The Weed that Strings the Hangman’s Bag by Alan Bradley
by Jenners • 04/03/2010 • 3.5 Stars, B Authors, Fiction, Mystery/Thriller, W Titles • 14 Comments
2 Words that describe the book: Girl detective
3 Settings where it took place or characters you met:
- Setting: 1950s England in and about the village of Bishop’s Lacey
- Flavia de Luce—The precocious, fearless, trouble-making, sneaky, aspiring chemist/amateur detective is back for another installment of this delightful series. Flavia is 11-years-old going on 30, and her quick thinking, penchant for trouble and inquisitiveness bring her once again into the thick of a murder mystery.
- Rupert Porson—Talented puppeteer and BBC star with a bit of a shady personal life (womanizing and smoking a peculiar weed in the woods), Rupert brings his traveling show to Bishop’s Lacey after his van breaks down. But when Rupert ends up dead, Flavia begins to discover that this might not be Rupert’s first visit to Bishop’s Lacey.
4 Things you liked and/or disliked about it:
- I liked Flavia. For me, the appeal of these books is Ms. de Luce, who flies through the village on her trusty bicycle Gladys and pokes her nose everywhere it doesn’t belong. Whether she is poisoning (only slightly) chocolates, sneaking peeks into coffins or attempting to help a damsel in distress (this time it is Nialla, Rupert’s current assistant), Flavia is filled with charm, derring do and smarts.
- I liked how we get to revisit some of the villagers we met in the first book: Mrs. Mullet (the de Luce housekeeper, gossip extraordinaire, and maker of inedible food); Dogger (a former prisoner of war who works for the de Luce’s in whatever capacity his mental state permits and one of Flavia’s few confidants); and Inspector Hewitt (who turns out to have an exotic wife and infinite patience for Flavia’s meddling into his investigations).
- I disliked that the story didn’t seems as fully developed as the first one. (Of course, this is usually the case with series. You fall in love with the first book and then get comfortable with the second, usually noticing a few more flaws on the second time around.) And I’m officially giving Mr. Bradley an award for “Longest and Oddest Book Titles.”
- I liked that Bradley is already working on the third Flavia book. She is a character that deserves a nice long series. I’d love to see her in school though … think of the troubles she could cause in a classroom!
5 Stars or less for your rating?
I’m giving the book 3.5 stars (which is reserved for books I really enjoyed but thought had some flaws that prevented me from really really falling in love with them. Think of it as a B-). This was a charming and fun book, but I felt like the story was rushed along a bit and could have been more developed. As with the first book, the mystery is almost beside the point; this is a character-driven series and what a wonderful character Flavia is. I highly recommend this book for Flavia fans, but if you are new to the series, I think it is best to start with the first book, The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie (you can read my review here). Did anyone else who read both books get a similar feeling as I did from this one or am I being a grump?
The Whys and Wheres: I got my copy from the library, putting it on hold as soon as I knew it was released. I’ll be doing the same with the next installment, which is tentatively titled A Red Herring Without Mustard.
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And it seems our hostess has been missing in action since November so if you want to join in and keep this wonderful meme going, please use Mr. Linky below. (Keep in mind that I’m taking a brief blogging hiatus and won’t be able to visit your posts until later.)
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i'm taking your greg iles book on a trip
and looking forward to it!
Hope you're enjoying your break. Good luck
I just got the first book in the series on audio, so I'm behind, as usual.
Make you sure you read Lesa's review of Alan Bradley's visit to her library. He is as quirky as Flavia!!
http://lesasbookcritiques.blogspot.com/2010/04/alan-bradley-for-authors-teague.html
i love the tentative title for book 3–so funny! i've read about the first book (here, i think) and keep meaning to get it. each time i go to the library, i pull up all the blogs i read to see what other bloggers recommend. i wander around with my iphone, searching the shelves.
i'm going to try and scoop this series up today!
nat @ book, line, and sinker
I enjoyed the first, but will probably wait for the second to come out in softcover (I love the covers, btw). I'm sure by then I will have forgotten enough of the first to make a serious comparison.
I find that often the first in a series is a little awkward and stilted with introducing the main players, etc. Many improve with each installment as we all (including the author) grow more comfortable with the characters.
I haven't read the first one you sent me, although it is in the top 10 at my bedside. It is hard, when you hit a home run with the first of a series, to keep up the pace. Still, I will most definitely be reading it!
I've read such good reviews for these books. I hope the third gets here soon and you enjoy it as much as the first!
I have The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie out of the library. I hope to start it later today. It is sad to see that the second n the series isn't as good, but I hope I enjoy the first as much as everyone else.
I liked the first…didn't love it but liked it…but somehow I am not very motivated to read this second one.
I thought the mystery was stronger in this one than in the first — which pleased me quite a bit. You've also just barely read the first book while I read it a while ago so I think you are comparing them more closely than I did. I have a very bad memory.
I'm still waiting to read this one so trying hard not to read your review.
Hope you're enjoying your break.
But didn't I just see you in an almost nude get-up saying you were going on break?!!!
Good review. I'll keep it in mind when I get the first one done!