Eleven-year-old Flavia spends her time on her English country estate mixing compounds in her chemistry lab and dodging mistreatment at the hands of her two older sisters. That is, until a stranger’s dead body shows up in the family’s garden. Soon Flavia is trying to figure out who the stranger is and how and why he ended up in her garden. Flavia’s precocity keeps her one step ahead of the police as the case is explored. Flavia does not seem at all like any 11-year-old I’ve ever met, between her obsession with creating poisons in her lab for the fun of it, her uncanny ability to research clues, and her references to all kinds of literature, art, music, etc., which seems like an awful lot of knowledge for an 11-year-old to have at the tip of her tongue. Nevertheless, I really liked Flavia and those many random references. The book is very well written in terms of style, but also in terms of plot. The author knows exactly where to place his hooks to keep you involved in the story. I’m looking forward to the rest of the series. ( )

Ignore the title, please, and go for the essence. Flavia de Luce is an eleven year-old Sherlock Holmes with a predilection for the dark side of rural crime and a hobby of poisons. This will be the first in what promises to be an utterly original and delicious series. Adult preoccupations and values may confront Flavia, but they do not greatly impress her; by the story's end, the reader can only agree. ( )

I'll admit up front that mysteries are among my least favorite genres. I only read this book because it was chosen by one of my online book discussion groups.

I had a hard time getting through this 370-page book. The main character, 11-year-old precocious genius Flavia de Luce, with her passion for chemistry and poison, is just not believable. The book is supposed to be set in 1950 in England, but at times it feels like it's set in the Victorian era. Narrated by Flavia, she often says or thinks ridiculous things like the following (from page 23):

"Taking care not to jiggle the curtains, I peeked out into the kitchen garden just as the moon obligingly came out from behind a cloud to illuminate the scene, much as it would in a first-rate production of A Midsummer Night's Dream."

Oh please.

Some in our discussion group felt Flavia was a lot like Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter series, but Hermione's braininess fits in a fantasy series about a bunch of wizards.

The other characters - Flavia's talented but seemingly airheaded two older sisters (Ophelia aka "Feely" and Daphne aka "Daffy"), her stamp-collection widower father, the cook, the mysterious factotum (Flavia's word) Dogger, the gruff Inspector who eventually grudgingly admires Flavia - they're all stereotypes. The plot of the mystery is weak, and the book is too wordy and full of similes and metaphors. Its (unnecessary) length, and the unrealistic vocabulary and obscure references used by an 11-year-old (she usually sounds like a 70-year-old--coincidentay, the age of this first-time author) also means the book won't work for older children or young adults either.

There will be more books in this series, but I'm not planning to read them. I did like the cover though.

© Amanda Pape - 2010 ( )

When a stranger turns up dead in her family's cucumber patch in the middle of the night, 11-year-old Flavia de Luce decides she must solve the mystery. Her main interest in life is chemistry, which she has taught herself, and her inquisitive scientific mind makes her the perfect person to solve the crime. The youngest daughter in her motherless family, she is independent and usually left to her own devices, so she sets out to find out the relationship between the dead man, local history and her own family.

This is the first book in a proposed series of books about Flavia de Luce. Flavia is a unique 11 year old. Her relationships with her family and the townspeople are humorous. This was an interesting and at times, funny, novel and I look forward to read more about Flavia. ( )

Eleven year old Flavia de Luce is spending time annoying and being annoyed by her sisters, Ophelia, age seventeen and Daphne, age thirteen. She also spends a great deal of time experimenting with the chemistry set she inherited from her aunt. She is particularly obsessed with poisons.

One day, a body is found in the family garden. No one seems to know what to do by Flavia who tells the gardner to call the police. Then, once the police arrive, Flavia decides to take an active role in the investigation.

I found the premise too far fetched. An example, no one knows who the person is so Flavia goes to the one place in the area where a stranger could stay. She finds the name of the person from the person who was taking care of the rooms at the inn. Wouldn't the police think of this?

For a young narrator, I enjoyed "The Lovely Bones." ( )