Miss Katherine (Kat) Stephenson is a 12-year-old girl, the youngest of four children, living in Regency England (early 1800’s).  Her mama died shortly after her birth, and her father, a poor village vicar, remarried a woman who is trying her hardest to bring up the girls properly.  The only son, Kat’s brother, is a lazy do-nothing who has gambled and lost and is threatened with going to debtor’s prison, unless he (or the family) can make restitution.  That would surely cause a scandal and the future would forever be cast in doom.  The only hope, according to Stepmama, is for the oldest girl, Elissa, aged 17, to marry a wealthy man who can pay the debt.  This part of the book is pretty much like reading an adult novel, but without the coarse language and sex.  Here’s the appealing twist, the children’s mama was a witch, actually a ‘Guardian’, who is more powerful than a witch.  The two younger girls, without each other’s knowledge, sneak into the locked cabinet and pilfer through the items looking for magical items to help them.  Angeline, the middle sister, finds two books of magic spells, and becomes quite adept at using them.  Kat unintentionally finds a golden hand mirror, actually it finds her, which she discovers is a portal to the Guardians’ secret lair.  In the meantime, the wealthy man Elissa is supposed to marry is also a witch, an evil one, who wants to steal the girls’ magical legacy.  With all the turns and twists, the characters are nicely developed and interesting, and the story line keeps you wanting more.  The book jackets states for ages 10 and up, however, I’m hard put to find a 10-year-old mature enough to read this book.  Also, the art on the book jacket will appeal to younger girls, not the middle-school age girls who are the true audience.