View source for Kat Wolfe Investigates (Kat Wolfe 1) by Lauren St John

{{infobox1
|title=Kat Wolfe Investigates (Kat Wolfe 1)
|author=Lauren St John
|reviewer= Anne Thompson
|genre=Confident Readers
|summary= The first in a new mystery series this exciting adventure should appeal to budding detectives and animal lovers.  This well told story has enough twists to keep readers fully engaged, two strong lead characters and a contemporary feel.
|rating=4
|buy=Yes
|borrow=Yes
|pages=352
|publisher=Macmillan Children's Books
|date=May 2018
|isbn= 978-1509871223
|website= http://laurenstjohn.com/
|cover=1509871225
|aznuk=1509871225
|aznus=1509871225
}}

Kat Wolfe lives with her mum, a vet, in London and following a break-in they decide that the time has come to move out of the city. Kat, a confirmed animal lover, is delighted when her mum accepts the offer of a job on the idyllic Dorset coast as the job comes with one special condition. They must agree to adopt the previous owner's cat. However this presents a problem that Kat had not foreseen for the cat is a wild Savannah who resists all Kat's attempts to sooth and tame him. Furthermore when she starts a pet-sitting agency to make pocket money Kat's problems mount up. The owner of her first charge disappears leaving a series of mysterious clues behind him.  What started out as a promising escape from city life quickly escalates into a mystery that deepens and becomes steadily more dangerous. Luckily Kat has her new friend Harper to support and help her. Although Harper is laid up with two broken legs thanks to a horse riding accident she is not about to let that stop her getting involved. Harper is a language and coding whizz and she and Kat are determined solve the clues and make people listen to them. Even if they can't do that by themselves they know that they have their animal friends to help. Can the team work together to save the day?

Kat is a very appealing character and Lauren St John has written the story in a way that enables the reader to feel as though they are accompanying Kat as she tries to solve the clues and cope with the escalating drama that unfolds around her. The developing friendship between Kat and Harper is well drawn and they become a very effective team. The supporting cast of characters add to the book's appeal and it is intriguing trying to work out who is involved and how.  I loved Edith, the retired librarian, and although I know I am biased I was routing for her throughout the book. That Kat is both an animal and book lover will no doubt make her appeal to a good cross section of young readers too.

The scene setting is very realistic and the author conveys both the seaside idyll and the contrasting unnerving atmosphere during the coastal fog and night-time storm on the moor very effectively.  Many aspects of the story give it a very contemporary feel, in particular Harper's computer and coding skills and the topical nature of the plot. Detective stories for children have a long and successful pedigree and I have a feeling that this new series will join the ranks of much loved mystery stories for children aged 9+.  By the end of the book the scene is set for these likeable heroines to have many more adventures and mysteries to solve.

Thank you to the publishers, Macmillan Books, for providing this review copy.

If you enjoyed this you may like to try another mystery but this time set in a boarding school, the hugely enjoyable [[Murder Most Unladylike (Wells & Wong Mystery 1) by Robin Stevens]]. 
 
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