I Am Half-Sick of Shadows: A Flavia de Luce Novel

This series is unique. The entirety of the story is from the perspective of a young girl, something that I would think annoying. Either the girl would be rendered either too mature or too adolescent to make it enjoyable or remotely believable. However our little heroine is balanced with both a quick and insightful mind but also a child who still sees the world as a child. Her mind is consumed with her chemistry (poisons) but also she loves nothing more than a fast ride on her trusty stead (her bike). I’m an avid book listener, book not one to note prose or other literary references. However on my most recent listening I stopped as a passage was read and realized how beautiful, moving and natural some passages are in these books. And I couldn’t help but stop and think that these must be prose. They move you without thinking about them. They just gentle slip in carry your mind away into the moment. And the narrater, how she can give such a genuine voice to a sweet, mischievous child without sounding juvenile is fantastic. She has a way that makes you see the twinkle in the little girl’s eyes.