Flavia returns from Canada to Buckshaw, only to find that her father is in hospital and forbidden visitors, and her dastardly sisters are shunning her. Then she discovers the corpse of a village woodsman in Bishop’s Lacey crucified upside down on a door.

The novel playfully satirizes (without mentioning them or their authors by name) all the old children’s books based on real children—books that subsequently ruined their lives—from A.A. Milne to Alice in Wonderland to Peter Pan. One such child exacts revenge (thus the dead body in question).

The book includes a bevy of eccentric characters—some of whom have changed their identities in order to hide away—as well as a number of false leads and annoyances, such as Flavia’s interfering cousin Undine, all of which necessitate Flavia’s many excursions to London and elsewhere, often on her trusty bike Gladys. By the end she has of course solved the crime, but soon after suffers a heartbreaking personal tragedy.

• Crime Reads does a delightful deep dive into Alan Bradley's Flavia de Luce mystery series

• View the Polish book trailer for Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew'd

• Alan Bradley has an in-depth discussion about his Flavia de Luce series

• Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew'd is on two US regional bestseller lists: in the Pacific Northwest and in the Midwest

• Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew'd is one of Canada's most popular books in CBC's bestsellers list

• Alan Bradley raves about Italy's Mantova and its annual literary festival

• Alan Bradley featured in the New York Times for the latest Flavia de Luce mystery

• STRAND names Flavia one of the five best historical heroines

PRAISE FOR ALAN BRADLEY'S FLAVIA DE LUCE SERIES

“Alan Bradley created one of the most memorable amateur sleuths of the twenty-first century. Flavia de Luce is a mere twelve years old when she first appears in The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie. Almost terrifyingly precocious, Flavia loves chemistry, her father, and her buddy Digger, her father’s batman. Flavia doesn’t age much over the course of the ten books to date in the series, but she faces personal and familial trials that would bring many an adult to their knees and somehow comes out unbowed but wiser about human nature.” — CRIMEREADS

“Child detectives can irritate, but Flavia's a winner, a mix of sparky irreverence and wrathful propriety who evades the preciousness endemic to the species.”
— PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

“This heroine is maturing just fast enough for readers to enjoy keeping up.”
 — THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

“Mystery fans seeking novels with wit, and immersive English countryside setting, and rich characterizations will be rewarded with this newest entry in the award-winning series. ”
 — LIBRARY JOURNAL, Starred Review

“Bradley's preteen heroine comes through in the end with a series of deductions so clever she wants to hug herself. So will you.” — KIRKUS REVIEWS

“Alan Bradley has created one of the most endearing protagonists the traditional mystery genre, typified by the works of Agatha Christie, has seen in a very long time…. With this…Bradley, a Canadian who now lives in Malta, secures his position as a confident, talented writer and storyteller.”— THE GLOBE AND MAIL

"Alan Bradley’s Flavia de Luce is one of the most amusing female sleuths in mystery fiction, not in the least because Bradley’s humorous narrative style is the best in the business. May Alan Bradley live to be a hundred and write a new book every year, and may Flavia never grow up." — NEW YORK JOURNAL OF BOOKS

"Flavia's first-person narration reveals her precocious intellect as well as her youthful vulnerability. As she shares the clues leading to the case's conclusion, she offers foreshadowing of what we hope is another chapter from Flavia's world." 
— SHELFAWARENESS, Starred Review

“Readers of all ages will revel in the accomplishments and share in the sorrow of Flaiva, a perennial charmer.” — BOOKLIST

“An eleven-year-old prodigy with an astonishing mind for chemistry and a particular interest in poisons, Flavia de Luce has little to occupy her time in the crumbling manor house she calls home and is reduced to using her talent to wreak revenge against her bullying older sisters. (Ever wonder if you could infuse lipstick with poison ivy?) But when the quaint English village of Bishop’s Lacy starts conveniently coming up corpses, Flavia turns her skills to solving crimes. Whizzing about on her trusty bicycle, Gladys, she collects clues, tracks suspects, and irritates the local law enforcement.” — THE STRAND

“Flavia is incisive, cutting and hilarious. She's…one of the most remarkable creations in recent literature.”— USA TODAY