Scan barcode
hayleybeale's review against another edition
4.0
Satisfying start to new series; there are still many unanswered questions but this story is complete and wraps up charmingly. Kat is a boisterous and sassy protagonist and the touches of Jane Austen are entertaining though likely to be missed by the book's audience.
onceuponacarm's review against another edition
5.0
Set in Regency England, Kat Stephenson is is the youngest sister in a family with a scandalous past. Her late mother was a witch, bringing a shady reputation to their clergyman father who has remarried a rather despicable woman. Sister Elissa is soon to be betrothed to a suspected murderer in order to bring their family back into Society, but Kat isn't about to let that happen. She is tenacious, clever, and soon discovers that she has some special powers of her own. This funny, exciting story is woven through with surprise, magic, and quite a few disguises. Highly recommended.
reddyrat's review against another edition
4.0
Do you like historical fiction? Do you like fantasy? If the answer to either or both of these is yes, then you'll love Kat, Incorrigible. Mixing historical fiction and fantasy seems to be a trend as of late. This is the third book I've read in the past few months that features both genres.
The book is set in early 19th century England and centers on a family that is just outside the cusp of wealth (actually they're pretty broke) but still mingles in good society. Quite reminiscent of Pride and Prejudice. But the book draws much more from the Gothic tradition of books like Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights. It's not similar in plot in any way to either of these books, but it drew up on the darkness and melodrama of the classic Gothic novels.
Kat is the star of this book, both as the book's main character and its strongest selling point. She is a spunky, headstrong, tomboy 12 year old. She's impulsive (she starts out the book by cutting off her hair and trying to run away), stubborn (no one can keep her from getting her hands on her mother's magic books), loyal (she'll do anything to help her sisters), brave (battles head-on with her enemies, perceived or real), and more. She reminds me a bit of Flavia de Luce of Alan Bradley's mystery series. Like Flavia, she is a delight to read about, but I think she might be a tad irritating if I had to deal with her in real life.
Since the family is desperate for money (to pay off Kat's brother's gambling arrears), Elissa the oldest sister is going to marry the horrible (but rich) Sir Neville. Kat is bound and determined to stop this. In a parallel plot line, Kat finds her deceased mother's magic book and ends up being thrust into a world of magic that she couldn't have imagined. The two plot arcs intertwine as Kat has to get her sister away from Sir Neville while also juggling magical powers and magical politics.
The plot toes the line between melodrama and silliness at times and occasionally crosses that line, but mostly it is great fun. I wouldn't say the book is predictable, because there are many twists and turns, but once you are on a straight path, you can usually see where it's going. Some of the book's silliness and plot lines may be due to the fact that it's marketed toward MG rather than YA. Similarly, the early novels of Harry Potter were much more childish than the later books.
Regardless, I quite enjoyed Kat, Incorrigible. I recommend it for anyone who likes strong, bold characters and history with a touch of magic.
Rating: 3.5 / 5
The book is set in early 19th century England and centers on a family that is just outside the cusp of wealth (actually they're pretty broke) but still mingles in good society. Quite reminiscent of Pride and Prejudice. But the book draws much more from the Gothic tradition of books like Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights. It's not similar in plot in any way to either of these books, but it drew up on the darkness and melodrama of the classic Gothic novels.
Kat is the star of this book, both as the book's main character and its strongest selling point. She is a spunky, headstrong, tomboy 12 year old. She's impulsive (she starts out the book by cutting off her hair and trying to run away), stubborn (no one can keep her from getting her hands on her mother's magic books), loyal (she'll do anything to help her sisters), brave (battles head-on with her enemies, perceived or real), and more. She reminds me a bit of Flavia de Luce of Alan Bradley's mystery series. Like Flavia, she is a delight to read about, but I think she might be a tad irritating if I had to deal with her in real life.
Since the family is desperate for money (to pay off Kat's brother's gambling arrears), Elissa the oldest sister is going to marry the horrible (but rich) Sir Neville. Kat is bound and determined to stop this. In a parallel plot line, Kat finds her deceased mother's magic book and ends up being thrust into a world of magic that she couldn't have imagined. The two plot arcs intertwine as Kat has to get her sister away from Sir Neville while also juggling magical powers and magical politics.
The plot toes the line between melodrama and silliness at times and occasionally crosses that line, but mostly it is great fun. I wouldn't say the book is predictable, because there are many twists and turns, but once you are on a straight path, you can usually see where it's going. Some of the book's silliness and plot lines may be due to the fact that it's marketed toward MG rather than YA. Similarly, the early novels of Harry Potter were much more childish than the later books.
Regardless, I quite enjoyed Kat, Incorrigible. I recommend it for anyone who likes strong, bold characters and history with a touch of magic.
Rating: 3.5 / 5
audreychamaine's review against another edition
4.0
Twelve-year-old Kat has always been feisty. The story opens with her cutting off her hair, dressing like a boy, and trying to go to London to make a living. This is because her oldest sister is about to be married off to a terrible man, all to bring money into the family to cover Kat’s brother’s debts. However, Kat has inherited her mother’s magical capabilities, drawing her into a society of magic workers. Kat does not want to play by their rules, and uses her powers to get into a series of hilarious situations while trying to save the day, and her sister.
Kat, Incorrigible is a light-hearted middle grade novel set in Regency England, and full of magic and mayhem. I normally am very skeptical of historical fiction, but this was written in such a way that it doesn’t try to hard to convince the reader that it is strictly adhering to history. Rather, the focus is on characters, lively situations, and, best of all, magic.
Kat is a very likable heroine, and readers will be rooting for her and laughing along as she gets into trouble and finds a way to always have fun, even when society doesn’t want her to. She doesn’t always know when to keep her mouth shut, and is unafraid to speak her mind. In fact, her stubbornness is one of her best traits when doing magic.
The other characters rounded out the story well: Kat’s two sisters, one prissy (Elissa) and the other sassy (Angeline), Step-Mama who is always trying to better herself within society, Angeline’s dashing true-love, Elissa’s bumbling but sweet paramour, the Guardian who wants to teach Kat magic, and the dastardly Sir Neville.
All in all, Kat, Incorrigible was a great read when you want to be taken away by a story, but don’t want the fuss and muss of stress and over-emotional involvement. This book is recommended for middle grade readers, as well as adults who want something light and pleasant that won’t take too much effort to slog through.
Plus, the cover art is gorgeous! It really captures the whimsy of the story.
Kat, Incorrigible is a light-hearted middle grade novel set in Regency England, and full of magic and mayhem. I normally am very skeptical of historical fiction, but this was written in such a way that it doesn’t try to hard to convince the reader that it is strictly adhering to history. Rather, the focus is on characters, lively situations, and, best of all, magic.
Kat is a very likable heroine, and readers will be rooting for her and laughing along as she gets into trouble and finds a way to always have fun, even when society doesn’t want her to. She doesn’t always know when to keep her mouth shut, and is unafraid to speak her mind. In fact, her stubbornness is one of her best traits when doing magic.
The other characters rounded out the story well: Kat’s two sisters, one prissy (Elissa) and the other sassy (Angeline), Step-Mama who is always trying to better herself within society, Angeline’s dashing true-love, Elissa’s bumbling but sweet paramour, the Guardian who wants to teach Kat magic, and the dastardly Sir Neville.
All in all, Kat, Incorrigible was a great read when you want to be taken away by a story, but don’t want the fuss and muss of stress and over-emotional involvement. This book is recommended for middle grade readers, as well as adults who want something light and pleasant that won’t take too much effort to slog through.
Plus, the cover art is gorgeous! It really captures the whimsy of the story.
emmalthompson85's review against another edition
4.0
I wanted to like this book so much more than I did. The character work was fantastic. It was maybe the best depiction of a relationship between sisters that I've ever read, the inherent tension and love woven through all their interactions was stunning. The plotting wasn't quite up to the standard of the characterisation, though. I spent a lot of it honestly just not caring about the central plot. The villain is so obviously, cartoonishly bad that we know he'll never win. And, like, children's book but we're trusting our child readers to understand that the sisters fight and fall out and try to show each other up but fundementally love each other and have each other's back so I think we could also trust them with a character who's lovely and charming and also does bad things. The mentor being rejected at first is a nice touch but the scene he's introduced is terrible, the main character has no idea what's happening and instead of taking five minutes to sit her down and explain he just says there no time and, like, why? It would make more sense for him to give her an explanation than not and the thing he's rushing to is doing some research. It'll wait, my man!
So yeah, beautiful character work, weak plot.
So yeah, beautiful character work, weak plot.
kdurham2's review against another edition
4.0
The first few words I would use to describe this little gem of a book is the girlie version of Harry Potter. Mixed with magic, witchcraft and a girl that doesn't fit in, I felt as though I was reading a sister story to that epic series.
I absolutely fell in love with Kat - she was cute and lovable, but not too sweet. With her two older sisters and older brother, I think this book can be described as a magical twist of Harry Potter meets Cinderella. It was such a great combination of story and plotline mixed with great characters.
I would recommend this read to the younger audiences - maybe middle school or high school. Although the book was not geared for my age group, I found it to be a delightful read.
I absolutely fell in love with Kat - she was cute and lovable, but not too sweet. With her two older sisters and older brother, I think this book can be described as a magical twist of Harry Potter meets Cinderella. It was such a great combination of story and plotline mixed with great characters.
I would recommend this read to the younger audiences - maybe middle school or high school. Although the book was not geared for my age group, I found it to be a delightful read.
chocolatequeen's review against another edition
4.0
As a Regency romance author who loves middle-grade and YA fantasy, a middle-grade fantasy set during the Regency was obviously going to catch my attention. I've shelved this book at the library dozens of times and it finally came home with me, and I'm so glad it did.
Our eponymous heroine leaps off the page from the very first word. A twelve-year-old girl who's lost her mother and hates her step-mother and is ignored by her older sisters--all that we know within the first few pages. But Kat is not content to be ignored or shoved aside, or even to simply be the bane of her stepmama's existence. It's her quest to find her own identity that brings the story to life.
The magical theory behind two different kinds of magic was explained well without being boring. Kat's story of accepting her inheritance, in the form of a position in the mysterious Order of the Guardians, was what really drove the novel.
All the characters were wonderful. The plot was wonderful. The setting was just as much Regency as I would have hoped for. All in all, I highly recommend this book, and cannot wait to pick up the two sequels.
Our eponymous heroine leaps off the page from the very first word. A twelve-year-old girl who's lost her mother and hates her step-mother and is ignored by her older sisters--all that we know within the first few pages. But Kat is not content to be ignored or shoved aside, or even to simply be the bane of her stepmama's existence. It's her quest to find her own identity that brings the story to life.
The magical theory behind two different kinds of magic was explained well without being boring. Kat's story of accepting her inheritance, in the form of a position in the mysterious Order of the Guardians, was what really drove the novel.
All the characters were wonderful. The plot was wonderful. The setting was just as much Regency as I would have hoped for. All in all, I highly recommend this book, and cannot wait to pick up the two sequels.
brandypainter's review against another edition
5.0
My review (with thoughts from my 7 year old) can be found here.
amibunk's review against another edition
3.0
The best way to describe this book is "Pride and Prejudice" meets "Sabrina the Teenaged Witch." The writing is decent, the characters are fun, but the pace is uneven. Additionally, I can't decide if this novel is fun or silly.