Sorcery and Cecelia or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot (Cecelia and Kate, #1)

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Sorcery and Cecelia or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot (Cecelia and Kate #1)

by Patricia C. Wrede, Caroline Stevermer

4.02 · rating details · 4,956 ratings · 782 reviews

A great deal is happening in London and the country this season.

For starters, there's the witch who tried to poison Kate at the Royal College of Wizards. There's also the man who seems to be spying on Cecelia. (Though he's not doing a very good job of it--so just what are his intentions?) And then there's Oliver. Ever since he was turned into a tree, he hasn't bothered to...more

Paperback, 326 pages

Published September 1st 2004 by Graphia (first published April 15th 1988)

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Community Reviews

(showing 1-30 of 7,981)

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Feb 08, 2009

Ann rated it

Shelves: katie-and-annie-bookclub, character-stories, fantasy, mysteries, young-adult

I quite enjoyed this book! It's a little bit mystery, a little bit fantasy, there's a little magic and a little romance, all set in the early 1800's England.

The story takes place around cousins Cecelia and Kate, one goes to London for the summer, the other remains in the country. Their correspondence begins ordinarily enough (what tea party had been attended, or the trouble with hand-me-down dresses), but you get a sense very early on that Cecelia and Kate are kindred spirits and t...more

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Feb 09, 2009

Kathryn rated it

Shelves: annie-and-katie-bookclub

When Cecy is forced to stay behind in the countryside when her cousin (and dearest friend) Kate goes to London for all the parties and social connections of the season, a correspondence ensues to keep one another informed of all the delicious goings-on of friends and family members, fashion trends and the like. However, they are also intelligent young women and soon the plot begins to thicken as two seemingly unrelated "suspicious incidents" involving maddening-yet-charming young men ...moreWhen Cecy is forced to stay behind in the countryside when her cousin (and dearest friend) Kate goes to London for all the parties and social connections of the season, a correspondence ensues to keep one another informed of all the delicious goings-on of friends and family members, fashion trends and the like. However, they are also intelligent young women and soon the plot begins to thicken as two seemingly unrelated "suspicious incidents" involving maddening-yet-charming young men and bouts of sorcery begin to take place around the girls. Before they know it, the girls are embroiled in helping their new-found friends (and, in truest Austen-esque sense, potential lovers...???) avoid the dastardly schemes of two noted bright-lights of society (who also happen to be well-versed in the most evil uses of magic!)

I didn't find this quite the "Jane Austen meets Harry Potter" that it's been touted as (no doubt as a marketing device in light of the resurgence of popularity for JA in recent years, and the blockbuster that is HP--this book was originally written in the mid 1980s, though!) but I didn't find it up to the standards of either. While I was definitely amused, it certainly wasn't as witty or deep as Austen, but I really don't think it was trying to be. Also, this is NOT that "magical"--one can learn to be a wizard and magic is certainly used, but it's not like HP in that the world is very much Regency England with a small smattering of magic worked in, rather than being a whole world created around magic. That is not to say, though, that it wasn't a delightful romp through Regency England complete with wizardry! :-> I give it four stars because the first 1/3 of the book was a bit slow-moving for me and I found some of it to be a bit sloppily written and confusing (I read this with my sister and she agreed, so it wasn't just me!) Perhaps this stemmed from the fact it was originally written as a letter game between the authors, so I'm not sure how well plotted-out the story was to begin with, though one would have hoped later editing would have cleared that up. Nevertheless, just don't expect TOO much from this and you should be pleasantly pleased if you like the premise.

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Aug 06, 2008

Emma rated it

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 Variou...morePatricia 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).
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May 26, 2009

Kelly rated it

Shelves: romantical, fiction, fantasy-and-scifi, regency, owned, epistolary

A perfectly charming little epistolary tale with a number of problems. This is the story of Kate and Cecelia (does this spelling of the name bother anyone else? I had to type that name three times before I got it right, it seem so unnatural!) two cousins who are seperated for a few months while one experiences the London Season, and the other stays on their country estate, and write letters back and forth to each other. Kate falls into the path of an evil magician, Cecelia trips over related mag...moreA perfectly charming little epistolary tale with a number of problems. This is the story of Kate and Cecelia (does this spelling of the name bother anyone else? I had to type that name three times before I got it right, it seem so unnatural!) two cousins who are seperated for a few months while one experiences the London Season, and the other stays on their country estate, and write letters back and forth to each other. Kate falls into the path of an evil magician, Cecelia trips over related magical problems of her own- plotting and hijinx to follow. Appropriate males are found to counterpart them, and we're off!

The good bits: The wannabe Jane Austen voice was fairly good, there were several witty one liners that were laugh out loud worthy, there were some truly excellent capers, and I appreciated the spirit of both the young ladies. Also, it really does captivate you and for the most part sweep you away. I finished this book in a matter of a few hours. If you shut your brain off and enjoy it as a light, fluffy, delicious bon bon, its wonderful.

The problems: The authors wrote this by doing "The Letter Game"- in which the participants write letters to each other in character. You're not allowed to discuss the plot at all, it just has to unfold organically. In this particular case, the authors began to coordinate the plot towards the end so as to bring it to a satisfactory conclusion, but other than that, it is obvious that this was not planned very well as a book. The plot doesn't fit very well together, at least one of the romances is ridiculous, and there's a good deal of world building that is left out- understandable since the book is in epistolary form, between members of the same family (though its never made clear how they are related) and the authors wouldn't see the need to do a bunch of exposition. I do feel that some compromise between reader enjoyment and realism could have been made, though.

Another thing that bothered me- it seemed like the authors did all of their research out of Georgette Heyer and a basic reference guide to the times and grabbed random bits. And they were wincingly, pompously, and embarrassingly proud of dropping clunky bits of historical slang, information, and characters into the text. These two-bit, apparently rather low on the social register characters go to intimate parties at the Countess de Lieven's? and Lady Jersey makes it a point to talk to them (and of course they use her nickname, because they are such close, personal friends)? Both male characters totally know the Duke of Wellington! Its kind of like people writing out a Star Wars roleplay, and insisting that their characters are just like the ones from the movies and they're best buddies, and going around saying, "Oh, so Luke and I were hanging out the other day..." and expecting this to impress everyone. It was simplistic and unrealistic.

Oh and speaking of unrealistic- the tones that these girls wrote their letters in. They're supposed to both be adolescent females, and they both have the voices of thirty-something year old women with 20 years of world-weary experience behind them- except when they need to be adorable and naive for our male characters, or enthuse over clothes. One of them actually refers to her sister, one year younger than her, as "the poor child."

Having said all that though- I did order the next two books in the series as soon as I finished this one. So no matter how cranky the above stated problems made me... must've not bothered me that much!

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May 07, 2008

Karene rated it

I enjoyed this book. It's light and entertaining enough to be worth reading despite a few major flaws. To anyone who picks up this book, I would suggest first reading the "Afterword" at the end of the book (it really should have been a "Foreword"). It explains how the book came to be, doesn't contain any plot spoilers, and I think had I read the book with that knowledge I might have enjoyed it even more. My main complaints were, first, that the language in the book is a l...more

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Jul 16, 2008

Becky rated it

Recommended to Becky by: Heather

Elisabeth Bennet meets Harry Potter. Well, sort of. I loved, loved, loved this Jane Austen-esque novel that follows the format of letters written between two cousins. Actually, that is how the book was originally written. The two authors adopted the personas and wrote letters to each other, creating the story.

Being Jane Austen-esque, it is of course a romance with much attention paid to social etiquettes and proprieties (and improprieties). However, the magic is largely the intr...more

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Dec 15, 2008

Michelle rated it

I stumbled across this book on the bookmobile and absolutely loved it. The entire book is written in letters. there are actually two writers and they each took a character and built the book by reacting to what the other wrote. I think it started as a game.

It's period piece (the content of the letters made me think of Jane Austin with the balls and social gatherings) set in an alternative England where magic is a common part of society. One of the girls, Kate, goes to town for the s...more

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Jun 11, 2007

Res rated it

Shelves: sff

The one where the madcap cousins stumble upon sorcerous plots in Austen times, which they describe to one another in letters.

This was charming -- I devoured it in two days and looked around for more -- and yet it must be said that throughout the entire book, I never did manage to tell Kate and Cecy apart without checking the salutation on the letter; their voices, their flaws, their virtues, were so similar that they didn't really register as different people.

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Aug 31, 2008

Rebecca rated it

Shelves: english

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Hmn. How did I feel about this book?

If critique previous to my reading would have been negative, I would probably be contrary and say "Nonsense, it was charming."

However, I had several reservations with this book.

1. It started out slow and confusing. It took me until around page 100 to really like the story line. I had a very difficult time sorting out Kate and Cecelia... there was very little to distinguish them one from another (the awful portra...moreHmn. How did I feel about this book?

If critique previous to my reading would have been negative, I would probably be contrary and say "Nonsense, it was charming."

However, I had several reservations with this book.

1. It started out slow and confusing. It took me until around page 100 to really like the story line. I had a very difficult time sorting out Kate and Cecelia... there was very little to distinguish them one from another (the awful portraits of them on my cover didn't help!). Top that with mirror-image characters surrounding each of them divided between London and Essex. Thomas vs. James. Aunt Charlotte vs. Aunt Elizabeth. Georgina vs. Dorothea. It didn't matter which young lady was writing... to me they and their party were the same. For me this was so obvious that I would be surprised to hear that the authors didn't plan this (or at least notice). The only fairly well developed character was Sir Hilary.

2. It really irked me that the letters morphed into narration two or three paragraphs in. Each letter starts as a first-person description of events, but quickly becomes an unidentified omniscient narrator with quoted dialogue. No one writes a letter like this. Perhaps the authors were trying to make it feel like a movie where the letter-writer begins the narration that flashes back into the actual story. I didn't buy it.

3. I find it highly implausible that a young lady who has just been abducted by enchantment will start off her letter calmly reciting what color dress she wore to the party. (First she would declare, "You won't believe what happened!" Then she would drop in lines about her dress as she is describing the events leading up to her abduction... duh!) The tone of each letter was discordant with what had happened.

4. The anachronistic ways in which Kate and Cecy pushed aside all Victorian guidelines of propriety were also hard for me to believe. Elizabeth Bennett herself wouldn't have thought to be so impertinent and impulsive.

5. The ending was too convenient and contrived. ("Oh? You mean there's a homing beacon on my locket? How fortunate!")

6. This is just being finicky, but I really thought the title was cool before I read the book... Obviously "Sorcery & Cecelia" just rolls off your tongue, but what about Kate? What is this book without Cecelia AND Kate? I tried to come up with a better title, but I couldn't make it work. I think I would have just stuck with The Enchanted Chocolate Pot... but that would make sequels more difficult.

Okay, but I said it was charming. I know it is meant for a young adult audience and the method of passing letters back and forth between the two authors without sharing a plot was meant merely for fun. I really liked the overall premise. I just thought there was much more potential that wasn't reached.

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Jun 10, 2007

Punk rated it

Shelves: sff, ya

YA Fiction. I had a lot of trouble getting past the first three pages of this -- it was exposition heavy and did not grab my attention -- but once I gave it another shot, I found it utterly charming. Cousins Cecelia and Kate write each other letters during the summer of 1817, while Kate is in London for the Season and Cecelia is stuck at home in the country. This is another of those Englands that just has magic lying around to spare, no big thing, it's just there, good for fighting off Napoleon ...more

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Mar 18, 2009

Featherheart rated it

This was very well-written and had some excellent quotes. Thankfully the two girl's situations were different enough that I could tell them apart, but they did not 'talk' differently enough for me to believe they were separate people. The romance was also predictable. But it was very good and funny and had a very interesting plot. It sounds like a lot of fun to write, too.

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Jun 04, 2007

thefourthvine rated it

Shelves: childrens-teen, sff

This book was pretty much made for me. I love epistolary novels (and had played the letter game before reading this), I love light-hearted, humorous stories, I love SF/F, and I love the Regency period.

There are problems with the book, of course - the letter game doesn't make for a perfect novel structure, though I was stunned at how well the two authors here managed to pull it off. And the plot is definitely a bit light. But the voices are delightful and top-notch, and the book is a...more

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Dec 28, 2010

Simeonberesford rated it

Shelves: epistolic, fantasy, romance, young, adult, fun, ya, group

An enjoyably epistolic fantasy the writer started with no plot or background just writing each other a letter in character. the a setting a Regency romance with with added magic, When a plot emerged and so they cleaned it up and published it.[return]This was obviously a lot of fun for the participants they continually strive to outdo themselves on regency language mores and background. while doing their best to help each others respective plot lines along. rather than trampling them. It ...more

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Mar 25, 2009

Amy rated it

Shelves: fantasy-adventure, victorian-romance, magic

Sorcery and Cecelia was a fun fast-paced book. Obviously written for a young adult audience, yet still captivating enough to make me read the other books in the trilogy.

This is the first book in the series in which Kate and Cecelia are seperated by distance in England and must coorespond through letters. There were times that I began to tire of the letters, but it was fun to continually view the story from two different perspectives. Kate and Cecelia find themselves caught up in...more

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Mar 16, 2009

Laura rated it

Delightful! This was a great find! Having enjoyed the writing of Patricia C. Wrede in a previous outing ("Book of Enchantments")I had no doubt that I would enjoy this one. The only question in my mind was how much of Ms. Wrede's writing would appear since this book is a collaboration with Caroline Stevermer who I was totally unfamiliar with. This combination of writing talent worked extremely well together. This book emerged from a "device" called the Letter Game (aka P...more

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Mar 01, 2009

Cassie rated it

Shelves: bookwyrm_chrysalis_reviews

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 ...moreTwo 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.

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Jan 06, 2009

Eileen rated it

Shelves: ya-romance, ya-fantasy

Sorcery & Cecelia, a combined romance and fantasy novel, was a fun read. Kate and her sister Georgina are in London for the Season, staying with their Aunt Charlotte. Georgina is charming and beautiful and sought after by wonderful male suitors. Kate is just as charming, not quite as attractive and wonderfully curious. The book chronicles the correspondence between Kate and her cousin, Cecy. Cecy remains behind in Rushton Manor with her Aunt Elizabeth. A wonderful adventure/romance ensues ...moreSorcery & Cecelia, a combined romance and fantasy novel, was a fun read. Kate and her sister Georgina are in London for the Season, staying with their Aunt Charlotte. Georgina is charming and beautiful and sought after by wonderful male suitors. Kate is just as charming, not quite as attractive and wonderfully curious. The book chronicles the correspondence between Kate and her cousin, Cecy. Cecy remains behind in Rushton Manor with her Aunt Elizabeth. A wonderful adventure/romance ensues for both girls involving magic, charms and spells.

Definitely reminiscent of Jane Austen, particularly Pride and Prejudice (that double wedding at the end), I kept thinking of Elizabeth Bennet. In Sorcery & Cecelia, Thomas makes a half hearted proposal to Kate, similar to Darcy’s first proposal to Elizabeth. Though, I think both Cecy and Kate have the spunk of Elizabeth. My favorite aspect of Sorcery & Cecelia is the strength of the female characters. The men in the story at times seem downright helpless. The blue chocolate pot is the source of major problems for Thomas. James Tarleton seems to have no plan to help Thomas. Cecy realizes something must be done now and takes action, by “accidentally” smashing the chocolate pot. That took quite a bit of courage!

The book does a great job of portraying life for young ladies in the early 19th century. Waiting for the next ball, dressing in fancy gowns and hoping to get married may seem of the utmost importance for some. Not so for Kate and Cecy. Kate and Cecy realize the inherent absurdity in the role of the passive female and express these thoughts quite wittily in their letters. Mr. Wrexton explains to Cecy that the book about epicyclical elaborations of sorcery is off limits. Cecy writes “It seems, Kate, that even in wizardry there are things it is Not Proper to speak of before Young Ladies.” In describing her encounter with Mr. Strangle after he insults her, Kate writes “There are so many things a properly brought up young lady is expected to be shocked at, it is very odd that this is the first thing that genuinely did shock me.” (p.187). That is perhaps my favorite line in the book. Aunt Charlotte spends so much time worrying about the “proper” behavior for young ladies, she completely miss the boat when it comes to the alluring Georgina, who has a serious gambling problem.
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Jan 13, 2012

Indiana rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: 2004, alternative-england, fantasty, historical, regency-england, marquess

The authors credit Jane Austen, Georgette Heyer, J.R.R. Tolkien and Ellen Kushner as inspiration and those names give you a nice idea of what to expect...a lovely combination of Regency England with polite society and...wizards. If this book had been written after the Harry Potter books no doubt the authors would have made mention of J.K. Rowling for there is a feel of her world in these novels too.

So the story takes place in Regency England and it's in the form of letters between two...more

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Jan 07, 2012

Elizabeth rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: Everyone

Shelves: alternate-history, compelling-protagonist, fantastical-tale, hysterically-funny, mystery, romance, supernatural, thrilling

This may be the best, most entertaining Regency-era novels I've ever read by post-Regency authors. It was devastatingly funny, incredibly surprising, creative, and reminiscent of all the best parts of Diana Wynne Jones with a sprinkling of Jane Austen. Wrede and Stevermer created living, vibrant protagonists, and then found the perfect way to give them to the audience--through letters. On top of that, they took classic Regency romance and sprinkled in inappropriate carriage rides, eavesdropping,...more

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Oct 06, 2011

Kathryn Hilton rated it

Recommends it for: fantasy & Regency romance fans

Shelves: fantasy, regency-romance

This book, the full title of which is Sorcery and Cecilia, or the Enchanted Chocolate Pot, Being the correspondence of two Young Ladies of Quality regarding various Magical Scandals in London and the Country, is awesome. The book sprang from a letter game, in which two people make up characters and exchange letters. Patricia C. Wrede started off, setting the scene in Regency England in a world that has magic. Her character is writing a letter to her cousin, who has just gone to London for her...more

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Jun 01, 2011

Squeakycleanreads rated it

Overall Review: Think Jane Austen meets Harry Potter… and that is what you get in Sorcery & Cecelia. The setting is an alternate England after the Napoleonic Wars. The characters are the cousins, Kate and Cecelia. The romantic interests are the mysterious Marquis of Schofield and the aloof James Tarleton. And the result is charming.

This book originated as a Letter Game between the two authors. In this game, there are no set rules other than the players must not reveal their p...more

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May 13, 2011

Abigail rated it

Popular Young Adult author, Patricia C. Wrede, teams up with Caroline Stevermer in this exciting magical twist on Regency life. The book's format is delightful and clever--it's the exchange of letters between cousins, Cecelia and Katherine. The cousins themselves are delightful and clever, always providing the reader with a smile.
The beginning is a little slow, but the speed picks up as we follow Kate's first season in London and Cecelia's discovery of her sorcery abilities. Along with thi...more

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Apr 11, 2011

Scarlett.speaks rated it

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Oh, Patricia Wrede. I've loved you since the Dealing with Dragons books. And Caroline Stevermer. I'm sure you're magnificent too. Here. Have some pie. Or a biscuit.

This book is told through letters from the two main characters to each other, Cecelia and Kate, and it's told over the course of a London social season (which used to be a big deal, dunno if it is anymore) in 1817. Tidbit of trivia that makes the book even cooler: the authors originally started it out as a writing exercise ...moreOh, Patricia Wrede. I've loved you since the Dealing with Dragons books. And Caroline Stevermer. I'm sure you're magnificent too. Here. Have some pie. Or a biscuit.

This book is told through letters from the two main characters to each other, Cecelia and Kate, and it's told over the course of a London social season (which used to be a big deal, dunno if it is anymore) in 1817. Tidbit of trivia that makes the book even cooler: the authors originally started it out as a writing exercise to each other, one wrote one letter and vice versa until a plot popped out. How cool is that?! and also I hope you're paying attention [info]emailitin . So Kate's gone to London for her Season that she really shouldn't be getting because she's a clutz-monkey and her aunt figures "who'd want her". Cecelia's stuck on the family's country estate because she's not cool enough to get a season AT ALL and the two girls write to each other to pass the time.

Only magical hijinks are affoot and if you've read any of Wrede's other books you know wizards ALWAYS play a huge part. Only, these aren't your average JK Harry Potty wizards. Hell. No. These wizards are wizards that taint enchanted chocolate pots adn turn people into oak trees and send you through a portal to a magic garden that'll EAT YOUR FACE OFF, SO THERE. Not for the faint of heart, is what I'm saying.

Meanwhile, both girls have their hands full with a particular guy who keeps mucking up their sleuthing works to figure out what exactly is going on with the enchanted chocolate pots and faux engagements (you did NOT dump a girl after asking her hand in marriage in Edwardian England, MAJOR party foul, mister) and what not all while trying not to get hexed or turned into trees or something.

Oh, and they can't let their puritanical aunt know anything about magic as she thinks it's teh ebil and she'll have the girls stuck in the country so fast you'll be singing Jimmy Crack Corn or whatever it is you sing on the English countryside. Greensleeves? I dunno. Something English. Lots of awesome hijinks and the mystery's actually pretty solid so I can't wait for the sequel The Grand Tour which is waiting for me at home. (less)

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Mar 16, 2011

Anu rated it

Shelves: books-i-adored

There are books which are earth-shattering, and there are books which just make you want to sit and cry. And then, there are books which make you leap from page to page, word to word, and just laugh and laugh out loud, hilarity lightening your whole system till the world seems a-glow. This book did that for me. For this, I will always always be grateful to Wrede and Stevermere. It was not just the plot-line which was completely silly and yet not stupid in the brainless manner. It was silly in a ...moreThere are books which are earth-shattering, and there are books which just make you want to sit and cry. And then, there are books which make you leap from page to page, word to word, and just laugh and laugh out loud, hilarity lightening your whole system till the world seems a-glow. This book did that for me. For this, I will always always be grateful to Wrede and Stevermere. It was not just the plot-line which was completely silly and yet not stupid in the brainless manner. It was silly in a way that was entirely charming.

People make mistakes, and some mistakes, even if they can have extremely serious consequences, when taken literally can be so funny as to leave one gasping. In "Sorcery and Celia, or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot", there is a sublime magician who, due to some ridiculous accident, happens to make his focus a Chocolate Pot! Yes, a pot which stores hot chocolate! And the entire story is about the heroine (a young, intrepid lady who makes the reader adore her) fighting to get the pot out of malicious hands! There is all the head-butting between the alpha-male and the independent-lady and the best friend/cousin who is going through something similar. And the whole story is told through an exchange of letters between the two young ladies. Interspersed between the adventure/mystery lines are some hilarious gossip stories, totally tear-inducing (due to excessive laughter) machinations and a very sweet naivete which, in many of the more realistic stories, is lost in the very realism of the tale.

I think I've read this book and its sequel about 4 to 5 times each. And each time, I laugh. I don't get bored. I don't learn any new philosophies. I just laugh. Laughter therapy through reading... Even if this book is in an alternate universe, set in a setting nothing like our world (magic, etc), it adds to my faith in humanity - simply by knowing there are people out there who can write such books and other readers who enjoy such writing... All you need to do is flip open the book, and just be open to endearing fun and simple laughter - you'll love this book! (less)

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Oct 24, 2010

Simcha Lazarus rated it

When Patricia Wrede and Caroline Stevermer began exchanging letters as part of the Letter Game they had no idea of how far the game would progress. But after a few weeks of Caroline writing as Kate and Patricia as Cecelia, one letter a week wasn't enough. The two women had quickly become absorbed by the characters they had created, and the story that was coming together, and the letters between them became more frequent. Eventually, as the story headed to its conclusion, Patricia and Caroline to...moreWhen Patricia Wrede and Caroline Stevermer began exchanging letters as part of the Letter Game they had no idea of how far the game would progress. But after a few weeks of Caroline writing as Kate and Patricia as Cecelia, one letter a week wasn't enough. The two women had quickly become absorbed by the characters they had created, and the story that was coming together, and the letters between them became more frequent. Eventually, as the story headed to its conclusion, Patricia and Caroline took a look at all the letters they had written each other and realized that it would make an excellent book, and from those letters emerged Sorcery and Cecelia or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot.

When Kate is taken to London for the season, along with her beautiful younger sister, her cousin Cecelia is disappointed at being left behind. But Kate has promised to regularly write to Cecelia everything about her London debut and in return Cecelia will keep Kate up-to-date on the news back home, in Essex. What neither Kate or Cecelia expected was to get embroiled in a sinister plot involving a magical chocolate pot and the Mysterious Marquis. But when Kate nearly gets poisoned by a witch and Cecelia befriends an enchanted young woman with an evil stepmother, both girls tumble headlong into the adventures of their lives. Through regular correspondences, Kate and Cecelia share the details of their individual escapades, which they soon come to realize are connected. And so it is up to Kate and Cecelia to pool their resources together and come up with a way to save a certain marquis from a tragic end, because you can never count on men to get things done properly.

Sorcery and Cecelia includes all of my favorite fantasy book elements; feisty and intelligent heroines, magic, adventure, and a dash of romance. I loved the characters of Kate and Cecelia and by the end of the book wished that I could adopt them as my best friends. Both girls are clever, witty and sensible though they are not above getting into the occasional bit of mischief or in bending the rules when something needs to get done. And when it becomes apparent that the Marquis and his friend are making no progress in defeating the witch and her cohort, Kate and Cecelia step in to take things in hand and get the job done right.

While I usually avoid books written in a letter format in this case I really enjoyed it. For most of the book two different stories are being recounted, one of Kate's adventures in London and the other of Cecelia's in Essex. Both girls comment on each others stories, offering advice and commiseration, and eventually the events in London and Essex begin to intertwine. I really liked the explanation, in the back of the book, of how the story came together through real letters written by Patricia and Caroline, and I thought it gave the book an authentic feel (or as authentic as a fantasy book can get).

It's been years since I last read a book by Patricia Wrede and Sorcery and Cecelia makes me wonder why I've waited so long. It was a delightfully charming book that I had a lot of fun reading and which I'm sure I will be returning to many times. It was a wonderful break from some of the darker books that I've been reading lately and I'm now determined to seek out any other books of Patricia Wredes that I've missed out on (and Caroline Stevermer as well, as I've never heard of her before). After finishing Sorcery and Cecelia I was pleased to discover that it is followed by two more books featuring Kate and Cecelia, and I look forward to reading those books as well.
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May 02, 2010

Erica rated it

Perfectly charming.

The book's full title is "Sorcery and Cecelia or the Enchanted Chocolate Pot: being the correspondence of two Young Ladies of Quality regarding various Magical Scandals in London and the Country." And that's exactly what it is. Patricia C. Wrede writes the letters of Cecelia, and Caroline Stevermer writes the letters of Kate as they write to each other over the course of a very eventful and romantic summer. Both ladies are plucky and inquisitive, the...more

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Feb 09, 2010

Marlyn rated it

Shelves: fantasy

reminiscent in style of Jane Austen, this book consists of a correspondence between Kate and Cecelia. In reality, the two authors played the Letter Game, in which each takes on the persona of one of the characters. The first writer chooses the setting, time, and characters. Beginning the correspondence, Wrede becomes Cecelia, and Stevermer Kate. Kate is in London for her first "season," but her neighbor and best friend Cecelia has not been allowed to go. Missing each other dreadfully, ...more

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Jan 30, 2010

Becky rated it

I read this book intermittently over a couple weeks, and didn't pay nearly enough attention to how the plot all fit together. I will have to reread it some time.

I really enjoyed the richness of the setting - the depiction of Regency England*, the complex magical setting, and the characters' own backgrounds and histories, which were three-dimensional and completely believable.

It's an epistolary novel, and because it was actually written initially as a letter game between t...more

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Jan 17, 2010

Bridget rated it

Shelves: 2010, ya

What a fun book! I had just about decided to give it 3.5ish stars - and then I read the Afterword. That took it up a notch to 4 stars. So if you read this book, read the Afterword, but not until the end.

That said, this is an epistolary novel and I think it's one of the more egregious offenders of that genre. One of the reasons I don't usually care for epistolary novels is that I think it's disingenuous to have the narrators scribbling away for chapters at a time (often with old-fashi...more

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Jan 15, 2010

Glen Engel-Cox rated it

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 Lib...moreOne 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.
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About Patricia C. Wrede

Patricia Collins Wrede was born in Chicago, Illinois and is the eldest of five children. She started writing in seventh grade. She attended Carleton College in Minnesota, where she majored in Biology and managed to avoid taking any English courses at all. She began work on her first novel, Shadow Magic, just after graduating from college in 1974. She finished it five years later and started her se...morePatricia Collins Wrede was born in Chicago, Illinois and is the eldest of five children. She started writing in seventh grade. She attended Carleton College in Minnesota, where she majored in Biology and managed to avoid taking any English courses at all. She began work on her first novel, Shadow Magic, just after graduating from college in 1974. She finished it five years later and started her second book at once, having become permanently hooked on writing by this time.

Patricia received her M.B.A. from the University of Minnesota in 1977.
She worked for several years as a financial analyst and accountant, first with the Minnesota Hospital Association, then with B. Dalton Booksellers, and finally at the Dayton Hudson Corporation headquarters.

Patricia finished her first novel in late 1978. In January, 1980, Pamela Dean, Emma Bull, Will Shetterly, Steven Brust, Nate Bucklin, and Patricia Wrede -- all, at that point, hopeful but unpublished -- formed the writer's group that later became known as "The Scribblies." In April of 1980, Patricia's first novel sold to Ace Books. It came out at last in 1982, which is the year she met Lillian Stewart Carl (who introduced her to Lois McMaster Bujold by mail).

In 1985, shortly before the publication of her fifth book, she left the world of the gainfully employed to try winging it on her own.

Her interests include sewing, embroidery, desultory attempts at gardening, chocolate, not mowing the lawn, High Tea, and, of course, reading.
She is a vegetarian, and currently lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota with her cats, Merlin, Brisen, and Nimue. She has no children, but as of this writing, she does have four nieces and four nephews ranging in age from seven months to twelve years old and in geographical location from Maine to Alabama.
She has published twelve and a half books:
Shadow Magic, Daughter of Witches, The Seven Towers, Talking to Dragons, The Harp of Imach Thyssel, Caught in Crystal, Snow White and Rose Red, Dealing with Dragons, Mairelon the Magician, Searching for Dragons, Calling on Dragons, The Raven Ring, and a collaboration with fellow Minneapolis author Caroline Stevermer, Sorcery and Cecelia, as well as a collection of short stories titled Book of Enchantments. She is also part of the Liavek shared-world anthology. (less)

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Books by Patricia C. Wrede

Dealing With Dragons (Enchanted Forest Chronicles, #1)

Searching for Dragons (Enchanted Forest Chronicles, #2)

Calling on Dragons (Enchanted Forest Chronicles, #3)

Talking to Dragons (Enchanted Forest Chronicles, #4)

The Enchanted Forest Chronicles: [Boxed Set]

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“How dreadful...to be caught up in a game and have no idea of the rules.” — 16 people liked it

“No, they'll dance with you and then say I am justly called mysterious," he said.

"You are odious."

"Quite so, but admit you've never danced better than these last few moments when you were too angry to think about it.” — 2 people liked it

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Sorcery and Cecelia or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot (Cecelia and Kate #1)

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