Sorcery and Cecelia or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot

Really enjoyed this read!! Great brain candy. Ending could have been a bit better, but both my teenager and I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. Liked the back and forth letters that made up the stories. The pages following the story told about how the story came to be.

This book is a hoot! The characters are quirky and fun and the format of each chapter is unique as the entire book consists of 'letters' written back and forth from the 2 main characters. A quick read, hardly intellectual, but great fun!

I loved this book. It was funny, interesting, and clean. I don't think I have laughed so hard over letters before. And that's what makes the book unique! It's a story told through letters. :) I have already started the second and look forward to reading the third.

I chose the book because it seemed to have really good reviews. I had to force myself to finish it! I didn't like the letter writing method of story telling. It was dull and the magic part didn't really work for me.

Overall this was an enjoyable read. I didn't quite know what to expect from the cover and the title gave me the impression that this was more of a juvenile book. That was a very incorrect assumption. This book should be firmly placed in the YA category and would be especially enjoyable for older teenage girls or even adult women. The story is told in letters between Cecelia (Cecy) and her cousin, Kate. The interplay between the two is charming. They are both smart and witty among a slew of vapid women out to marry as well as possible. The element of magic is woven pretty seamlessly into early 1800's society. It's a main point to the plot but the author doesn't bash you over the head with big showy magic tricks.

The plot is entertaining, but not surprising. I enjoyed it while reading but when I put it down I didn't feel like I had to immediately pick it back up. Perhaps that's because I had a pretty good idea what was going to happen next. The plot was predictable. Everything is tied up neatly at the end and it is satisfying although not unexpected. If there were some kind of twist or anything at all out of the ordinary I would have given an extra star.

The real strength of this book is in it's dialogue. It is witty and funny and it's what I really liked best about the book.

This is a charming, witty, and thoroughly delightful romp through regency England---with, as other reviewers have said, a soupcon of magic added!!! As a 50-something adult, I loved this book, and found it to be completely entertaining. It's sophisticated, and slyly amusing. The format of having the story told through the letters between the cousins was used in this book to absolute perfection. The idea of magic and the existence of wizards is skillfully and flawlessly interwoven into the world of coming out balls, carriage rides, and visits to dressmakers and country estates complete with formal mazes. The two headstrong protagonists, Cecilia and Kate, are wonderful and original heroines, and they manage to find very interesting male companionship as they seek to solve the mystery of the missing chocolate pot. The romance was subtle, and quite enjoyable, without being mawkish or harlequinesque. I am so glad to have found these books (this is the beginning of a trilogy), and will happily devour the next two in the series. As everyone else has said, if you love Harry Potter, and enjoy Jane Austin ...you've found the perfect book!

Sorcery & Cecelia combines magic with Regency England to make an elegant, mysterious story told by two narrators: Kate off for the season in London and Cecelia at home in Rushton Manor. They both find themselves embroiled in the world of sorcery, trying to figure out what's going on and who's in danger by writing furiously back and forth to each other.

The story is told alternately through a letter from Kate and then through a letter from Cecelia, letting you in on the cousins' discoveries as they find out about them from each other. Both authors' writing styles are elegant and clever, enveloping you in a true Regency read with humor and wit. However, I found that I couldn't really tell a difference between Kate's voice and Cecelia's, which I didn't expect since there is a different author writing for each character. I found myself constantly stopping to think, "Wait, is this Kate writing or Cecelia?" and at times I'd have to flip back to the start of the chapter to check. It didn't hinder my enjoyment of the story, but it did break up the flow a little.

Overall, Sorcery & Cecelia is a fun, fast-paced read full of magic, mystery, and clever quips from the feisty heroines. There is some romance, but it's balanced perfectly so that it adds to the story without distracting from the central plot and making things feel scattered. I'm looking forward to the next book in the series, The Grand Tour, or the Purloined Regalia, which was also re-released in May 2012 in ebook format.

{ I received this as an ebook from Netgalley. Review originally posted on my blog, PidginPea's Book Nook (link in my profile). }

I read several Patricia Wrede books some years ago, but somehow she fell off my radar. A chance mention in another book reminded me that I had enjoyed books like Daughter Of Witches, and I really ought to catch up on her writing. I'm glad I did.

Wrede and her co-author (and obviously good friend) Caroline Stevermer wrote an old-style epistolary novel (that is, everything is told as a series of letters). It's the early 1800s in England, when ladies of a certain class were sent to London for "The Season" during which they hoped to make social connections and, ideally, find a suitable husband. Except that Kate and her cousin Cecilia (left behind for this year because of the incident with the goat) live in a Regency England in which magic works. Kate has an odd encounter at the Royal College of Wizards who tries to poison her with a chocolate pot, and Cecilia is distracted by another young woman with an odd magnetism for any unmarried men in the vicinity. Not to mention the Mysterious Marquis, and her aunt's unwillingness to recognize that Kate does *not* look good in blue, and the difficulty of learning to waltz.

It's a fun old-style romance (if just an *eensy* bit slow to get started). And while it is aimed at young adults (or really, young girls -- anyone over 10 would like this and parents have zero to worry about in terms of suitable behavior), that doesn't mean an older reader will think this is too fluffy. I found it a great, fast-to-read escapist novel for when my brain was a little bit too full for anything serious. Grab it on a weekend when you want to be diverted by intelligent storytelling but you don't want to actually have to think.

"Not that we are without amusement in Essex; quite the contrary! Aunt Elizabeth and I called at the vicarage yesterday and spent a stimulating afternoon listening to the Reverend Fitzwillliam discoursing on the Vanities of Society and the Emptiness of Worldly Pleasures. Aunt Elizabeth hung on every word, and we are to return and take tea on Thursday. I am determined to have the headache on Thursday, if I have to hit myself with a rock to do it." Cecy, in a letter to Kate

"It seemed like a dream to me, following Georgina up and up the stairs - she like a kind of angel climbing to her proper place, her golden hair bright in the light from the lamps - me like a ramshackle shadow lurking after her, shedding hairpins and stumbling over the hem of my skirts." Kate, in a letter to Cecy

As April 1817 begins, cousins Cecelia Rushton and Katherine Talgarth are feeling quite put out over their forced separation. Kate is in London to have her first Season (though only because it would be improper for her younger sister, the lovely Georgina, to be presented before she is). Cecy, on the other hand, has been left behind in Essex. Really, it is too vexing of Aunt Elizabeth to be still annoyed about the incident with Squire Bryant's goat. Luckily for both young ladies, the Royal Mail functions quite properly, allowing each of them to keep the other informed about various excitements and entertainments.

Kate has barely arrived in London when a hateful witch trues to poison her during a visit to the Royal College of Wizards. It seems the witch has mistaken Kate for the mysterious Marquis of Schofield, which is silly, really, because Kate looks nothing like him. And Cecy has a puzzle of her own. Why is the very handsome and very elegant James Tarleton skulking about in the bushes, so obviously spying (though not very stealthily, since Cecy always spots him) on Cecy and her new friend, Dorothea? Before long, both of the cousins are caught up in the dangerous and intriguing world of wizards and magic. It might not be entirely proper, but lives are at stake and, as Cecy always says, they MUST do something.

In the Afterword to this delightful and thoroughly engaging novel, Patricia Wrede and Caroline Stevermer reveal that Sorcery and Cecelia began life as a version of the letter game. Each author wrote letters to the other in character without revealing her own plans for the plot. Once the game was completed, Ms. Wrede and Ms. Stevermer realized the letters could be turned into a novel with very little editing. The exchange of letters between the two cousins suits this type of historical mystery/romance perfectly and the counterpoint of the two voices (and the two storylines) makes the novel particularly enjoyable. Each of the two heroines is able to inject her own personality into her first hand accounts, which keeps the story lively and the plot moving forward at a smartish clip. Sorcery and Cecelia is a wonderful historical novel, with just the right balance of intrigue and romance to keep things extra interesting.

Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer first published Sorcery and Cecelia under that that title in 1988. In recent years, thanks to reprints with shiny new cover art by Scott M. Fischer in the case of the edition I read as well as two new sequels, this book has regained popularity and visibility. Aside from that, one of the most important things to know about this book is its alternate title: The Enchanted Chocolate Pot: Being the Correspondence of Two Young Ladies of Quality Regarding Various Magical Scandals in London and the Country.

Wrede and Stevermer wrote this book as a writing exercise of sorts called the Letter Game. Patricia C. Wrede wrote as Cecelia while Caroline Stevermer responded with Kate's letters. They did not plan the plot before they began writing.

Almost every review I have found online describes Sorcery and Cecelia as a cross between the books of Jane Austen and those of J. K. Rowling. The comparison does make sense, but I might venture to say I liked this book better than any of the Harry Potter series.

The year is 1817 in an England where magic is as much a part of life as letter writing. The latter is of particular importance to Kate and Cecelia as the cousins spend the novel in separate parts of England. While Kate and her more glamorous sister Georgina are in London enjoying a proper Season, Cecelia, much to her consternation, is left to languish in the country with her brother Oliver for company (at least until he's turned into a tree).

Problems begin for both cousins when Kate accidentally intercepts a rather nasty pot of chocolate in a London garden that was, apparently, meant for the eccentric Marquis of Schofield. If only he would explain exactly why.

Meanwhile, in the country, Cecelia finds herself following a shady figure spying on Cecy's new (and surprisingly popular!) friend Dorothea. When Cecelia repeatedly catches him in the act of spying, James Tarleton repeatedly refuses to offer any information.

As the girls learn more about these mysterious men, and the mysterious events, it becomes clear that something big is happening--big enough that evidence of the plan can be seen in both London and the country. The only question is what, exactly, is going on and if Kate and Cecelia can stop it in time.

Being an homage to Jane Austen, this novel has not one but two romances. Which couple is better has been a hot topic since the book came out. The librarian who recommended the book to me feels very strongly that the Mysterious Marquis and Kate are a more enjoyable match to observe. For my part, I preferred Cecelia and James.

This novel avoids all of the traps that can make an epistolary novel awful. There is no repetition, there is dialogue, the narrative reads like a, for lack of a better word, normal book in that the narrative flows in a fairly traditional way. There is neither too much information nor too little. And, most importantly, the novel is filled with suspense, action, humor and romance that shines through both Cecelia's and Kate's letters.

But then from two talented and well-known fantasy writers, what else can a reader expect but perfection?

Sorcery and Cecelia is the first in a series of books featuring Kate and Cecelia. Their stories continue in The Grand Tour (2004) and The Mislaid Magician of Ten Years After (2006).

Sorcery and Cecelia or the Enchanted Chocolate Pot is an epistolary novel written by friends Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer. It apparently began as a sort of letter writting game called "Persona Letters" or "Ghost Letters" where people write back and forth the makings of story, each adding their part as the letters are exchanged. Neither reveals their ideas for the plot until it's written out properly in the letter. Sounds fun doesn't it? Well, the result of these particular ladies' efforts is a fun little story written in letters of course about two young ladies just come of age in Regency England. Theirs is a magical England along the lines of Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, but not as obvious or socially acceptable really. The two young ladies are cousins, one "coming out" in London, the other spending the season at home in the country. They accidentally stumble into a mysterious magical sort of mini war between characters located in each lady's domain and become involved. The pace of the novel picks up dramatically midway and the ending was quite satisfactory. It was fun! I noted the dedication was to Jane Austen, Georgette Heyer, J.R.R. Tolkien and Ellen Kushner and their influences are evident. The writing style is pretty and lighthearted, like Jane Austen but not so heavy. One can read this novel with a minimal amount of focus and very little concentration. I would recommend it for precocious young ladies about age 12 and up and for any lady who likes breezy fun stories similar to Jane Austen with a little Harry Potter sprinkled on top.(less

One of the wonderful things about the success of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series, aside from those wonderful books themselves, is that it has publishers rushing to their backlogs and slush piles for more magical children's books. That's why this novel, originally published over ten years ago, finally has been reprinted, along with a sequel called The Grand Tour. I had long heard about this novel, having had it recommended to me by the automatic recommendation service at Alexandria Digital Library, and having that recommendation seconded by a number of AlexLit's patrons. Every time I was in a used book store, I would check the shelves for this book and never finding it, so I was overjoyed when I discovered this reprint on a table at a local science fiction convention.

As the longer title indicates, the format of this book is epistolary (i.e., a series of letters between the two main characters). That format can be difficult for readers, as it tends to put a distance between the reader and the action by adding a time-delay, but the two authors (in their major character guises) are excellent at drawing you into each letter and the story. It turns out, from an afterword here, that the two authors wrote this originally as a game, each writing actual letters to the other which the recipient had to use when writing their own. Because these two women were excellent authors to begin with (having previously published books individually), their game turned into a highly enjoyable novel.

The setting is an England in the post-Napoleanic era, made famous in literature by Jane Austen. And Austen is who first comes to mind when you read this, as much of the feel of the book has that comedy of manners and social slights that Austen excelled at. Then you throw in the fact that magic works, from lowly "charm bags" that require excellent needlework to full-scale necromancy that can claim lives. London parties, country dances, and the machinations of mothers and aunts combine with this magic to create a novel where you simply need to read the next letter to find out what happened. I read this in a single day while on vacation, unable to put it down. I then gave it to a twelve-year-old girl at the resort I was at who proceeded to devour it the next day and immediately ask if I had the sequel, which is about the highest recommendation for a book I can make.

Sorcery & Cecelia (2003) is the first Historical Fantasy in the Cecy & Kate series. Cecelia Rushton and Katherine Talgarth are cousins. Both Cecy and Kate are motherless; Cecy resides with her father, older brother Oliver and Aunt Elizabeth, but Kate only has her younger sister Georgina and Aunt Charlotte.

In this novel, in 1817, Kate and Georgina are in London, accompanied by Aunt Charlotte, for their social debut. Georgina inherited most of their father's good looks -- whereas Kate inherited their father's ability to tell believable lies -- and Aunt Charlotte dearly wanted Georgy to come out that year. Yet Georgina should not debut before Kate, so both have come for the season. Now everything will be fine if Kate doesn't rip out her hem again or fall into a duck pond.

Cecy, however, is not allowed to go with Kate, since Aunt Elizabeth envisions sheer havoc if both cousins go together to London. Maybe she was thinking of the incident with Squire Bryant's goat? So Cecy spends hours in the company of the vicar. But there is still some hope: Lady Tarleton is having a party for her visiting niece Dorothea Griscomb.

Moreover, Sir Hilary Bedrick has just been named to the Royal College of Wizards. He has already left for London, yet everybody is expecting great things when he returns. But Aunt Elizabeth speaks darkly of magic being for heathens and cannibals.

In London, Georgy soon draws every able bodied man -- and a few not so healthy -- at all the parties. In Essex, Dorothea draws all the men, except James Tarleton, who seems more intent on spying on the lady. Then Miranda Griscomb, Dorothea's stepmother, arrives at Tarleton Hall and takes her away to London. Georgy begins to play second fiddle to Dorothea.

In this story, Cecy finds a charm-bag in Oliver's bed clothes. She removes it, but can't discover who placed it there. Moreover, the contents are unrecognizable, so she borrows -- on the sly -- a book on this subject out of Sir Hilary's library and soon starts preparing her own bags.

Dorothea attracts every man who lays eyes on her, but they tend to forget her when she leaves the vicinity. Cecy suspects that Dorothea has been enchanted to attract men. Later the cousins learn that this enchantment is directed toward one man: the Mysterious Marquis of Schofield.

Kate has an upsetting experience with an odious woman in white powdered hair and Oliver is briefly turned into a tree. Kate learns of an enchanted chocolate pot that James inadvertently gave to Sir Hilary. Robert Penwood searches for Dorothea's father in Yorkshire.

This story is related as letters between Cecy and Kate. According to the afterword, the story started out as a game of letters and, with a little polishing, evolved into this novel. The original version was first published in 1988, but has been revived as the first in a series of similar works.

Highly recommended for Wrede & Stevermer fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of polite manners, social gossip and magical intrigue in an early nineteenth century setting.

-Arthur W. Jordin

...and, generally speaking, I don't (the authors in their dedication credit Jane Austen, Georgette Heyer, J. R. R. Tolkien, and Ellen Kushner for inspiring them to create it), you'll find yourself caught up in this bright, intrigue-filled alternate-Universe epistolary tale. Cousins and best friends Cecelia "Cecy" Rushton and Katharine "Kate" Talgarth get involved in a magical rivalry in a Regency England where magic works (though we don't get much in the way of explanation as to how, or what its limitations are) when Kate falls afoul of Miranda Griscomb, a sorceress who is a great deal more (and more sinister) than she seems and is in league with their neighbor, Sir Hilary Bedrick (recently elevated to the Royal College of Wizards), to drain the magical power of the Mysterious Marquis, Edward Schofield. (If that sounds confusing, it is at first; the cast is, to say the least, somewhat Dickensian, and you may find it necessary to keep a list of who's who!) Meanwhile Kate befriends Dorothea Griscomb, Miranda's stepdaughter, and begins plotting to foil Miranda's plans to have her marry the "odious" Marquis in favor of matching her up with Robert Penwood, who loves her. And, of course, both girls end up betrothed to men they would never have looked at twice if not for the series of events that threw them together. (What else would you expect in a Regency, after all?) The idiom is so authentic that you may actually find yourself pulling up short at an unfamiliar use of a word. Kate and Cecy are delightful characters, each one an individual and both with a tendency to be just a bit unconventional and more than a little headstrong; I think it takes a good deal of skill to indicate such things when you're telling a story through the voice of your character. Whether they live in the same Universe as the characters of Wrede's two Mairelon books Mairelon the Magician and Magician's Ward is unclear, though I suspect they may. What's especially delightful is that (according to the authors' postscript) the book began as a game of Persona Letters, in which each participant assumes an epistolary identity and writes his/her alter ego's adventures without revealing to the other what future twists and turns might be planned--and without knowing what the other one may be planning to do with the *other* alter ego! Having read it, you're sure to want to sample the sequels, The Grand Tour and The Mislaid Magician or Ten Years After; I've just added all three to my Wish List. You may also enjoy these two alternate-Regency/fantasies by Andre Norton & Rosemary Edghill: The Shadow of Albion (Carolus Rex, Bk 1) and Leopard in Exile (Carolus Rex, Book 2)

Review:Sorcery & Cecelia by Patricia C. Wrede
4 STARS This is an interesting background to writing a novel. They played a game called a letter game and would write letters back and forth in character and not mention plot. Now days if kids did that it would be short texts. I enjoyed it but would have been better if I read it instead of listening to my kindle. It broke and I could not look at screen if I was lost.(did not handle evacuating very well.) Thier is nothing in hear that is objectional unless you believe magic is wrong. The story two main characters never come in contact with each other except by letters. Kate and Cecelia are cousins and quite close till the summer of 1817. Kate was sent to come out for a season in London and Cecelia at home in her small country home. The two cousins tell each other everything that is going on. Thier is a world of magic that exists. This story is different and as an air of uniqueness to it. As they both battle in thier way against evil and find love along the way. I was given this ebook to read in exchange of honest review from Netgalley. 05/22/2012 PUB Open Road

A lovely epistolary novel, sharing the letters exchanged between two cousins in Regency England. Kate is in London for the Season, while Cecilia has been left in the country. Each becomes entangled with sorcerers, some benign, others not. A very engaging tale with just the right mix of Regency mores and magic. There are two more books in this series, already awaiting my perusal!

Patricia C. Wrede has written so many good books (Enchanted Forest Chronicles, Marileon the Magician, the Raven Ring, the Lyra Novels, and more), so I picked this book up a few days after having listened to a long lecture from my sister on how great it was. I looked at the cover, said, 'Nice cover,' and set it down to start later - which I did. I had hopes it would be good, I didn't doubt Patricia C. Wrede, but I didn't want my hopes to get to high and be disappointed. Well, it turns out I needn't have worried. This book is seriously the best book I've read all year (except perhaps the Harry Potter's, and the Witches of Eileanan's, both series are fantastic), and that's saying a lot.

It's about these two (women) cousins, Cecelia and Kate, and the story takes place many years ago in Britain. Kate goes to London to be introduced to Society, but Cecelia is in disgrace because of a goat incident (which it never fully explains). The whole story is in letters from one cousin to the other, and they discuss social events, politics, fashions, family, and... wizards.

One very interesting thing about this book is the way it was written. The two authors, Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer, played the 'Letter Game' - they sent real letters to each other, pretending to be their character. They never discussed the plot (well, once, a tiny), though they did discuss the characters, and then at the end of (I think) 6 months, they looked at the letters together and decided to make a book.

It's a very hilarious book, with a great plot and wonderful characters, and anyone who likes fantasy - or even Jane Austen - will enjoy this book; unless you like battles with guns or swords, because this book doesn't have that. Otherwise, it is certainly worth it to get this book.

Book Talk: Kate's first season in London would have been difficult enough if things had gone smoothly, but the season soon turns from difficult to deadly when she gets caught up in a feud between sorcerers. Meanwhile her best friend Cecelia is stuck at home and what starts off as an extremely dull season turns sinister when a new girl arrives with trouble trailing right behind her. As the situation escalates, Cecelia and Kate are told to wait in the drawing rooms and let the sorcerers handle things, but thanks to their letters they know more about the situation than anyone suspects, enough to do something about it themselves!

Rocks My Socks: Two words: epistolary novel! This novel is as true to the letter-writing tradition as you can get, as it actually began as a game between the two authors, each taking on a different persona and writing letters back and forth to each other to amuse themselves. Thankfully they realized that what they had at the end was a book that others might enjoy as well, so they thought to clean it up and publish it. You can tell how much they enjoyed writing it and that sense of light-hearted amusement leaps from the pages to the reader. I also love the setting, an alternate early 19th century London where magic exists. Similar to Johnathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, which I also loved, but not as dense. There was a Jane Austen feel to it for me with two strong young women discussing their prospects and their dresses and their balls. Magic, adventure, romance, intrigue, fashion, strong female characters, letters, sass, this book has everything that I love.

Rocks In My Socks: The book was pretty frivolous, which normally annoys me but in this case it was just so much fun that I didn't care. Kate could have been a bit more assertive, and the storyline was pretty predictable, but I was enjoying myself too much while I was reading it to be very critical.

Every Book its Reader: There's nothing in this that's really inappropriate, but seeing as the girls are discussing marriage and the like it will probably be easier to relate to for teens and above. The story has a fair amount of adventure, but it also spends a fair amount of time discussing what color best suits each girl. There are some boys who would be interested in that, but I wouldn't recommend it to just any boy looking for an adventure fantasy. If you need a pick-me-up or just want to spend an delightful afternoon in a world of magic and wit this is a great book for you!

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With two delightful correspondents, presented as a series of letters between the cousins Kate and Cecilia, this book was delicious.
Having just finished reading it, I feel enervated & gleeful - it's one of those, the kind that make you crow with delight over particularly good passages and happy summations.
And sum it up I shall:
Kate is in London for the Season (an alternate London, where magic is accepted and wizardry employed in defence of the Regent's residence and we have the usual references to Regency London, Lady Jersey and the Duke of Wellington and so on) and Cecelia is stuck in the country after a particularly hairy incident involving a goat.
Both characters are delicious and get involved in some very intriguing business, with an unavoidably attractive debutante, some magic spells, and a disdainful Marquis. Not to mention a vindictively vicious Stepmother!
The story is charming, and even more interesting, at the end in a series of postscripts from the authors, they reveal that the book was written in a game,AS A SERIES OF LETTERS (just as presented in the book)without discussing the plot, the characters, or anything further to the construction of the next letter. A bit like that game where you add on the next sentence, but they have created a marvellous world.
As P.C. Wrede started the first letter, it is based on her Mairelon the Magician books, which were also set in a magic-infused Regency England. What fun! Can't wait to read the next one.

This book is a series of letters between Cecelia (Cecy) and her friend and cousin Kate. Kate is in London for her season but Cecy is still at home in Essex. They both stumble into a plot involving an evil wizards Miranda and Sir Hilary and find themselves helping different young men to thwart their schemes. Kate in London ends up in a fake betrothal to a Marquis and Cecy in Essex finds herself helping James Tarleton who is assisting the Marquis.

It's a fun read as the plot unfolds and the magical abilities of Cecy and Kate become apparent. However written as it was, without either author having decided on an overall plot, does sometimes show through. In a way it's two separate stories with some interweaving but each would work pretty well on its own. Regency detail is there although better editing would have been appreciated - as with most American-authored Regencies, our characters lapse into occasional American word forms ("gotten", "fall" for autumn, "write me" for "write to me", "in back" for "at the back" or "behind you" etc). This always annoys me but the otherwise charming nature of the book meant it wasn't too distracting.

In short this is an enjoyable read but it's not anything too special.

To best understand "Sorcery and Cecelia" one has to first flick to the back of the book in order to read the authors' afterword in which they explain the format and history of their story. After hearing of a game called "The Letter Game", Patricia Wrede and Caroline Stevermer decided to have a go - each took on the persona of two young women in a more magically favoured 1800's, and wrote to each other concerning their activities. Patrica Wrede plays the role of Cecelia Rushton, living in the country and somewhat envious of her cousin Kate Talgarth (Caroline Stevermer) who is being presented to Society in London. And so the correspondance began, each woman drawing on the magical angle of their created world as well as a 'Jane Austen' flavour, so tell each other of the gradually more dangerous escapades that they both get up to.
Kate in London is well into the process of socialising and mingling, despite being overshadowed by her far more beautiful sister Georgy. But whilst watching a neighbourhood wizard Sir Hilary being installed at the Royal College of Wizards, she comes across a little door in the building that leds to a cloistered garden, where a woman named Miranda Griscombe tries to kill her via chocolate poured from a bright blue chocolate pot! It becomes increasingly difficult when her cousin (Cecy's brother) Oliver disappears while at a night time function, and everywhere she goes she seems to run into the odious 'Mysterious Marquis', a one Thomas Schofield, whom seems to be the target of Miranda's malice.
Cecelia meanwhile has come into contract with Dorothea Griscombe (any relation to Miranda?) who unintentionally seems to attract men to her like flies to honey, in particular James Tarleton, who prowls around behind bushes and under trees with very little skill at such activities. Finding herself quite accomplished at the magical arts, despite her Aunt Elizabeth's hearty disapproval, Cecelia begins to take lessons, 'borrowing' several books from Sir Hilary's library which may lend clues to Kate's situation in London...
Such does the story go, expanding with each letter, with each girl helping the other along, though in the entire course of the tale neither of them come face to face. It is a highly original way of telling a story, and for the most part works very well in presenting a tale. If there is one trouble, it is that we are never in any concern over the girls' safety in their escapades, as we know that they remain intact in order to write the letters chronicling their dangers. Furthermore its difficult to keep track of the myraid of characters that keep pouring into the storyline and their relationships with one another - three-quarters of the way through the book I gave up and began again from the start!
But "Socery and Cecelia" (why Kate is excluded from the title is a mystery since I found her story and attitude far more enjoyable than Cecelia's) is a funny, witty, exciting read, filled with magic, interfering aunts, enchanted chocolate pots, romance, adventure and a certain tone that reminds us continually that it is real letters that we are reading - we never really find out what the story was behind that goat that the girls are continually alluding to!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. My only previous experience with letter writing as a form of storytelling was 'The Screwtape Letters' by C.S. Lewis. This story managed to be engaging and suspenseful even when you know if the character is writing the letter after the fact they must have survived the experience but somehow you don't think of that while you're reading it. I found myself unable to put it down wanting to know how Cecelia or Kate would respond! Character development was very well done in the form of description and reminiscence. A great plot as well which unfolds little by little! I highly recommend this book! Can't wait to read the others!

This book was incredibly entertaining. Very well written. The authors stuck to the time period flawlessly. I accidentally read the 2nd book in this series: The Grand Tour first. But I loved it so much that I decided to try out this one as well. It didn't matter that I read them in reverse. They are both excellent stories with Austenish girls in a world where magic (though looked down upon in some circles) is acceptable in polite society.

I like the way the authors were able to insert magic into their character's lives without making it too fantastical. The sort of magic they do in these books is quiet, respectable magic the sort you see in movies like Practical Magic. There are no elves or hobgoblins or trolls, just normal everyday British girls fussing about with a few herbs and spells.

The format for this book is in letters which I enjoy very much. The style of the first book, The Grand Tour, is diary entries. I believe the letter and diary formats allowed the two author's writing styles to be blended in an interesting way.

I enjoyed this book very much and I recommend it for girls of any age.

Imagine Jane Austen with a pinch of Harry Potter. It is witty and has some magic, though mostly it is some wonderful characters interacting, with alot of fun intrigue. It's the sort of book I wanted to bury myself under an afgahn with, it was just so much fun. (I've already started reading it a second time while I am waiting to get ahold of the next book).

Its also fun to read as a writer, knowing how the two authors went about writing this. Perhaps it was where I was reading it ( a loud mall) but certain dramatic moments were slightly confusing to me, the orchestration of various scenes perhaps being not as smoothly written as they could be. However, the overall effect of the novel is wonderful, a cast of characters emerges that are wonderful to follow the adventures of, each letter brings a new twist. The characters of Kate and Cecy write back and forth so effortlessly, and their male counterparts are very amusing as well.

Anyone who loves Austen and doesn't mind wondering a bit further into the realm of the fantastical, I can't reccomend this book highly enough. Its probably middle school reading level, but an older audience will also really appreciate it.

When a sorcerer tries to poison Kate in London, she writes to her cousin in the country--and together they unravel a magical mystery. Sorcery and Cecelia is more novelty than success. The letter game that spawned it is brilliant, and the authors's engagement and joy in their joint story is infectious. But that extemporaneous style lacks refinement, and makes for a predictable, even repetitive story. I still recommend this--it lacks complexity but has a wealth of charm and good intentions.

For a long time regency fan who is currently dabbling in fantasy and steam punk, this book and the following two books are simply not to be missed. The books are set in an alternate England in 1817, with all the regency elements that are so addictive, spiced up with magic. Having read so many regencies, it is hard to find a new Regency plot and this certainly fits that bill. I don't usually like a "letter" format - the two cousins/heroines are corresponding, with one up for her Season, and one stuck at home - but fortunately both our heroines are excellent storytellers and the format doesn't detract a bit.

"Sorcery and Cecelia," an epistolary Fantasy Regency Romance (*phew!*), has quickly joined the ranks of my "novels to read when you want to stay up all night and languish all morning." Quite simply, the book is charming. Rarely do collaborative efforts seem to work, but "Sorcery and Cecelia" most assuredly does! Following the adventures of two cousins - the inept Kate in her first season in London, and the headstrong Cecelia as she discovers her sorcerous abilities - the reader is swept into a world of danger, mystery and intrigue (and the never fully explained story of WHAT in the world that adventure with the goat was about) that makes the pages turn of their own accord! The historical research is solid, the content wholesome and exciting, and the romances (Kate's especially) to sigh for. In short, as the others have said before me, this is *fun*.
Unfortunately, good novels seems to be out of vogue today, and you'll have an either difficult or exorbitant time buying it. For those who have read Wrede's other two Fantasy Regencies, "Mairelon the Magician" and "Magician's Ward," "Sorcery and Cecelia" is a must-read. For those with slim purses, interlibrary loan is a beautiful thing.

In the Afterword, the authors of Sorcery & Cecilia tell us that the book developed from a game they were playing. It's very obvious that they had fun writing this. Is it breathtaking? No. Is it predictable? Maybe a little. Is it a fast-paced, fun read that promises good times spent by the reader? Most definitely.

The two main characters, Cecilia & her cousin Kate, are separated for a "Season". This being 19th-century England, they have no Internet or phone service, so they keep in touch with letters, which is what we are reading.

Luckily for us, they have plenty of adventures to keep each other informed of. Magical adventures, with intrigue, humor and a hint of romance. And, being girls, there is plenty of gossip.

If you only like books that are deep and serious, this is not the book for you. If, however, you are ready to have fun and be well entertained, I would definitely recommend reading about these girls and their encounters with the subtitled Enchanted Chocolate Pot. (Which, I admit, I was surprised to discover is not actually made of chocolate.)

I have an old paperback version of this that includes postscripts by both authors. They admit that this story came out of the two of them engaging in a game where they wrote letters in character to each other. Once they wound up the story they sat down, reviewed the latters and realized they had a book. Well, the framework for a book, they admit to performing some editing.

And that might be why this is so much fun to read. The two writers were clearly having a blast writing as Kate and Cecilia. You can almost see events as they happened in their mind. The tone is perfect and playful.

There isn't much more to say, this is a great historical fantasy and a great fantasy in general. For a book that breaks so many "rules" by having two authors and being written as a series of letters between two cousins experiencing their coming of age it just works.

"Dearest Kate, It is dreadfully flat here since you have been gone, and it only makes it worse to imagine all the things I shall be missing."

Thus begins an enchanting fantasy story told in letters between two cousins, Kate and Cecilia. Many strange things are happening in London. Magical things. This was a great book, especially as I love Patricia Wrede's other books. And, the two authors wrote this as letters between each other, so they didn't really know where the book was going. They find out new developments as soon as their characters do. The two girls might fear for their lives- if they weren't having such fun! This is a wonderful lighthearted fantasy with a cute title too. And it also had a really whimsical and enjoyable writing style.

*You can read all of my reviews at my book blog, [...]*

Two romances, two mysteries, and two captivating heroines all in one book. Written as a letter game between Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer, these two excellent young adult fantasy writers created a captivating Regency England where magic is a part of life and a misunderstood science.

Kate Talgarth and Cecelia Rushton are two Young Ladies of Quality who are cousins and were inseparable until this London Season. Split apart by their aunts, who fear for the safety of London if the two girls were unleashed on society at the same time, Kate goes off to London with her sister, while Cecy is left in the Country. The two correspond via letters as their stories unfold. In Town, Kate is nearly poisoned by a mysterious woman, while back in the Country, Cecy finds a charm bag under her brother's bed and a new young lady becomes suspiciously popular in local society. When it seems like the new girl's feared step-mother and Kate's poisoner are the same woman, the cousins begin to piece together their oddly connected mysteries. Between London and the Country, the odd coincidences build up as the two girls are drawn into a deadly power play.

Cute, quick, and clever, the reader will enjoy this book until the last word. The use of language and description draws us into the time period. My only concern with the book is that the characters tend to blend together.

I must say, I don't really like the cover. Or, more specifically, I don't like the art of Kate and Cecy on the cover. The faces look odd, with a very nineties American comic art styling that seems out of place. Otherwise, the use of black and white, along with the blue chocolate pot, entices the reader. Another thing I do like about the cover is the fact that the spine looks like a fantasy book, incorporating gold and black, along with the chocolate pot. To me, that's an important element, because at large book stores the most you get to see on the shelf is the spine. Unless the spine makes me want to pull the book out and take a look, I might accidentally walk by a really great book with an ordinary title.

The third Sorcery and Cecilia book just came out, so now is a great time to see these two from their first Season to parenthood. The Grand Tour takes place right after this book ends, and The Mislaid Magician moves ahead ten years.

This book is a series of letters between cousins Cecelia and Kate that take place when in 1817 Kate goes to London to stay with her aunt while she has her first Season and social debut. Shortly after her arrival in London Kate goes to see a family acquaintance accepted into the Royal Society of Wizards and stumbles on a plot that almost leads to her death.

Meanwhile back at home, Cecelia is finding things are not as they seem with her family and friends. This book is an enjoyable romp through an alternative Georgian England with two Ladies Of Quality who find their life-long curiosity and tendency to poke their noses into other peoples problems lead them into a plot that impacts not only themselves but those they love.

This novel is a gem. It's a letter novel, a mystery and a comedy of manners. I'm looking forward to meeting all these characters again in THE GRAND TOUR. This book it marketed towards younger readers, but it would probably be enjoyed by anyone who likes a good fantasy novel whatever their age.

This is an epistolary novel that takes place in an alternate history where magic is commonplace. Taking place in the early 1800s, it's like a cross between a Georgette Heyer and _Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norell_. Two cousins, one visiting London for her first "Season" and the other supposedly safe at home, stumble across an evil plot and draw on their wits and skills to solve the mystery and thwart the bad guys. The story of how the authors wrote the book is almost as good as the book itself (it's explained at the end). This is a very pleasurable read for any female 14 and up, light enough to be fun, imaginative and intelligent enough to be stimulating and ABSOLUTELY CLEAN. If there were something to improve, I'd say it's the title and that the two central characters need to be a little more distinct in personality.

Sorcery and Cecelia or the Enchanted Chocolate Pot by Caroline Stevermer and Patricia C. Wrede was a funny, light-hearted, and a bit of a romantic read. The novel, set in the early nineteenth century, is about two cousins � Cecelia Rushton, who lives in Rushton Manor in the English countryside, and Katherine Talgarth, who is having her first Season in London � and their various exploits with magic. Interestingly, instead of being written in a traditional format, Sorcery and Cecelia is written as the correspondence between Kate and Cecy. The story includes many memorable characters, such as Thomas (aka the Mysterious Marquis), Miranda, Sir Hilary, the nagging aunts, and numerous others. Although a bit slow in the beginning, the story soon picks up the pace as the cousins begin to write more and more frequently, and become further involved in sorcery. The ending was kind of soppy, but readers catch hints of what�s coming earlier in the book. All-in-all, this was an enjoyable read that I would recommend to teenage girls, especially those who enjoyed the Harry Potter series.

GENERAL COMMENTS: Patricia C. Wrede's strengths in her past novels have been her deliciously irreverent-but-tidy humor and her simple-but-dead-on endings. This novel continues in that tradition, though the ending comes out a bit on the long-winded side. It comes of having to communicate through letters, I suppose. This is not to say that the letters are a problem-- Stevermer and Wrede do a good job of writing letters that look as though they were wickedly fun to write, and therefore, are engaging to read.

SPECIFIC DETAILS: In Sorcery and Cecelia, two cousins (one of whom is named Cecelia, the other, Kate) write affectionate letters to each other during their London season separation. They expect that Kate will have the greater fun, as she is having her first season "out" in London, and Cecelia is stuck in their hometown. Well, this turns out to be true for the most part, but not in quite the way that they anticipate. As they exchange witticisms to counteract their vanity-- and in spite of the fact that neither can claim the place of harebrained beauty, mostly because the authors have wisely inserted flat characters to take up these spaces lest the reader make any mistake about it, they are quite openly vain-- and even as they display this vanity over gold polish and matching silk shawls (always practical, or trying to pretend to be, to amusing effect, rather than insipid), they find themselves (almost) turning into trees, drinking from treacherous chocolate pots, and then, it is finally Kate who gets to meet a mysterious Marquis who is quite vain himself. Well, these clever gals can see where the wind is blowing, and they set out to solve the mystery and save the boys from their own thick-witted heroism, while remaining borderline dimwits about their relationships to the said thick-wits.

others have covered the storyline well so I just wanted to add a few more points.

This charming book is suggested for young adults but this 38 year old woman really enjoyed it. As an avid Regency Romance and Fantasy fan I was intrigued by the story's premise.

The way the story is presented -in a series of letters between the two cousins-was unique, but did, in my opinion, slow down the storyline. While the mixture of Regency Romance and Fantasy was inspired, I also found not enough of either to really "grab" the reader. Hence the four star rating.

I would still recommend the book to fans of Fantasy who dabble in Historical fiction, or vice versa, looking for a sweet, uncomplicated read.

4 stars.

This is an epistolary novel between to cousins. I've never read an epistolary novel before and I had no idea it was one when I started reading! I was a bit weary at first but then began to enjoy what Kate and Cecy had to say to one another and how the plot continued to thicken! They're both strong female heroines and I love how they subconsciously fall in love! It's pretty hilarious...I mean, you know it's going to happen and with whom, but it's all about the journey!

It's cute and romantic and there's even magic and mayhem!

They wrote a couple of more sequels recently and am looking forward to them!

I quite enjoyed this book, it's very different than the usual fantasy stories and is set out in an unusual way. I think this book would appeal to most fantasy readers, it's not the best book I have read but it's certainly quite enjoyable and worth reading.

This book, along with "The Grand Tour" and "The Mislaid Magician" (the sequels) are all cracking good books. I loved the diary/letter-type format. It was unusual - I've never run across it before - and Patricia Wrede & her co-author pulled it off admirably. The plotlines moved well, the characters are great fun, and the books are long enough to settle into for an extended period. I'd recommend it for about 12 & up, as the writing level is bordering on adult. I've read a lot of Wrede's books, and she doesn't disappoint. (By the way - I'm over 45, and I find these books far better than most adult novels of the same size.)

Historical fiction has always been my favorite genre, and as I have read many historical fiction writings before 'Sorcery and Cecelia or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot', I was pleasantly surprised when I read this book. I can honestly say that this was fantastic, and written in an original format (it was written in the form of letters between the two main characters). It had just the right amount of wit, drama, and mystery to keep me reading right through till the end! I recommend purchasing the sequel, as well. I haven't read the sequel yet, but I am anxious to see what kind of trouble Kate and Cecy can get into next! Happy reading!

I picked this book up as a Kindle Unlimited because the synopsis was interesting and it was free, so I decided to give it a try. This isn't a fast book to read . It proceeds somewhat slowly because the action is all described after the fact. The use of letters as the plot device is interesting and fun. The characters make me smile.

*aMaZiNg* book!! I really loved this, and can't wait for the sequel (The Grand Tour). It's starts out kinda slow... seems boring and weird. But after the first few letters, you really get into the story!! The things that cousins Katherine Talgarth and Cecelia Rushton (aka Kate and Cecy) do, it's a surprise that they're allowed to do ANYTHING! Wish they explained more about living circumstances though, and what happened to both girls' mothers... but I loved the characters, especially Kate and Cecy (obviously) and Thomas and Sylvia!! This is a GREAT book; definitely read it!