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The Grand Finale
by
Janet Evanovich (Goodreads Author)
From the #1 "New York Times" bestselling author comes a revised, repackaged novel sure to please her many fans. She writes "high speed comic mayhem" ("Detroit Free Press"); she's "a blast of fresh air" ("Washington Post"); "side-splitting funny" ("Publishers Weekly") and "a winner" ("Glam
...moreMass Market Paperbound, 246 pages
Published
February 24th 2009
by Harper
(first published 1988)
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Bought while waiting for my sister to finish shopping.
Summary:
Girl: [stupid/clumsy/love-burned/focused:] I am stupid and clumsy and love-burned and focused!
Boy: [good-looking/rich/persistent/patient:] I am good-looking and rich and persistent and patient!
Girl: I don't want to fall in love!
Boy: Let's have sex!
Girl: I don't want to have sex!
Boy: Yes you do!
Girl: Okay!
Secondary characters: [crazy/helpful-but-in-an-unhelp...more
Summary:
Girl: [stupid/clumsy/love-burned/focused:] I am stupid and clumsy and love-burned and focused!
Boy: [good-looking/rich/persistent/patient:] I am good-looking and rich and persistent and patient!
Girl: I don't want to fall in love!
Boy: Let's have sex!
Girl: I don't want to have sex!
Boy: Yes you do!
Girl: Okay!
Secondary characters: [crazy/helpful-but-in-an-unhelp...more
view all 5 comments
"The Grand Finale" was not, in my opinion, one of Janet Evanovich's best earlier works. The story never quite gelled and moved entirely too quickly to ring true. It's a G rated romance with lots of quirky humor...maybe just a bit too much.
The story is the tale of a young, divorcee who is struggling to get by with her pizza business while finishing college. Since her first marriage derailed her life plan, she's now determined to stick with her goals without deviation. An...more
The story is the tale of a young, divorcee who is struggling to get by with her pizza business while finishing college. Since her first marriage derailed her life plan, she's now determined to stick with her goals without deviation. An...more
i liked the light romance in this book
(view spoiler)...more
(view spoiler)...more
You can see the evolution of Plum in some of Janet's early romances that she wrote for the Loveswept line in the 80s. This one is particularly Plummy with cars getting stolen and smashed, and little old ladies running amuck! It all comes nicely packaged with the trademark Evanovich humor.
If you don't like a little or a lot of silliness in your books, you should stay away from these. There's nothing realistic about these books, just a whole lot of fun and laughter. Plus how can you no...more
If you don't like a little or a lot of silliness in your books, you should stay away from these. There's nothing realistic about these books, just a whole lot of fun and laughter. Plus how can you no...more
If you need a break from all those depressing books with "messages" or the grisly murder mysteries with a gallon of blood on every page and just want a bit of "fluff" to pass a few hours and give you a couple of chuckles then THE GRAND FINALE by Janet Evanovich might be just what the doctor ordered.
No Stephanie Plum in this tale. Instead, this story of a quirky divorcee who owns a pizza joint, attends college, rescues little old ladies living in bus stations and ...more
No Stephanie Plum in this tale. Instead, this story of a quirky divorcee who owns a pizza joint, attends college, rescues little old ladies living in bus stations and ...more
I'm only giving it two stars because it really doesn't deserve more, but I didn't mind the drawbacks as I was listening to the audiobook (read capably, and probably improved upon quite a bit from the book version, by C.J. Critt) in the car and it was so fluffy that I didn't have to worry about missing a thing while I was merging/parking/wondering what to have for dinner when I got home.
This is one of those "perfect guy meets perfect girl and the author has to come up with things...more
This is one of those "perfect guy meets perfect girl and the author has to come up with things...more
In a short amount of time, Berry Knudsen was able to see a half naked man, which caused her to fall out of a tree, land on a large pizza, then she had to watch her own Jeep fly off a cliff, see two different cars get stolen and watch her apartment burn to ash. The next week she was living with Jake Sawyer in his unfurnished Victorian style home with three old ladies, all while she was still trying to run her pizza place, and go back to school. Luckily Jake was a 1st grade teacher and had the pat...more
Total disappointment! I've read all of JE re-published short romance stories and enjoyed them all... Until this one. The heroine in this novel was so back and forth with her feelings it was annoying. The whole story was incredible unbelievable. Which is usually the case in these short romances but, usually her stories are so funny and the attraction between the main characters has you falling for them and rooting for their happily ever after. The way the hero acted would have been out right cree...more
Now, before I start, let me put some light upon the character 'Berry Knudson'.She is optimistic, a very kindred spirit, goes out of her way to help people. Also she is loyal, resilient, slightly daffy, kind to old ladies, stubborn, a bit tempered as the book says. In short, she is Miss ‘GOODY TWO-SHOES’.
The story starts with Berry hearing a kitty cry, climbing the tree, rescuing the kitten, seeing an almost naked man and then, finally falling down from a tree. After that all she can ...more
The story starts with Berry hearing a kitty cry, climbing the tree, rescuing the kitten, seeing an almost naked man and then, finally falling down from a tree. After that all she can ...more
I believe this was a really good book, but not the best book I have ever read. I do not regret reading it, but at points it did not appeal to me as much as other Janet Evanovich books I have read. In this book my favorite character was Jake Sawyer because I really liked his personality. He likes little kids, and he was very creative(portrayed through his inventing skills). I really liked how he was nover very stressed, and he loved to just live in the moment. My favorite part of this book was wh...more
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This is one of those books where I wish I could award 1/2 points. It was a little better than "It was OK" but not fully in the "I liked it" category either.
You can definitely tell this is one of Janet's earlier works. It was a quick and easy read and had a few amusing pieces and parts. But things happened too quickly and there's not really much depth to anyone besides the main character, Berry. It's a fun read but you never really care about anyone in the story. I...more
You can definitely tell this is one of Janet's earlier works. It was a quick and easy read and had a few amusing pieces and parts. But things happened too quickly and there's not really much depth to anyone besides the main character, Berry. It's a fun read but you never really care about anyone in the story. I...more
This was the last book in her romance series and I loved them all but this was one of the best of them! A lot of people don't like romance, its to unrealistic or cheesy for them. Janet Evanovich does end her stories happily and they might be a bit cheesy, but I'm reading a book I don't want a big dose of reality here. I want to escape my reality for a minute and that is something she does brilliantly with all her books.
These romances are so funny. The characters are very realisti...more
These romances are so funny. The characters are very realisti...more
Cute little bit of fluff. It has all the marks of an Evanovich romance: Cars destoyed and or stolen? Check. Little old ladies? Check. Floppy dog that eats anything? Check. Plucky heroine? Check. Too good to be true sexy man meat? Check.
Sadly the plot on this was rather thin. Berry is our girl in this one and she is so sweet she sends girlscouts into diabetic shock. She is divorced from an icey cold husband who cheated on her but doesn't hate him. She went back to school after the di...more
Sadly the plot on this was rather thin. Berry is our girl in this one and she is so sweet she sends girlscouts into diabetic shock. She is divorced from an icey cold husband who cheated on her but doesn't hate him. She went back to school after the di...more
I had heard so much about Janet Evanovich and about how funny her books are. So I grabbed this book when I saw it in the library.
I liked the book but not as much as I expected to. And although I smiled a few times I did not find it that funny. Weird considering how much my sister liked the sense of humor in this book.
The good part was that it was a quick, light read. I read it in a single sitting which is very rare these days. That could probably be the reason for the 3 s...more
I liked the book but not as much as I expected to. And although I smiled a few times I did not find it that funny. Weird considering how much my sister liked the sense of humor in this book.
The good part was that it was a quick, light read. I read it in a single sitting which is very rare these days. That could probably be the reason for the 3 s...more
This was the worst Evanovich book I have read to date. It was the same cheesy romance as the rest of her earlier books. But girl meets guy by spying on him while he is changing. And when she finally sees him naked eventually, he says something along the lines of "See it is more than a few inches." Ewww. The girl's name is Lingdonberry, which is the worst name I have ever heard for a character. There are three random old ladies thrown in, and I am not really even sure where they c...more
A very whimical story with a young woman who owns a pizza parlor, a handsome man who is rich, and three crazy senior citizens saved from living on the streets at the railroad. The heroine is delivering pizza at a lonely house when a cat caught in a tree has to be rescued. She climbs into the tree, watches the handsome man undressing through the window and falls out of tree landing on her pizza which she was delivering. He rescues her and takes her home after her old car rolls away and crashes. I...more
It's fluff. The latest release in the JE screwball comedies is readable, entertaining and NOT mentally challenging. Which was just what I was in the mood for when I read it so it worked for me. All the usual elements appear - wacky old ladies [but not Elsie, sad to say:], dogs, hunky heroes with a sense of humor and heroines with a PLAN...
The Grand Finale
Foul Play
Thanksgiving
Manhunt
Love Overboard
Back to the Bedroom
Smitten
Wife for Hire...more
The Grand Finale
Foul Play
Thanksgiving
Manhunt
Love Overboard
Back to the Bedroom
Smitten
Wife for Hire...more
when i got on the waiting list for this book from the library and saw the title of "grand finale", i thought for some reason that it was the last one janet was writing in the steph plum series and panicked a little bit. i was relieved to pick it up and see that it was one of these little old romance books instead. the title is appropriate in that it is finally the last one of these we have to feel obligated to read out of love for janet... now back to stephanie and her rockin' gran...more
This is the last of Janet Evanovich's romance novels from back when she first started writing. I do like them even though I'm not generally a fan of romance novels. This stuff doesn't happen in real life, but I do find them amusing.
I also like Janet Evanovich's quote:
"Romance novels are birthday cake and life is peanut butter and jelly...everyone should have lots of delicious romance novels lying around for those times when the peanut butter of life gets stuck to the...more
I also like Janet Evanovich's quote:
"Romance novels are birthday cake and life is peanut butter and jelly...everyone should have lots of delicious romance novels lying around for those times when the peanut butter of life gets stuck to the...more
I needed a bit of a break from all the serious fiction and fantasy books I have been reading lately and this was perfect. It's a light, cute book that was enjoyable. The beginning of the book was good with Berry climbing up a tree to help save a poor kitten and then the lights went on...I'll leave it there because it was a good start to the book and I don't want to spoil it for you. If you're in the mood for something light and cute, this is probably a good bet! Enjoy!!
This was a quick read that focused less on the cheesier side of love at first sight and instead made it quirky and humorous. Sometimes I think it's kind of tacky when the stories go overboard with the whole lovey dovey thing after the people have only known each other for a week or something but Evanovich does a good job at doing it in her own way. She makes it funny and even disastrous which is what I call a little more realistic ! Overall it's a cute book to pick up on a day where you could us...more
Just like all the other romance novels written by Evanovich, The Grand Finale is a wonderful mixture of love and laughter. In this book there's a good helping of clumsy. Berry Knudsen meets Jake Sawyer when she falls out of his tree onto a pizza, after trying to save a kitten. Berry and Jake's romance is filled with crazy old ladies, catastrophes, unpredictable breakfast foods and Calamity Jane. Another mushy, feel good romance that's just right for some nice light reading.
خفيفة ، رومانسية ، احداثها سريعة لدرجة انك تتفاجئ مثل الشخصيات تماما ... ما فيها ذاك العمق ، الحوارات سخيفة لكن سخافتها محببة .. تذكرني بالأفلام الرومانسية الكوميدية زي افلام ميغ راين او ادم ساندلر .. رواية تصلح ليوم صيفي ملل .. تغيير موود لا اكثر
I read all of Janet Evanovich, even the 12 books that were reprinted after she became such a popular author. This is the last of the 12 to be re-issued, and I am so glad that we are done with them. Formulaic, silly, a bit enjoyable but less so as I read more and more of them. I still love the Stephanie Pum novels, but the straight romance novels simply are not as good.
Best thing is that they are VERY fast reads!
Best thing is that they are VERY fast reads!
"The Grand Finale" by Janet Evanovich, is the story of a young woman who owns the Pizza Place. Delivering a pizza one evening she ended up falling out of a tree, trying to rescue a kitten, onto a pizza, and into love.
Okay, so maybe the road to true love isn't all that easy. Truth is, she ruins the pizza, loses three cars, adopts three little old ladies, is held at gunpoint, and is caught ogling a gorgeous guy. Eventually they make some really great pizza together.
I ...more
Okay, so maybe the road to true love isn't all that easy. Truth is, she ruins the pizza, loses three cars, adopts three little old ladies, is held at gunpoint, and is caught ogling a gorgeous guy. Eventually they make some really great pizza together.
I ...more
Chose to read this book because love the Stephanie Plum series that Evanovich does. This book was a little fluffy and not as funny but was a cute predictable romance. Divorced girl trying to own her own business and go to school and help out 3 homeless ladies is helped out by wealthy inventor who now substitute teaches. All of them including the homeless ladies live happily ever after.
If your suffering from Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series withdrawl you may want to check this book out. Girl meets handsome guy in the most unusual of circumstances. One dog, two compromised cars, three old ladies, and a partridge in a pear tree later (just kidding about the partridge and tree) you get one funny romance that will tickle your funny bone and appease your need for Plum.
In general, I think the Stephanie Plum "mystery" series is kind of funny. They are easy read, romantic escapism...like what you read after finishing War and Peace and you need a break.
This was not a Stephanie Plum book but a librarian told me it was funny...either I'm getting pickier or this was a toss off because I barely finished it....and didn't really care if I did.
This was not a Stephanie Plum book but a librarian told me it was funny...either I'm getting pickier or this was a toss off because I barely finished it....and didn't really care if I did.
I just finished listening to this book and it was decent as most of her early ones are. You can clearly see that these were early works. I could say that the book could definitely use some work, but it was a humorous and enjoyable listening experience due to the fact I was cleaning while listening. It is what I have heard as a "popcorn" read, but enjoyable.
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Janet Evanovich is the #1 bestselling author of the Stephanie Plum novels, twelve romance novels, the Alexandra Barnaby novels and graphic novels, Wicked Appetite (the first book in the Lizzy and Diesel series,) and How I Write: Secrets of a Bestselling Author.
Also published books under the name Steffie Hall.
More about Janet Evanovich...
Also published books under the name Steffie Hall.
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