Has to be one of the funniest books I've ever read. No dull moments or characters in this one. ( )

This was a funny book. I was intrigued with the family dynamics, its like some horrible accident you don't want to view, but can't help looking. For me, it was like the really dark side of a Janet Evanovich story. Normally when a book is so laden with character development with only a side of plot, I don't really appreciate the story as much. However, this author carries it off, based solely on the fact that her book family is virgin territory (that is to say, hasn't been overdone to death). I would like to see the next book in the series have more plot....and now that I see its coming out in March 08, I have a reason to stop at Barnes and Noble. ( )

I really loved this book! A great debut for Lisa Lutz. It had a comfortable feel about it, like an old "screwball" or “madcap” movie. A perfect read for a snowy day in the north. This book flowed along like a brook in flood season, finding alternate routes to its destination, with the occasional boulder or tree in its way.

This is a family that works together and lives together, with the exception of the son, David, who has made a career for himself outside of the family business. To say the family is dysfunctional does it a disservice as they are not so much dysfunctional as overzealous in their protection of each other, at the same time trying to protect their individual privacy. The family business is private investigation, the only problem being that they are more apt to be investigating each other than regular clients, at least in this first book.

It's a good thing there are more in the future because I found I wanted more when I was done and continued right on into the preview of the next book. That left me dissatisfied because it made me want the book right now. Fortunately, the next two are already out, “Curse of the Spellmans” and “Revenge of the Spellmans” with a fourth due out shortly, “The Spellmans Strike Again”. I’m only sorry I didn’t read “The Spellman Files” when it first came out.

The characters are wonderful, right down to Milo, the bartender who constantly has to phone Isabel, the main character, to come and get her little sister out of the bar before he gets arrested. My favourite character though, at this point, is Rae, the young sister, who has learned the art "negotiation" (translation blackmail) by the time she is eight.

Isabel is the rebel of the family and blames both the business and her family for all her life failures. She uses the same techniques of surveillance in her search for a boy-friend as in her search for clues. Consequently at the end of this book she has reached Ex-Boyfriend #9. This is a great read, fast and easy, funny and sad sometimes, I even loved the cover with all the pairs of eyes peeking through the newspaper. I recommend it for a relaxing change of pace. ( )

It was funny, and I enjoyed the characters, but it was too all over the place for me, and got a little boring and predictable. I thought more suspense and mystery would have made the book better. ( )

The Spellman Files has been likened to a grown-up Harriet the Spy and I can see where people could make a bit of a connection seeing as how Harriet is my most favorite book ever. Izzy Spellman is part of the Spellman Detective Agency which is owned and operated by her parents. From a young age, Izzy and her siblings are trained in the business as undercover operatives. Watching the dynamics of this very unconventional family is a hoot and there were more than a few lines that made be laugh. The plot and storyline were creative, although at times, details that really didn't need the added attention were drawn out to the point of, "I get it, let's move on."

Despite those moments, Lisa Lutz did a good job and it is worth my time to continue the series. ( )

http://www.fnordinc.com/2009/11-30/bo...

I am not sure how i felt about this book.

This statement is not a reflection of how i felt about the novel as much as the fact that i was suckered into reading book one of a series. as a standalone book, i enjoyed it. as a series, i think i would rather step on a nail. there are 4 more books..

This is not to say that i did not enjoy The Spellman Files. I did enjoy it, i would recommend it to others. Four more novels (with likely more on the way) that is quite an investment of time to move forward into something i found enjoyable, but not stellar. yet, i already know the characters, i know their personalities and quirks. it seems natural to move to the next in the list.

~~

The Spellman Files revolves around a screwed up family of the same name. the mother and father own a detective agency, and instead of using the TV as a baby sitter, they bring their kids in on the business. From an early age, the spellman kids learn how to professionally stalk people. they learn how to do background checks and process data. they get really good at it. something like that can fuck you up… but humorously. it is told from the perspective of Izzy Spellman, family fuckup. She is prefers using windows over doors, she has smoked some of “the pot” and obsesses over the tv series “Get Smart”, wishing she could be part of the evil organization KAOS.

the characters were tangible, understandable, and other “ble” words. you get brought into the folds of their family and you watch as characters (d)evolve into their next variations of self. unfortunately, it almost seems that you keep reading due to only to the loose humor and obsessive characteristics of Izzy. It takes more than 3/4 of the book to bring around more details brought up in chapter one, and as a result, a lot of time is spent wondering “why am i reading this?”

i felt compelled to finish reading the Spellman Files, but only so that i could have plot closure and move onto something a bit less silly. I kept hoping that the main character would get arrested.

I hate to say it, but no matter how much i enjoyed the book, i was just glad when i finished reading it.

unfortunately, now i have to make a decision at a later time.. do i read the next book or do i write this off. as a standalone, the characters are solid. do i think that a whole series should have spawned from them, not really.
if i do move on to book two, i seriously cross my fingers that i will be impressed and not utterly disappointed. in a nutshell, good book, check it out, make your own decision about moving forward to book 2.

Author’s website: http://lisalutz.com

- FNORDinc.com ( )

2007 ( )

On attend l'intrigue, mais elle ne vient pas, l'intrigue, ce sont les personnages, un peu léger. ( )

I liked the second one better (Curse of the Spellman's). Maybe that's because I read it first for a book club. It seemed to have a lot more wit. Maybe Lutz is finding her stride. I enjoy the characters and the light banter. I'm still looking forward to reading the third in the series. ( )

Having stumbled across the most recent book in the Spellman series, I had to go back and start with the first in order to be properly introduced to our heroine, Isabel "Izzy" Spellman. The sadly imperfect middle child in a family of private investigators (except for older brother David, who has joined the "normals" as an attorney), Izzy struggles with her identity, her career choice, her boyfriend choices, and her family members.

Should be a sob story, but it's not. This book is original, outrageous, and hilarious. As Izzy careens from one adventure to another, she is rarely at a loss for a witty quip, often to her own detriment. And yet, among all the humor and craziness, a picture of a loving and caring family emerges. And that's what makes this book a winner. ( )

Isabel "Izzy" Spellman works for her parents in the family business. She is also at war with her family as the whole family spies, manipulates and does some very mean things to each other throughout the course of the book. There are reasons to not like this book, but the humor and the style not only make the book readable but in the end this odd girl and her equally odd family make for a good read.

Several years ago I stopped watching most Bruce Willis and Will Smith movies because the smirking, smart ass characeters grew tiresome to me. To read this book you have to have a pretty high tolerance for wise ass characters and Izzy in particular is one wise ass girl. In the beginning of the book it is a little too much and is wearisome to a degree. But this is also Lisa Lutz's first book and to some degree that seemed to be a part of the problem early on in the book. The style is not fluid; it feels like the author is trying too hard. But then the book begins to flow better and the style works better. Izzy is still a smart ass, even to her own detriment. She knows she is doing it but doesn't really know any way to stop and be something else. In fact, she is in some ways compelled to continue doing things she knows are self defeating.

The humor is the best part of the book though the mystery, which doesn't really start until the book is almost half over, is pretty good as well. The book is really the history of the Spellman clan and how Izzy feels first her brother, then her parents and finally even her younger sister, impose themselves on her and make it difficult for her to have even a sembalance of personal identity that is separate from them. She has already used alcohol, drugs and men to try and escape from the overwhelmingness of her family. Now at 28 years of age she is willing to do to her next "future ex-boyfriend" what has been done to her all her life. She spies on him, disregards his privacy and manipulates him with outrageous lies. She is willing to do whatever it takes to be with him. She knows it is wrong but doesn't know how to be normal, so she does what she knows how to do, try and get him by using everything her family taught her to do. She is a tragic figure, she is her own worst enemy. Her family once was but now it is Izzy that hurts herself more than even they can hurt her. By the end of the book, as a result of the mystery Izzy is given to solve - the mystery her family could not solve for several years - she doggedly sticks to the unsolvable case until she knows what happens. and then as a result, she begins to become Izzy, a person separate from her family.

Not a perfect book, but I liked Izzy. She is someone I want to read about again. ( )

Izzy Spellman is a private detective who works for her parents detective company.She has bad luck with men and the family is a little dysfunctional.
I was recommended this book because I enjoy Janet Evanovich.I guess I found some similarities but didn't enjoy this book as much as I was hoping to.There were funny moments ( not as humorous as Stephanie Plum) .
Now that I've been introduced to the characters I may pick up the next one to see if its better and more of a mystery, there was so much else going on in this book that the case she was working on kind of got lost in the shuffle. ( )

I LOVED this book. It was wonderfully written and absolutely hilarious. I loved Izzy's crazy family; I loved Izzy herself. In fact, all the characters were great. I loved everything about this book -- well except for one thing. I wish Izzy and Daniel hadn't broken up. . . I'm so looking forward to the sequel. ( )

The Spellman Files is about a family of private investigators from the point of view of difficult but entertaining daughter Isabel Spellman. Family secrets are investigated as thoroughly as any case. Great characters, snappy one-liners, it's very entertaining. ( )

I love this book so much I wish I wrote it. Actually, I wish I wrote the whole series for that matter.
Anyone who likes a funny read with strong characters and a good mystery, this is a book for you. ( )

I read this after I read #2 and #3 so I'm backtracking, but I very much enjoyed this first novel about the Spellman family. Although their family is so over the top at times, underneath there is a real ring of truth. I like that about this book - it's funny but also real. Now I'm waiting anxiously for #4. ( )

Have you ever read a book in which you just didn't connect with all the characters, but still found the book entertaining? I enjoyed reading this book, it was a light mystery, very funny, which I was in the mood for. But I just couldn't feel like I was reading about a real person. Perhaps there are people like the main characters, but her voice felt so different from my experience that it didn't seem realistic to me.
The main character, the first person narrative voice, is a 28-yr old woman who lives with her parents and has worked for them in their PI business since she was 12. Because she doesn't feel she can get away from her parents she does all sorts of destructive things instead. As a teenager she was every kind of trouble and as an adult she doesn't pass out on the lawn anymore, but she still acts like she is 13 in a lot of ways.
It is funny, as long as I just read the book, and didn't think about her much, it was an enjoyable read. But now as I sit here and think about the family and how they worked together it is sad. Rather than get out and work out whether she wants to be a part of the family business, the main character sneaks out of windows and lies. There are more books in this series and I don't think I could stand to read them unless she starts to grow up a bit. ( )

This book had a lot of humor and reminded me of the Stephanie Plum series. The family is extremely dysfunctional and I'm glad I don't actually know these people.
I have to say that I enjoyed the second and third books in this series much more. ( )

Isabel Spellman, now in her twenties, recounts her life with P.I. parents and working for the family business. Her older lawyer brother David seems perfect, at least in comparison to Izzy, who was a bit of a wild child and only recently straightened out. Her younger sister, Rae, loves spying, has a knack for extortion, and steals sweets whenever possible. The other Spellmans are as delightfully quirky, in this tale of how Isabel works towards independence and tries to crack a 10-year-old missing persons case.

I read this with the twofold purpose of reading an Alex Award winner and broadening my reading in the mystery genre. The characters were wonderfully odd, but for some reason the story didn't hit me right. It had its moments of making me laugh out loud, but for the most part it was a breezy read that never quite held my interest. Now that I'm familiar with the style and know what to expect, I may try the sequel. ( )

I picked up this book at the library after recommendation in a book forum. I had a long list of authors that were recommended, and Lisa Lutz ended up being one of the only ones that was actually at my library - but I'm glad! I read this book in about a day (largely due to the fact that I work at a job that allows me to read sometimes), but even when I came home after my work shift I sat down to finish it because I loved the characters and the plot.

At first I was confused with the layout, because there are many different stories going on at once. Once I got a grip on the changes, I made sure I read the chapter titles (which I find I don't normally do), and I was then able to keep track of the story.

I have been reading quite a few mysteries lately (I'm going to review some today, you'll see what I mean) - and sometimes I have trouble keeping track of all of the characters or figure out the mystery too fast. The Spellman Files was an excellent book to get me back into mysteries and raise my faith in the genre. I loved all of the characters, laughed out loud a few times, and immediately started reading Curse of the Spellmans (book number 2). I am already sad that I don't have book 3, but am hoping it will be at the library the next time I stop in. ( )

clever book about a family of investigators who create havoc with themselves as the girls rae and izzy grow up learning how to tail people and pick locks. Good but not a book I could recommend to everyone. It's a fun read. ( )

I really enjoyed this book. I liked the style of writing, the quirky characters, and the family dynamics at work (I mean, how awesome is a book that has a fourteen year old holding her uncle's favorite shirt for ransom???). My only issue was the ending - it was quite abrupt. But highly recommend. ( )

In the Spellman family, it's perfectly normal to be suspicious of everyone. Privacy is nonexistent. Trust no one.

Unsurprisingly, this attitude has profound consequences for the relationships in the family. David is a perfect child, and as a very smart guy takes the first chance he can to get out of the house. Izzy is the wild child, but her rebellion stops short of actually moving away. And Rae grows up thinking everything is a matter for negotiation and expects to be paid for taking a shower.

The reason the family is so messed up is that they are all private investigators. After years of following suspects, digging through their trash, taking surveillance photos, and illegal wiretapping, they have no idea how to have a normal family.

I enjoyed this book. Izzy is a crazy character, but I found myself sympathizing with her. I loved Rae. But I really couldn't understand the parents. They treated their children as suspects. That's just wrong.

When I first heard of this book, I had the impression that it was a teen book. It's not. It's not that it's inappropriate for teens, really. There is drug and alcohol abuse and references to casual sex and the language is a little rough. But that's found in many teen books. It's just that it's written from Izzy's point of view as a 28 year old adult.

I enjoyed this book. It wasn't exactly deep, but it kept me up late last night, waiting to see what happened. I am extremely glad that my family is nothing like the Spellmans. ( )

I really, really enjoyed this book. It is funny, surprising and engaging. ( )

This is the first in a series of 'comic mysteries' featuring a wildly dysfunctional family of Private Investigators. The author would be enjoyed by fans of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum. ( )