<b>“Every Flavia de Luce novel is a reason to celebrate.”—<i>USA Today</i></b><br> <b> </b><br> <b>ALAN BRADLEY, AUTHOR OF THE MOST AWARD-WINNING SERIES DEBUT OF ANY YEAR, RETURNS WITH ANOTHER IRRESISTIBLE FLAVIA DE LUCE NOVEL.</b><br> <b> </b><br> <b>“[Alan] Bradley has created one of the most original, charming, devilishly creative and hilarious detectives of any age or any time.”—Bookreporter</b><br> <br> It’s Christmastime, and Flavia de Luce—an eleven-year-old sleuth with a passion for chemistry—is tucked away in her laboratory, whipping up a concoction to ensnare Saint Nick. But she is soon distracted when a film crew arrives at Buckshaw, the de Luces’ decaying English estate, to shoot a movie starring the famed Phyllis Wyvern. Amid a raging blizzard, the entire village of Bishop’s Lacey gathers at Buckshaw to watch Wyvern perform, yet nobody is prepared for the evening’s shocking conclusion: a body found strangled to death with a length of film. But who among the assembled guests would stage such a chilling scene? As the storm worsens and the list of suspects grows, Flavia must ferret out a killer hidden in plain sight.<br> <br> <b>“[Flavia is] the most intrepid and charming adolescent chemist/detective/busybody in all of rural, post–World War II England.”—<i>The Seattle Times</i></b><br> <br> <b>“Quirky and delightful . . . Flavia is a classic literary character who manages to appeal to both young and old readers equally.”—Wichita Falls <i>Times Record News</i></b><br> <b> </b><br> <b>“Bradley’s plot twists and turns delightfully.”<i>—Fort Worth Star-Telegram</i></b><br> <b> </b><br> <b>NAMED ONE OF THE BEST MYSTERIES OF THE YEAR BY<i> THE SEATTLE TIMES</i></b>