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Heads You Lose

by Lisa Lutz (Goodreads Author), David Hayward

3.28 of 5 stars 3.28 · rating details · 2,411 ratings · 675 reviews

New York Times-bestselling author Lisa Lutz conspires with-or should we say against?- coauthor David Hayward to write an original and hilarious tag-team crime novel.

Meet Paul and Lacey Hansen: orphaned, pot-growing twentysomething siblings eking out a living in rural Northern California. When a headless corpse appears on their property, they can't exactly dial 911, so th...more

Hardcover, 302 pages

Published April 5th 2011 by Putnam Adult

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Nov 10, 2010 Wendy Pearl's Picks rated it 5 of 5 stars

I'm the lucky Penguin (Putnam) sales rep that gets to sell in this new novel to booksellers in the Bay area, early next year. I had never read Lisa Lutz before (and her Spellman series). Happy to finally discover such a funny, snarky, readable author. This non-Spellman book is about two orphan siblings--pot growers--in Northern Calif. who discover a headless body in their front yard one night. Told in alternating chapters between Lisa and her co-author (ex boyfriend?), this is one of the most cl...more

4 likes · like · see review

Apr 26, 2011 Lisa Vegan rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: fans of clever & amusing mysteries; aspiring mystery novelists

Shelves: gr-author, fiction, novel, orphaned-and-quasi-orphaned-kids, mystery, reviewed, humor

I laughed out loud more than I have with a book in ages!

Comic genius! Very clever! It’s a gimmick and I absolutely love it and admire the result, book title included.

Hilarious! Absolutely the funniest collaboration imaginable, funny ha ha, not funny peculiar, although it’s delightfully peculiar too.

I thought I’d miss the Spellmans but I need not have worried; Lacey & Paul, and especially Lisa & David/Dave are equally entertaining in their own ways.

I wasn’t sure these two collaborating au...more

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Apr 19, 2011 Susie rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I love Lisa Lutz, and whenever she writes anything, I'll always be the first in line to get my hands on the new material. And I respect her going out on a limb and trying her "writing experiment," in which she and David Hayward wrote alternating chapters to piece together a contemporary mystery. Neither author could collaborate on plot, but had to write blindly, ......nor could they change the others work, and had to move forward no matter what the other author threw their way. Meaning Lisa and...more I love Lisa Lutz, and whenever she writes anything, I'll always be the first in line to get my hands on the new material. And I respect her going out on a limb and trying her "writing experiment," in which she and David Hayward wrote alternating chapters to piece together a contemporary mystery. Neither author could collaborate on plot, but had to write blindly, ......nor could they change the others work, and had to move forward no matter what the other author threw their way. Meaning Lisa and David were constantly killing off the other's favorite character or throwing in "wrenches" to trip the other up....intentional or not, hard to say.

It gives a whole new meaning to "murder and mayhem."

Between each chapter, there is email correspondence in which Lisa lays out what she hopes will be achieved in David's chapter, or what plot disappointments she feels necessary to address. The reader is privy to the paring of words which shows the remaining animosity after their relationship soured seven years previous. (I think there is many years that they didn't even talk.) I'll be honest, the novel's best material is in these few, sparse lines. I think there could be a novel written just about their relationship alone, and the hijinks that they only refer to in passing.

So, two stars???? Yes, getting to that. Although Lisa and David sharing barbs between chapters is entertaining, it's not worth the long effort it takes to get through each alternating chapter where characters change personalities, plot lines skew all over the place and bland story writing makes reading the novel tedious. There's a reason that authors edit, revise and work over and over again to make material perfect for a reader. It makes a story shine and align properly. For me, the experiment is interesting, but a failure as a whole piece. As an aspiring author that can't get an agent to even return my emails on a novel that I've toiled for years on, and someone that paid sixteen dollars for this on Amazon, I think this whole enterprise would have been more appropriate for free download or as clickable piece on NPR.org.

Sorry Lisa.....keep writing. I'll keep purchasing.
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May 22, 2011 Phloe rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Anyone

Recommended to Phloe by: NPR

Shelves: killing-people-fun

Okay, so I really wanted to hate this book, but it's just too hilarious. I won't rehash what everyone else say, but I will say the "story" itself isn't that fantastic. However, when you wonder-twin activate it with the fact the two (ex-lover) authors writing the alternate chapters effing can't stand each other, it makes for one exquisite corpse of a book - I sped through every chapter just so I could read how catty they would be towards each other at the end. Fun!

6 likes · like · see review

Dec 04, 2011 Cindy Griffin rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction, humor, 75, book, challenge, may, 2011

Heads You Lose is an experiment between Lisa Lutz and her ex-boyfriend David Hayward. In this murder mystery, each author wrote a chapter building on the previous one. According to � The Editor� the authors did not work together to make revisions on the novel. It was published in its original form complete with notes to each other either praising (rarely) or condemning (often) the other� s work. Lisa and David work their way through several murders as the main characters, brother and sister Paul...more

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Jan 20, 2013 Chad Meadows rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The best parts of this book were not a result of the characters or the plot twists. The best parts were watching the authors try and out-do one another. This book was written by Lisa Lutz and was co-authored by David Hayward. The two have some sort of past working relationship and also, what I am assuming is, a tumultuous romantic relationship. Why they would decide to work together on a novel,I have no idea. Regardless, I am glad that they did.

The chapters in this"whodunnit" murder mystery alte...more

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Aug 20, 2012 Jennifer H rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I saw that this book had pretty low stars on Goodreads here, but I thought how could this idea not be interesting? I love the idea of authors switching chapters to write a murder mystery. It sounds like it could be a lot of fun. It probably would be if Lutz didn't ask her ex-who she clearly didn't have a good break-up with to write with her. Almost to the point where I kind of don't believe that they didn't make it horrible on purpose and made up those catty e-mails to each other after the fact....more

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Aug 02, 2012 Andrea Mullarkey rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: galley

Books are heavy and so when I went to ALA Midwinter I gave myself a 5-book limit for picking up freebies. I decided this inventive mystery by the author of The Spellman Files and her ex-boyfriend made the cut strictly on its fun factor. The premise is clever. Lutz and her ex-boyfriend decide to write a mystery alternating chapters between them. Of course the two authors have history and it becomes the foundation of a second storyline. The mystery they are writing is about a brother and sister li...more

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May 10, 2012 Kyler Sullivan rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

As a San Francisco resident, I've always loved Lisa Lutz's novels because the way she describes my city is pretty on point with how I see it. Also a lot of the action takes place in my neighborhood. This novel unfortunately is set in the bay area but not in SF. It was a disappointing discovery for me but I guess it's not fair to just expect Lutz to set the novels in SF.

Even Stephen King moves around a bit.

I really loved the idea of this book. As a writer I liked seeing what the pros/cons of 2 au...more As a San Francisco resident, I've always loved Lisa Lutz's novels because the way she describes my city is pretty on point with how I see it. Also a lot of the action takes place in my neighborhood. This novel unfortunately is set in the bay area but not in SF. It was a disappointing discovery for me but I guess it's not fair to just expect Lutz to set the novels in SF.

Even Stephen King moves around a bit.

I really loved the idea of this book. As a writer I liked seeing what the pros/cons of 2 author process would be. I remember playing a game in lit classes where we would each write a sentence and pass it to the right and write a new sentence on our neighbors sheet. It's amazing to see what comes out in the novel length version of the game. I really liked how Lisa and David knew they had control and tools to kill or discredit other's characters and how the next author would they to bounce back. It opens up for many one liners and plot twist. Luckily both authors rarely use this to completely derail the other and still have some respect for plot and characterization.

My main issue is...I didn't care for the characters. They seemed one-dimensional, but also would somehow change tone between the two authors (which would technically be two-dimensions I guess but uh, isn't.) The book also seemed to make me want to get through the chapters as fast as possible so I could get the the author's letters to each other at the end of the chapters. These were very rewarding and catty but I really wanted them to either get completely out of control and have a zany and blood filled ending, or a nice arch where they like each other in the end. We get neither. I feel like they lost a good opportunity.

Lastly, when was this set? I had trouble figuring this out. At one point the lead female character, Lacey, whips out her cell phone, talkes to someone, the other party hangs up...and Lacey hears a dial tone. A dial tone? On a cell phone? Really?

Despite its flaws, this was a fun and easy read, I read it in a day. Dont expect a mind blowing or hilarious novel, like what we usually get from Lutz, but if you're looking to add a quick +1 to your 2012 Reading Challenge, go for it. Oh and go find the Spellman Files novels.

(less)

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Mar 24, 2012 ɴᴀᴛᴀʟɪᴇ ᴀᴅᴏʀᴇs ʏᴏᴜ ♥ rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

So my Mom and I came up with the agreement that I could read the author letters and nothing else of this story. Reading the summary I totally understand why.

But I just couldn't follow that. I went on to read the notes between the authors, as well as the entire story in secret. Every time she brought up this book I got this innocent act going, which I admit is quite believable.

Anyway, the notes between the authors makes this book ridiculously good. I love that the authors are exes, it gives a who...more

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Jan 01, 2012 Lisa rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Heads You Losestarts with a very clever idea: crime novelist Lisa Lutz asks ex-boyfriend David Hayward, a published poet, to collaborate on a mystery novel with her. Lisa writes the first chapter and sends it to David; he writes the second chapter and sends it back. They alternate, odd and even chapters, and manage to write a funny, interesting crime novel with some great twists and turns. The story is good, but the interaction between the two co-authors (their footnotes on each other’s chapters...more Heads You Losestarts with a very clever idea: crime novelist Lisa Lutz asks ex-boyfriend David Hayward, a published poet, to collaborate on a mystery novel with her. Lisa writes the first chapter and sends it to David; he writes the second chapter and sends it back. They alternate, odd and even chapters, and manage to write a funny, interesting crime novel with some great twists and turns. The story is good, but the interaction between the two co-authors (their footnotes on each other’s chapters and their emails between chapters) is better.

They had a few simple rules:

“Lutz would write the first chapter and all odd-numbered chapters thereafter. Hayward would write the even ones. They would not outline or discuss what they were working on. Each author would read the other’s chapter ‘blind.’ Neither author was allowed to undo a plot development established by the other.”

I think Lisa cheated on that one a little.

Paul and Lacey Hansen are siblings sharing a home in rural Northern California. Their parents were killed in a freak accident and currently they make their living growing and selling pot. So when a headless corpse is dumped on their property, they can’t really risk calling the sheriff. They move the body, they wait for someone to find it, and someone does — Lacey, a few days later, dumped in their driveway. And she may know who it is.

It’s a great beginning! It’s got all kinds of possibilities. You could really plot a terrific mystery from a lead-in like this. Of course, our collaborators aren’t plotting much of anything — they write a bit, hope the other follows their lead (they don’t) and then the fireworks start.

Our authors bicker like siblings. By the beginning of chapter eight, they are sniping about a road trip to Reno a decade earlier and when they should have stopped for gas on the drive into the desert. They fight about vocabulary, they fight about plot points, they fight about who is the more accomplished writer and they are not above threatening each other’s favorite characters to make a point. If David wants to hang onto Paul’s stripper girlfriend and Irving, the cat, he had better stop threatening Doctor Dreamy! The bodies are starting to pile up.

The mystery is fun (I think Lutz and Hayward are both good writers, even if they bash each other a little), but it is interesting to read it knowing they are truly making it up as they go along. They obviously identify with the siblings and are living vicariously through them — sometimes to great comic effect. A clever, original idea and very well executed.(less)

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May 14, 2011 Jonathan rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

In concept the idea of Head You Lose was a good one, but in the end expecting this book to be as good or witty as any of Lisa Lutz's Spellman series means that we lose. Lutz's chapters seemed to hold there own, but Hayward seemed to significantly miss out on her sartorial wit. Perhaps the best parts of the book were the notes between the ex-es. Hopefully this will teach other great writers who have a strong style not to dilute their work by splitting the writing with others.

BTW- James Patterson...more

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May 12, 2011 Jennifer rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I liked this book more for the stuff in between the chapters, rather than the actual mystery itself. I'm a big fan of Lisa Lutz's Spellman novels, they are so fun and quirky. The premise of this book is that she and an ex boyfriend took turns writing each chapter. At the end of each chapter they left notes to each other. It was fun to see the twists they did to each other, killing off each other's prime suspects, and particularly one character's girlfriend who Lisa had as a dumb blonde stripper,...more

1 like · like · see review

Apr 29, 2011 Cheryl rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Paul and Lacey Hansen are brother and sister. They live in Mercer. Population 1, 280. Paul and Lacey were flipping a coin to see who would be taking out the trash. Lacey lost. While taking out the trash, Lacey stumbles upon a headless body. Usually in this type of situation, someone would call the police but there is just one problem…Lacey and Paul are the main marijuana suppliers in town. So this leaves only one other option…dump the body. Things are fine until the body reappears. Paul and Lace...more

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Apr 14, 2011 Jennifer Rayment rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Good Stuff

One of the most truly unique ideas for a book
Unusual and quirky storyline
Love the notes from each of the author's after each chapter
Tons of twists and turns, you really have no idea what is going to happen next
Hilarious dialogue
The Not so Good Stuff

Overly quirky at times and it was like they were trying to hard for this
At times I thought the gimmicky idea for the authors letters back and forth saved a less than stellar and convoluted story - smart really
Honestly I just expected...more

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Apr 11, 2011 Luanne Ollivier rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I often recommend Lisa Lutz's The Spellmans series to readers who have finished the Stephanie Plum books and are looking for another light hearted fun mystery series.

Heads You Lose is a stand alone book and is a collaboration with David Hayward....who just happens to be Lisa's ex-boyfriend. And it is this connection that makes this book so much fun to read.

So, in the novel, we meet brother and sister Lacey and Paul. They're twenty somethings living in a small town in California. They also grow p...more

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Apr 10, 2011 Mary rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I have to start my review by saying first that I received this book from Library Thing so the version I have is an uncorrected proof and second that I had to read this book twice. I'm having a love-hate relationship and I blame it entirely on the authors who I think also have a love-hate relationship going on.
The story is about a pot-growing brother and sister team who discover a body, and then discover it again after moving it off their property. What happens afterwards is a serious of weird m...more

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Apr 05, 2011 Jennifer rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: humor, mystery, favorites

About The Book, Part 1

This book is about Paul and Lacey Hansen, pot-dealing sibling orphans in their 20s who are barely making a living in the rural Northern California town of Mercer. When a headless body shows up on their front lawn, they decide to deal with the problem themselves. After all, why invite law enforcement into your home when you’re growing illegal plants in the basement? Of course, when the corpse reappears a few days later, they realize that maybe they can’t make the problem dis...more About The Book, Part 1

This book is about Paul and Lacey Hansen, pot-dealing sibling orphans in their 20s who are barely making a living in the rural Northern California town of Mercer. When a headless body shows up on their front lawn, they decide to deal with the problem themselves. After all, why invite law enforcement into your home when you’re growing illegal plants in the basement? Of course, when the corpse reappears a few days later, they realize that maybe they can’t make the problem disappear quite so easily. Yet neither one shies away from a little amateur sleuthing.

About The Book, Part 2

This book is about when Lisa Lutz (author of the comedic Spellman crime series) and her ex-romantic partner David Hayward (poet … who was published in Harper’s once) write a book together—alternating the writing of chapters. The initial discussion about the “ground rules” and the between chapter commentary (as well as the reading author’s footnotes on chapters) are all included for our reading pleasure. For me, the interchange between the authors was the best part the book. I never grew tired of hearing Lisa and David settle past scores, argue over plot points and exact revenge for artistic decisions made in previous chapters. From Lisa’s repeated “assassinations” of David’s most loved characters to the ongoing refusal of both authors to deal with the mysterious plane crash that takes place early on in the book, I was rolling in laughter at the interchange between the two authors and could not wait to find out what each chapter would bring and how each would deal with the various plot points they threw at each other.

One of my favorite parts was Lisa’s ongoing criticism of David’s use of “10 cent” vocabulary words and overly esoteric plot developments—prompting him to write an entire chapter in what Lutz terms “Dick and Jane nonsense.” As the characters of Paul and Lacey increasingly begin to represent our authors, we see various nonsensical character traits emerge for the various supporting players. For example, Lisa gives Paul a stripper girlfriend who limps after experiencing a pole-dancing accident. David retaliates by making the stripper (Brandy Chester) have a genius IQ. Another favorite moment was when David introduces a doppelganger cousin to replace a favorite character that Lisa has killed. Lisa fights back by offing the cousin, who David then revives at the hospital, and who is then killed again by Lisa.

In short, the book is a whole bunch of fun. Forget about the mystery part (although, despite all odds, I think they managed to tie everything up fairly well), which is a bit of mess. The real pleasure of this book is the collaborative (and often combative) approach that authors took while writing it. The give and take between the authors is hilarious, witty and endlessly amusing. I found myself on pins and needles between each chapter—not so much for the “suspense” of the mystery—but for the suspense of how each author was going to screw over the other.

It is fun to to see two obviously intelligent and funny people spar in a creative way, and Heads You Lose is a true gift to readers everywhere. (And you can be sure I’m going to check out Lutz’s Spellman series.) Highly recommended! Go and get it now… you won’t be sorry!(less)

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Mar 12, 2011 Jackie rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: about-writing, work-review-related-reading

This is Lutz's first stand alone since The Spellman files, and it's certainly a lot different. It's an experiment of sorts--she's written half the chapters and a poet and ex-boyfriend of hers David Hayward has written the other half. The deal was that they write "blind", not making an outline or even speaking to each other directly about the project. They allowed them on short note to each other at the end of every chapters as well as some commentary footnotes, but they couldn't edit each others...more

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Jan 26, 2013 Janet added it

Shelves: 2013, fiction, mystery

This is a thoroughly odd book, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. It's a mystery, set in a small town in northern California. A brother and sister in their twenties are living in their late parents' house and growing weed for a living when a headless corpse is dropped in their backyard. They can't call the police, due to the basement full of plants and grow lights, and so a merry round of hide-the-body begins.

The gimmick is that it's a collaboration between Lisa Lutz and David Hayward. The cla...more

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May 11, 2011 Mickey (I'm A Book Shark) rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011, audio

See this review on my blog

This gets three stars because it wasn't totally lame.

Orphaned siblings Paul and Lacey Hansen live together and work together growing and selling pot in their small town. When a decapitated corpse shows up on their property, they both realize how much they need to get out of said small town. But now there is a mystery to solve, since the police cannot be snooping around on their property. Who is this headless dead guy? Who killed him? Why? They both try to figure it out...more See this review on my blog

This gets three stars because it wasn't totally lame.

Orphaned siblings Paul and Lacey Hansen live together and work together growing and selling pot in their small town. When a decapitated corpse shows up on their property, they both realize how much they need to get out of said small town. But now there is a mystery to solve, since the police cannot be snooping around on their property. Who is this headless dead guy? Who killed him? Why? They both try to figure it out in their own ways with skills learned on TV shows, and then the drama continues. More people are murdered, and the suspect list piles up. And from Goodreads's own description: "And with the authors’ own turbulent past seeping into the plot, in the end, the biggest mystery might be how they’ll solve the murder without killing each other first."

The concept was a cool idea: two people writing alternating chapters of a crime novel, not being able to undo the events created by either author, writing notes and ideas as the chapters continue. However, and this is a BIG however, the notes were published with the book in between each chapter and were extremely distracting! It also made me look at the events occurring throughout the book in a different light, wondering if the events were happening just to upset the other author. One would kill off the characters on the other's potential murderer list, and then the original author would bring them back in some miraculous, soap opera way. Then the notes between the chapter about killing off/bringing back characters would be snarky and sarcastic in various underhanded ways, remarking about vocabulary choices, criticizing each other's skills at writing crime novels, and sometimes including anecdotes about their personal lives. Unnecessary, right? Right. It did not allow me to view the book in an objective manner. Then again, I was never really sure where the book was going since I couldn't predict one author's writing style and formula. I will say that there had to be an previously-agreed-upon ending, because with the way they were knocking off characters and erasing the other's well-thought-out clues and leads, this book came to a tidy end and that barely seemed possible. Probably it's not what you'd think though, which was good. I certainly didn't see it coming.

I am not familiar with David Hayward, but I would like to be now. Not that his writing was better, because the reader should be able to see a difference between the two, but because I'm always happy with finding new authors. I've read books by Lisa Lutz before (see The Spellmans series), and I've enjoyed those. Never have I read a murder mystery by her, though. I'd like to, I suppose. Like I said, this wasn't totally lame, mostly because it did all come together in the end. I listened to this one, and it had different narrators for the different authors, which made sense. I would recommend this if you have nothing else on your TBR list. (less)

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Apr 18, 2011 Paul Pessolano rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Liza Lutz is best known for her books on the Spellman family, that take a light hearted look at a family of private investigators that are dysfunctional at best. A little bit of mystery and a lot of comedy.

Liza has teamed up with David Hayward in a book that not only is a great mystery but is also a great comedy. The idea is that Liza will write the first chapter and then David will write the next one until the final chapter. At the end of each chapter, Liza and David exchange letters about how...more

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Dec 13, 2011 Michael rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is a tour de force on why you shouldn't spend much time talking to your ex. The collaboration premise was intriguing every other chapter with no changes by the other author was potentially good fun. Unfortunately, the other writer she chose David Hayward comes off as petty, insecure and pompous.

Hayward is the really smart guy you know with a ton of talent who is very bright, knowledgeable in arcane information, but never gets anything done. He does proudly point out that he had a poem publi...more

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Dec 05, 2011 Yellowoasis rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011

Aargh, this book! I picked it up on impulse at the library when collecting some other books. The plot seemed intriguing, and the fact that each chapter was written alternately by two different people. The plot moves on very quickly, lots of satisfying twists and turns. The dialogue is snappy and fun. But what drove me nuts were the notes in between each chapter which were the correspondence between the writers. The notes are not necessary. It’s like watching Downton Abbey. Yes, I am interested i...more

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May 16, 2011 Scottsdale Public Library added it

Shelves: fiction, humorous, adult, mystery

Heads You Lose is unlike any other book I have read before. Every other chapter is written by the award-winning author of the Spellman books (1), Lisa Lutz. In this crime caper novel, Lutz partners with a former romantic partner, David Hayward, who joins in to write the even chapters. The two agree to go with whatever plot developments the other has put forward and to not make any edits other than proofreading. At the end of each chapter, they discuss the project, while also analyzing their fail...more

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Apr 28, 2011 Jaime rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011, humor, mystery

This was kind of a crazy book. I loved the back-and-forth format, which was only enhanced by the bickering between the two authors. Paul and Lacey are unlikely heroes, but when someone dumps a dead body on their property, they’re left with little choice.

As a seasoned mystery reader, it’s difficult to guess where the story is ultimately going, because the authors themselves don’t really have any idea. Promising clues turn into dead ends, and red herrings abound. People die, then come back to life...more

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Aug 07, 2012 MJ rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, liked-it

Paul and Lacey are your average small town, twentysomethings, that live together, grow pot and find a headless corpse in the back yard.

Yup that's right they find a headless corpse in the back yard and since they don't want the authorities to be snooping around they do what any siblings would do...dump the body somewhere else. But when the body reappears they realize they are in way over there heads and as they try to unravel the mystery of who what where and why they uncover a small town full o...more

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Oct 11, 2011 Glenn rated it 4 of 5 stars

Recommended to Glenn by: Norm

Shelves: mysteries-and-thrillers, humorous-novels

I read a good review of this by one of my Goodreads friends, decided to give it a go, and am very glad I did.

This was a mad romp, very funny, and although the concept of having multiple authors write different chapters is not original, it's original (as far as I know) to have former romantic partners collaborate on an every other chapter type book, and it worked well. An added bonus were the notes that Lisa (author) and David (poet) wrote to each other between chapters and some footnotes comment...more

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Sep 10, 2011 Tracy B. (personal account) Babiasz rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I think most readers will either really like this book or really hate it (clearly, I'm not most readers, as I gave it an average three stars). The novel is written by Lisa and Dave, who alternate chapters back and forth. The basic plot tells the story of Lacey and Paul, brother and sister pot growers, who find a headless body left in their yard one night. Can't exactly call the cops, now can you? But the reader quickly realizes that Lisa and Dave's story may be just as interesting. The editor ex...more

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Jun 02, 2011 Kate Woods Walker rated it 3 of 5 stars

Although I'm not usually a fan of the murder mystery, I picked up this book because of its comedic promise and the unusual story-within-a-story created by the two authors supposedly battling it out over plot and character. I'm just a sucker for meta.

The brother-sister amateur sleuth team, mirroring the co-authors and their sensibilities, was snarkily delightful. The Northern California pot farming setting was a nice surprise for anyone expecting a Cabot Cove-like, typical cozy mystery town. And...more

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About Lisa Lutz

Lisa Lutz grew up in Southern California. After graduating high school, she attended UC Santa Cruz, UC Irvine, University of Leeds in England and San Francisco State University, although she still does not have a bachelor's degree.

Lisa spent most of the 1990s hopping from a string of low-paying odd jobs while writing and rewriting a mob comedy called Plan B. After it was made in 2000, Lisa vowed s...more

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“The latter. She had a good run," Sook said, doing a little shrug. It was his usual response to death at Mapleshade, and it was a safe bet that he felt that way about himself. Like most twice-widowed, Korea-vet, nature-loving, gun-enthusiast, bilingual, weed-connoisseur great grandfathers of five, he'd lived a full life.” — 2 people liked it

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