Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: Book IV: The Interrupted Tale
The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: Book IV: The Interrupted Tale
The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: Book IV: The Interrupted Tale
Audiobook8 hours

The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: Book IV: The Interrupted Tale

Written by Maryrose Wood

Narrated by Katherine Kellgren

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

4.5/5

()

About this audiobook

For fans of Lemony Snicket’s Series of Unfortunate Events and Trenton Lee Stewart’s Mysterious Benedict Society comes the fourth book in the Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place, the acclaimed and hilarious Victorian mystery series by Maryrose Wood.

In The Interrupted Tale, Miss Penelope Lumley receives an invitation to speak at the annual Celebrate Alumnae Knowledge Exposition (or CAKE) at the Swanburne Academy for Poor Bright Females. Optoomuchstic as ever, Penelope hopes to give her CAKE talk, see some old friends, and show off the Incorrigible children to Miss Mortimer, but instead she finds her beloved school in an uproar.

And when Penelope is asked by the Swanburne Academy board of trustees to demonstrate the academic progress of her three wolfish students so the board can judge the true worth of a Swanburne education, the future of her alma mater—and of her job as governess to the Incorrigibles—hangs in the balance.

LanguageEnglish
PublisherBalzer Bray
Release dateDec 17, 2013
ISBN9780062224798
Author

Maryrose Wood

Maryrose Wood is the author of the first five books (so far!) in this series about the Incorrigible children and their governess. These books may be considered works of fiction, which is to say, the true bits and the untrue bits are so thoroughly mixed together that no one should be able to tell the difference. This process of fabrication is fully permitted under the terms of the author's Poetic License, which is one of her most prized possessions. Maryrose's other qualifications for writing these tales include a scandalous stint as a professional thespian, many years as a private governess to two curious and occasionally rambunctious pupils, and whatever literary insights she may have gleaned from living in close proximity to a clever but disobedient dog.

More audiobooks from Maryrose Wood

Related to The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place

Titles in the series (4)

View More

Related audiobooks

Children's Humor For You

View More

Related articles

Reviews for The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place

Rating: 4.378318584070796 out of 5 stars
4.5/5

226 ratings49 reviews

What did you think?

Tap to rate

Review must be at least 10 words

  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This was a book club pick chosen by our resident librarian! I personally enjoyed the book and am now committed to reading at least the next installment because I need to know who is up to what. I knew going in this was a children's book but as I was reading I kept wondering what age group was this targeted to. If I had that answer I think I might have quit thinking that some of the subject matter might be over the readers head. It does remind me of the Lemony Snicket series which I enjoyed reading when my girls were reading them. My one regret was I had to read this during a very busy time and could not commit to just sitting down and reading it in large doses, that made it a bit fragmented so I am inclined to think and nit pick more than just enjoy the story. Over all I would recommend it to literary minded young people.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I thoroughly enjoyed this charming tale -- a little Anne of Green Gables, a little Jane Eyre, a whole lot of the Series of Unfortunate Events -- and am eagerly awaiting the next installment. I work in a school and half the kids there were raised by wolves too!
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Wonderful and very fun little story and excellent storytelling. I love the rhythm of the prose and the structure with her frequent and humorous little back references to things from a couple pages earlier.
    I'm having a little more trouble than I expected finding the next one and I'm anxious.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Oh what fun this book was! Miss Penelope Lumley is hired as a governess to 3 very unusual children, said children were found in the wild and had been raised by wolves and Penelope has only a short time to make them presentable in a social setting, a party to be exact and when Miss Lumley exaggerates their progress to the lady of the house well you can be sure that all will not go smoothly.I enjoyed the first book in this middle grade series so much that I will be starting book 2 immediately. I liked the character of Penelope I thought she was strong and resourceful. The children are more intelligent than the family gives them credit for yet are still pretty wild which makes for a whole lot of fun and adventure. There is also a bit of mystery and some secrets in this house, like who is to blame for the scene at the Christmas party? What is the creepy coachman Timothy up to? Will Lady Constance really put the children out? This is why I must continue reading right away so many questions need answers and so many adventures to be had. I am hoping that we get to know the children as individuals in the books to come; I was taken with Cassiopeia but would like to learn more about the boys.I am already a huge fan of Katherine Kellgren so not surprisingly her narration of this book was fabulous but she never ceases to amaze me with what she can get her voice to do, in this one she has to give these children a wolfish quality to their voices when they are speaking to others and a wolf language all their own when they are speaking to each other, she pulls it off perfectly. Every single character is defined and you never have to guess who is talking.I highly recommend this series (yes I know I’ve only read book one but it is so fun!). I would recommend it on audio I think this would make for a fabulous family road trip listen.4 ½ Stars
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Very slow to pick up, but the mystery keeps the reader going and sets up well for the remainder of the series.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    A fifteen year old becomes the governess at a strange and mysterious manor. Her charges are three children found living among the wolves; she civilizes them while trying to puzzle out her boss's motives.

    Too young for me to enjoy, but a nice read if you've been missing the Lemony Snicket series.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Great book indeed. I look forward to the next one!
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I really enjoyed this one, starting from the very first pages when we meet Penelope Lumley as she travels to Ashton Place to interview for the position of governess: "Although only fifteen years old, she was a recent graduate of the Swanburne Academy for Poor Bright Females." Wood combines all the key elements of a certain type of old-fashioned story--governess, orphans, wealthy estate, mystery--with a good dose of humour; the book doesn't take itself too seriously, and benefits a lot from that approach.My only complaint about the story is that it feels incomplete. This is the first in a series, and it shows. There are key plot elements that just aren't resolved at all, giving the impression that the book just stopped in the middle. On one level, I'm very glad that there will be more to read, and next February can't come soon enough; but on another level, I think I'd have preferred to read the story as one (or several) longer books, so that it wouldn't be so broken up. On the whole, though, I really liked the book and hope there will be many more.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    We listened to this on audiobook, and it was a favorite with the whole family. Hilarious writing and fantastic narration. I knocked off one star because I don't like cliffhanger endings.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Loved it! Looking forward to reading more in the series. I think I would also like to listen to them eventually. Jon Klassen's illustrations are great and definitely fit the feel of the book. I would love to use this as a book club selection, but I think it might be a little too difficult for the younger side of my 3rd-5th grade kids.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I'm torn!! Three or four stars!! I feel overall I'm too easy on books and give out too many four stars when later I go back over and think, that wasn't a four star book.
    My issues, too advanced for the age group. Although there are those superstar kids out there who like books that are advanced I'm not sure this works. The literary illusions, the Regency setting, some of the conventions, all these elements require a backgroud I'm not sure that many 10 year olds know about.
    That said very well written, entertaining, and a very clever design.
    I just talked myself into three stars. Maybe the next book will blow me away.

    "This is called progress, and there is no stopping it, so it must be cheerfully borne." - pg 100
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I read this with high expectations and it was fun to read, though too short. I read passages aloud to my traveling companions over the holiday, and I have passed the book on to one of them since. Penelope is a well-written character - in addition to her sweet and patient nature, she seems uniquely able to empathize with animals and to capture the attention of anyone she desires - the perfect governess for three feral children. The mystery is much greater than howling, and I wish we had been more clued in to it in this book. I look forward to the rest of this series.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Excellent book. I started it as the new nightstand book... but kept reading until I was finished, it was that good. The witty writing reminds me of Lemony Snicket and the main character is one of my new favorite strong young female characters. She takes the clever bits and rationalization of Mary Poppins infused with the warm-hearted dedication of Wendy from Peter Pan. Where is the Swanburne school, I have some girls to send there.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    So I started off thinking this was an amusing children's book but that I would not be likely to continue with the series. WRONG, I must know why is her hair red, what's up with Lord Frederick, will the children be okay...
    I really enjoyed the whole book!
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Miss Penelope Lumley, new graduate of the Swanburne Academy for Poor Bright Females, has found herself a job as governess to the children at Ashton Place. The job seems too good to be true - Penelope is offered it with only the briefest of interviews and the salary is more than generous... When Penelope discovers that her three charges have, in fact, been raised by wolves, she knows she's got a challenge ahead of her. This book has that wonderful tongue-in-cheek tone and wry humor that made Lemony Snickett so popular. Definitely hand this one to fans of Unfortunate Events as well as kids who enjoyed Philip Reeve's Larklight series and Lois Lowry's The Willoughbys. Highly recommended.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    5Q 4PThis is a very well written book with suspenseful elements and likable characters. The "incorrigible" children have humorous adventures with their governess, but she keeps them on track in their education. I think that most children will enjoy this story, but some children may not enjoy the historical setting and with that historical language that is often used.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Fun and quick read about 3 children found in the woods & their "civilizing" by the 15-year-old narrator who has been hired to be their governess.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I was completely won over by this rollicking old-time story that has tongue firmly planted in cheek. I didn’t think that the conceit was going to hold through a full novel – was pretty sure that it would feel one-note and boring by the end – but I’m happy to say that wasn’t the case. I think it worked because Miss Lumley and the Incorrigibles are such winning characters.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This book was really interesting. I liked it from the beginning, but at first I wasn't sure if young kids would like a book written from a governess's perspective. After finishing it, I still won't recommend this as a one-size-fits-all everyone will like it, but for the kids who don't mind a slower-paced novel and who like a witty narrator, I will definitely tell them to read this. I especially like the last third of the book, just when I thought I had figured out the mysterious howling and that the book would leave me no surprises, I now have so many questions I need answered that I can't wait to read the next one!
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Give yourself an afternoon to be transported to another time and place and a story with some rather bizarre twists. The ending is rather abrupt assuring a sequel or two. The novel works on multiple levels and I am ever hopeful that readers will want to explore further the referenced historical people and events. A delightful read!
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I listened to this novel and found the narrator to be quite fun with all the howling and barking noises. Penelope, the governess, is full of matter-of-fact problem solving and tender caring. There is a lovely dose of kind hearted satire. As much fun for an adult as a kid.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    DEEEEEEEEEEEEElightful!
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    The children were too quickly tamed for me, but I like the little governess. Where's Book 2?
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Such a fun and delightful book! I adored it.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I was unsure about this book at first, but I found I really enjoyed it. Penelope is a very young governess in charge of taking care of three wild children found in the woods. She manages to reach and connect with them, taming them. However, their are mysteries answered and unanswered throughout the book. How is it this three children came to be abandoned? Were they raised by wolves, or some other mysterious creature? Why is the man of the house so insistent on keeping them? I love the author's style and the asides she provides and the hints at the time period of the book without every stating it is very intriguing. I can't wait for the next one... will some of the mysteries be solved?
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    ADORABLE!!! It's like Jane Eyre meets Lemony Snicket and The Willoughbys.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    The cover initially attracted me to this book as well as the title. Although not all the mysteries are solved by books end, it is listed as "book 1"...I am much anticipating the follow-up!
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    It's perfect, I love it! I love the illustrations too and I am glad to say I recognized the illustrator in another book. I'm so proud :)
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Not bad, but the plot didn't contain too much detail, and it seemed that a lot of the humor came from literary references that an age-appropriate audience wouldn't understand/find funny if they did (in fact, a lot of adults probably wouldn't find the governess/Victorian humor all that amusing either, unless they have a soft spot for Austen and the Brontes).
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    An English governess tale cum mystery, unfortunately to be continued. Self consciously literary: many allusions, a nice selection for vocabulary, Longfellow's poem, parenthetical phrases. As I read I wondered who the intended audience might be.