Lisa Lutz signs THE SPELLMANS STRIKE AGAIN

One of my favorite things about my winter vacation is that I get to read the latest installment by Lisa Lutz about a family of PIs that is so dysfunctional (and hilarious) that it will make any family you know of, including your own, look tame by comparison. I look forward to reading every zany word in a world that has its own set of rules and expectations. And the Spellmans are striking everywhere in this not-to-be-missed fourth installment. Izzy is spying on her brother and her sister, because she is being blackmailed into doing so by her mother in the first case and because her sister always acts suspiciously in the second. Her parents’ most recent activity is Lost Wednesdays and none of their children want to know what really goes on during these Wednesdays when they are banned from their home (and Izzy’s office). Izzy is having issues with Ex-boyfriend #12 (so named even before she breaks up with him). Her friend Morty is still trying to convince his wife to let him come back to San Francisco and gives Izzy every sordid detail of his life in exile during their weekly phone calls. And meanwhile, she is really trying to become a functioning adult (finally) and a responsible caretaker of the family business. I can't do justice to all of the shenanigans; you will just have to pick up a copy as soon as it arrives: on our shelves in March with a visit from Lisa too!

And the worst thing about my winter vacation is when I get to the last page of the book ...and know I have to wait an entire year, not just for vacation, but also to spend more time with the Spellman family. -- tlg