Trail of the Spellmans: Document #5 (Izzy Spellman Mysteries, #5)

by Lisa Lutz

The fifth in the acclaimed New York Times bestselling, Edgar Award–nominated series about a fearless private investigator Izzy Spellman and her quirky, yet endearing, family of sleuths: “A wise (and wise-cracking) choice for mystery readers” (Booklist).

For the first time in Spellman history, Isabel Spellman, PI, might be the most normal member of her family. Mom has taken on an outrageous assortment of extracurricular activities—with no apparent motive. Dad has a secret. Izzy’s brother and sister are at war—for no apparent reason. And her niece keeps saying “banana” even though she hates bananas.

That’s not to say that Izzy isn’t without her own troubles. Her boyfriend, Henry Stone, keeps wanting “to talk,” a prospect Isabel evades by going out with her new drinking buddy, none other than Gertrude Stone, Henry’s mother.

Things aren’t any simpler on the business side of Spellman Investigations. First, Rae is hired to follow a girl, but then fakes the surveillance reports. Then a math professor hires Izzy to watch his immaculate apartment while he unravels like a bad formula. And as the questions pile up, Izzy won’t stop hunting for the answers—even when they threaten to shatter both the business and the family.

• ISBN10: 1451608144
• ISBN13: 9781451608144
• Publish Date: 28 February 2012
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Simon & Schuster
• Format: eBook (EPUB)
• Pages: 384
• Language: English

Reviews

[Leah]

**As Trail of the Spellmans is the fifth book in the Spellman series there may be spoilers for the other four novels, though I’ll try hard not to include any**

I absolutely adore Lisa Lutz’s Spellman novels. They are truly magnificent. They’re the most dysfunctional family you’re ever likely to meet, but I adore them and I would become part of their family without a second thought. Despite their quirks they’re a family that truly love each other, and I love that. I love that the novels aren’t your typical fare either – they’re not Chick Lit novels, though if questioned I wouldn’t actually know which genre to drop the novels in. Humour? Possibly. But they’re books that Chick Lit fans will love because they’re funny, and although romance isn’t at the forefront of the novels, there is a hero to root for (I love you, Henry!) though you have to be very patient because Isabel isn’t the most forthcoming of people, sadly. Trail of the Spellmans is the fifth book in the series, and it’s one that I enjoyed just as much as the others.

Trail of the Spellmans sees Izzy on multiple cases (it’s always the case!) including a young girl at college with very nervous parents, along with a wife who seems to only want to know her husband’s whereabouts and nothing more. Alongside that, her mother has taken up a surprising number of hobbies, their newest member of the team, D, has started Internet dating, her brother David and sister Rae are at war over the fact David’s daughter Sydney is obsessed with the word ‘banana’ and Henry has decided he and Izzy need to talk, a prospect which fills Izzy with horror and causes her to start Avoiding Him and instead decides to get drunk with his mother, Gertrude. That probably sounds like a lot to keep up with, and it is, but it’s awesome. That’s the whole point. It all makes sense, even if it seems like it doesn’t and it really isn’t that hard at all to keep up with. It’s the Spellman way, everything is scattered and Izzy’s always doing five hundred jobs, all at the same time, and I haven’t even mentioned the ever-crazy Walter, who is obsessive compulsive to a terrifying degree.

I love the Spellman novels, and although it took me a bit to get back into the swing of things with Trail of the Spellmans, I soon got into it and was lost once again the crazy world of the Spellman’s. I absolutely love the plots of the Spellman novels, they’re always excellent and I love the surveillance and it always seems so exciting to be a PI (though it probably really isn’t, as proven by previous Spellman stakeouts) but for me the novels are more about the Spellman family themselves. Lutz could write a whole novel set in the Spellman house and it would still be absolutely brilliant. The Spellman family dynamic is excellent and I loved the new war between David and Rae (they’re always a source of amusement because Rae is one of the coolest girl characters, ever, and although what she did to Sydney was mean, it was also really funny). Izzy is probably the best but most frustrating lead character, ever. I love her. So much. But Henry. Oh, Henry. I want Izzy and Henry to marry and have little PI babies already. It’s been 5 books! Stop torturing me, Lutz. Trouble is, I’m not entirely sure they’ll ever get there. I hope and I hope, but after what happens in book 5, now I’m not so sure any more and I am gutted. That is the only disappointment for me in the entire novel. It’s the romantic in me, I swear it.

I really, thoroughly enjoyed Trail of the Spellmans. It was weird to get into it at first (Rae’s 20, are you joking? Say what? I still imagine Rae as a fourteen year old, how can she be 20 already??????) but as soon as I got back into the familiarity and warmth of the Spellmans, I was hooked. I loved the cases, I loved putting the puzzle together alongside Izzy (OK, after Izzy, because sadly, I am no PI) and I loved that at the end of the book, Izzy did something that was really, really unexpected and it seems she’s growing up a bit and I’m definitely looking forward to seeing where this goes in the next novel (but hopefully not last, despite the word ‘last’ in the title, please don’t let it be the last ‘cos I’d die) The Last Word. I’ll soon find out because I have it on my Kindle waiting to be read (isn’t that always the best thing ever? When you read a book in a series and already have the next one to read?) . I loved Trail of the Spellmans, I never want to leave them because they are just easily the best fictional family ever. (Why it isn’t a TV series is shocking, because it would be the most AWESOME TV series, ever.) Long live the Spellmans!

[ibeforem]

This book made me a little frustrated with Izzy. The more she avoids things she’s not comfortable dealing with, the more immature it seems. Though based on some of the family secrets revealed in this book, there’s no surprise that she’s more than a little damaged. The way she handled her relationship with Henry made me wonder how they managed to stay together for 2 years. Apparently, he’s a masochist.

But regardless, I still enjoy this series. Is this the last? Who knows… I think it was supposed to end two books ago.

[MurderByDeath]

I can't say anything except this is an excellent book. Funny, endearing, interesting. As with all the previous 'documents' there are quite a few plot lines and Izzy Spellman does her usual excellent job at getting to the bottom of all of them. The evolution of character development throughout all the books has been interesting, humorous and at times painful to witness and bittersweet. I'd have given this book 5 stars, but was personally disappointed with the resolution of one of the story lines. A definite recommendation for anyone who enjoys some hilarity with their sincerity.