Flavia is a precocious 11-year-old who delights in mysteries and chemistry. She aids the police in their cases (when she feels they need a hint) and follows her curiosity to all sorts of interesting situations. She uses her impressively vast knowledge of chemistry and forensics to solve murders, while also stumbling upon information about her mother, who died when Flavia was very young, and about her family in general. Author Alan Bradley perfectly balances the mix of murder cases and personal mysteries and entices readers by revealing more and more about the characters in each book.
