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Description edit
In Hard Eight , Stephanie Plum picks up a case a little nastier than anything the wisecracking bounty hunter's seen before. Evelyn Soder and her young daughter have gone on the run, leaving an angry ex-husband who's planning to collect on a child custody bond that will leave Evelyn's... read more
Ridiculously Simplified Synopsis edit
Summary edit
Hard Up Fugitive Apprehension Agent Stephanie Plum has a big problem on her hands: Seven-year-old Annie Soder and her mother, Evelyn, have disappeared. Evelyn's estranged husband, Steven, a shady owner of a seedy bar, is not at all happy. Finding a kidnapped child is not an assignment for a... read more (warning: may contain spoilers)
Characters/People edit
- Stephanie Plum: Bounty Hunter working for Vinnie Plum and heroine of the novels. Not the greatest in the world, admits that a lot of her captures are more due to luck than anything else. Lives with her hamster Rex. Has an on again off again relationship with Joe Morelli. Describes herself as being 5'7, having blue eyes and curly brown hair. Is infamous for destroying cars, and not always her car either. Described as the Bounty Hunter from Hell by cops.
- Joe Morelli: Trenton PD vice cop and Stephanie's on again off again boyfriend. Has a Ducati and later on a big orange dog named Bob. Described as being 6 feet of hard lean Italian muscle with dark hair and dark eyes and in the words of Stephanie "Yum". Would like to marry Stephanie, on the provision that she quit being a bounty hunter. Calls Stephanie Cupcake.
- Ranger: Bounty Hunter who works for Vinnie, and also owner of his own security consulting firm in later novels. And also later a romantic interest for Stephanie. Formerly Special Forces. Two months older than Stephanie and described as being 6 feet or a few inches under or over. Cuban American with skin the color of a mocha latte, dark hair and dark eyes, always dresses in black, very muscular with no extra fat on him and also Yum. Say he loves Stephanie in his own way. Always drives very expensive black cars. Full name is Ricardo Carlos Manoso. Got the nickname Ranger in Special Forces. Calls Stephanie Babe.
- Vincent "Vinnie" Plum: Owner of Vincent Plum Bail Bonds. Stephanie more or less black mails him into giving her a job. He's Stephanie cousin. Said to have had a romantic relationship with a duck at one time. Described as looking like a weasel.
- Lula: File clerk for Vinnie Plum, though how much filing she does is pretty debatable. Used to be a Hooker and still dresses like it. Is described as being short, plus size with a propensity for spandex. Has a talent for jamming her size sixteen body into size ten clothes. Changes her hair color on a regular basis.
- Evelyn Soder: Granddaughter of the Plum's neighbor, Mabel and mother of Annie. She is missing.
- Eddie Abruzzi: Definite villain. No redeeming qualities. Looking for Evelyn and Annie also.
- Annie Soder: 7 year old daughter of Evelyn and Steven Soder. Granddaughter of Mabel.
- Valerie: Stephanie's older sister, perfect in every way.
- Grandma Mazur: Stephanie's Grandma. Part time sleuth along with Stephanie.
- Steven Soder: Owner of a bar.
- Albert Kloughn: Attorney
- Jeanne Ellen Burrows: Bounty Hunter
- Andrew Bender: FTA
- Janet Hamm: Add a description of this character.
- Mabel Markowitz
- Dotty Palowski: Evelyn's childhood friend.
- Martin Paulson
- Hector: Ranger's associate.
- Connie: Office manager at Bail Bonds office
- Oliver
- Mary Alice: Stephanie's niece who thinks she's a horse
- Clinton: Along with the rabbit and bear pursuing, a man in a Clinton mask joins the effort to catch Stephanie.
- Carl Costanza: Cop.
- Melvin Darrow
- Carol Nadich
- Amanda
- Benito Ramirez: sadistic boxer
- Punky Balog
- Mrs. Karwatt
- Bob: Large, hairy, orange, and lovable dog who belongs to Morelli even though he started out being Stephanie's dog. Bob eats literally anything and then hacks it up at inopotune times.
- Mrs. Apusenja
- Benny
- Laura Minello
- Martin
- Eddie Gazarra
- Rex
- Charlie Shleckner
- Leo Klug
- Joe Juniak
- Bonnie
- Louise
- Angie
- Mary Lou Stankovik
- Pauline Wood
- Ziggy Zimmerli
- Irma Brown
- Tank
- Mr. Wolesky: Stephanie's neighbour.
- Maggie Mason
- Caroline Sawyer
- Mr. Spiga
- Mickey Lauder
- Betty Lando
- Kathy Snyder
- Barbara Ann Guzman
- Barry
- Palowski Rheinhold
- Mr. Kleinschmidt
- Dickie Orr
- Samuel Singh
- Nonnie
Quotes edit
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“I'm gonna gut her like a fish. I'm gonna filet her like a trout. No bitch just walks in and ruins my lunch.”
Bender -
“Grandma moved to the front door, driven there by Burg radar. A good Burg housewife never missed anything happening on the street. A good Burg housewife could pick up street sounds not ordinarily heard by the human ear.”
Stephanie Plum -
“I'm not fat. I'm a substantial woman.”
Lula -
“I felt around the diaper area. He didn't seem wet. He didn't have a spoon stuck up his nose. No limbs appeared to be severed. "I don't know what's wrong," I said. "I mostly know about hamsters."”
Stephanie Plum -
“"So," I said, "as long as you're here, I don't suppose you'd want to come up and have a glass of wine?" "Are you inviting me for more than wine?" "Sort of." "Let me guess. You want me to make sure your apartment is secure." "Yes."”
Stephanie Plum, to Ranger -
“I graduated from Douglass without distinction. I was in the top ninety-eight percent of my class and damn glad to be there. I slept in the library and daydreamed my way through history lecture. I failed math twice, never fully grasping probability theory. I mean, first off, who cares if you pick a black ball or a white ball out of the bag? And second, if you're bent over about the colour, don't leave it to chance. Look in the damn bag and pick the colour that you want.”
Stephanie Plum -
“I'm being a good guy right now becsuse it suits my purposes, but I'm an opportunist, and I'm attracted to you. And I'll back in your bed if the Morelli time-out goes on for too long. I could make you forget Morelli if I put my mind to it. That wouldn't be good for either of us.”
Ranger
- Popular Highlights from Kindle Customers
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Calories don’t count if they’re connected to a celebration. Everyone knows this.
Highlighted by 27 Kindle customers -
My feeling on rain is that it should only occur at night when people are sleeping. At night, rain is cozy. During the day, rain is a pain in the gumpy.
Highlighted by 18 Kindle customers -
I failed math twice, never fully grasping probability theory. I mean, first off, who cares if you pick a black ball or a white ball out of the bag? And second, if you’re bent over about the color, don’t leave it to chance. Look in the damn bag and pick the color you want.
Highlighted by 15 Kindle customers -
“It’s just another one of Stephanie’s cars got blown up,” Lula said. “It got bombed by a big rabbit.”
Highlighted by 15 Kindle customers -
“There’s no tab. And there’s no price for what we give each other. Not ever. Not financial. Not emotional.
Highlighted by 11 Kindle customers -
Unfortunately, that’s an intellectual fact. And death cooties are an emotional reality.
Highlighted by 11 Kindle customers -
I have friends who take Xanax to help them sleep. I take macaroni and cheese.
Highlighted by 8 Kindle customers -
Ranger, being of mercenary mentality, had quoted his price for assistance as a night of his choosing, spent together. The whole night. And he got to pick the night’s activities. Not exactly a hardship, since I’m attracted to Ranger in a moth-to-the-flame sort of way. Still, the idea was scary. I mean, he’s the Wizard, right? I practically have an orgasm standing next to him. What would happen with actual penetration? My God, my entire vagina might go up in flames.
Highlighted by 7 Kindle customers -
“Don’t ask,” I said. I wasn’t dating anyone. I was fornicating with Batman.
Highlighted by 5 Kindle customers -
There’s something special about childhood friendships. They might be set aside for reasons of convenience, but they’re seldom forgotten.
Highlighted by 5 Kindle customers
First Sentence edit
Lately, I've been spending a lot of time rolling on the ground with men who think a stiffy represents personal growth.
Series & Lists edit
This is book 8 of 20 in Stephanie Plum by the Numbers. (standard series)
Preceded by Seven Up, and followed by To the Nines.
Authors & Contributors edit
- Janet Evanovich (Author)
First Edition edit
Original Language: English
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Country: USA
Publication Date: June 18, 2002
ISBN: 0312265859
Page Count: 311
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Country: USA
Publication Date: June 18, 2002
ISBN: 0312265859
Page Count: 311
Awards edit
- Left Coast Crime Awards (Finalist, 2003: Lefty Award for Most Humorous Mystery)
Classification edit
- Library of Congress: Add the Library of Congress Classification.
- Dewey: 813.54
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