The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie

By Alan Bradley

Book #1 in the Flavia de Luce series

A young chemist uncovers murder at her family's mansion.

3.8/5 Goodreads · 181,768 ratings

373 pages· 95,596 words

$17.00Save 7%

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Bookroo's summary

In 1950, young Flavia de Luce, a budding chemist with a penchant for poison, stumbles upon a dying man in her family's estate. As mysteries unfold, Flavia's curiosity leads her into a web of intrigue. What secrets lie beneath the surface of Buckshaw, and can Flavia solve the mystery before it's too late?

From the publisher

WINNER OF THE AGATHA - ARTHUR ELLIS - DILYS - DEBUT DAGGER AWARDS “Wonderfully entertaining . . . sure to be one of the most loved mysteries of the year . . . [Flavia is] a delightful, intrepid, acid-tongued new heroine.”–Chicago Sun-TimesIt is the summer of 1950-and at the once-grand mansion of Buckshaw, young Flavia de Luce, an aspiring chemist with a passion for poison, is intrigued by a series of inexplicable events: A dead bird is found on the doorstep, a postage stamp bizarrely pinned to its beak. Then, 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.” BONUS: This edition contains a The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie discussion guide and an excerpt from Alan Bradley’s The Weed That Strings the Hangman’s Bag.

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