NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “The world’s greatest adolescent British chemist/busybody/sleuth” (The Seattle Times), Flavia de Luce, returns in a twisty mystery novel from award-winning author Alan Bradley.In the wake of an unthinkable family tragedy, twelve-year-old Flavia de Luce is struggling to fill her empty days. For a needed escape, Dogger, the loyal family servant, suggests a boating trip … servant, suggests a boating trip for Flavia and her two older sisters. As their punt drifts past the church where a notorious vicar had recently dispatched three of his female parishioners by spiking their communion wine with cyanide, Flavia, an expert chemist with a passion for poisons, is ecstatic. Suddenly something grazes her fingers as she dangles them in the water. She clamps down on the object, imagining herself Ernest Hemingway battling a marlin, and pulls up what she expects will be a giant fish. But in Flavia’s grip is something far better: a human head, attached to a human body. If anything could take Flavia’s mind off sorrow, it is solving a murder—although one that may lead the young sleuth to an early grave.
Praise for The Grave’s a Fine and Private Place
“Flavia [is] irrepressible, precocious and indefatigable. . . . A whole new chapter of Flavia’s life opens as she approaches adolescence. Will she become the Madame Curie of crime?”—Bookreporter
“Outstanding . . . As usual, Bradley makes his improbable series conceit work and relieves the plot’s inherent darkness with clever humor.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“There’s only one Flavia. . . . Series fans will anticipate the details of this investigation, along with one last taste of Flavia’s unorthodox family life.”—Library Journal (starred review)
“Bradley’s unquenchable heroine brings ‘the most complicated case I had ever come across’ to a highly satisfying conclusion, with the promise of still brighter days ahead.”—Kirkus Reviews
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love this series, Flavia marches on to adulthood and who know what will happen next!
How I love a Flavia de Luce novel! I started reading these about a year ago. I began with (unknowingly) book 7, and then I back tracked to the first one. And I have always been impressed. I have listened to all 8 through Overdrive. I managed to get book 6.5 from the library. When I found The Grave’s a Fine and Lonely Place (book 9) on NetGalley, I just had to snatch it up.
A little non-spoiler history on the Flavia de Luce books:
The books start with Flavia as an 11 year old girl. She’s brilliant, especially when it comes to chemistry. But she does have an uncanny ability to find a dead body. Using her sense and chemical knowledge, Flavia has been able to solve many crimes, even before the police can find a suspect.
Flavia’s home life is a little unusual. She lives with her father and three sisters, Ophelia and Daphne. The sisters do not have the best relationship, and their father has not been the same since his wife disappeared on a mountain hiking trip. Her only dear friend is the ‘butler’ Dogger.
The first 6 books are delightful, but a little dark. From there, the series starts to make a transition – the books get darker and Flavia begins to mature. By book 8 everything has changed and it leaves the reader wondering how the series will continue.
Well never fear! Alan Bradley has geniusly taken Flavia to a whole new level and direction.
The Grave’s a Fine and Lonely Places finds Flavia, Feely, and Daffy on a much needed holiday on the river with Dogger. Flavia dips her fingers into the water and low and behold, catches a fish!! When she looks down, it’s not a fish at all. Her fingers are inside the mouth of a dead corpse.
Flavia and Dogger seek to solve the murder and uncover hidden stories from town. Things get more difficult with four dead bodies connected with the current murder.
I am so excited to be reading the Flavia de Luce series. I could not be any happier with how this story is heading. The transition with Flavia from a school girl, to now a mature woman has lead the series into something more than a childhood past time.
With the new family circumstances, Flavia has become a little closer to her sisters and their relationships are beginning to improve and grow. It really makes an effort in the importance of family.
Dogger has also taken a larger role in the series. He has suffered from severe PTSD, but now he seems to be growing stronger by the minute. He and Flavia have the best relationship and it helps Flavia in her chemical experiments.
Everything has changed with this book, but Bradley has brought everything together. I cannot wait to read the next installment.
The Grave’s a Fine and Lonely Place by Alan Bradley gets 4 stars.
i am a big fan of Flavia de Luce but not this book. sorry
In order to help her family deal with their grief, Flavia, her two older sisters, and the family’s servant Dogger have been shipped off on holiday. They are supposed to be enjoying several peaceful days of boating, and Dogger has just happened to pick a location where a vicar poisoned three ladies in his congregation with the communion wine. While Flavia is thinking about this crime, she is letting her hand drift in the water and suddenly grabs something. Instead of the fish she thinks it might be, she discovers it’s a body. Was there foul play? Can Flavia figure out what happened to the corpse?
Series fans, like myself, will be anxious to get this book to find out what is happening to Flavia and her family. We get those updates quite early and then settle in for the latest mystery. The characters are in top form; I loved the develop on Dogger especially. The new characters are sharp, and Flavia charms as always. However, the mystery was poor. We get a strange portion of the book where Flavia is imaging something that happened a few years before. The ending is very weak with guesses instead of facts and deductions. And if Flavia is right on the motive, it is extremely poor. Fans will want to read this one, but definitely start with a stronger book if you are new to the series.
Young adult but every adult I know (even the librarians) that has read this series loves it. Flavia de Luce is a charming, intelligent, quirky young girl. Good mysteries too.
love this author..this series is so well written..the characters are wonderful and the setting is great…you must start at the first book ,it wont take you long to buy all the rest ..Flavia is such a great character, you will fall in love with her and want to go on all her adventures..each of the mysteries she solves will keep you turning the pages..well worth the time and money spent..cant wait to buy the next….
I love every book in this series by this author. Quirky characters, interesting plots.