'The Last Word'

Lisa Lutz is insane.  There.  I said.  And I'll say it again and again.

But I don't mean 'crazy' insane.  I mean 'genius' insane.  The kind of insanity that can only be channeled through a great story written with great sarcasm.

Most of you know that I'm a big fan of Lisa's 'Spellman' series, mystery novels that make me (almost) pee my pants from laughing so hard.  Her dialogue is witty, sarcastic, scathing.  The Spellman family dynamic is not like any other.  Trust me on this one; read the books.  You'll be glad you live with a more normal family.  But the Spellmans are exciting.  They are vengeful.  They are hilarious.  And they are unique.

While reading the fifth book in the series, 'Trail of the Spellmans', I heard a rumor that that book would be the final one.  That made me so sad that I tried to send a note to Lisa, lamenting the fact that my world would crumble around me without my Spellman fix.  Alas, I didn't get a reply, but I'm sure she heard from many other Spellman fans.

And she took action, for which I'm so grateful.  With the sixth book in the series set for publication in early July, Lisa has not lost her touch.  Her main protagonist, Isabel Spellman, is as sassy as ever.  Her younger sister, Rae, is still a conniving little....well, fill in the blank.  Her parents are still a bit odd and hilarious, and brother David has given up his high-scale lawyer life to become a stay-at-home father.  But the story has a new addition:  Sydney, David and Maggie's daughter.  She's feisty and spoiled, brainwashed by Grammy Spellman, the grandmother from Hell.

Spellman Investigations has taken a new turn.  Isabel has bought out her family and is now the owner of the family firm.  She learns that her major investor, Mr. Slayter, has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's, and to top it off, Izzy has been accused of embezzling funds from his firm.  But that's not all:  Her control of the company is met with resistance.  She schedules meetings, but no one shows up (except for D., the perennial 'employee-of-the-month').  Her mother and father seem to be having marital problems, and the employment of Grammy Spellman as a receptionist is sure to doom the company (well, you can't entirely blame her).



If you haven't read the Spellman series yet, do so!  They are hilarious, and I guarantee you'll laugh right up to the end of the story.  The characters are so brilliantly drawn that I can imagine having them as neighbors...

...and taking out a restraining order.


The sixth book in Lisa Lutz's hilarious 'Spellman' series, 'The Last Word', will be published in early July 2013 by Simon & Schuster.  I suggest you read it...or I will send Izzy's little sister, Rae, to your home.  You've been warned.