Florian Bates is new to the Washington, DC area, but that doesn't stop him from getting involved. Both his parents work in the art world so he is well connected when the National Gallery is robbed. Florian uses his TOAST method (Theory of All Small Things) to notice clues others might not be aware of. With the help of new friend Margaret, Florian becomes a special consultant for the FBI and helps them solve the case of the missing paintings. Things get a bit dicey when a Romanian mob boss gets involved however. 

This was a lot more enjoyable than I thought it would be. I am generally not a fan of mysteries, but Florian was a smart, without being arrogant, character. I thought the methods he used were actually plausible with a few exceptions. I also liked that he taught Margaret his method and she was just as good as he was. And I really liked the fact that he realized he had flaws and that his method could be highjacked. There were a couple of things that I thought were a bit irksome, like Margaret's parentage reveal, and things that didn't get explained, like who the woman and baby were with the painter the first time they saw him. Other than that I thought it was a smart, funny middle grade mystery.