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ellipsiscool's review against another edition
4.0
What a lovely, slightly sadistic little detective Flavia continues to be. I am admittedly not a mystery connoisseur, they Alan Bradley is truly a delight.
I listened to the audio version (of this book and the previous book) and it was so well done, that I'm not sure I could read it in my own voice. Jayne Entwistle is wonderful.
I listened to the audio version (of this book and the previous book) and it was so well done, that I'm not sure I could read it in my own voice. Jayne Entwistle is wonderful.
timinbc's review against another edition
4.0
This is tricky to review. Especially not knowing Bradley's intent. Is this a transition volume, setting Flavia up for a new series back home?
I missed some of the familiar parts, such as Dogger and the village, but I was getting tired of Father and the sisters, and I suspect it was time to set them aside - which this one does perfectly.
This one might have the best zingers, one-liners, and snappy thinks-to-self remarks of all the books.
There is perhaps a bit too much of Flavia fast-talking her way out of trouble. At times, I thought she was talking herself INTO trouble, and wondered why she hadn't made trouble -- but as the plot unfolds we see that some risks were more and some less than they seemed.
The plot's not the best of the series, but it's serviceable, and we don't read these books as entrants in the Most Fiendish Plot category. We're here to enjoy watching Flavia at work, and we get it.
+1 also for not having things the readers knows but Flavia doesn't.
As Nero Wolfe might have said, "Very satisfactory."
I missed some of the familiar parts, such as Dogger and the village, but I was getting tired of Father and the sisters, and I suspect it was time to set them aside - which this one does perfectly.
This one might have the best zingers, one-liners, and snappy thinks-to-self remarks of all the books.
There is perhaps a bit too much of Flavia fast-talking her way out of trouble. At times, I thought she was talking herself INTO trouble, and wondered why she hadn't made trouble -- but as the plot unfolds we see that some risks were more and some less than they seemed.
The plot's not the best of the series, but it's serviceable, and we don't read these books as entrants in the Most Fiendish Plot category. We're here to enjoy watching Flavia at work, and we get it.
+1 also for not having things the readers knows but Flavia doesn't.
As Nero Wolfe might have said, "Very satisfactory."
larastunkel's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.5
thenovelbook's review against another edition
4.0
Hmm. I'm a little taken aback by the very, very end. What direction will the books take now? I wasn't expecting it. Other than that, a very entertaining story, but mystery rather gruesome. Flavia is in top form in this one and the narration has never been better!
bickleyhouse's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This is book number seven of the Flavia de Luce series (not including what might be called 6.5, a stand-alone short story), and, in my opinion, it is the best one, so far.
This book picks up pretty much where The Dead In Their Vaulted Arches left off, with Flavia being sent away to Miss Bodycote's Female Academy, near Toronto, in Canada. As our story begins, Flavia, now twelve years old, is on a ship from England to Canada, accompanied by Dorsey and Ryerson Rainsmith, both doctors that work for the Academy.
What makes this story so excellent is how Mr. Bradley has taken our hero and tossed her into a totally foreign environment, introducing her (and us) to a whole new cast of characters, and he does it without missing a beat! The same wonderful writing style is prevalent, throughout, and the only thing that changes is the location and the people.
There are some funny moments, as always, as young Flavia is so very precocious (one of my favorite lines in the book is when one of the other girls at the Academy says, "You are a very peculiar person, Flavia de Luce." I dub this the understatement of the century! Bradley has such a way of putting sentences together, as well. At one point, the mind of Flavia is thinking, "The hours trudged by with chains on their ankles," as she is riding on the train from Montreal to Toronto.
One of the most tragic parts of the book, to me, is when Flavia is in the middle of an encounter with the chemistry teacher, Mrs. Bannerman. Bannerman has given Flavia an expression, and Flavia is desperate attempting to interpret it.
"She gave me a smile which I could not decode: a smile in which she narrowed her eyes and raised only the corners of her mouth. What could it possibly mean?
"I looked at her for further signals, but she was sending none.
"And then it hit me with an almost physical force: approval. She had given me a look of approval, and because it was the first I had ever received in my life, I had not recognized it for what it was."
You might not quite get this unless you have read other Flavia books, but if you have, you totally get how sad this is. There is a very interesting dynamic with her family. Speaking of that family, while they are mentioned in this book, we do not encounter any of them, as she spends the whole time in Canada, saving the very beginning.
And then Bradley drops the hugest of bombs on page 371, when a major plot twist is revealed. He is so good at this that I totally did not see it coming. And I love when an author pulls that off. I uttered an audible, "Oh, my gosh!" and my wife in the other room was like, "What's wrong??" I just said, "my book," and she understood.
As I said, this is the best one so far, in my opinion. I find it hard to imagine how he is going to outdo himself on the next one, but I will certainly read it to find out.
This book picks up pretty much where The Dead In Their Vaulted Arches left off, with Flavia being sent away to Miss Bodycote's Female Academy, near Toronto, in Canada. As our story begins, Flavia, now twelve years old, is on a ship from England to Canada, accompanied by Dorsey and Ryerson Rainsmith, both doctors that work for the Academy.
What makes this story so excellent is how Mr. Bradley has taken our hero and tossed her into a totally foreign environment, introducing her (and us) to a whole new cast of characters, and he does it without missing a beat! The same wonderful writing style is prevalent, throughout, and the only thing that changes is the location and the people.
There are some funny moments, as always, as young Flavia is so very precocious (one of my favorite lines in the book is when one of the other girls at the Academy says, "You are a very peculiar person, Flavia de Luce." I dub this the understatement of the century! Bradley has such a way of putting sentences together, as well. At one point, the mind of Flavia is thinking, "The hours trudged by with chains on their ankles," as she is riding on the train from Montreal to Toronto.
One of the most tragic parts of the book, to me, is when Flavia is in the middle of an encounter with the chemistry teacher, Mrs. Bannerman. Bannerman has given Flavia an expression, and Flavia is desperate attempting to interpret it.
"She gave me a smile which I could not decode: a smile in which she narrowed her eyes and raised only the corners of her mouth. What could it possibly mean?
"I looked at her for further signals, but she was sending none.
"And then it hit me with an almost physical force: approval. She had given me a look of approval, and because it was the first I had ever received in my life, I had not recognized it for what it was."
You might not quite get this unless you have read other Flavia books, but if you have, you totally get how sad this is. There is a very interesting dynamic with her family. Speaking of that family, while they are mentioned in this book, we do not encounter any of them, as she spends the whole time in Canada, saving the very beginning.
And then Bradley drops the hugest of bombs on page 371, when a major plot twist is revealed. He is so good at this that I totally did not see it coming. And I love when an author pulls that off. I uttered an audible, "Oh, my gosh!" and my wife in the other room was like, "What's wrong??" I just said, "my book," and she understood.
As I said, this is the best one so far, in my opinion. I find it hard to imagine how he is going to outdo himself on the next one, but I will certainly read it to find out.
flutegirl24's review against another edition
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
applegnreads's review against another edition
4.0
Banished Flavia... of course, this is the continual state of her life. Still, she's fun to ride along with as she makes sense of her mysterious world.
theglossreview's review against another edition
3.0
I‘m sorry to only be able to give this book 3 stars. I used to be so convinced that if one book was a 5 star read, every other book by the same author would be, as well. Explorations into different genres and target audiences by (even my favourite) authors have taught me otherwise. Even then, I still believed that each book within a series would be equally good, but now I notice that this is not the case with the Flavia de Luce series.
In „As Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust”, Buckshaw and Flavia’s family are dearly missed. It contains a few gems of writing, but the plot drags on and I couldn’t wait to finish it. I was not fascinated by the mystery, nor the setting. It was quite unpleasant. The classic mysteries of “What’s going on in this creepy and mysterious school?” and “Is there a secret society at work here?” were poorly executed.
I’m sorry that I do not like this book anymore, since I realised the only good parts of it are a) Flavia de Luce and b) the writing, both of which are even better in other volumes of the series.
In „As Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust”, Buckshaw and Flavia’s family are dearly missed. It contains a few gems of writing, but the plot drags on and I couldn’t wait to finish it. I was not fascinated by the mystery, nor the setting. It was quite unpleasant. The classic mysteries of “What’s going on in this creepy and mysterious school?” and “Is there a secret society at work here?” were poorly executed.
I’m sorry that I do not like this book anymore, since I realised the only good parts of it are a) Flavia de Luce and b) the writing, both of which are even better in other volumes of the series.
kazupolar's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.25
madmooney's review against another edition
5.0
I received an ARC of this book in November.
Spoiler free thoughts:
While I loved the book and Flavia's new setting, I felt that the ending was rushed an moving in a backwards direction (readers of the book will know what I speak of). So, while I am eager for book 8, I will always feel (in my heart of hearts) that Bradley made an error in concluding the book the day he did.
Spoiler free thoughts:
While I loved the book and Flavia's new setting, I felt that the ending was rushed an moving in a backwards direction (readers of the book will know what I speak of). So, while I am eager for book 8, I will always feel (in my heart of hearts) that Bradley made an error in concluding the book the day he did.