Reserved for the Cat by Mercedes Lackey

Ninette Dupond is a starving sujet, or soloist, at the Paris Opera Ballet. She doesn't have a rich protector, but her ambition is to get a wealthy protector and live in luxury. But when she substitutes for La Augustine in a performance, she recieves a glowing review from Le Figaro, one of the Parisian papers. But what really infuriates La Augustine is that her protector also likes Ninette, and that cannot be borne. She has Ninette fired.

Ninette is approached by a cat, who tells her to trust him and to come with him. He gives her a ticket to the ferry between France and England, and brings her another purse with money. She manages to get to England, then takes a train to a town on the sea, where the cat tells her she has but one chance to survive. Pretend to be a shipwrecked ballerina from Russia, Nina Tcherekovsky, and make a life in England as a dancer. Ninette is skeptical, but the cat tells her he is magic and can teach her the English she is already learning and Russian as well. But first, she must learn about the English music halls and gain some strength.

As soon as she is ready, the cat stages a shipwreck scene and gets the attention of three Elemental Masters who are also music promoters, telling them that Nina Tcherekovsky needs help. They rescue her, and believe her story. Soon, she is dancing for them and is signed on to their company for a production based around her dancing. But when an Earth Elemental who has taken over the *real* Nina Tcherekovsky gets wind of her imposter, she goes to England determined to do away with her. But can Ninette's new employers keep her safe from the malice of an intelligent, evil elemental?

This series, the Elemental Masters, are books that revolve around various fairytales, retold in the Victorian era. This one is based around "Puss in Boots", with Ninette as the protagonist. Ninette helps in her own defense by being warm and caring and getting people to like her. It leads her to getting defended by people because they like her.

In addition, Ninette falls in love, the one thing she does not want to do, with a fire master. Although not a romance, neither realizes their affections until the very end, when Ninette is nearly killed. The rest is about the attempts of the troll to kill Ninette, as well as the toll it takes on the destitute and homeless in the city. The thrill of the story is in the, "Will Ninette survive? And how?" It provides excitement and thrills in the book, but Ninette is no shy, retiring miss. She is instrumental in rescuing not only herself, but her cat from the Troll.

This series is not to be missed, and this is an excellent novel. While Ninette may start out as poor and starving, she pulls herself up through her bootstraps and through her own efforts, making her very admirable. The romance is not even secondary to the story. More like tertiary, but the story pulls you in and grabs you and won't let you go. Definitely worth the read.