Book Review: As Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust by Alan Bradley

As Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust by Alan Bradley
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Publication date: January 2015
Pages: 392
Source: e-book from library
For: Flavia!
Series: Flavia de Luce, Book 7

 
Summary (from goodreads): *Spoilers are inevitable for the first 7 books*

Hard on the heels of the return of her mother’s body from the frozen reaches of the Himalayas, Flavia, for her indiscretions, is banished from her home at Buckshaw and shipped across the ocean to Miss Bodycote’s Female Academy in Toronto, her mother’s alma mater, there to be inducted into a mysterious organization known as the Nide.

No sooner does she arrive, however, than a body comes crashing down out of the chimney and into her room, setting off a series of investigations into mysterious disappearances of girls from the school.

Things I Liked:
More Flavia! It was different, what with being in a completely different setting.  It was kind of fun to see her try to figure things out in her school.  I got rather confused a number of times, since I could never tell which student or teacher to rely on.  At least at home she could depend on certain people to be good, but here everyone was a suspect.  It was a boarding school romp for Flavia and such fun for me to read.

Things I Didn't Like:
The ending left me a bit confused - why did she go there in the first place? I'm trying not to spoil it, though I doubt it would ruin the story, but it seemed like everything was negated by the ending.  I'm hoping for more, just so I can read more Flavia.

Read-alikes:
Start with The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !
maybe one or two

mrg-factor: none

v-factor: ->
there's a bit of the macabre

Overall rating: ****