Review: Kat, Incorrigible - Stephanie Burgis

Synopsis: In the prim and proper world of nineteenth-century England, twelve-year-old Katherine Ann Stephenson is at a loss: Her sisters, Elissa and Angeline, have recently entered Society and now gossip incessantly in whispers; her foolish brother, Charles, has gambled the family deep into debt; and Stepmama wants nothing to do with them at all. What can Kat do but take matters into her own hands?

Luckily Kat has inherited her mother's magical talents and has the courage to use them - if she can only learn how. But with her sister Elissa's intended fiance, the sinister Sir Neville, showing a dangerous interest in Kat's magical potential, her sister Angeline creating romantic havoc with her own witchcraft, and a highwayman lurking in the forest, even Kat's reckless heroism will be tested to the utmost.
Review: From the very start of Kat, Incorrigible, I was absolutely taken with the witty writing style, the characters, and the situation. Kat is a wonderful heroine, whose age makes her attitude not seem like The Attitude, but rather the whims of a very young girl. She's full of spunk, intelligence, and a desire to protect her sisters - even if they are far too prim and proper at times, and always scolding her. Normally I do not like fantasy meddling with historical fiction, but Stephanie Burgis made it work, all the while retaining a Jane Austen-ish flavor to the entire setup.

At first, I expected Elissa and Angeline to be quite aggravating, but I soon found myself as dearly attached to them as I was to Kat, and their respective beaus equally amusing and endearing with their distinctive personalities. The villains are properly alarming, but they are not so scary that they detract from the overall humor of the story. When one has a story like this, which is light-hearted in the way that Jane Austen's works are light-hearted, one cannot have villains which give the Reader nightmares for weeks on end.

I cannot wait for the sequel to Kat, Incorrigible to come out; I am quite anxious to see what occurs when they go on a "relaxing" trip to Bath.

Overall Rating: |||||

Others in The Unladylike Adventures of Kat Stephenson Series:

1)Kat, Incorrigible

2)Renegade Magic
3)Stolen Magic