Review: I Am Half-Sick of Shadows
Is Father Christmas real? Also... who killed the movie star?
I Am Half-Sick of Shadows
Alan Bradley
299 pages - 2011 - fiction, mystery
April 14th, 2024 — April 20th, 2024
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐½
The first time I met Flavia de Luce, the intrepid child sleuth at the center of this book series, it was completely by accident. My hometown library network is vast and beautiful, and I used to spend weekends visiting libraries within the web that I had never seen before. I would usually pick out a book that was on my list already, found within the library’s walls, and then I would find a book at random, judging completely by the cover and the little blurb on the back.
The day I found my first Flavia de Luce book, I picked it because it had two appealing qualities—firstly, the cover was fascinating, and second, the main character was described as a chemist. This was right before I started college, armed mainly with my budding love for chemistry, so I knew I had to read the gem upon which I had stumbled.
I did not realize that it was the eighth book in the series until I was quite a ways into the story. I am never one to do things out of order, to an almost debilitating degree. But I also cannot seem to put down an unfinished book—I’ve only done so twice (once because the book was so excruciating to read, and once because it was a book recommended to me by my grandfather, who passed while I was in the middle of reading it). On top of that, though, it was a fun book to read.
Flavia de Luce narrates the book, and while she is only eleven, she has a sophistication and wit that is incredibly entertaining. In every book that I have read in her series (so far), there is a delicate balance between the often horrific crime at hand and Flavia’s own personal projects. Both are given nearly equal weight, which is refreshing.
I think with another narrator, this would not work. If it was someone older, a real grizzled detective, it would be absolutely ridiculous for the side quest they were doing to earn the same real estate on the pages as the main mystery at hand. But Flavia is a strong character from page one, and her passion for everything—whether it is her personal chemistry projects or solving a murder—is deeply rooted. Being only eleven, a murder could have the same weight in her mind as catching Father Christmas.
After reading the eighth tale of Flavia’s adventures, I went back and started from the beginning. This book is the fourth of the series. Usually, I find that series tend to become monotonous after the third or fourth book, but this series continues to be exciting and unpredictable—both the mysteries and the mundanities.
Summary (Spoilers!)
Flavia and her family, living in their manor Buckshaw, are informed that a movie is to be filmed in their home in the coming weeks, starring none other than Phyllis Wyvern, famous movie star. Flavia’s sisters, Feely and Daffy, are overwhelmingly excited. Flavia, though, is more focused on the two tasks she has assigned herself to complete before Christmas—build a trap so she can catch Father Christmas, and design a collection of fireworks to set off on Christmas Eve.
Flavia meets Phyllis, and they hit it off quite quickly. The film crew and other actors arrive slowly over the first few days. In preparing for the movie shoot, Phyllis and her co-star Desmond offer to put on a show for the inhabitants of the nearby town of Bishop’s Lacey—they will perform the famous balcony scene from Romeo & Juliet for anyone who wants to attend.
The night of the performance, there is an intense snow storm, but most of the townsfolk make it safely to the manor for the show. Right as the performance begins, the person manning the spotlight, Gil, errs, causing Phyllis to calmly scale the set and slap him before continuing with the show. Other than that, the performance goes off without a hitch; at the end, though, the townsfolk learn that they are completely snowed in for the night and cannot make it home.
Everyone stays overnight, sleeping in the foyer, while the cast and crew have already been delegated the extra bedrooms. Flavia, sneaking around that night, peeks into Phyllis Wyvern’s room when she hears an odd clicking noise, and finds that she has been strangled with a length of film. Even more odd—she is dressed in the same costume that she wore for her film Dressed for Dying, and her makeup was applied after she was already dead.
Of course, this shocks all of the temporary inhabitants of Buckshaw, and since they are snowed in, it has all the makings of a perfect locked-door murder. Inspector Hewitt and Flavia have almost a rivalry going, both trying to solve it before the other. Flavia uncovers some secrets—she learns that Val Lampman, working as a member of the film crew, is actually related to Phyllis. At first, she thinks that he is her brother; however, from Miss Mullet, the Cockney cook, she learns that he is, in fact, Phyllis’s son. Flavia also finds a hidden note in Phyllis’s shoe while creating a glue trap for Father Christmas.
The holiday eve arrives, everyone still trapped, and Flavia heads to the roof to put the finishing touches on her trap and set the fireworks up for their display. While up there, she is attacked by a masked figure she initially believes is Val, but soon discovers through the eyes that it is in fact Marion Trodd, mistress of Val. While they scuffle, Marion is trapped in the glue trap meant for Father Christmas, but Val appears and continues to fight Flavia, blocking her from getting help downstairs. She learns that the two of them murdered Phyllis together.
In their scuffle, Val falls off the roof, but so does Flavia; she lands in a snow drift and awakens a few days later, having been rescued by Dogger, assistant to her father. She learns that Marion is being questioned and Val (most likely) died due to his injuries after the fall. In a touching scene, Flavia is given belated Christmas presents from her father and her sisters, both of whom show uncharacteristic but lovely kindness and compassion for their younger sister.
Mysteries Uncovered
I thought that, like the other Flavia de Luce books I have read so far, this one was exciting and fun. Flavia has a complex inner monologue that we, as readers, have the pleasure of experiencing. Her colorful commentary on the world around her adds a great deal to even mundane experiences like eating a rather nasty pie.
With most longer series and also most mystery books that I have read, this one follows a pattern that has long been established. Admittedly I do not read many mystery books, but I find that I enjoy the ones that are more difficult to parse before the big reveal. I had sneaking suspicions for this book, although I like the surprise that it was two killers, not just one.
I think the fourth book in a series has a great deal of weight placed upon it from the beginning. Two books is exciting; three is nerve-wracking, but often where plenty of good stories wrap up in a big way. Four, to me, feels like the make-or-break point, and I still want to keep reading Flavia’s tales.
One of the big triumphs in this series is the depth and consistency of the characters. They each have their own voice and they feel like each of them is just shy of being a caricature. If they were any more emotive or eccentric, I think it would feel disingenuous. But because they are still so grounded in reality—I can picture all of them vividly, along with their interactions—I find them really enjoyable to get to know.
Flavia is the star, of course, but I love seeing her interactions with Dogger, Mrs. Muffet, even her sisters, with whom she has a long-standing feud as the youngest. In this book, we see her and Daffy make a truce, which we learn lasts exactly five minutes measured with the most accurate clock in the room. It’s a very real sibling interaction that I very much enjoyed.
These books feel almost campy in quite a fun way. There is a youthful aura that I find difficult for many writers to capture. Flavia feels like she is eleven, even with her penchant for poisons and flowery prose. I think it is all believable even though it is, by many accounts, over-the-top.
Overall, I wish more people were talking about this series. I have not met another person who has even heard of Flavia de Luce, but I’m going to keep looking. And I’m excited to see what adventures she gets into next, whether they are murder mysteries or chemistry experiments; both are equally enthralling.
Total pages read so far, 2024: 8,263
Total books read so far, 2024: 23
Next book: In Order To Live by Maryanne Vollers and Yeonmi Park