The Spellman Files (series) by Lisa Lutz

[Fran]

I'm in agreement with you DATo ......... it is the ridiculousness of the situations they get into that IMO is so funny. You know they are going OTT but it's just so funny and as I say ridiculous. I don't know if you've heard of the Irish comedy series "Mrs Brown's Boys" (recent Bafta winner!!) but the mother in Spellman's reminds me of Mrs Brown - a woman who just can't stop interfering in the lives of her children & is convinced she knows best but time and again goes over the top in her efforts to help & often misses the obvious.
They are definitely not "great literature" nor are they detective novels. On another topic I suggested to Maud that they are "wind down reading" ...... would you agree with that genre definition?

@Schmunzelmonster
Do not be concerned at all if you have a contrary view, that is what the forums are all about. We agree sometimes, we disagree sometimes but ultimately we are all here because we love books, reading and discussing what we have (or have not) read and we are all equally entitled to our opinion.

[DATo]

Fran - "Wind down reading" is a good term, and I commend you for your acumen in coining a great and apt expression.

I must look into Mrs. Brown's Boys. On the basis of your description I already know beyond doubt that I want to read it. One of the best, and most comical relationships in the Spellman series is the one between Izzy and her mother. What mother do you know would have her own daughter arrested for "borrowing" her car? But of course, as you know, there are always deeper agendas at work with regard to the reasons that Spellmans do things like this to each other and in this case it was to get Izzy off John Brown's neck as I remember it.

I totally agree with your comment to Schmunzelmonster as well.

[Fran]

Fran - "Wind down reading" is a good term, and I commend you for your acumen in coining a great and apt expression.

I must look into Mrs. Brown's Boys. On the basis of your description I already know beyond doubt that I want to read it. One of the best, and most comical relationships in the Spellman series is the one between Izzy and her mother. What mother do you know would have her own daughter arrested for "borrowing" her car? But of course, as you know, there are always deeper agendas at work with regard to the reasons that Spellmans do things like this to each other and in this case it was to get Izzy off John Brown's neck as I remember it.

I totally agree with your comment to Schmunzelmonster as well.

@DATo
Sorry I may have misled you, Mrs Brown's Boys is a slapstick TV comedy series not a book .... a good laugh just as long as vulgar language & profanity doesn't bother you too much. My mother actually loves it & she is a woman with strong views on profanity but I still can't get her to accept that Mrs Brown is a man in drag!
Have a quick look on YouTube, it may not be your cup of tea but my point is that Mrs Brown reminds me of Mrs Spellman in the outlandish lengths she goes to trying to, as she sees it, help and protect her kids.

[DATo]

@DATo
Sorry I may have misled you, Mrs Brown's Boys is a slapstick TV comedy series not a book .... a good laugh just as long as vulgar language & profanity doesn't bother you too much. My mother actually loves it & she is a woman with strong views on profanity but I still can't get her to accept that Mrs Brown is a man in drag!
Have a quick look on YouTube, it may not be your cup of tea but my point is that Mrs Brown reminds me of Mrs Spellman in the outlandish lengths she goes to trying to, as she sees it, help and protect her kids.

Thanks for the information. I could just see myself tomorrow, berating our local library staff when they tell me they've never heard of such a book nor can they find one in the entire catalogue of literary titles. Is this a BBC program? We get some of your sitcoms over here and they are usually quite good. I have lost my taste for American sitcoms and almost never watch prime-time TV anymore.

[Fran]

@DATo
Sorry I may have misled you, Mrs Brown's Boys is a slapstick TV comedy series not a book .... a good laugh just as long as vulgar language & profanity doesn't bother you too much. My mother actually loves it & she is a woman with strong views on profanity but I still can't get her to accept that Mrs Brown is a man in drag!
Have a quick look on YouTube, it may not be your cup of tea but my point is that Mrs Brown reminds me of Mrs Spellman in the outlandish lengths she goes to trying to, as she sees it, help and protect her kids.

Thanks for the information. I could just see myself tomorrow, berating our local library staff when they tell me they've never heard of such a book nor can they find one in the entire catalogue of literary titles. Is this a BBC program? We get some of your sitcoms over here and they are usually quite good. I have lost my taste for American sitcoms and almost never watch prime-time TV anymore.

Yes BBC production ... I'll have nightmares tonight imagining you in mortal combat with a bespectacled librarian

[Maud Fitch]

Just finished reading Revenge Of The Spellmans, The Spellmans Strike Again and Trail Of The Spellmans and once I got into the swing of things, I enjoyed the crazy antics of this, er, unusual family.

To quote Kirkus Reviews "Lie back and enjoy this tale of intergenerational gumshoe mayhem" and that just about sums it up. At times it's hard to come to grips with the reasoning of the stories, aided and abetted by different formats to convey the narrative, but Lutz manages to portray detective Isabel Spellman and a variety of character ages in a believable way - even though you want to strangle some of them - believable except for Mom, a kind of amplified 'alien mother from outer space', who is a bit over the top for me.

On the whole, I think this series would appeal to a wide reading market. And to quote fellow Forumite, Fran, it is a good 'wind down read' with just enough twists and turns in the plots to keep you thinking.

@ DATo: Thank you for the explanation of the footnotes. You really should read Thursday Next series!

[DATo]

Just finished reading Revenge Of The Spellmans, The Spellmans Strike Again and Trail Of The Spellmans and once I got into the swing of things, I enjoyed the crazy antics of this, er, unusual family.

To quote Kirkus Reviews "Lie back and enjoy this tale of intergenerational gumshoe mayhem" and that just about sums it up. At times it's hard to come to grips with the reasoning of the stories, aided and abetted by different formats to convey the narrative, but Lutz manages to portray detective Isabel Spellman and a variety of character ages in a believable way - even though you want to strangle some of them - believable except for Mom, a kind of amplified 'alien mother from outer space', who is a bit over the top for me.

On the whole, I think this series would appeal to a wide reading market. And to quote fellow Forumite, Fran, it is a good 'wind down read' with just enough twists and turns in the plots to keep you thinking.

@ DATo: Thank you for the explanation of the footnotes. You really should read Thursday Next series!

Maud, Ironically I did not read Revenge or Trail. The three I read were Files, Curse and Strike. Of the three that I read I think I enjoyed Curse the best. If you can find it I would suggest you try it on for size because I think you will like it too. Also, Curse provides a lot of the backstory to the Spellman family history and, as one would assume, so does the series opener, Files.

Much like your experience with the Spellmans I think I got the drift of Fforde's style by reading The Fourth Bear. I do enjoy what he is doing and find it quite refreshingly original. I had done just a bit of research on the Thursday Next series some time ago and I do intend to get into this series when I can devote some quality time to it. Thank you for the review.

[Maud Fitch]

DATo, I forgot to mention the delightful Arnott's Tim Tam reference.

On pages 267-268 of Lisa Lutz’ book “Trail Of The Spellmans” there’s a great reference to Australia’s favourite biscuit, Arnott’s Tim Tams. These chocolate-coated wafer finger biscuits are what Isabel Spellman and her brother David open to snack on whilst having a heart to heart conversation.

Have reproduced below:

“He returned to the kitchen table with an unopened but battered box of something he called Arnott’s Tim Tams, ‘mint crisp’ flavour. ‘Where’d these come from?’ I asked ..... ‘My friend brought them back from Australia.’ David cracked the seal and dunked half his cookie in his coffee. ‘How long ago?’ ‘A few years’ ‘You must have some serious guilt to spill’ ‘I have a bad feeling in my gut’ ‘It will only get worse after you eat these. Have you checked the expiration date?’ ‘Try one and then you’ll shut up’. I did and was certainly quiet during the consumption of the exquisite biscuit. (*See footnote) ‘I’d keep these away from Rae if I were you’ ‘Not a problem’ ..... David swallowed a Tim Tam whole and removed himself from the table as I was still speaking. ‘Hello?’ I said. Then I snagged another cookie.”

*Footnote: Why oh why don’t we have these in every major US supermarket?
It’s madness. Australia, I love you.

[Fran]

DATo, I forgot to mention the delightful Arnott's Tim Tam reference.

On pages 267-268 of Lisa Lutz’ book “Trail Of The Spellmans” there’s a great reference to Australia’s favourite biscuit, Arnott’s Tim Tams. These chocolate-coated wafer finger biscuits are what Isabel Spellman and her brother David open to snack on whilst having a heart to heart conversation.

Have reproduced below:

“He returned to the kitchen table with an unopened but battered box of something he called Arnott’s Tim Tams, ‘mint crisp’ flavour. ‘Where’d these come from?’ I asked ..... ‘My friend brought them back from Australia.’ David cracked the seal and dunked half his cookie in his coffee. ‘How long ago?’ ‘A few years’ ‘You must have some serious guilt to spill’ ‘I have a bad feeling in my gut’ ‘It will only get worse after you eat these. Have you checked the expiration date?’ ‘Try one and then you’ll shut up’. I did and was certainly quiet during the consumption of the exquisite biscuit. (*See footnote) ‘I’d keep these away from Rae if I were you’ ‘Not a problem’ ..... David swallowed a Tim Tam whole and removed himself from the table as I was still speaking. ‘Hello?’ I said. Then I snagged another cookie.”

*Footnote: Why oh why don’t we have these in every major US supermarket?
It’s madness. Australia, I love you.

@Maud
See these are the little gems we could have missed without your invaluable input ... you are essential to our enhanced reading enjoyment. I've finally got my hands on the first book.

[primrose777]

Couldnt get the Spellman files except on audio book. Tried to listen to it in the car but I live in a smallish town so I was only able to listen to snippets. Frustrating, so I ditched it. Not sure audiobooks are my thing. It did give me a background on the family and I have a copy of Curse of tbe spellmans ready to go. I am on holiday next week traveling to Orange. I will have Curse of the spellmans and The Eyre affair for holiday reading

[Fran]

Couldnt get the Spellman files except on audio book. Tried to listen to it in the car but I live in a smallish town so I was only able to listen to snippets. Frustrating, so I ditched it. Not sure audiobooks are my thing. It did give me a background on the family and I have a copy of Curse of tbe spellmans ready to go. I am on holiday next week traveling to Orange. I will have Curse of the spellmans and The Eyre affair for holiday reading

I think you have a treat in store with those two books Primrose ..... enjoy your holiday

[DATo]

Couldnt get the Spellman files except on audio book. Tried to listen to it in the car but I live in a smallish town so I was only able to listen to snippets. Frustrating, so I ditched it. Not sure audiobooks are my thing. It did give me a background on the family and I have a copy of Curse of tbe spellmans ready to go. I am on holiday next week traveling to Orange. I will have Curse of the spellmans and The Eyre affair for holiday reading :D

Actually, I think you were lucky primrose. I've read three books of the series, including the opener, The Spellman Files, and I thought The Curse Of The Spellmans was actually the best of the three. Though it was not the first book it does provide enough of the backstory for you to have a comfortable understanding of what preceded it. All the books were entertaining but I thought Curse was the most humorous.

Have fun on holiday !!!

[through the wormhole]

You've got me. Just downloaded to my phone. Not gonna follow post any further until I have read it. Then I'll be back.

[A24]

I just finished listening to The Spellman Files on audio. The foul language in the beginning caught me off guard but thankfully it didn't really continue. I was looking for a short, light read (listen to) and this sure was it! I actually enjoyed this dysfunctional quirky family of the Spellmans. I saw on here though that the actual book includes footnotes and appendices. That would be funny and I'm sorry I missed out on that in audio form. It was still very enjoyable and just what I needed after some serious ones lately. 3.5/5