Tuesday, November 4, 2014

Revenge of the Spellmans

Revenge of the Spellmans (The Spellmans, #3)Revenge of the Spellmans by Lisa Lutz
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Izzy Spellman is looking to get back into the detective game when a man hires her to see what his wife is up to. Meanwhile, what is with her brother David? Who is blackmailing Izzy? Why is her car never where she left it? And did Rae really cheat on the PSATs? All these questions and more will be answered in Revenge of the Spellmans!

Revenge of the Spellmans is the third book in the Spellman series and Lisa Lutz shows no signs of slowing down. Not only that, she's not afraid to shake things up. At the beginning of the book, Izzy is working for Milo as a bartender when she gets a chance to get back into the game. As with the previous two outings, Izzy's case is secondary to the infernal machinations of her family.

The overall plot moves forward quite a bit in this book. Izzy's dad wants her to take over the business when the Unit retire. David's up to something again. Rae's trying to drive a wedge between Henry and his new girlfriend. Morty and Milo are also facing tribulations of their own. Oh, and Izzy has to go to therapy, which is good for some laughs.

As with the previous two books, Revenge of the Spellmans is fun without overstaying its welcome. There were a few tender moments in between all the one-liners and casual familial surveillance. I'm glad Izzy got arrested a few less times in this book, though I was a little disappointed the way things (didn't) develop between her and Henry. I just want them to get together and make detective babies. Is that too much to ask?

I like that Lisa Lutz isn't keeping the Spellmans at static ages. Rae's sixteen and a half at the end of this book, for instance. I'm not looking forward to her going away to college in a book or two.

Once again, Lisa Lutz has navigated her quirky detective family through a minefield of deceit and distrust in the most hilarious way possible. Four out of five stars.

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