Review of The Spellmans Strike Again by Lisa Lutz

From Nashville Scene --

With The Spellmans Strike Again, Lisa Lutz brings a quirky mystery series to a delightful close --

By: Lyda Phillips --
March 17, 2010 --

The Spellmans Strike Again
Lisa Lutz
Simon & Schuster, 379 pp., $25

Lisa Lutz grew up in Southern California, and spent the next decade or so college-hopping and working a string of odd jobs, including a stint in a family detective agency. During that time she wrote the screenplay for a mob comedy called Plan B, which was made into a movie in 2000. Lutz considered the film "unwatchable," so she swore off screenwriting and began The Spellman Files.



"Ten years later, I remember the [detective] job as basically me in the basement shredding old files, a lot of invoicing and paying bills, and maybe five days of doing fun investigative work," she says. But detection occurs in The Spellmans Strike Again — the close to Lutz's four-novel mystery series and another outing with this delightfully dysfunctional family of detectives — most of it by members of the family investigating one another.

That family saga is narrated by Isabel "Izzy" Spellman, whose life has been a series of bad choices, poor judgment, bone-headedness and other deep character flaws. Fortunately for Izzy — described by People magazine as "the love child of Dirty Harry and Harriet the Spy" — her mother, father, uncle, sister, brother and assorted friends and lovers are equally eccentric, and equally annoying and lovable. Izzy's life is an addictive romp from the first page of the book to the last, including all the footnotes and appendices.

"I suppose the most defining characteristic of my family is that we take our work home with us," Izzy explains in the first chapter. "If your family's job is investigating other people, you inevitably investigate each other. This single trait has been our primary point of conflict for most of my life."

This mélange, reminiscent of a Left Coast Royal Tenenbaums, lives in literally armed conflict in a Victorian house in San Francisco (don't call it San Fran), when they aren't sulking, running away, locking each other in closets and/or trying to have a life. Through all four novels, starting with the New York Times bestselling The Spellman Files — now in movie production — and continuing through Curse of the Spellmans and Revenge of the Spellmans, Lutz takes readers on a tilt-a-whirl emotional ride, but in this last volume she brings everything to a tidy conclusion. Izzy wins her true love at last, sister Rae spurns Yale for Berkeley, brother David hangs onto his great new girlfriend, Mom tears up her list of required lawyer dates, and Dad returns the missing doorknobs and light fixtures.

Most shocking of all, Izzy grows up, sort of, although it takes the death of her 85-year-old friend Mort to settle her down to earth. "Every day we get older, and some of us get wiser, but there's no end to our evolution," she reflects. "We're all a mess of contradictions; some of our traits work for us, some against us. ... Over the course of a lifetime, people change, but not as much as you'd think. Nobody really grows up. At least that's my theory; you can have your own."

Interview with Lisa Lutz

From The Tribune (San Luis Obispo) --

20 questions for author Lisa Lutz --

By PopMatters.com --
Mar. 17, 2010 --

"The Spellman's Strike Again," the fourth installment in Lisa Lutz's best-selling, award-nominated, humorous crime series proves beyond a reasonable doubt that Isabel Spellman, no matter how much she matures, will never be able to follow Rule No. 1: Act Normal. Perhaps she inherits some of her quirkiness from her creator, who identifies the essentials in life: coffee and vodka, like this: "One makes the morning tolerable. And coffee lights up the evening."



This and more words of wisdom for modern living in 20 Questions with Lutz. A film based on the first book in the series ("The Spellman Files") is in development with Paramount Pictures, with Laura Ziskin producing, but while we're waiting, enjoy "The Spellman's Strike Again," released this week.

1. The latest book or movie that made you cry?

"Young at Heart." While I've teared up listening to The Ramones on many occasions, there's something utterly beautiful and moving about watching old people sing "I want to be sedated."

2. The fictional character most like you?

That's a tough one. I asked a friend for help and he said I already was the fictional version of myself. I'm not exactly sure what that means.

As a child, I most identified with Pippi Longstocking, so I'll go with that. Although I'm not an orphan and I can't lift a horse. I was, however, briefly famous for my feats of strength; at about age 11 I could competitively arm-wrestle a full-grown man.

3. The greatest album, ever?

Impossible question. I can maybe narrow the list by periods of my life:

High school: Germs, "Live at the Whisky"

College: Patti Smith, "Horses"

My 30s: Lucinda Williams, "Car Wheels on a Gravel Road" or Steve Earle's "Transcendental Blues"

Band I listen to most: The Ramones

4. "Star Trek" or "Star Wars"?

"Star Trek," and only because I've enjoyed Leonard Nimoy's and William Shatner's musical contributions to society. Otherwise, couldn't care less.

5. Your ideal brain food?

Public transportation. Now that I work from home, there's only so much I can learn from staring out the window and my brief interactions with the UPS guy.

6. You're proud of this accomplishment, but why?

Juggling. Because it is absolutely useless.

7. You want to be remembered for ...?

Curing cancer. However, I am more likely to be remembered for writing goofy crime novels.

8. Of those who've come before, the most inspirational are?

I've always adored the filmmaker Sam Fuller. The first time I watched "Shock Corridor" was such a magnificent discovery. I love his lack of subtlety, the way he tackles serious topics with bold and inappropriate humor. His autobiography is one of my favorite books ever.

9. The creative masterpiece you wish bore your signature?

"Await Your Reply" by Dan Chaon. I've always been obsessed with the idea of disappearing and becoming someone else. Even if you don't share that obsession, I can't recommend this book highly enough.

10. Your hidden talents ...?

What, juggling isn't enough for you? Sorry. That's all I got.

11. The best piece of advice you actually followed?

If I followed advice, I would never have run off and written a novel.

12. The best thing you ever bought, stole, or borrowed?

During my sophomore year abroad in Leeds, England, my college roommate adored Elvis and was a gifted shoplifter.

When I returned to the U.S., I found a fake ID of Elvis at a drugstore. I pocketed it and sent it to her. It was the first and last thing I ever stole.

13. You feel best in Armani or Levis or ...?

Pajamas. I wear them to sleep and to work.

14. Your dinner guest at the Ritz would be?

Marlon Brando, Patti Smith, Peter O'Toole, Joey and Johnny Ramone (just for the bickering) and of course, Sam Fuller.

15. Time travel: where, when and why?

Last Saturday, party at my house. In the do-over, I quit after my third beer. The next morning was rough, to say the least.

16. Stress management: hit man, spa vacation or Prozac?

I get more relief from learning about other people's lives. So how about interviewing a hitman on Prozac at a spa?

17. Essential to life: coffee, vodka, cigarettes, chocolate, or ...?

Coffee and vodka. One makes the morning tolerable. And coffee lights up the evening.

18. Environ of choice: city or country, and where on the map?

Country. Anywhere with snow and icicles and people who call you honey and sweetheart, even though you never met.

19. What do you want to say to the leader of your country?

Smoke 'em if you got 'em. Quitting can wait until after you've left office.

20. Last but certainly not least, what are you working on, now?

I just finished collaborating on a crime novel with my ex-boyfriend. We'll see if it's the beginning of a Things You Should Never Do phase.

The Spellmans Strike Again by Lisa Lutz, a Review

From San Jose Mercury News --

It's a Mystery: 'Strike Again' spells the last for Lutz's whacked-out family series --

By Roberta Alexander --
03/14/2010 --

Gripping characters stride across the landscape this month, making for good mystery reading.

"The Spellmans Strike Again" by Lisa Lutz (Simon & Schuster, $25, 388 pages). The Spellmans do not run your ordinary private investigation business. Members of this San Francisco family interfere endlessly with each other's lives.



This fourth and final book is funny, troubling and addictive. If you don't think about what life in such a family would be like, you can skip the "troubling" aspect.

There's Isabel, a 32-year-old recovering delinquent, her unemployed attorney brother David and her teenage sister Rae. Their mother's mission appears to be getting rid of Izzy's boyfriends.

The crux of this book is not the plot, which deals with improper convictions and a shady PI competitor, but this lunatic clan, with its mandatory Sunday dinners, its missing antique doorknobs and Rae's refusal to ride the bus.

There is no way to describe what happens here, but finding out is a lot of fun.

And kudos to Lutz for quitting while she's ahead. Plenty of fine series fizzle when they go on too long.

Review of The Spellmans Strike Again by Lisa Lutz

From The Advocate (Baton Rouge, LA) --

Fans of quirky series will be happy with new Spellmans book --

By BEN MARTIN --
Mar 14, 2010 --

THE SPELLMANS STRIKE AGAIN
By Lisa Lutz
Simon & Schuster, $25; 388 pp.

Lisa Lutz is back with her fourth account of the quirky Spellman family, who have a private investigation business in San Francisco and live their work so thoroughly that they follow, tape-record, videotape and blackmail each other routinely. The average “stalker” is way out of their league: Think having Mike Hammer or Sam Spade for an uncle. Early in the series Lutz coined the term “recreational surveillance” to describe this irresistible impulse.



In The Spellmans Strike Again, Albert and Olivia, father and mother, are worrying about the loss of their retirement investments in the stock market and about the object of obsession each of their children has chosen. Only son David, an attorney known for squaring the papers on his desk, is courting Maggie Mason, an attorney known for carrying partially eaten baked goods in her pockets. Elder daughter Isabel, incipient alcoholic but in line to take over the business, is shacking up with Connor O’Sullivan, a loutish rugby-playing Irish bartender who comps her drinks. Younger daughter Rae, still in high school but since childhood the very definition of “recalcitrant,” haunts Henry Stone, a San Francisco police inspector who once dated Isabel and is so compulsively neat that he vacuums as guests eat potato chips.

As usual for Lutz, the plot is merely the scenery through which her screwy characters run amok. Here, Maggie Mason is engaged in pro bono work for convicts whose claims of innocence appear to have merit. Helping out, Rae and Isabel each adopt a case, with dueling T-shirts reading “FREE SCHMIDT” and “JUSTICE 4 MERRI-WEATHER” which they foist on any and all. Isabel is also investigating the case of a wayward butler/valet and trying to take down another private investigator, Rick Harkey, former homicide detective, now competitor of the Spellmans and always rumored corrupt.

Albert and Olivia are being intrusive, as expected, and secretive, thus suspicious. David and Henry are trying to be responsible — and tidy — but are so outnumbered.

The real fun and the reason these books have sold so well while acquiring a cult following is the personality of Isabel, who has been working cases for Spellman Investigations for 20 years, starting at age 12. Once a happy vandal, petty thief, breaker of rules for sport and all-around subversive, she now calls herself a “recovering delinquent.”

But which of those two words is paramount when the reaction to her planning is almost invariably, “Why is it that all your propositions are either illegal, ethically questionable, or at the very least offensive?” And when told, “Err on the conservative side,” she replies reflexively, “Don’t worry. I’ll err as usual.”

Isabel wonders, “Sometimes I can barely keep track of the galaxy of investigations, deceit, turmoil, clashes, and chaos that I travel through every day.” She recognizes the source: “And so, once again, there I was, sleep deprived, trapped with family, waiting for the nightmare to come to an end. My life in a nutshell.” At 32, this wise-ass has become wise. She even has a philosophy: “Over the course of a lifetime, people change, but not as much as you’d think. Nobody really grows up. At least that’s my theory; you can have your own.”

Isabel is either hard and sarcastic or brittle and poignant. If you think the former, you won’t enjoy the Spellman books, and you won’t like Lisa Lutz. If you think the latter, like me, you’ll want something good to happen for Isabel, and you’ll get your wish.

Review of The Spellmans Strike Again by Lisa Lutz

From Publishers Weekly --

Book Review: Books at center of murder tale --

1/18/2010 --

The Spellmans Strike Again Lisa Lutz. Simon & Schuster, $25 (400p) ISBN 978-1-4165-9340-9

In Edgar-finalist Lutz's entertaining fourth and final novel about the eccentric Spellman PI clan (after Revenge of the Spellmans), Isabel “Izzy” Spellman juggles the usual family drama—her mother tries to sabotage Izzy's relationship with her Irish bartender boyfriend and younger sister Rae throws herself into freeing a wrongly convicted man—while helping to drum up business in a dreary economy. While Rae works on her “Free Schmidt” campaign, Izzy investigates the whereabouts of a missing valet with a checkered past and sifts through garbage for a screenwriter client. Older brother David, the only Spellman not involved in the family business, grows closer to his defense attorney girlfriend. On the sly, Izzy is also tailing Rick Harkey, a rival San Francisco PI, and discovers that Harkey left behind a trail of suspicious arrests and conveniently misplaced evidence in his career as a cop. Narrator Izzy's biting wit—mixed with a refreshing dose of humility and sadness—easily carries the story. (Mar.)