Metro Girl (Alex Barnaby, #1)

Metro Girl (Alex Barnaby #1)

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3.54 of 5 stars 3.54  ·  rating details  ·  19,164 ratings  ·  790 reviews
Alexandra (Barney) Barnaby roars onto the Miami Beach scene in hot pursuit of her missing baby brother, "Wild" Bill. Leave it to the maverick of the family to get Barney involved with high-speed car chases, a search for sunken treasure, and Sam Hooker, a NASCAR driver who's good at revving a woman's engine.

Engaged in a deadly race, Bill has "borrowed" Hooker's sixty-five-f...more
Published (first published January 1st 2004)
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Marla
I read the hardcover, large print edition of this, which I point out because it got really funny around pages 280/300. As usual for a Janet Evanovich book one of the characters was driving a Porsche, it was not however a Cayenne or a Turbo(gasp!), but they did mention they were thinking of upgrading to a Turbo so there's that. =P There was also a Mini Cooper which I believe Stephanie drove at one point in her books. =)

This takes place in Miami and I couldn't help but think they needed to get in...more
Heather
This was a lot of fun to read. I'd been told that these weren't as good as the Stephanie Plum novels so I was delightfully surprised at how much I enjoyed it. It almost read like a Carl Hiaasen novel; mostly owing to the south Florida setting and odd ball characters. Some of the action in the book was a little preposterous at times but nowhere near the almost unbelievable level of a Plum book. Overall a solid story with enough suspense that had me reading it all in one sitting. Just the summer r...more
Antof9
Having just read A Thousand Acres, I needed something "lite", and this perfectly fit the bill. I found it fun and silly, and some of the writing was quite clever. Calling Hooker "NASCAR guy" was genius. Judey was a little bit of a characature, but the lines about him having "two eyebrows" made me LOL.

One of the things I liked was all the pop culture references. I've often found things like that missing in the Sue Grafton "alphabet series" (it's ok though; that's an older series -- I just find th...more
Parisa
I'm sorry, Janet. But seriously. This book was filled with exactly the same characters as the Plum series, but they had different names. Come on. I liked the Plum series for the most part, but that doesn't mean I want to read it over and over again under the pretense of it being a new story with new people.
Stefanie
Review originally published at http://www0.epinions.com/review/Metro...

Janet Evanovich is probably best known for her numbered series of fluffy mysteries featuring Jersey girl Stephanie Plum. After ripping through all eighteen of those books in a little over a month, I thought I'd try one of Ms. Evanovich's other series. Metro Girl is the first of currently two books about Baltimore babe Alexandra Barnaby. Alex (known to her family as ‘Barney') grew up in her father's garage and can disassemble...more
Jamieson
Janet Evanovich is best known for her Stephanie Plum series (“One for the Money”, “Two For the Doe”, “Three To Get Deadly”, etc) featuring Stephanie Plum: A so-so bounty hunter with big hair, a big mouth and a gun. Each of the novels has rocketed to the New York Times Best Seller List and has made her a publishing phenomenon. The books are laugh out loud funny and Evanovich has amassed herself quite the loyal fan base. Myself included.

I for one love her Stephanie Plum novels, so I was extremely...more
Sarah Gonalez
Metro Girl was a mystery that turned out to be a comedy at the same time. It's about a woman named Alexandra Barnaby who is in search of her lost brother, Bill. While in her search, she's accompanied by an arrogant, egotistic, and at the samae time Handsome race car driver in search of his missing boat. Both characters scope out different people in this long search for Bill. As the story precedes and they learn more and more about the situation her brother is involved and without even knowing in...more
Chrystal
I read this while waiting for Lean Mean 13 to become available at my local library. I was disappointed to find that the characters and premise were very similar to the Stephanie Plum series; I would go so far as to say that Metro Girl is just Plum-lite, the only difference being that while I love Stephanie, I find Barney barely tolerable.

In spite of the similarities and the annoying protagonist, you're better off reading this than either of the "between-the-numbers" books.
Heather
I'm so glad I decided to try this one! I've been a Plum fan for a long time and have been disappointed by Evanovich's latest "Wicked" series. Too many car explosions and too much cupcake scarfing for my taste. This book, however, felt like a return to classic Evanovich! The characters are eccentric, but not over the top and they keep you laughing with their witty banter and inability to cope with certain situations.

One thing that this book has in common with all of Evanovich's novels is the run...more
Darla Stokes
Here's another problem with having a huge TBR pile. By the time I get to a book that I bought when it first came out in hardcover, it's already in paperback, and I've wasted the extra $$. That's particularly irritating when I didn't love the book. Ah, well. I got it from Zooba, so I only wasted $3 or $4.

The trouble starts when Alexandra Barnaby, aka Barney, gets a phone call from her brother in Florida saying he's going to be out of touch for a while, that's abruptly cut off after a woman's scre...more
Author Groupie
Perusing the aisles at the quaintest little library (my new favorite), Maryville Community Library in Maryville, IL, I could not help but peruse the Evanovich titles as I always do. Metro Girl caught my eye with its brightly-colored book jacket, so I flicked it loose from the shelf with my index finger and scanned the back synopsis. Having continued withdrawals from the early Stephanie Plum series, I decided to give it a try.
Interesting enough, Evanovich's main characters, Alex and Hooker, are f...more
Tabi34
Classic Evanovich! I guess part of why I love Evanovich books is because she writes in a formula style and I know what to expect. I have read all of the Stephanie Plum books and this one follows the same pattern. Girl gets sucked into a mystery/situation that she is unable to handle, but she tries by bumbling along. Then there is the hot guy who thinks about sex a lot. In this case it's Sam Hooker, a NASCAR driver who is also inept at solving the problem, but he's along for the ride so to speak....more
Jerry
New faces/places and funny - but plot just excuse for story!

We're not surprised at the very mixed reviews for Evanovich's latest, her first non-Plum (bounty hunter) "mystery" not counting her romance novels. Her catty, funny writing style; zany characters; and long sustained sexual tension between the leads are certainly reminiscent and welcome reminders of what has brought our author success and us readers amusement to date. But the plot is so incredible, so silly, that it doesn't serve as the...more
Nenia Campbell
In some ways, this is a lot like the Stephanie Plum series. The main character, Barney, is a bombshell blond with tomboy tendencies (*cough* Stephanie Plum). Her love interest, Hooker, is an unfazable womanizer (*cough* Joe Morelli) who can kick serious ass (read: this is probably because he is a NASCAR driver, and as everyone knows, they can do anything).

The plot is pretty unique, though. Barney's brother has gone missing with a boat belonging to Hooker. What starts out as a simple theft quickl...more
Amy
Occasionally I'll download an audiobook just for the sheer sake that the reviews don't completely suck and it's available from the library for download. Th is is why I "read" Metro Girl. Definitely not my first choice of books.

I liked the book though. It was easy to listen to, was fast-paced, entertaining and fun. The plot was totally unrealistic which is part of why I liked it. Anything too close to reality rings too true and makes me grimace, lol. Oh but wait, this has to be said...the audiobo...more
Stacey
Metro Girl is our first introduction to Alexandra "Barney" Barnaby. A girl who grew up working in her father's garage and even raced stock cars. Now she works as an adjuster for an insurance company--how boring compared to racing!

Barney's brother,Bill, is missing in Miami; literally seconds after speaking on the phone with Barney. Worried, Barney heads to Miami in search of her brother. While searching for Bill, Barney runs into an old friend from school, Judy. And meets NASCAR driver, Sam Hook...more
Sandy
Metro Girl is hilarious, charming, and filled with lots of fun and unforgettable characters. What I don't like about Metro Girl is how fast-paced it is. It's TOO fast-paced. Everything moves so quickly it's almost a race to get to the next chapter. By the second half of the book, the plot gets better and so does the humour. I agree with everyone though: it's too similar to Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series because of the character traits and behaviour. She should stick to writing about Stephanie...more
Kara Jorges
Janet Evanovich kicks off a new series with this book, written in her signature style. The characters are different, but anyone who loves Stephanie Plum novels should warm to this one. The only thing lacking in this book is familiarity, which should be firmly in place by the end of the next Metro Girl book. The heroine, Alexandra “Barney” Barnaby, leaves her job as an insurance adjuster in Baltimore when she gets a disturbing call from her brother, last seen in Miami. Alex heads for Florida, whe...more
Iris Blobel
GREAT !

I don't really like to admit it, but I almost liked "Metro Girl" better than some of the Stephanie Plum books.The characters are just as unique, but the dialogues are a tad better and wittier, especially Hooker's replies are brilliant at times. The plot is more complex and easier to follow.

This first book introduces us to Alex Barnaby, also called Barnie, Sam Hooker, "the NASCAR guy" as well as others like Barnie's brother, Bill who's taken Sam's boat, but that's not the only trouble he...more
Corey
Barney can do it all. She can fix cars and take apart engines and get away from bad guys. She is a wonderful bumbling heroine. Sam Hooker is a NASCAR driver who is trying to enjoy his off season vacation. TH two are thrown together when Barney's unconventional brother "Wild Bill" steals Hookers boat. The two treck all over Florida and into Cuba looking for Barney's brother and the missing boat. They come to rely on each other and show their strengths and weaknesses throughout the book. As romanc...more
Judy
This is the first Janet Evanovich book that I read rather than listen to on audio and I must admit that, while I liked it, I prefer to listen to her books. I chose this book because I knew that I would like it (because of previous experience with the author) and because I was spending hours at the hospital with my father, I knew that I could pick it up and put it down without losing the thread of the story. The story did not disappoint. Instead of Stephanie Plum in New Jersey, we had much the sa...more
Tamara
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.
Destiny
The book Metro Girl written by Janet Evanovich exhibits two major themes. One of these themes being, “Fear is an emotion that tries to stop us in our tracks. Once we get rid of this fear there is no telling of what we can accomplish,” and the other being, “Sometimes we have to take risks to protect the ones we love.” Throughout the book Evanovich lets us know that sometimes doing the right thing can be dangerous and we might come face to face with our fears but if someone’s life is on the line...more
Jim
This is a new author to me and I was impressed. The author has a minimalist writing style sort of like Marcia Muller, but this book at least was a lot funnier. The story was good, if a bit manic, and the chartacters - including the lead character - were all a bit daffy. The climatic scene was not as good as it could have been. The elements were all there but it just didn't happen. Maybe the author was under deadline pressure or maybe she was worried about turning the scene into a farce. Pity. It...more
Britt Griffith
I couldn’t decide if this book read like a 15 year old wrote it or if it was intended for a 15 year old to read. It was very light, but too unrealistic to be taken seriously. Barney’s (a girl) brother is kidnapped, so she takes off in search of him and at the same time ends up hooking up with a hot NASCAR driver. They are almost killed numerous times throughout the book, yet they refuse to go to the cops, but instead opt to go get a hot dog or something. She even gets stopped several times for s...more
Ines
I would have given it a 3.5, but I rounded up ;)

This book is very bizarre... but surprisingly easy to read.
It's my first Janet Evanovich novel and I have to admit that I'm quite curious to see if any of her others are this bizarre/exciting.

It's basically a fun packed book about a girl who fixes engines (out to rescue her brother) and someone named Hooker (NASCAR guy).

For starters the names/nicknames of the characters in the book are a bit outrageous: Hooker, Puke Face, Slick and Gimpy (kinda li...more
Julie Burns
I couldn't finish this book. I'm a big fan of the Stephanie Plum series and maybe my expectations were set too high, but I thought Metro Girl was too fluffy. I had no desire to stick with it and wished Evanovich would simply get back to her primary series.
Louise
I thoroughly enjoyed this novel!! Full of humour like Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series. I'm anxious to read the sequel to this titled "Motor Mouth"!

From cover:

"Alexandra (Barney) Barnaby roars onto the Miami Beach scene in hot pursuit of her missing baby brother, "Wild" Bill. Leave it to the maverick of the family to get Barney involved with high-speed car chases, a search for sunken treasure, and Sam Hooker, a NASCAR driver who's good at revving a woman's engine.

Engaged in a deadly race, Bill...more
Lauren aka John Matthew's Girl
Alex Barnaby's brother Bill has disappeared and she's gone down to Florida to try and find him, she meets NASCAR driver Sam Hooker who is also looking for Bill but for different reasons, he "borrowed" Sam's boat and Sam is none to happy about that. As a huge Janet Evanovich fan, i went into this with fairly high expectations, and it didn't disappoint. But I've still read better from this author. Alex seemed downright wimpy at times, and Sam's innuendos and jokes reminded me more than a little bi...more
Erin L.
Plot: Alex travels to Miami to search for her brother Bill, and she's not the only one. Hooker, a famous NASCAR driver, joins her search, together trying to find Bill before the Feds and the would-be Castro replacements. I enjoyed the location of this book. Having spent a few years living in Florida and traveling to Miami and Key West I found myself easily back there as I read.

Characters: Alex Barnaby is a fun character, she's book smart but also can fix an engine. I have to say, though, that I...more
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Metro Girl (Alex Barnaby, #1)
Metro Girl (Alex Barnaby, #1)
Metro Girl (Alex Barnaby, #1)
Metro Girl (Alex Barnaby, #1)
Metro Girl (Alex Barnaby, #1)

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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...
One For The Money (Stephanie Plum, #1) Two for the Dough (Stephanie Plum, #2) Three to Get Deadly (Stephanie Plum, #3) Four to Score (Stephanie Plum, #4) Hot Six (Stephanie Plum, #6)

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“Just because i know how to change a guys oil doesn't mean i want to spend the rest of my life on my back, staring up his undercarriage.” 34 people liked it
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