Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew'd

by Alan Bradley

Part of Flavia de Luce, book 8

First published 2016

Twelve-year-old Flavia de Luce returns from Miss Bodycote's Female Academy in Canada, eager for a Christmas homecoming at Buckshaw. Instead she learns her father lies ill in hospital. The house feels wrong with her sisters and cousin around but her father absent. When the vicar's wife asks her to deliver a message, Flavia jumps at the chance to escape on her bicycle Gladys. She finds the reclusive wood-carver's front door open and discovers his body hanging upside down on his bedroom door. Only a cat witnesses the grisly scene. The discovery energizes Flavia, who sees a new mystery to solve. But this investigation will challenge her more deeply than she expects. The young sleuth must use her scientific mind and knowledge of poisons to uncover the truth behind the death, all while dealing with family troubles that threaten to shake her world.

Genres: historical-fiction, mystery, crime, young-adult

Vibes: cozy, suspenseful, thought-provoking

Tropes: amateur-detective, found-family

Setting: Buckshaw, Canada

Period: Christmas

331 pages · Hardcover · Delacorte Press

More by Alan Bradley

• A Study in Sherlock
• Speaking from Among the Bones
• The Dead in Their Vaulted Arches
• As Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust
• The Grave's a Fine and Private Place
• The Golden Tresses of the Dead
• The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie
• The Weed That Strings the Hangman's Bag

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