By Alan Bradley

Although it is autumn in the small English town of Bishop’s Lacey, the chapel is decked with exotic flowers.  Yes, Flavia de Luce’s sister Ophelia is at last getting hitched, like a mule to a wagon.  Flavia is not your normal twelve-year-old girl.  An expert in the chemical nature of poisons, she has solved many mysteries, sharpening her considerable detection skills to the point where she had little choice but to turn professional.  So Flavia and dependable Dogger, estate gardener, set up shop, eager to serve.  Little does she know that their first case will be extremely close to home, beginning with an unwelcome discovery in Ophelia’s wedding cake.