Customer Reviews

Curse Of The Spellmans

5 star:		(48)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Welcome back to the wacky world of the Spellman family. They really live in their own universe. This family of Private Investigators thinks nothing of investigating each other. They have deadbolts on their bedroom doors. They have taken to calling vacations disappearances and disappearances vacations. And they are so much fun to spend time with.

This book picks up two years after the end of the first book. And it seems everyone is acting strangely. Older brother David is staying home watching TV and eating junk. The father, Albert, is sneaking out of the house and returning with wet hair. Meanwhile, he's actually eating healthy. Olivia, the mother, is sneaking out of the house late at night herself. Youngest sister Rae is distraught about accidentally almost vehicularly manslaughtering her best friend, Inspector Henry Stone. And Isabel is hot on the trail of the copycat vandals ruining neighbor Mrs. Chandler's holiday displays. These vandals are copying the crimes that Isabel did when she was a teenage (not that she has any idea what you are talking about).

But what has really captured Isabel's attention is the Spellman's new neighbor. "John Brown" seems nice enough, but he sure has lots of shredded paper. And who really has such a common name? Plus Isabel can't track down any information on him. And he is evasive with answers to her questions. You know, simple things like where are you from? What do you do for a living? When were you born? What's your social security number? All this leads Isabel to be arrested four times (or twice depending on how you count) in a matter of months. How will it all end?

As with the first in the series, this book is hard to adequately describe. It uses short scenes (not really chapters) to propel the story forward and help us keep everything straight. I laughed multiple times as the story unfolded. Yes, there are some mysteries, but this isn't a mystery. This is a novel about a family. Which means these characters are well developed. And that's what makes the ending very touching.

With everything going on, the book never drags. And I had a smile on my face almost the entire time I was reading it. In fact, I even got caught laughing out loud in public.

A word of warning. This book (by necessity) spoils the first book about the Spellmans. So if you are interested, get The Spellman Files first.

I couldn't put the book down. While I think living with the Spellmans would drive me crazy, they are a wonderful family to visit in the pages of a novel. So pick up this wild, wacky, and wonderful novel today.

I thoroughly enjoyed this funny and brilliantly original book , although it might be false advertising to call it a detective or mystery novel. It's true that the first person narrator, thirty year old Izzy Spellman, is a private detective, and there are two disappeared women, but the mystery is not a page turner. The story centers more on her relationship with her parents (also both private eyes) her 16 year old sister, and the various men she is considering adding to her list of ex-boyfriends. (The full list is in an appendix). She is inept, in the Stephanie Plum manner, but on the whole this is chick-lit, and Bridget Jones came to mind a lot more than Miss Marples. I don't know if this qualifies as transcending the genre - maybe it's sidestepping it.

This is second in a series. I missed the first one. I'm going back to the Amazon site right now to buy it.

In the second installment of the Spellman series, we encounter several small, harmless mysteries in this P.I. family and unlike other suspense building novels of its genre, only confront a tiny climax of 'bad guy' adventure near the end with less than 20 pages to go. But for this novel it works! Each family member, centered around the main character of Isabel, contributes a series of suspicious actions which make for a hilarious plot. (And yes, even though David, the oldest child, chose long ago not to join the family business, he has a mystery of his own.)

Lacking in shootouts, dead bodies, violence or surprise twists and turns normally associated with a mystery novel, this book investigates the quirks and odd, yet funny, behaviors that make this family so suspicious and loving of each other. While spying on her parents, Olivia and Albert, younger sister Rae, older brother David and the Suspect next door, Isabel faces the truth of her assumptions in the end and ultimately must deal with tough questions about her own life that she has kept buried.

Lisa Lutz's fast-paced dialogue and short scenes make for a quick, delightful read. Highly recommended.

I found both this book and the first one outrageously funny and kind of touching. Now I'm noodling around the amazon site, searching in vain for anything comparable, with no luck at all. I will POUNCE on the next opus of the Spellman oeuvre to appear, and I hope Ms. Lutz goes on writing about them for a long long time.

Izzy Spellman, PI, is at the epicenter of all the drama involving her file-snooping, car-following, information finagling family who all happen to be private investigators too. But for Izzy, being a private investigator is more than just a job, it's an obsession. So when a new neighbor moves in who seems to have too many locked doors and only vague answers, Izzy's inner snoop goes into hyperdrive.

Also, Izzy's best friend and brother are hiding their dirty laundry from the family, creating an insatiable itch in Izzy that needs to be scratched. If that wasn't enough, Izzy's younger sister Rae decides to take an almost stalker-like interest in Investigator Henry Stone, Izzy's "best friend".

After Izzy's fourth arrest in three months (yes, I said fourth), she finds herself recounting the events of the previous months to her lawyer in an effort to establish her defense and keep her out of jail. This is the point where we find Izzy at the beginning of "Curse of the Spellmans" as she recounts the twisted and poorly executed (by Izzy, not the author) sequence of events that befell her despite her good intentions.

Lutz easily surpasses her entertaining first book, "The Spellman Files", taking the story of Izzy and her family to a new level. Her "screenplay" writing style makes this book an effortless read as the dialogue and action flow along. The first person narrative gives unique insight into Izzy's thoughts and really amplifies the quirkiness of the story, making the novel a joy to read.

Lutz delves even further into the character development in this book, enriching the story line and creating a strong connection between the reader and the characters. An interesting feature of the series is Lutz's use of footnotes (yes, footnotes!). Although some readers may find this odd or distracting, I found it useful and insightful to the story. The footnotes help clarify things that otherwise may have left the reader scratching their head without bogging down the overall flow of the story.

Last word:

Izzy's insatiable appetite to uncover the truth behind every secret, along with her blatant disregard for personal safety, property, and the laws of modern civilization make "Curse of the Spellmans" one heck of a page-turner. The characters are charming and lovable, displaying the qualities, both good and bad, that make them easy to relate to. Overall, "Curse of the Spellmans" is a lighthearted and entertaining romp that will have you on the edge of your seat as you wait with baited breath to find out what's the next knuckle-headed thing Izzy is going to do. Lisa Lutz has written a winner.

The Spellman family live in a world of their own. They are a family of investigators who think nothing of investigating each other. They have deadbolts on their bedroom doors, four mailboxes on the porch, record innocent conversations, and when they go on vacation they call it a disappearance. When someone disappears, they're obviously just on vacation.

The Curse of the Spellmans picks up two years after the end of the first book, The Spellman Files. It begins when Izzy Spellman is arrested for the forth time in three months. She's obsessing. Izzy is convinced that their new neighbor, John Brown, is hiding something.

Her parents, the senior investigators in the firm, are not happy with Izzy's obsession and refuse to bail her out. Izzy turns to Morty. Morty is an octogenarian lawyer who's tired of retirement. He agreed to help Izzy but he needed the facts. Over coffee and donuts, Izzy unveiled her story. It's the whole truth, nothing but the truth...with a few side trips... She can't ignore her sister Rae. Rae's in stalking mode after Inspector Henry Stone told her to buzz off. Henry is a forty year old man who Rae latched onto when her uncle died. He's a good influence on her so her parents refuse to step in and put an end to their "friendship". Henry is frustrated with a 16 year old dogging his steps but he tolerated it until said 16 year old accidentally almost ran over him while taking her first driving lesson. Reaching his limit, he booted her out of his life.

Izzy has her regular cases to deal with as well. She was hot on the trail of a copycat vandal. The villain was copying a series of crimes that Izzy and her best friend Petra pulled off in their teens...

If you are looking for a classic who done it, forget Curse of the Spellmans, but if you a looking for an entertaining and hilarious read, this is the book for you.

I adored The Spellman Files (now out in paperback!) but I thought this book was FANTASTIC! A brilliant sophomore effort for Lisa Lutz. This book is laugh out loud funny, full of great snark and cringe-worthy moments, it's well written, and just all kinds of wonderful. I can't say enough how much I enjoyed it. Izzy is a character I can really relate to - a 30 something at a crossroad in her life. From her somewhat absurd antics (I don't know what you're talking about) to her relationship with her sister, you can really sympathize with what Izzy goes through. I would love to see her in therapy in the future, and I am extremely curious to see how her relationship with Henry (I completely admire his Doctor Who collection) will grow. I just cannot say enough about how much I love these books!!

I started this book over a week ago and could easily have finished it the same day. However, the thought of being without izzy spellman forced me to read slowly and relish every plot, every sarcastic comment, and each and every enjoyable footnote. Curse of the Spellmans picked up where the Spellman Files left off- with just as many laugh out loud moments as the original. This time Izzy is obsessed with her parent's suspicious next door neighbor aka the "subject" and Lisa Lutz keeps us guessing at what he is up to until the very end. Curse of the Spellmans is a must read if you enjoy a fun mystery with endless laughs.

Footnote to Lisa- Please write another one quickly- spellman withdrawals are painful!

I just finished Curse of the Spellmans, the second book written by Lisa Lutz. Her first book, The Spellman Files, I read and reviewed earlier this year. This is such a unique take on the mystery series that I was very excited to read this second offering and I was not disappointed.

When Izzy isn't dealing with her sister harassing Henry Stone, or explaining why arrests #2 and #3 aren't 'real arrests', or writing 'suspicious person' reports on her other family members, she is investigating her next door neighbor, John Brown. She is just sure that he is up to something because who has such a common name?

I love these books! Izzy is such a lovable and completely flawed young lady who I, in equal parts, want to 'mother' and straight out at the same time I want to just go along with her on her adventures and enjoy! She makes me laugh at her antics and explanations.

The entire Spellman clan are quite the 'characters'. Each is a little (okay, more than a little) odd and that manifests itself in clever situations and conversations. Henry Stone as the straight man is quite lovable and quirky in his own way.

I highly recommend this fun mystery series. The more I think about these books, I am reminded of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum. But as the book jacket for Curse of the Spellmans states, I am also reminded of Harriet the Spy. For a light, fun mystery, this is a great pick.

micheleonel.blogspot.com

I love Lisa Lutz's books! They're very well written, funny, and have a novel (pun intended) storyline. I read many mysteries, and I'm very picky about what I'll spend time reading. I've enjoyed both of her books and look forward to the next. Hurry up, Lisa!