The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie
Alan Bradley
Genre: Mystery
Rating: 4 stars
I don't have as much experience with mystery novels compared to everything else but I was pleased with this find. To tell the truth it was the cover that really piqued my interest. I love books that have the cover printed on the the book itself rather than on a paper sleeve and when this one came to the bookshelves I instantly fell in love with it for that reason.
Summary from Goodreads:
It is the summer of 1950–and at the once-grand mansion of Buckshaw, young Flavia de Luce, an aspiring chemist with a passion for poison, is intrigued by a series of inexplicable events: A dead bird is found on the doorstep, a postage stamp bizarrely pinned to its beak. Then, hours later, Flavia finds a man lying in the cucumber patch and watches him as he takes his dying breath.
For Flavia, who is both appalled and delighted, life begins in earnest when murder comes to Buckshaw. “I wish I could say I was afraid, but I wasn’t. Quite the contrary. This was by far the most interesting thing that had ever happened to me in my entire life.”
The fact that an eleven year old girl is able to keep an adult audience entranced for the duration of a novel speaks volumes on her character. Flavia is a no-nonsense kind of girl with a passion for chemistry that is borderline mania. She has the tenacity and curiosity that is often found in younger people which is greatly to ones advantage when there are mysteries to be solved and murderers to catch. She speaks with a wit and directness that is refreshing and entertaining. In one moment you forget that she isn't adult and in the next we hear of her sibling battles and you are reminded that it is in fact a little girl who is solving this.
As I earlier stated, mysteries aren't exactly on my reading radar, but Bradley's writing is wonderful and I have fallen in love with it. I most definitely be reading the next two that he has out and will continue to follow this new author.
