The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie (Flavia de Luce, #1) in Around the World in 80 Books

Oct 05, 2010 Sarah rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: whodunnit, kindle, hot-lit, audio

A couple weeks ago, Audible had a "Discover New Series" sale and this book was $4.95. I don't think I would have ever picked it up otherwise, but I'm glad I did. I think the story would be 3 stars as most cozy mysteries tend to be for me (I enjoy them, but unless there's a mind-blowing twist, they don't usually get more than 3 stars from me). I mean, it's a mystery that revolves around stamp collecting. Yawn. And yes, I agree that Flavia is not believable as an 11-year-old. She's got the naivete ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Aug 16, 2019 Pam rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: audio-book, crime-fiction, 2019-books-read, england

AUTHOR Bradley, Alan
TITLE The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie
DATE READ 08/13/2019
RATING 4/B
FIRST SENTENCE
GENRE/ PUB DATE/PUBLISHER / # OF Crime Fiction/2009/Random House/ 9 hr 53 min
SERIES/STAND-ALONE # 1 Flavia De Luce
CHALLENGE Good Reads 2019 Reading Goal 125/111;
GROUP READ
CHARACTERS 11yr old Flavia De Luce/ a passion for chemistry and a very curious character
TIME/PLACE 1950's / England
COMMENTS Fun start to a new series for me. Flavia has 2 older sisters … a bit more of the tradi ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Jul 18, 2017 Nadine in NY Jones rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: authors-i-don-t-ever-want-to-read-a, lotsa-buzz, only-reading-because-of-the-buzz, historical-fiction, audio, did-not-finish

I tend to not like precocious children, and Flavia de Luce is no exception to that rule. (Exception: Charles Wallace, because because. Actually, I didn't even really like him the first time I read AWiT, and I was just a kid then myself!) Flavia is a selfish jerk who deserves all the opprobrium her older sisters can lay on her, and then some. I had heard such good things about this book, and about the audiobook, and even though it didn't seem like my sort of thing, I'm all about trying on books I ...more

1 like · Like · see review

May 05, 2010 Tony rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: novels

I'm always on the lookout for mysteries featuring unusual protagonists, and the 11-year-old girl genius at the heart of this book certainly fits that description. Flavia de Luce lives in a ramshackle English country manor house sometime around 1950, with her withdrawn and distant war hero father, and her two incredibly annoying older sisters (the mother died years ago). One morning a dead bird is left on the doorstep with a mysterious postage stamp on its beak, and soon thereafter a body is foun I'm always on the lookout for mysteries featuring unusual protagonists, and the 11-year-old girl genius at the heart of this book certainly fits that description. Flavia de Luce lives in a ramshackle English country manor house sometime around 1950, with her withdrawn and distant war hero father, and her two incredibly annoying older sisters (the mother died years ago). One morning a dead bird is left on the doorstep with a mysterious postage stamp on its beak, and soon thereafter a body is found in the cucumber patch! It's pretty clear we're in a classic British village cozy mystery.

The story capitalizes on the cliche that, like elderly ladies (I'm looking at you Ms. Marple), no one really notices children or pays too much attention to their nosiness. So, Flavia is free to race around on her trusty bike, digging into newspaper archives, talking to old-timers, and poking through the belongings of a lodger at the village pub. It's not mere preciousness (although there is an excess of this) that drives her -- the police have arrested her father, and believe him to be guilty of killing the person in the cucumber patch.

The whys are wherefores revolve around stamp collecting and a dark event from her father's schoolboy days at the local prep school. Unfortunately, it's the kind of mystery where as each element was revealed, I found myself less and less on board with the whole story. Part of the problem is that it becomes all too obvious who the true killer is and why. I'm not the kind of person who tries to solve a mystery while reading, but it's pretty hard not to do so here. Another large problem is the character of Flavia herself: she's just far too precocious, plucky, and bright for her age. Her personality wears pretty thin, and I found myself less and less interested in spending time with her as the book rolled on.

All that said, I can see how she might develop into a richer character, as the author finds a more nuanced voice for her. There are some nice good scenes of genuine peril, and if he can come up with some more perplexing intrigues for her, Flavia might be a character to get to know as she grows older. ...more

Like · see review

Aug 17, 2011 mstan rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery, canadian, src-fall-2011

I was hoping to like this a lot more, but it was alright for the most part, with Flavia's voice coming alive and improving things on a few occasions. A historical 'English' mystery set in a charming village and a very young female chemist who is at odds with her two elder sisters seem like just the right mix of odd ingredients that would tempt me, but there is something off about the pacing of the mystery, which is at some points unnecessarily convoluted.

This is also one of those situations wher ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Feb 27, 2013 Lori rated it really liked it · review of another edition

This was such a fun read! A strong adolescent girl in 1950's England who has a gift for chemistry and a penchant for solving crimes. Who could ask for anything more? ...more

Like · see review