s a doormat.

Lula freaks out over nothing. Lula’s eating habits leave a lot to be desired. Stephanie is a bit of an enabler. Stephanie frets over Rex, her pet hamster. Joe sniffs around, looking to jump into bed with her. Ranger is always lurking, and he has Stephanie’s back, yet she’s reluctant to call him because she thinks that makes her weak in his eyes. Both men supposedly love Stephanie, but Ranger is the only one who accepts her as she is. Joe wants her to be a typical New Jersey housewife (even though he’s never really proposed), while Ranger just helps her clean up the messes she leaves behind without lecturing her.

Grandma Mazur visits a funeral parlor and says some inappropriate things. Stephanie’s mother needs some anxiety meds to deal with the family. Stephanie’s father sits in his chair and watches television. Has he even spoken a word throughout this series?

At the same time, there’s some comfort in the familiarity. I wish the characters would move forward a bit. They’ve been stuck for a few books now, doing nearly the same things over and over. I enjoy it, but I want it to be better. It’s starting to feel tired, which is why I put the series aside a few years back. After listening to a few of the audiobooks, it’s wearing on me already. I appreciate the light escapism of the book, and it does make me laugh, but I just wish it were better.

Lorelei King has narrated all of the audiobooks that I’ve listened to in the series. She does a good job, even if the exaggerated accent bothers me at times. She voices Stephanie almost like she’s disassociated from what’s going on around her, with occasional breakdowns when it all gets overwhelming. I like how she voices Ranger, too. Can you tell I’m Team Ranger?

I might have to wait a bit before approaching the next book. That is, unless I hit a moment when I need a good laugh and just dive into it anyway. The book serves its function of being a light summer read filled with a lot of humor. The problem is the stories seem to be running together, and there’s little that’s new, plus the characters seem stuck. If you’re this deep into the series, though, you’ll want to read it.

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