The marble tombs that rise on high,
Whose dead in vaulted arches lie,
Whose pillars swell with sculptured stones,
Arms, angels, epitaphs and bones,
These (all the poor remains of state)
Adorn the rich, or praise the great;
Who, while on earth in fame they live,
Are senseless of the fame they give.

A Night-Piece on Death
~Thomas Parnell

It has been nearly five years since I fell in love with an apple-green book cover, and upon bringing it home, fell under the spell of a precocious eleven-year-old girl by the name of Flavia de Luce.

This solitary young girl, with a head for chemistry and a nose for mystery, discovered that she also had the uncanny ability to solve crimes, a discovery made when a dead body turned up outside the broken-down de Luce estate, Buckshaw.

Those familiar with Alan Bradley’s exceptional heroine will know that the further the series progressed, the less focused each novel became on the latest murder in the post-WWII village of Bishop’s Lacey. Instead the focus shifted to the greater overall mystery of the disappearance of Flavia’s mother, Harriet, in a climbing accident overseas, and the subsequent devastation that disappearance had wrought on the financial state and familial relationships of the de Luce family.

The Dead in Their Vaulted Arches, the sixth novel in the series, brings to a close a number of the ongoing story lines in the de Luce family history, and does so in the inimitable, satisfying fashion one would expect from an Alan Bradley novel.

It is nigh-impossible to discuss the latest Flavia de Luce novel without spoilers, both major and minor. I would suggest those unfamiliar with the series forgo reading any synopses of the works and instead allow themselves the pleasure of meeting young Flavia de Luce, her father, sisters, family cook and retainer and the other interesting characters of Bishop’s Lacey as their adventures unfold. I have awaited each of the subsequent novels released after The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie with great anticipation and have yet to experience anything but pure bliss. Beginning with the fourth novel in the series, I began checking out the audio versions of the books from my local library (while still purchasing each of the lovely hard covers for my own personal library). Jayne Entwistle is a superb narrator and I could not imagine experiencing the life of Flavia de Luce in any way other than through her interpretation.

After the jump my review will commence with potentially spoiler-laden material. If you have not finished The Dead in Their Vaulted Arches, please resist the urge to click “more”. I will leave you by adjuring you to spend some time getting to know Flavia de Luce and her family. Alan Bradley has created a very special cozy mystery series, filled with memorable characters, plenty of surprises, and the kind of warm-glow satisfaction that you want to feel every time you turn the final page of a novel.

The Dead in Their Vaulted Arches opens where the previous novel, Speaking From Among the Bones, left off: with the revelation that the long-missing Harriet de Luce has been found. Who Harriet really was, the mystery surrounding her disappearance, and the speculation regarding whether she was alive or dead has been a strong thread tying all of these novels together and the impact of her being discovered dead reverberated throughout this novel.

While I never truly believed that Harriet would turn out to be alive, especially given that an unlikely scenario of this nature would not fit in with the overall tone of Alan Bradley’s series, I felt as stunned by the revelation as did young Flavia and the rest of the de Luce family. I half-expected it all to be some elaborate ruse, especially given the hints in other novels that Harriet and others may have been involved in war-related missions for the British government.

If you’ve read these books you are well aware of the melancholy state of affairs of the de Luce family, and that despite their delightful eccentricities, their apparent lack of familial closeness and thinly veiled pain has given these otherwise cozy mysteries a tangible emotional gravity. I give Alan Bradley kudos for seeing an ending, of sorts, to this overall story arc and not dragging it on indefinitely. I am happy to know this isn’t the last we will see of Flavia de Luce, while also being grateful for the revelations brought forth in this novel and the areas of closure given to both the de Luce family and the reader.

So much was brought to light in The Dead in Their Vaulted Arches. Elements of Flavia’s story have been somewhat unbelievable, which has honestly not bothered me. First and foremost I have kept in mind that our narrator is an eleven-year old girl. Despite her intelligence, the world as seen through her eyes is skewed by her age and life experience. Secondly, a big part of the attraction of these novels has been the eccentricities of the residents of Bishop’s Lacey and the village’s proclivity to attract murder. With that being said, I appreciate the ways in which Alan Bradley provided some explanation to questions the reader might have had. For example, how was it that the old laboratory of her Uncle Tar seemed to be forever stocked with materials to satisfy her chemistry-loving curiosity? I equally appreciate that some questions were left unanswered, or partially answered, when the novel came to a close. It was fitting given the nature of espionage that the de Luce’s have been involved in, which is now to be a part of young Flavia’s life.

The de Luce’s remain a complicated family, and yet with each novel I have felt that Alan Bradley has pealed back a layer to reveal that, despite their awkwardness and apparent dysfunction, they really do love one another greatly. It was also brought to greater light in this novel just how deep the pain of Harriet’s disappearance went and how much more it hurt to have any glimmer of hope dashed with the discovery of her dead body. Though the novels focus on Flavia, it was satisfying to see how the loss of Harriet had affected Flavia’s older sisters, Ophelia and Daphne, as well as her father and members of the household staff.

If you ignored my warning and have read on despite spoilers, I may be giving the impression that these novels are heavy, sad, melancholy affairs. That would be a skewed impression, so allow me to correct it. Above all the six Flavia de Luce novels are great fun. Flavia is an interesting, curious, intelligent and loveable character and there is a great deal of humor and enticing mystery in each of these novels. They rise above standard cozy mystery fare with the depth of emotion that Bradley weaves in with such great subtlety.

The Dead in Their Vaulted Arches is an immensely satisfying conclusion to this particular story arc. There are few series of books that I can recommend this highly and I am happy to know this is not the last we’ll see of young Flavia.

Thank you, Alan Bradley. This journey has been a delight.

Alan Bradley is a Canadian mystery writer who first became known with a nonfiction book entitled, Ms Holmes of Baker Street, while becoming more widely known when he introduced the world to an eleven-year-old girl with a passion for making poisons, named Flavia de Luce. The six novels of the series are (clicking on each title will take you to my review): The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, The Weed that Strings the Hangman’s Bag, A Red Herring Without Mustard, I Am Half-Sick of Shadows, Speaking From Among the Bones, and The Dead in Their Vaulted Arches.

Alan Bradley has been contracted for four additional Flavia de Luce novels, of which he has stated: “Although the first six books are a story arc in themselves, the additional four books will allow exploration of other parts of her world.”  I, for one, look forward to seeing where Bradley takes us next.