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A review by book_concierge
A Red Herring Without Mustard by Alan Bradley
4.0
Book on CD performed by Jayne Entwistle
4****
The third installment in this series starring a precocious 11-year-old chemistry wizard finds our heroine, Flavia de Luce, caught up with an old gypsy woman and her granddaughter.
I really enjoy this series, and this one is quite good. Bradley puts far less emphasis on Flavia’s chemistry wizardry, and relies more on her indomitable spirit, her curiosity, grace under pressure, quick thinking, and ability to lie through her teeth. Yes, her sisters continue to harangue her (an element of the series that I don’t like), but this is far less prevalent than in earlier books. Yes, her father remains aloof and worried about finances, but he also clearly understands his child and takes one measure at the end that demonstrates how much he cares about her.
Jayne Entwistle is simply brilliant performing this series on audio. Her talent as a voice artist gives the listener a believable 11-year-old Flavia, as well as myriad adults who attempt to dissuade her from sleuthing. Her pacing is fast enough to convey the sense of urgency and suspense, but not so fast as to affect the listener’s understanding. Her performance raises the rating from 3.5 to 4 stars.
4****
The third installment in this series starring a precocious 11-year-old chemistry wizard finds our heroine, Flavia de Luce, caught up with an old gypsy woman and her granddaughter.
I really enjoy this series, and this one is quite good. Bradley puts far less emphasis on Flavia’s chemistry wizardry, and relies more on her indomitable spirit, her curiosity, grace under pressure, quick thinking, and ability to lie through her teeth. Yes, her sisters continue to harangue her (an element of the series that I don’t like), but this is far less prevalent than in earlier books. Yes, her father remains aloof and worried about finances, but he also clearly understands his child and takes one measure at the end that demonstrates how much he cares about her.
Jayne Entwistle is simply brilliant performing this series on audio. Her talent as a voice artist gives the listener a believable 11-year-old Flavia, as well as myriad adults who attempt to dissuade her from sleuthing. Her pacing is fast enough to convey the sense of urgency and suspense, but not so fast as to affect the listener’s understanding. Her performance raises the rating from 3.5 to 4 stars.