When last we left Flavia de Luce, the precocious English lass and heir to her late father’s estate, she was to be whisked off to London to live with her tyrannical Aunt Felicity and her despised cousin Undine. Dogger, her father’s faithful valet, chauffeur and companion --- the quintessential “Jeeves” to her dad --- was to be pensioned off along with Mrs. Mullet, who helped take care of Flavia and her older sisters, Ophelia and Daphne, following the mysterious disappearance of their mother.

But the de Luce household has managed to stay together, Aunt Felicity has been dispatched to London, and, much to the dismay of all, little Undine is now a member of the family. Daphne is contentedly holed up in her wing of the house, writing her memoirs, and Ophelia is about to be wed and begin her new life. Flavia is back in school, and her success in solving several past murders with help from Dogger has led them to form Arthur W. Dogger and Associates. Who could guess that so many would meet their demise in this peaceful little village in post-World War II England and that their services might be called upon?

"[Flavia's] vast knowledge of chemical compounds, most particularly poisons, leads us to an ingenious plot featuring a flimflam group of poseurs masked as missionaries."

The big event arrives: the church is bedecked with flowers, the bride is beautiful, Ophelia fills the church with music, vows are exchanged and the guests gather in the parsonage. As she cuts into the ceremonial wedding cake, Ophelia gasps in horror at her discovery: a severed finger! She screams, while Flavia is thrilled. Whose finger is it? Where is the rest of the person?

Through some legerdemain, Flavia and Dogger spirit away the finger and study the dismembered digit, ascertaining quickly that it is a female due to Flavia’s familiarity with anatomy based on the skeleton standing in her bedroom’s corner --- a holdover from her uncle’s laboratory of long ago. Dogger states with certainty that she is or was a guitarist thanks to his mysterious knowledge gained in the Army medical corps during the war. They discreetly return the finger so the police can find it. But questions remain: Is she alive or dead? Murdered, perhaps? And if so, how?

We are off on another murder mystery adventure with the now-12-year-old sleuth, whose vast knowledge of chemical compounds, most particularly poisons, leads us to an ingenious plot featuring a flimflam group of poseurs masked as missionaries.

Alan Bradley's impressive knowledge of English history and literature sheds light on the funeral trains, burial customs and graveyards of England’s ancient past. We also are given arboreal lessons on herbs, plants and vermin found not only in England but in Africa, from where the missionaries visiting Bishop’s Lacey have recently returned. His use of similes, metaphors, Shakespearean and other literary figures, Bible verses and chemical formulas could be overwhelming in lesser hands. But we can forgive this overdose of references to enjoy the mere delight that Flavia de Luce brings to the page.