The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie

A Flavia de Luce Mystery

By: Alan Bradley

Narrated by: Jayne Entwistle

Length: 9 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's summary

In his wickedly brilliant first novel, Debut Dagger Award winner Alan Bradley introduces one of the most singular and engaging heroines in recent fiction: Eleven-year-old Flavia de Luce, an aspiring chemist with a passion for poison.

It is the summer of 1950 - and a series of inexplicable events has struck Buckshaw, the decaying English mansion that Flavia’s family calls home. A dead bird is found on the doorstep, a postage stamp bizarrely pinned to its beak. Hours later, Flavia finds a man lying in the cucumber patch and watches him as he takes his dying breath. For Flavia, who is both appalled and delighted, life begins in earnest when murder comes to Buckshaw. “I wish I could say I was afraid, but I wasn’t. Quite the contrary. This was by far the most interesting thing that had ever happened to me in my entire life".

To Flavia the investigation is the stuff of science: Full of possibilities, contradictions, and connections. Soon her father, a man raising his three daughters alone, is seized, accused of murder. And in a police cell, during a violent thunderstorm, Colonel de Luce tells his daughter an astounding story - of a schoolboy friendship turned ugly, of a priceless object that vanished in a bizarre and brazen act of thievery, of a Latin teacher who flung himself to his death from the school’s tower 30 years before. Now Flavia is armed with more than enough knowledge to tie two distant deaths together, to examine new suspects, and begin a search that will lead her all the way to the King of England himself. Of this much the girl is sure: Her father is innocent of murder - but protecting her and her sisters from something even worse...

An enthralling mystery, a piercing depiction of class and society, The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie is a masterfully told tale of deceptions - and a rich literary delight.

©2009 Alan Bradley (P)2009 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"Brilliant, irresistible and incorrigible, Flavia has a long future ahead of her...Bradley's mystery debut is a standout." (Kirkus Reviews)

"Fun for the reader.... Fans of Louise Fitzhugh's iconic Harriet the Spy will welcome 11-year-old sleuth Flavia de Luce, the heroine of...Bradley's rollicking debut." (Publishers Weekly)

"While Flavia De Luce is winning your heart, she may also be poisoning your tea. She's the most wickedly funny sleuth in years, brilliant, unpredictable, unflappable - and only eleven. The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie offers the freshest new voice in mystery yet." (Charles Todd, author of The Ian Rutledge series)

Delightful, riveting, uplifting

Fantastic reader. Protagonist is delightful and so clever. I will certainly listen to this again!

Charming story, great narration

This was just a sweet little book with a charming main character. It's not particularly deep, but sometimes you have to shake things up a little and listen to something that's just fun, and this fits the bill.

Some reviewers don't care for the narration, and I understand that not all voices are right for everyone. However, I've listened to several books read by Jayne Entwistle and I quite enjoy listening to her. Her voice is unique, but it is truly her voice, not her "trying to sound like an 11-year-old" as one reviewer said.

Fun read

I enjoyed this story very much. It was bit hard to believe an 11 year old could be so brilliant and so unemotional. I loved her progression in understanding not only her father but her sisters and household servants. Very creative indeed.

A New Best Friend

What made the experience of listening to The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie the most enjoyable?

The reader made this 'listen' very fun. I think the story was less engrossing than Flavia's voice and tone. Jayne Entwistle was exquisite in capturing Flavia's precocious love of life and total self-abandonment in her quest. If I could pick a best friend to accompanying me through childhood and today, it'd be Flavia! I only hope she gets on better with her sisters in sequels.

Amazing Narrator for a Delightful Story

Flavia, 11 year old chemist is determined to solve a murder, to prove her father innocent.
Her widower father lost in his obsession of stamp collecting, barely notices the lives of his three daughters.
The character development of the three so very different sisters is spot on. Girls play tricks on one another, yet in the end, prove their drive to protect and love their "crazy" sister. Most enjoyable tale girls and women may love.

Flavia is a delight

Oh, why did I wait so long to read this book? For years I have heard nothing but good things about Flavia De Luce, yet I left her sitting on my shelf, gathering dust for years. So, I finally decided to give in and pick up the audio version of the novel to enhance my experience. I was captivated.

Okay, yes, an 11-year-old sleuth solving a murder is fairly unrealistic. However, I loved Flavia so much, her dry humour had me chuckling throughout the story.

On top of that, what I liked about this particular book was that the mystery was quite interesting despite a rather obvious killer, and I learned a few interesting tidbits about philately along the way.

As for the narration, I wasn't quite sure that I liked Jayne Entwistle at first, although after warming up to the voice, I thought she did an excellent job bringing Flavia to life.

In the end, I absolutely loved The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, and I cannot wait to follow Flavia's adventures in the following books.

I would highly recommend this story to my fellow mystery lovers.

Cheeky, British, Precocious...

Easy listen. The reader maintains her character throughout. This is a cozy mystery to be sure.

Smart and Sassy

A clever, sassy, Nancy Drew like book with a young girl who loves chemistry and mystery. A fun, fast paced ride with our heroine Flavia, the youngest of three girls being raised by their father. Flavia's angst and curiosity is entertaining and hits on all cylinders in this cozy murder mystery that can be enjoyed by young and old alike. A good story mixed with good narration makes for a win, win adventure.

Enjoyable for all ages

This would be a great book to listen to on familiy vacations. I did not expect to enjoy with the age of the narrator and the very childish sounding performer. But it won me over and I expect to listen to more in the series. Very funny at times and touching at others.

A Delightful Surprise

I love the British mystery genre, and this, with a child as narrator, takes the cake! Ingeniously written,
with a flawless reader, this speeds along engaging the listener with the characters, the little pies of the puzzle
(or should I say 'pie'?) that get assembled as the plot proceeds. Well done!