An Unsuspecting and Undistinguished Character Transforms into a Heroine!
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Source: Review Copy from Author
With three Bennet daughters marrying for love at the close of Pride and Prejudice, the two remaining unmarried daughters (Mary and Kitty) have always aroused curiosity and speculation. What kind of futures are in store for these ladies? Do they find their own happiness? Do they marry for love? Many writers have been inspired to pick up their pens and compose tales that flesh out these characters and continue their lives beyond what Jane Austen wrote. While there are dozens of stories that spotlight Mary Bennet, there are decidedly less that feature Kitty Bennet, who is famous for her coughing and for mindlessly being under Lydia’s influence. In Carrie Kablean’s debut novel she shines a spotlight on Kitty and reveals the events of Kitty’s life the year after her sisters marry.
Overlooked, undistinguished, and seemingly foolish – Kitty Bennet does not seem to be the type of heroine to attract interest or admiration. But her life undergoes some dramatic changes when she is removed from Lydia’s influence and invited to visit her happily married sisters. Spending time with Jane and Mr. Bingley in London society opens Kitty’s eyes to many things – she discovers the joys and entertainments of traveling, revives her interest in music, and learns much by observing the social interactions of those around her. And when Kitty is invited to spend some months in Pemberley as the close friend of Georgiana Darcy, Kitty evolves even more. She learns some startling revelations about her sisters and their marriages, develops a more intimate friendship with Georgiana Darcy, and provides much assistance to Elizabeth during her first grand social event. But sadly, things to take a very unexpected and horrible turn at this grand social event, and Kitty finds herself accused, criticized, and disgraced…
I absolutely adored this story about Kitty! I loved her gradual transformation. She becomes so much more than the “silly and ignorant” daughter her father supposes her to be. I loved how Carrie Kablean fleshes out her character and shows the ways Kitty becomes her own individual and forms her own thoughts and dreams. She truly has spent life in Lydia’s shadows. And because she was part of such a big family (and was not the favorite child of either parent), her experiences, opportunities, and education were limited. Now she has the chance to pursue some of her interests and take advantage of some new opportunities. It was such a rewarding experience to witness Kitty grow into a sensible, well-informed, and admirable heroine.
In addition, I greatly enjoyed seeing Kitty interact with those around her. I was so pleased to see her relationship with Jane, Elizabeth, Georgiana, and especially Mr. Bingley blossom (I really enjoyed the shared interests between Kitty and Mr. Bingley!) And there are several new acquaintances and some possible suitors that were delightfully well-drawn and great additions to Kitty’s social circle. I adored both Sir Edward Quincy and Henry Adams. Lastly, I enjoyed seeing a most gratifying and pleasing relationship develop between Kitty and one of her parents. With all that happened to Kitty in the latter half of the novel, it was heartwarming to see this new understanding develop and mutual regard grow.
My only wish for this well-crafted and reverent sequel would be for perhaps a little more romance and slower pacing towards the end. While this story does set a more leisurely pace at the beginning, the latter half of the story picks up and is very eventful. I loved the romance that developed, but I do wish there was a teensy bit more to it.
Despite that minor quibble, I found myself enchanted and enthralled by Carrie Kablean’s What Kitty Did Next. I applaud Ms. Kablean for her eloquent and descriptive prose and thoughtful renderings of Jane Austen’s characters. I cannot help but wonder what she will do next… 😉 Hopefully a story about Georgiana *fingers crossed*
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GIVEAWAY TIME!
Carrie Kablean is so kindly offering a giveaway in conjunction with my review!! She is offering ONE copy of What Kitty Did Next (winner’s choice paperback or ebook) for me to give away to ONE lucky winner!!
To enter this giveaway, leave a comment about my review!!
- This giveaway is open worldwide. Thank you, Carrie!
- This giveaway ends March 30th!
I loved this book when I read it. I always imagined (as I did for Mary, Kitty, and am now for Lydia) futures of strength and also love for the younger sisters. I believe that Miss Austen did not write Mary and Kitty’s stories because she was focused on the biography of Lizzy and Darcy’s love. As for this story…I , too, enjoyed the attention to character development. All-too-often, writers tend to populate their stories with only fully-shaped main characters with the remainder being cardboard cutouts. Not so here.This is a wonderful addition to the “Kitty Canon.”
That’s great to hear, Don! It would have been interesting to see Jane Austen write a sequel for her own novel…I love when there is romance, growth, and development for Kitty, Mary, and Lydia. Definitely a Kitty we can praise and admire!
This sounds interesting. I have added it to my wishlist.
Awesome! Hope you get the chance to read it soon!
I also enjoyed this story, my only problem was that I would wish that authors would be more imaginative in their disposal of Mary Bennet.
Hmm…I can understand your feeling that. At least I’d like to think that Mary found some happiness in this book too.
I adored this one, too. I loved the way she transformed.
Yay! Me too!
Wonderful review, Meredith! I so enjoyed this story of Kitty!
Thank you! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed this one!
Haha! I misread this as What Katie Did Next 🙂
I didn’t question it as I know you have a number of what are classed as children’s books.
Anyway I see I was wrong. I’m glad you enjoyed it and thank you for your lovely review. It won’t be top of my list as I prefer my main characters to be Darcy and Elizabeth as you know but I will add it as it sounds good.
LOL! Who is Katie? 😉
I hope you will give it a chance, we do get to see Darcy and Elizabeth which is nice, I really enjoyed Kitty’s relationships with the Darcys and Bingleys.
As usual, your review really makes me want to read the book! Adding it to my TBR pile. 🙂
Lol! Yay! My evil plan is working! 😉
I was never a fan of Kitty so this book could be what changes my mind. Thank you for sharing.
I think it could… 😉 I found Kitty very endearing!
I love a good story that has character development especially with minor characters in P&P. Great review, I’m looking forward to reading it.
Me too! All Jane Austen’s characters have potential…big or small, secondary or tertiary! Thanks for reading my review!
I’ve enjoyed a lot with your review, Meredith because, as you say, there aren’t many novels with Kitty as protagonist so bravo for Carrie Kablean! . I can’t wait to read it so I’ll put my fingers crossed to win the copy 😉
Thank you, Carrie for the giveaway and thank you Meredith for your insightful review!. What a great idea Kitty spends time with her married sisters to improve her character. I’m sure she will give up coughing when she proves herself her own value.
And I love the cover!
Thanks so much for reading my review, Teresa! I’m so glad you are intrigued by this story!
Kitty’s path to improvement felt a very natural and believable progression. I especially enjoyed seeing how her relationships changed with her sisters, their husbands, and Georgiana Darcy.
I solved Kitty’s cough with a good dose of self confidence gain d at a Swisss finishing school in “The Exile: Kitty Bennet and the Belle Époque. This is book 3 in the Bennet Wardrobe Series.
Well done, Don! 😉
I’d love to read What Kitty Did Next and find out how she transforms.
Wonderful! 😉 Hope you get the chance to read it soon.
I would love to read this book. It sounds fascinating.
Awesome! I thought it was a wonderful read!
It is fit to be read! Lol love to read and great blog review!
Thank you! I appreciate you checking out my review!
I love stories that expand upon what Mary and Kitty did after their sisters got married.
Me too! So much potential!!!
I’ve always had a sweet spot for Kitty and Mary. There’s one where Kitty and Bingley end up together, Maria Grace’s Twelfth Night at Longbourn, which I loved. Looking forward to reading this one, as well.
Yes, I’ve read that one too and it was interesting to explore that pairing!
I’m so late at this! I missed it somehow, and I just wanted to say I was looking forward to this review. Because I’ve had a soft spot for Kitty for many reasons. And I enjoyed your review of course. I’m looking forward to reading this even more now that I’ve read it. 🙂