The adventures of an 11-year-old girl with a fascination for poisons and death has led a Peel-based author to his 10th successive best selling novel.

Alan Bradley’s latest book ’The Golden Tresses of the Dead’, the 10th in his murder mystery series starring his heroine sleuth Flavia De Luce, was released at the end of January, and, with its success, he soon found himself sat in between Danielle Steele and George RR Martin in the New York Times bestsellers list, repeating the feat achieved by each of the other books in the series.

’The Golden Tresses of the Dead’ sees Flavia, with her expert and intuitive knowledge of chemistry, launch a detective agency with Dogger, her father’s faithful valet, which soon leads to their first case.

The series of books, which also feature such titles of ’The Weed That Strings the Hangman’s Bag’, ’The Dead in Their Vaulted Arches’ and Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew’d’ have proved incredibly popular, and, with the stories being translated into 38 different languages, have gained Alan legions of fans all over the world.

’They are phenomenally successful,’ he said.

’They are worldwide best sellers, in China, Israel, Iceland, Finland, Canada, the US, everywhere. It amazes me that people love them so much.’

The character of Flavia, who began as a lonely 11-year-old girl who lives with her eccentric family, and by chance stumbles into the world of chemistry and poisons, has captured the imagination of thousands of fans worldwide, with fans even meeting him on book tours, dressed as Flavia.

’In Germany, Flavia is portrayed as a goth, with long black hair. That meant that they picked up a lot of young readers, and I was amazed on one of my early European book tours, I was mobbed by teenage girls dressed in black, goth make-up and school clothing, who loved the character,’ said Alan, who said that, while the central character was an 11-year-old girl, they were written as adult fiction, and not aimed at younger readers.

’It is so involving. They just want to talk to you about what they love about Flavia. Everytime, I get told different things by people about what they love about her.

’At the same time I have readers in their 90s that I hear from and there is a huge spread of readership.

’I have a hard time wrapping my head around it.’

After he released his first novel, ’The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie’, which won the ’Debut Dagger’ award at the UK Crimewriter’s association, Alan originally thought he would need three novels to tell the story of his character.

’By the time I got to the third book, I realised I wasn’t even halfway through telling this remarkable story. So I aimed at six books, which has now become 10,’ he said.

Alan admits that he is unsure where the idea of the character came from, and that he often surprises himself with what he creates as he writes.

’I was very surprised when Flavia arrived knowing everything about chemistry,’ he said.

’In the first book she immediately started spouting about famous chemists, like La Boussiere, who researched suffocation methods by rolling his brother up in a carpet.

’Its funny, as I know absolutely nothing about chemistry, whereas Flavia knows more or less everything there is to know.

’I have to research whatever it is she is working on in great details. The ideas just come when I am writing.

’But what I had in mind when I started to write the stories was that I have always been really intrigued by British customs that have gone, and don’t exist anymore,’ he continued.

’For example, the first book started with Flavia’s father being a fanatical stamp collector. I wanted each book to be about some long gone hobby, or enthusiasm that really doesn’t seem to exist any more.

’There is an interesting element in the new book. In Victorian times there was a railway for dead people which ran from London Waterloo down to Brookwood cemetery. It was a train that was equipped to carry corpses. I got quite intrigued researching this.

’Everyone had tickets, event the dead people. There were first class, second class, third class and corpse. I made sure I included that in the new book.’

Alan and his wife moved to Peel six year ago, after spending time researching on the island.

’As the plane approached the runway, we both looked out of the window, and said that this is where we want to live,’ he said.

’We both think that it is the most beautiful place that we have ever seen in our lives.

’There are so many little things about the island I’d love to put into a book. I was talking to the writer Chris Ewan, and we discussed Hop Tu Naa, and how that would be great base for a story.

’Every week somebody tells me the most incredible fact about the island.

’The layers of history are amazing. You could live to be 1,000 and not even begin to scrape the surface. I like that.’

Alan Bradley will be discussing and signing copies of his latest book at the Henry Bloom Noble Library, on Duke Street, Douglas on Thursday, February 28, from 7pm.

by MIke Wade

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