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franny2111's review
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
samiism's review
3.0
Murder is not an easy subject to broach, and I realized that I needed to take it easy on this boy. He was, after all, not much older than me. "Where's the corpse?" I asked.
Eleven-year-old Flavia de Luce, chemical connoisseur and amateur detective, receives a non-postmarked letter on a Sunday that goes: Murder! Come at once. Anson House, Greyminster, Staircase No. 3, J. Plaxton.
A normal person would tread lightly. She does not know who the sender is. Personally, I would think it's a trap. But I'm terribly paranoid. I am assuming that this isn't Flavia's first foray into mysterious situations. She immediately hops on her bicycle Gladys and heads for Anson House. There, she meets a boy not much older than her, who directs her into a busted loo where a naked dead man in the tub. And he seemed to have been carved out of copper. And he is Mr. Denning, the housemaster. Ooooh!
I immediately like Flavia, although I am just 12 pages in. When the Plaxton boy comments that the crime scene is probably no place for a girl, she snaps back: "Girl be blowed! I'm here as a brain, not as a female." Such sass! She also takes no bullshit from teenage boys. "I live on petrol fumes and swill motor oil for breakfast," she says when confronted by bullies.
It's a short story, full of wit and snark. Flavia was a fun character to read.
elysahenegar's review
4.0
Short and sweet, but fun!
A short (literally, a short story), delicious bite of Bradley's usual charm! Makes me excited to read the next full length Flavia mystery!
A short (literally, a short story), delicious bite of Bradley's usual charm! Makes me excited to read the next full length Flavia mystery!
novelesque_life's review
4.0
4 STARS
"Murder! the letter says, Come at once. Anson House, Greyminster, Staircase No. 3. How can Flavia de Luce resist such an urgent plea? After all, examining a dead body sounds like a perfectly splendid way to spend a Sunday. So Flavia hops upon her trusted bicycle, Gladys, whose rubber tires hiss happily along the rainy road, and arrives at her father's mist-shrouded old school. There, a terrified boy leads her to the loo where, sitting in a bathtub, is what appears to be a statue. But, no: To Flavia's surprise, the thing is in fact a naked dead man. Save his face, he seems to have been carved out of copper. Never one to shy away from the macabre, Flavia gets to work - only to find that when an investigation begins with a metallic cadaver, ever more curious twists are to be expected." (From Amazon)
This is the first Flavia novella and it is a cute short mystery. While I enjoy the novels a lot better this felt like a five minute mystery tale.
"Murder! the letter says, Come at once. Anson House, Greyminster, Staircase No. 3. How can Flavia de Luce resist such an urgent plea? After all, examining a dead body sounds like a perfectly splendid way to spend a Sunday. So Flavia hops upon her trusted bicycle, Gladys, whose rubber tires hiss happily along the rainy road, and arrives at her father's mist-shrouded old school. There, a terrified boy leads her to the loo where, sitting in a bathtub, is what appears to be a statue. But, no: To Flavia's surprise, the thing is in fact a naked dead man. Save his face, he seems to have been carved out of copper. Never one to shy away from the macabre, Flavia gets to work - only to find that when an investigation begins with a metallic cadaver, ever more curious twists are to be expected." (From Amazon)
This is the first Flavia novella and it is a cute short mystery. While I enjoy the novels a lot better this felt like a five minute mystery tale.
mick_travel's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
nglofile's review against another edition
3.0
An amuse-bouche. A little thin even for a (very) short story, but I'll take any time spent in Flavia's company.
wanderaven's review
3.0
If you're an earnest Flavia de Luce devotee as I am, you may be aware that there's a new novel out in January but you may not know there's a (very!) brief Flavia short just released. This is the first Kindle Single in the Flavia series (#6.5).
This is a quick in and out. No time wasted on backstory or even really any setting at all for Flavia; if you read this short story knowing nothing about Flavia, you'll be utterly lost. Flavia is summoned by a cryptic message to a boys' school where there's... well, a copper corpse hanging out in a bathtub.
Fun, witty, cute ramping up to the new novel in just a couple of weeks!
This is a quick in and out. No time wasted on backstory or even really any setting at all for Flavia; if you read this short story knowing nothing about Flavia, you'll be utterly lost. Flavia is summoned by a cryptic message to a boys' school where there's... well, a copper corpse hanging out in a bathtub.
Fun, witty, cute ramping up to the new novel in just a couple of weeks!
melli80's review
3.0
kinda short.
Even though I knew it was a short story, I wasn't too thrilled because it lacked the excitement I was expecting. It was a straight threw story, no mystery it went from crime to ending with little in the middle to work up to the conclusion.
Even though I knew it was a short story, I wasn't too thrilled because it lacked the excitement I was expecting. It was a straight threw story, no mystery it went from crime to ending with little in the middle to work up to the conclusion.