Enough time has passed since my marathon Stephanie Plum readathon just over two years ago that it was a joy to reenter this world rather than a chore.

Fortune and Glory is exactly what you’d expect from a Stephanie Plum book – lots of mistakes, an inability to make decisions, and plenty of Lula and Grandma nonsense. Something that stood out this time, though, was Stephanie’s innate kindness. It’s easy to read these books and roll your eyes at how she gets into all these scrapes and is always saddled with some of the strangest characters. And yes, she complains about them and says she’s trying to get rid of them, but then she feeds them, drives them home or lets them into her apartment and turns on the tv for them. She opens her home and her life to the people around her who need a helping hand.

Is it annoying that Stephanie gets jealous and snaps at Morelli because she thinks he may have a girlfriend while she’s actively sleeping with Ranger? Yeah. But we already know that Stephanie’s love life will never be resolved. So enjoy the Ranger and Morelli moments when they come and wait for the next blow-up (in Morelli’s case) or the decision to grow up and figure out her life (when it comes to Ranger). This is the 27th book in the series, so it’s happened approximately 27 times now… (I refuse to acknowledge the Between-the-Numbers books and their nonsense).