The Dead in Their Vaulted Arches by Alan Bradley
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I’m afraid I was somewhat disappointed with Flavia’s latest outing, especially with the direction in which the series seems to be veering. One of the things I loved about the earlier novels was the interplay between the competing explanations of whatever mystery was at hand, many of which were fantastical. But in the end, the resolution was always resolutely practical and was revealed through Flavia’s precocious knowledge of chemistry.
The conclusion to this novel, which seems to set the stage for a plot of much grander scope and Dan Brown-esque complexity (and plausibility), happens with almost no involvement of Flavia at all. In fast, we never really learn how it comes about or why. If this is how things are going to be, I’ll probably end my reading of this series with #6.