This is book 11 in the Flavia de Luce series. I thought this series ended with book 10. It's been several years since 10 was published. A mysterious villager, Major Greyleigh, a virtual hermit and former public hangman with stomach-curdling deeds in his past, has been found dead, killed by ingesting poisonous mushrooms.In her search for the murderer, Flavia becomes entangled with the families of those who have lost relatives to the dead man, only to be led to the most unlikely of suspects.

It feels like it has been so long since I was able to enjoy a new Flavia story! This one was worth the wait. I love that this 12 year old Flavia has matured a little bit over the years. The parts when she was frustrated with her wild and wayward cousin Undine.
Like many, I'm drawn to these books for the quirky characters (especially Flavia and Dogger), and the charming setting. Fans of the series will enjoy this surprise.

Loads of fun - wordplay of the highest order, a delightfully wry protagonist whose competence only occasionally causes raised eyebrows amongst the men - what more do you need? An engaging addition to the "cozy" shelf.

What Time the Sexton’s Spade Doth Rust by Alan Bradley

This is latest saga of Flavia de Luce after a long hiatus, so I was thrilled to see it and have a chance to review it. I thoroughly enjoyed the first books with the little budding chemist and sleuth. They were captivating in dialogue and in plot. I had missed the last few in the series so thought it would be great fun catching up. I am sorry to say it was not. Flavia is growing up a bit, and Bradley has lost the lightness with which his protagonist viewed things. The plot of this one started out fine, and our old friends Dogger and Mrs. Mullet were in action, along with help/interference from cousin Undine. But halfway through the whole plot went south, and my joy in the book went with it. If that was the best idea Alan Bradley could come up with, he needs to start another series and leave poor Flavia alone. We do NOT want to go down that direction AT ALL!

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House for an ARC in exchange for an unbiased review.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House for the ARC.

I like the direction that this went! You have a case that personally affects Flavia; her family's cook, Mrs. Mullet is (possibly) framed for murder. Flavia finally starts to like her cousin Undine and even feels protective over her as she follows and pokes her nose in the murder. Flavia uncovers more details of her family's secret role in the government, and decides whether she even wants to be a part of it. It's all the wit and sleuthing of previous entries, with more character growth overall.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6607813281

https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/50bb8063-d4d8-4d25-beeb-09cbac4a1a29

Check out this review of What Time the Sexton's Spade Doth Rust on Fable. https://fable.co/review/e979791d-05c3-41e3-a8c3-df8815c1970b/share

The latest Flavia de Luce novel accomplishes quite a bit for the series. 1) Flavia's more emotional and loving relationships are cemented. I appreciate this, as her relations with her estranged father and often cruel sisters were getting frustrating, repetitive, and more than a little sad: 2) we are more cemented in the England of her time. The outside world and the aftermath of WWII intrude even further into Buckshaw, and it's interesting to see Flavia become more aware of the continuing American presence and what it means for her family specifically and for England generally. 3) This seems to close some of the doors to the past and open up new possibilities for Flavia, Dogger, Mrs. Mullet, and Undine (and Daffy, I suppose). If I was new to this series, the B and C storylines could be confusing, but as a person who has read all of the entries, I found it satisfying. It's not a stand-alone, that's for sure. Despite that potential barrier to entry, I definitely recommend it. Perfect for a long travel day during this holiday season!

This is the 11th installment of the Flavia de Luce mystery series and a great addition. Flavia has a murder to investigate in order to clear her beloved housekeeper. The writing is crisp and witty capturing Flavia’s quirky aspects. I loved following along on her newest adventure.
Many thanks to Random House and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

What Time the Sexton's Spade Doth Rust is the 11th Flavia de Luce novel by Alan Bradley. Released 3rd Sept 2024 by by Penguin Random House on their Bantam book imprint, it's 320 pages and available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout.

Flavia is wickedly wryly funny (and clever) and Bradley is a truly prodigiously gifted author. She and her dogsbody/batman, appropriately named Dogger are a force to be reckoned with and outmaneuver, outflank and outwit all comers. She's possessed of a Greek Nemesis' brain strapped into the body of a precocious adolescent and all bets are off.

This book doesn't work particularly well as a standalone. Whilst most of the necessary background info is provided by the author (cleverly not "telling" but always "showing"), there are a number of spoilers/plot twists from previous entries which are directly referred to in this book. Much more fun to find a rainy fall weekend and binge read the whole series.

For readers who are unfamiliar with Flavia, she's not your average youngster. She's self contained and prodigiously interested in chemistry and crime. Dogger does most of the heavy lifting.

I don't often laugh out loud at books, but I have done so with every single one of the Flavia books.

I have recommended these books to my circle of crime-reading friends and the verdicts seem to be almost evenly split between 'wonderful' and 'no, thanks'. Definitely worth a try if you appreciate very well crafted mysteries with a touch of the absurd and/or slightly gallows humor.

Four and a half stars in my appreciative estimation. Long may she reign!

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

In full honesty, I spent this summer trying to get caught up on all the Flavia de Luce books. I made it to #4 and a lot clearly happens between #4-#11. So, I was a bit in the dark on some of the things going on that were continuations from earlier parts of the series. I’m sure that affected part of my enjoyment of the book. But, Flavia was still her witty, spunky self. I was glad to see Gladys, her trusty bike, is still in working order.

“I have to admit that I’d been praying for ages to God, the Virgin Mary, and all the saints for a jolly good old-fashioned mushroom poisoning. Not that I wanted anyone to die, but why give a girl a gift of science—of chemistry, to be precise—such as mine without giving her the opportunity to use it?”

As you can imagine, Flavia is still obsessed with death which of course is quite odd for an 11-12-year-old. When a local villager and former hangman (that was really a position?) is found dead, Mrs. Mullet, Flavia’s beloved housekeeper, is the first one questioned. Mrs. Mullet has been feeding him breakfast every morning and he may have died from poisonous mushrooms. Flavia, of course, has to get to the bottom of this case, even though she has been told numerous times to stay out of it.

“I was beginning to learn that when you’re bereaved, as I have been, you live in a shattered looking-glass world. Nothing is as it seems. I needed to focus: to pull myself back together into that single, intense, burning intelligence I once had been. And I needed to do it quickly.”

Flavia is grieving the death of her beloved father and makes some hasty decisions that put her in a bit of trouble. I had to quickly skim over quite a few pages of this section as it was difficult to read because her particular situation in the story is a major fear of mine. I even had a nightmare related to it. Of course, Flavia finds the murderer and informs the authorities, so all ends well. But, it was a little touch and go for a bit.

“It’s strange, isn’t it, how sadness is first detected by the nose? One would expect the eyes to lead the way, but it’s invariably the nose that triggers the earliest alarm. Sadness is much like smoke, I’ve decided: an odor raised at the very doorstep of the brain.”

I do think those who have loved the series will enjoy this one as well. Compared to the first four, it wasn’t my favorite, but that could be due to my own issues and not related to the story as a whole.

So weird and so enjoyable. It was a brain exercise to read this. I enjoy these kind of odd books that make you actually work for it

I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Have you ever jumped into a book or series without ever reading any previous book by that author or within that specific series? Not sure if that makes sense right now, but that's exactly what happened to me.

When I originally asked for this book, I had no idea it was book eleven until after downloading it. That being said, I still dove into it without reading the previous ten books and have zero regrets. If anything, this book alone is wanting me to dive into book one just to see what Flavia gets into exactly.

Speaking of Flavia, I absolutely loved her. She's hilarious, and I love how her little cousin, Undine, gets under her skin. I laughed so much whenever they were interacting with one another. Then there's Dogger, and I equally adored him. The way he would treat Flavia as an equal just made my heart happy. Other than that, I really enjoyed how they all handled the investigation and worked together to figure out the truth.

In the end, I may have started this series with book eleven, but I will obviously try my very best to get my hands on book one as soon as possible. I need more sleuthing adventures, especially if it is an audiobook.

Flavia deLuce is back again and I have been eagerly awaiting her return, though I wasn't sure if she would. This installment is a wild ride that I absolutely loved because Alan Bradley just delivers every time. Flavia has had to do some growing up in the previous book, and more in this one as well because with her parents deceased she is the heiress of Buckshaw which comes with taking care of her employees-Mrs. Mullet, the cook, and Dogger, the man of many talents and other half of the deLuce investigative team, not to mention her orphaned younger cousin Undine. Her sisters are moving on with their lives in expected ways, Feely has married and is on honeymoon but will presumably live with her husband, and Daffy will attend University soon which leaves Flavia feeling quite abandoned and realizing she now has to take the older sister role for Undine (and maybe is starting to realize how she appeared to her own sisters).

Mrs. Mullet is implicated in a murder, but of course Flavia knows Mrs. Mullet would never do that. Flavia, with Undine in tow (unfortunately for Flavia) will uncover the murderer, the motive, and reveal much more than she bargained for. The innocence of childhood and ignorance of what goes on in her small parish is being seared away with flame.

Absolutely gobsmacked at the ending of this book and I can see why it took Bradley some time to release it.

Most recent Flavia de Luce book. I thought this series was done, but Flavia is back. I haven't been that enthralled by these for the last few books, especially since Undine, the little cousin, came on the scene. It has been so long since the previous book that I had forgotten a major plot point. This was decent, but the earlier books in the series are better and maybe it's time for Flavia to grow up and move on? 3 stars

What Time the Sexton's Spade Doth Rust by Alan Bradley is the 11th book in the Flavia de Luce Mystery series.

Flavia is a young girl who repeatedly finds herself in close proximity to an unsolved murder. An amateur sleuth, Flavia often solves the crime before the local police.

This time, Flavia must clear the name of her family’s cook, Mrs. Mullet. Surely Mrs. Mullet didn’t mean to poison the Major when she cooked him those mushrooms for breakfast?

If you like murder mysteries, historical fiction, and unexpected characters as detectives, I highly recommend Flavia de Lucia. I recommend starting at the beginning of the series, as many events shape Flavia’s life and her family, and it is necessary to understand the plot points in later books.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4 out of 5)

I saw this coming a few books back but was delighted to read Mr. Bradley’s handling of the situation. Flavia is maturing and being tortured by a younger cousin (who certainly smacks of a younger Flavia) as she winds her way through managing her late father’s estate while never taking her eye off the local scene for murder and whatever.

In all of Bradley’s books there are snippets of wit and wisdom: “when you know a person’s name, you have very great power over them…” “The making of a pot of tea is a blessing.” Flavia maintains a smile embracing cheap isolation from the world knowing that “the best smile is for oneself”. But not all is a smile, a witticism, there are deeper social and moral issues at hand and once again Flavia is going to take another large step toward adulthood.

This installment was a long time coming but I am so grateful that it has arrived. It is bright, cheeky, intelligent and well written. Thanks to Bantam Books and NetGalley for a copy.

Delightful continuation to a delightful series; Flavia deLuce continues to be a chemical force of nature and the voice she's given continues to delight.

This is my second Flavia DeLuce novel. I could not finish the first, but actually enjoyed this one. There are some questionable holes in the story, but the story flows nicely. Perhaps I'll have to go back and reread the first one.

Flavia de Luce finds herself once again looking into a murder when the local recluse is murdered and all signs point to her family's longtime cook. She'll have to explore dangerous clues and put more than just herself in danger if she wants to reveal the truth, but is she ready for what she might uncover?

I can see why it's a popular series and think it might partly be that I've been told how amazing it is ad nauseam, but it ultimately wasn't for me. The writing is good if a little too stoic for me, feeling forced when moments that were supposed to be funny and dragging in between the big moments. Flavia is a complex character and I love that such a smart female is the lead, she just never quite captured my attention.

Overall, it's a solidly written story that I can recognize is good, but it just didn't click with me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bantam for the chance to read.

What Time the Sexton's Spade doth Rust by Alan Bradley
#Flaviadeluce11
#historicalmystery

When I requested this book from #netgalley, I had no idea that it was number 11 in a series. 🤦 But I still surprisingly still liked the book. I was not confused at all. I just wished I had more background for the main character Flavia and the few side characters. I bet if I was reading this with the series I'd give it a full 5 stars.

This book takes place in the English countryside shortly after WW2. Flavia appears to be an older teen who has been orphaned and still living with the family housekeeper and an orphaned cousin. Both who have pretty big roles in the book. But for some reason, Flavia seems to always be near enough to dead bodies to have annoyed the dopey police officer that always gets assigned to investigate these deaths.

#whatimethesextonsspadedothrust
#randomhousepublishing
#ballentinebooks

Flavia is back and grieving the death of her father while dodging her annoying cousin Undine's attempts to become partners in solving murders in the quaint British village near her ancestral home of Buckshaw. This time the family's longtime cook is implicated in a former hangman's suspicious death and Flavia must step in quickly to find the real murderer. A hilarious romp with a young heroine that is still as fascinating as ever. Author Bradley continues to deliver lovely mysteries, while further developing his beloved characters.