Skip to main content

Curse of the Spellmans

The Spellman schtick is losing its luster. The dysfunctional family that was amusing in the first book and somewhat chucklesome in the second is tiresome in this third volume. The mystery Izzy must solve is overshadowed by Spellman family melodrama, and by story's end, the reader is more apt to slap some sense into every character rather than cheer the resolution of a mildly interesting case. Izzy -- whom I suspect is the alter ego of Lisa Lutz -- needs to grow up and move on.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Red State of Mind: How a Catfish Queen Reject Became a Liberty Belle

Nancy French is one of those right-wing Christian Republicans who thinks she's striking a blow for smart, funny conservatives (yeah, I know, an oxymoron). All she demonstrates is that she's a smug, self-righteous asshat.
Post a Comment
Read more

Plum Island

Given that Plum Island is an animal disease testing facility for the US government, I expected a cross between Richard Preston and Michael Crichton. The island's actual purpose, however, proves to be a red herring for recuperating NYPD cop John Corey, who struggles to solve the murder of two government biologists by digging through the island's legends & history. Despite the lack of scientific intrigue, DeMille lays out a very human story and leaves the reader satisfied at novel's end.
Post a Comment
Read more

Beat the Reaper

Not only is Josh Bazell a doctor who can write, but he puts Michael Crichton & Robin Cook to shame with a fast, gripping tale that, in this post-Soprano age, seems all too realistic. Dr. Peter Brown works in the hospital from hell when he runs into an elderly man from his past, and suddenly Pietra Brwna's WITSEC protection is gone. What follows is one of the fastest-paced books ever written. Readers should prepare themselves for high levels of gore and mutilation -- Chuck Palahniuk's Rant is the best comparison -- but just as Pietra Brwna knows how to jerk out a man's throat with his bare hands, Josh Bazell grabs the reader with Peter Brown's tale and doesn't let go until the blood-splattered end.
Post a Comment
Read more