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klippy's review against another edition
5.0
I love, love , love this series!!!! I hope Lisa Lutz will write more than 4 of these books!!!!
book_concierge's review against another edition
3.0
Book on CD read by Ari Graynor (abridged)
Isabel (“Izzy”) Spellman is at it again! When the book opens she is making her one phone call from jail to her mother (well, technically, she gets three calls, but don’t tell her mother). Then, she backs up and tells us how she came to get arrested. It all started when a new neighbor moved in next door to her parents’ home and private detective agency office. John Brown (an obvious alias to the trained investigator) is handsome but behaves oddly, and what’s up with that locked bedroom door? Izzy’s “need to know” will NOT be ignored!
Lutz hit it out of the ballpark when the first book in this series was published – The Spellman Files made it to #27 on the NY Times Bestseller list. This second effort is still whacky, and enjoyable, but the various writing devices Lutz uses are wearing thin. How many times do we need to know that the family members are constantly running surveillance on each other? And the footnotes really add nothing to the story line, and several times refer the reader to book #1 in the series to explain references. The basic plot is pretty skimpy, but the novel does begin to explore a possible relationship between Izzy and strong-silent-type Inspector Harry Stone, who happens to be younger sister Rae’s “best friend.”
The audio is capably read by Ari Graynor, but the fact that it is abridged isn’t noted anywhere on the cover or in the introduction, rather that tidbit is saved until the closing remarks. However … in this case, I think the abridged version works very well; it eliminates all the annoying footnotes and several side references that did little to advance the plot. Maybe Lutz (or her editor) should pay attention.
Isabel (“Izzy”) Spellman is at it again! When the book opens she is making her one phone call from jail to her mother (well, technically, she gets three calls, but don’t tell her mother). Then, she backs up and tells us how she came to get arrested. It all started when a new neighbor moved in next door to her parents’ home and private detective agency office. John Brown (an obvious alias to the trained investigator) is handsome but behaves oddly, and what’s up with that locked bedroom door? Izzy’s “need to know” will NOT be ignored!
Lutz hit it out of the ballpark when the first book in this series was published – The Spellman Files made it to #27 on the NY Times Bestseller list. This second effort is still whacky, and enjoyable, but the various writing devices Lutz uses are wearing thin. How many times do we need to know that the family members are constantly running surveillance on each other? And the footnotes really add nothing to the story line, and several times refer the reader to book #1 in the series to explain references. The basic plot is pretty skimpy, but the novel does begin to explore a possible relationship between Izzy and strong-silent-type Inspector Harry Stone, who happens to be younger sister Rae’s “best friend.”
The audio is capably read by Ari Graynor, but the fact that it is abridged isn’t noted anywhere on the cover or in the introduction, rather that tidbit is saved until the closing remarks. However … in this case, I think the abridged version works very well; it eliminates all the annoying footnotes and several side references that did little to advance the plot. Maybe Lutz (or her editor) should pay attention.
emandlew's review against another edition
3.0
I enjoy her sense of humor and fly through these books! Fun read!
mrsbear's review against another edition
4.0
This second installment in the Spellman series does not disappoint. How many times can Izzy get arrested in a three month period? Does the "Subject" have something to hide? What's the deal with Mr. and Mrs. Spellman's disappearances? If Rae growing up? All these questions are answered in this book.
This is a fast read series that will keep you guessing and laughing out loud. If you thought your family was dysfunctional, read on and feel normal!
Recommended for anyone who wants a just for fun read.
This is a fast read series that will keep you guessing and laughing out loud. If you thought your family was dysfunctional, read on and feel normal!
Recommended for anyone who wants a just for fun read.
geisttull's review against another edition
4.0
Read this over vacation. Lots of fun. I'll keep reading this series.
redskates's review against another edition
3.0
Lisa Lutz is funny as always. This story was a bit more predictable than her first.
ayaktruk's review against another edition
4.0
Remember reading this when it was first published. My mother had discovered the series and must have recommended it to me, since I was in Oklahoma by the time the series was launched in 2007.
I put it on my re-read list because of the Dr. Who references I recalled was a minor point of this particular book. Lutz must be a Whovian to have incorporated the new series (9th and 10th Doctors) into this books plot.
Fast, light read. Smiles and smirks abound in the experience.
And as usual, made me feel just that much closer to my book-loving mother, now gone almost 10 years.
I put it on my re-read list because of the Dr. Who references I recalled was a minor point of this particular book. Lutz must be a Whovian to have incorporated the new series (9th and 10th Doctors) into this books plot.
Fast, light read. Smiles and smirks abound in the experience.
And as usual, made me feel just that much closer to my book-loving mother, now gone almost 10 years.
tani's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed this one just as much as the first: the Spellmans are still charming, and their antics are still as amusing as ever.