bigsexy's review against another edition
3.0
Flavia de Luce is on of my favorite fictional characters. I love that she uses words like "thwarted" when her plan is stymied. This book started out slow but picked up pace mid way through. On to the next murder in Bishop's Lacy!
batbones's review against another edition
5.0
So quickly read and enjoyable! Flavia is her usual brave, catty, cutting little self. Her bicycle Gladys is starting to become its own character and somehow I read that as an indication of poor Flave's isolation and inability to share her passions with her other less interested sisters.
brndnwrght's review
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
gasoline_allie's review against another edition
4.0
Slightly different in its feel than the first two books in the series, but I liked it all the more for that.
athoffman18's review against another edition
4.0
"You odious little prawn"
"Sucks to you!"
"...it was enough to make an archangel spit."
"Sucks to you!"
"...it was enough to make an archangel spit."
novelesque_life's review against another edition
4.0
4 STARS
"Flavia had asked the old Gypsy woman to tell her fortune, but never expected to stumble across the poor soul, bludgeoned in the wee hours in her own caravan. Was this an act of retribution by those convinced that the soothsayer had abducted a local child years ago? Certainly Flavia understands the bliss of settling scores; revenge is a delightful pastime when one has two odious older sisters. But how could this crime be connected to the missing baby? Had it something to do with the weird sect who met at the river to practice their secret rites? While still pondering the possibilities, Flavia stumbles upon another corpse - that of a notorious layabout who had been caught prowling about the de Luce's drawing room.
Pedaling Gladys, her faithful bicycle, across the countryside in search of clues to both crimes, Flavia uncovers some odd new twists. Most intriguing is her introduction to an elegant artist with a very special object in her possession - a portrait that sheds light on the biggest mystery of all: Who is Flavia?"
I cannot get enough of Alan Bradley's Flavia de Luce series. It is extremely well-written and keeps you wanting to read more even when the novel ends.
"Flavia had asked the old Gypsy woman to tell her fortune, but never expected to stumble across the poor soul, bludgeoned in the wee hours in her own caravan. Was this an act of retribution by those convinced that the soothsayer had abducted a local child years ago? Certainly Flavia understands the bliss of settling scores; revenge is a delightful pastime when one has two odious older sisters. But how could this crime be connected to the missing baby? Had it something to do with the weird sect who met at the river to practice their secret rites? While still pondering the possibilities, Flavia stumbles upon another corpse - that of a notorious layabout who had been caught prowling about the de Luce's drawing room.
Pedaling Gladys, her faithful bicycle, across the countryside in search of clues to both crimes, Flavia uncovers some odd new twists. Most intriguing is her introduction to an elegant artist with a very special object in her possession - a portrait that sheds light on the biggest mystery of all: Who is Flavia?"
I cannot get enough of Alan Bradley's Flavia de Luce series. It is extremely well-written and keeps you wanting to read more even when the novel ends.
nglofile's review against another edition
5.0
Bradley doesn't disappoint. This is another stellar entry in a delightful and well-plotted series.
I adore the Note to the Reader in the back: "In order to provide sufficiently dramatic lighting for this story, I must admit to having tinkered slightly here and there with the phases of the moon, though the reader may rest assured that, having finished, I've put everything back exactly as it was."
I adore the Note to the Reader in the back: "In order to provide sufficiently dramatic lighting for this story, I must admit to having tinkered slightly here and there with the phases of the moon, though the reader may rest assured that, having finished, I've put everything back exactly as it was."
wanderaven's review against another edition
4.0
For once, I'm not frustrated that it took me so long to finally commit to this series, as in doing so, now I get to read numbers 1-5 without waiting!
(Though Caroline should be keeping a close eye on her Nook, which is where I suspect she hides #6...)
One of my favorite things about the series are the clever titles, lovely on their own, but this one is especially ties into the story.
Flavia... such an empathic and insightful 11 year old girl - she is both strong and vulnerable, not caring a whit but one person thinks, while yearning desperately for the approval of another. There's so much I love about this character, so much so that even if I'm not especially engaged in the plotline (not especially true here, though I did find I was slighly less interested than in the first two books), I keep reading just for the enjoyment of Flavia.
(Though Caroline should be keeping a close eye on her Nook, which is where I suspect she hides #6...)
One of my favorite things about the series are the clever titles, lovely on their own, but this one is especially ties into the story.
Flavia... such an empathic and insightful 11 year old girl - she is both strong and vulnerable, not caring a whit but one person thinks, while yearning desperately for the approval of another. There's so much I love about this character, so much so that even if I'm not especially engaged in the plotline (not especially true here, though I did find I was slighly less interested than in the first two books), I keep reading just for the enjoyment of Flavia.