Second in Lutz's Spellman Family series.
My only real complaint with the first volume (The Spellman Files) was that Lutz's plotting skills were weak; that continues to be the case with this volume.
There is, in fact, almost no actual plot here. Narrator Izzy occasionally reminds us that she's suspicious of her parents' new neighbor (which suspicions have gotten her arrested; she tells the story as a series of flashbacks), but that's mostly a flimsy frame on which to hang a series of diverting anecdotes, meandering digressions, and shaggy dog stories about the misadventures of the Spellmans.
The good news is that, as in the first book, Lutz gets away with it because her diversions and digressions are immensely charming and funny. The dialogue is crisp and witty, and the characters pop off the page. The relationship among Izzy, her teenage sister Rae, and policeman Henry is lively -- Rae has a teenage crush on Henry, who puts up with her eccentricities in order to stay in touch with Izzy, though he won't admit to having feelings for her (nor will Izzy admit to her feelings for him).
Izzy's a great narrator, compassionate when observing others and reasonably self-aware when observing herself. I did grow weary, though, of the frequent footnotes in which Izzy points out that her "previous document" about her family -- Lutz's first novel -- is "now available in paperback!" Shameless commercial plugs have no place in a novel.
I still don't know how long Lutz can keep it up, but so far, her charm and wit are more than enough to make up for her deficiencies as a storyteller. I still think the series has room to grow; each of her characters is entertaining enough to narrate a volume or two on their own. I'm looking forward to the next installment.
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