Flavia de Luce is a brilliant, chaming and funny young woman. She's also great at solving crimes. So, when a former hangman Major Greyleigh dies after eating mushrooms, Flavia sets out to uncover the truth. The adults around her seem to be carrying secrets, though, that hinder her search. And one big surprise could be even more shocking than the murder.
This series is one of my favorites. I adore Flavia! However, this volume didn't hit as strong as previous books. Fortunately, I laughed out loud several times and will definitely read more books in this series. And the narrator of the audiobook is amazing!

I have read and loved all of the previous Flavia books and think the author is very talented and gifted. The plots and the exceptionally witty and fine writing have been consistent throughout the series. However, I'm so sorry to have to write that this long-awaited entry in the series disappointed. The character of Flavia is so endearing and charming but I did not get that from this book. The plot goes off track taking a twist that is very unexpected. It is a cruel twist for Flavia, who always bounces back, but who has been subjected to so much heartache already throughout the series. The best things about the book are the wonderful cast of characters and the clever writing style. I would recommend this series to anyone and suggest the books be read in order, but skip this one. Thanks to Net Galley for a copy of the latest book in a wonderful series.

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.

As with all Flavia de Luce novels, things are not always as they seem! Flavia shows great maturity as she move forward amidst surprises, all while solving a murder!

Flavia has another challenge to solve a murder of the hangman. Otherwise, her cook, Mrs. Mullet, will be charged with the man's death. There is her younger cousin, Undine, who pushes her way into the investigation with her witty or not so witty sayings.
There are some unexpected twists. Enjoy your read.

“Blood may be thicker than water, but it’s weak tea compared with the Official Secrets Act.”
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Thank you to Bantam and Netgalley for the eARC!
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Another gem of a Flavia novel from Alan Bradley! This series were the books that got me back into reading post college and I’m happy to say I’ve devoured them all! Flavia is as precocious and witty as ever as she sets about to clear her cook’s name from a grisly neighborhood murder. Yet she discovers much more than she bargained for, and we get glimpses that she just might be growing up. I love me some girl detective and I can’t wait for book 12 to see where Flavia takes us!
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If you love a snarky, sneaky and brilliant girl detective, this series may be for you, but you MUST read in order!

Flavia is doing what she does best, rattling around Buckshaw and Bishop's Lacey on her trusty steed Gladys looking for anything she can investigate. Who knows, with any luck there might be a murder. Sometimes though it's dangerous to get what you wish for. Major Greyleigh is a retired civil servant who is a bit of a recluse. Flavia doesn't know that her beloved housekeeper, Mrs. Mullet, has been checking up on the Major and making sure he's well fed. Which is how Mrs. Mullet ends up the prime suspect in his apparent murder. His final meal consisted of some rather poisonous mushrooms, a type of poisoning Flavia has longed to investigate for years. Flavia knows that there's no way Mrs. Mullet would kill a man on purpose, which means it's time to investigate. Which, unfortunately, is exactly what her annoying cousin Undine wants to help Flavia with. Thinking she's ditched the nefarious nuisance Flavia breaks into the Major's house and makes quite a few startling discoveries. The first is that while yes, he was a civil servant, that's an umbrella term that can cover a multitude of sins, because he was actually a hangman. A hangman that kept little trophies of all his victims. Fetishes of the departed. Talk about squick. Although Undine, who Flavia didn't lose, thinks they're rather fascinating. Though Flavia, having far more experience than the ubiquitous Undine, finds this to be only one line of questioning. Undine doesn't understand that after years of experience Flavia knows not to put all of her eggs in one basket. Especially once Mrs. Mullett is cleared Flavia has the distinct feeling that the Major and his death is being hushed up from on high. Someone wants all of this to go away, which is what makes Flavia even more interested. Why else would the police cede the case to the military? There are still Americans stationed at the local air base, Leathcote, and Flavia plies what wiles she has to get a little help in sneaking onto the base. What she finds there changes everything. Her life is upended, her future looks different, and if there's one thing she realizes it's that maybe it's time to grow up. Maybe it's time to reconsider her priorities and forge her own path. Though obviously if that path is strewn with dead bodies that would be brilliant.

I have been a fan of Flavia de Luce since day one. Just look to my signed first edition for my bona fides. Which means that I have strong opinions on this series. Of course you're wondering, when haven't I had strong opinions, which is valid, but this is a series with a cast of characters I've been living with for fifteen years, which if I'm right on the aging, means I've been reading these books for longer than Flavia's been alive... So when something doesn't sit right with me I obsess over it. And while I've had smaller issues crop up over the years with regard to this series, like why send Flavia to Canada at all if she'd return so quickly or what happened to her tutor or why is Undine so insufferable, there are two that have really stuck in my craw. The first is why did the series end after the tenth volume? Yes, ten is a nice number to end on and a wedding is always a nice stopping point, but with Flavia and Dogger setting up their own detective agency at the end of The Grave's a Fine and Private Place to have it really go nowhere with no resolution in The Golden Tresses of the Dead made for a lackluster finish. It just seemed like the series called time and this was what we were left with, an unplanned ending. But more importantly the way Flavia's father, Colonel Haviland de Luce, died of pneumonia offstage in Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew'd , has always pissed me off. It just didn't work on any level. I mean, why even kill him? If it was to provide an emotional punch or to set Flavia adrift, well, I'm sorry, but Dogger was more a dad to her than the Colonel ever was. He was always too busy with his stamps and his possibly performative mourning to even bother raising his children. And you might say I'm being harsh on the man, but, given what I now know, maybe I'm not being harsh enough. So to recap, my issues are why end on a book that didn't feel like the end and why kill of Colonel de Luce. This book so wonderfully addresses these issues just by its existence. Because here it is, an eleventh book with a twelfth on the way and this FEELS like the finale Flavia deserves. She breaks with the secretive spycraft of the past and decides to embrace what the future has to offer. And as for those secrets? Whoa boy, spoiler alert, her father isn't dead. I KNEW that pneumonia seemed overly convenient! And it was! A ruse to put him into hiding which makes me hate him more for putting his family through that grief but also, I feel redeemed for flagging his death as being too convenient. I was right! And yes, you might think that I get great joy over shouting this from the rooftops. But it's not because I'm right it's because I knew these characters and this world so well that I could sense a disturbance in the force. A disturbance that has since been fixed and it has put my heart at ease. I feel whole. I don't point to this series and say, I love it but... I can now point to this series and simply say I love it. Because I do. Now unreservedly. Murdered hangman and all.

This was my first book in the Flavia De Luce series and I loved it! It is a series I will be following from now on.
Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for this amazing ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Alan Bradley's Flavia de Luce series is a joy to read. Flavia is determined to solve the murder of Major Greyleigh in Bishop's Folly, not only because he was poisoned but because their cook is a suspect!

The police don't want her help, but that has never stopped her before. She identifies the poison, but the motive is harder to fathom. He was a hangman, but lived a quiet life otherwise. Could the murderer be the family of someone he hung, or someone closer to home?

I have enjoyed "watching" Flavia grow up throughout this series. In this book, she is facing the end of childhood, and is determined to not grow up so much that she loses interest in riding her bike, doing chemical experiments, and solving mysteries. Many women would see themselves in that fear. I also love her growing relationship with Undine, taking her under her wing and seeing past her off-putting behavior to the smart and beautiful child below.

Lovers of cozy mysteries and historical mysteries will enjoy Flavia very much.

Thanks to Netgalley for the advance copy of this book.

I was looking forward to getting reacquainted with Flavia, but this story fell short for me. I liked hearing more about Dogger, whom I loved from the previous stories. However, adding an odious relative to the mix did not seem like a great idea to me. I wanted to like this book better than I did but unfortunately it missed the mark. I am not sure where the author is going with this series.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review this book. The opinions in this review are my own.

I am a long-time fan of the Flavia de Luce series and enjoyed this latest mystery, It revolves around clearing Mrs. Mullet as a suspect in the murder of a local villager.

It does feel as if the series has settled in to a new direction - Flavia is a little more mature as she begins her new life as an orphan, having recently lost her father. I did miss having all three sisters under the same roof. I understand the addition of cousin Undine, however - if you watch US television you know the addition of a younger cousin can be bad for the series. (The Brady Bunch and cousin Oliver come to mind!) For me, the jury is still out on Undine.

Overall this is a solid mystery - new readers to the series should have no problem picking this one up.

This was my intro into the Flavia De'Luce world and I loved it! I have gone through the backlog now as well from my library. It is a series I will be following from now own!

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.

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.