Get the "Cate Cahill" Look

"It's impossible to care about new dresses with so much to fret about. But that's my conundrum, isn't it?" ~Cate Cahill, Born Wicked

The Born Wicked Look

Review >> Born Wicked

Born Wicked (The Cahill Witch Chronicles #1) by Jessica Spotswood -- February 7, 2012 -- Hardcover, 330 pages, Putnam (9780399257452)

"Our mother was a witch, too, but she hid it better."

Cate Cahill and her sisters, Tess and Maura, are different from the other girls in town. They're too educated, too well read, and keep to themselves most of the time. They're also hiding a very big secret: they're all witches, just like their deceased mother. However, being a witch in 19th century Chatham is dangerous business, especially when accusations of witchery have become unbearably rampant in recent years. The Brotherhood is starting to crack down on the women of the town, and targeting young girls who are a bit odd, or defiant, or who exhibit lustful behavior. The girls are then sent to a prison ship, or Harwood Asylum, but more often than not, the girl's are never heard from again. Now, Cate must do everything in her power to protect her sisters from exposing their powers to anyone other than themselves, lest they be punished for their wicked deeds. The situation is made even more complicated when a handsome suitor and Cate's childhood friend, Paul, shows up to ask for her hand in marriage, a role she would happily accept if it weren't for the fact that she'd have to leave her sisters in Chatham unprotected, and she is finding herself falling in love with the reclusive but kind gardener, Finn.