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Kat Colorado #5
Wild Kat
We met P.I. Kat Colorado in 1989's Best First Private Eye Novel of the Year; she's gone on to garner a Shamus, an Anthony, and a sheaf of rave reviews. Here, she's back to bodyguard a crusading whistle-blower with a few nasty secrets of her own.
372 pages, Paperback
First published December 1, 1994
176 people want to read
About the author
Karen Kijewski
28 books83 followersKaren J. Kijewski was born in Berkeley, California. Her father taught at the University of California, and she later attended the school, earning a BA and a Masters degree. Karen is a past president of the northern California chapter of the Mystery Writers of America. She has two daughters, and is currently living in Sacramento, California with her husband.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
June 30, 2015
another terrific novel from this author. I love Kat, the main character. Her stories are always so multi-layered. This one had much for the reader to ponder ...in that good vs evil is not always cut and dried, black vs white. I so wish this author was still writing!
March 3, 2011
A good beach book.
July 13, 2017
"KURIOSITY KILLS THE KAT; DEAD KATS TELL NO TALES; KILL KILL KILL; WATCH YOUR PUSSY, KAT; KATS DON'T HAVE 9 LIVES."
Karen Kijewski's Wild Cat (1994) is my first encounter with Kat Colorado, the PI protagonist of the Kat series. I am afraid that it may also be my last contact with the author as I do not like the writing style and have not found the novel interesting at all.
The story begins with Kat's visit to a hospital where she talks to Jude, a man whose life she saved after a freeway accident. However, it soon becomes clear that it has not been an accident, but rather an attempt to kill Jude's wife, Amanda. She acted as a whistleblower in a medical equipment company that has knowingly been selling faulty heart valves. Since the righteously determined Amanda cannot be stopped in her zeal to prevent patients' deaths and bring the company to justice the harassment continues and she is no longer the only target: Jude and Kat are also subject to threats, assaults, and property damage. This escalates to murder staged as an accidental death. Obviously Kat's investigation is successful and she manages to find the killer whose identity many readers may find surprising.
The one thing I like in the novel is the relatively cogent discussion of issues related to companies' liability for defective products. That the companies face balancing between costs of correcting the product and costs of settlements is well known. Less known is the need of the victims to balance between their individual interest and the public good: signing confidential settlements as opposed to going public with the complaint is at the heart of the issue.
Sadly, everything else in the novel is rather substandard. First of all, the whole concept of the never-ending series of childish harassment pranks after a murder has occurred is ridiculous. Bird feeder tipped, hummingbird syrup splashed out, roses in full bloom cut and petals pulled off? Anonymous messages in the mail? Fecal matter on the lawn? Dead rat in the mailbox? All that after killing and heavy bodily assault that borders on rape! Why not painting mustaches on family portraits and placing whoopee cushions on the chairs? Why not making scary faces or yelling "Booo!" at Kat?
Neither do I like the author's manner of writing: dialogues and inner monologues are interspersed with remarks and asides to the reader. Yet another literary gripe relates to the pretentious habit of preceding each chapter with a sample question sent to Charity, Kat's friend and a newspaper advice columnist. It's not that the questions are totally silly - which is to be expected - it's that the whole thing has no connection to the plot. In addition to the characters having no depth - a weakness that is acceptable in an entertainment read - they also talk in inane platitudes, using "written" rather than spoken language.
Not a good book at all, but at least the author should be commended for raising the lesser-known aspects of health care product liability issues.
One and three quarter stars.
Karen Kijewski's Wild Cat (1994) is my first encounter with Kat Colorado, the PI protagonist of the Kat series. I am afraid that it may also be my last contact with the author as I do not like the writing style and have not found the novel interesting at all.
The story begins with Kat's visit to a hospital where she talks to Jude, a man whose life she saved after a freeway accident. However, it soon becomes clear that it has not been an accident, but rather an attempt to kill Jude's wife, Amanda. She acted as a whistleblower in a medical equipment company that has knowingly been selling faulty heart valves. Since the righteously determined Amanda cannot be stopped in her zeal to prevent patients' deaths and bring the company to justice the harassment continues and she is no longer the only target: Jude and Kat are also subject to threats, assaults, and property damage. This escalates to murder staged as an accidental death. Obviously Kat's investigation is successful and she manages to find the killer whose identity many readers may find surprising.
The one thing I like in the novel is the relatively cogent discussion of issues related to companies' liability for defective products. That the companies face balancing between costs of correcting the product and costs of settlements is well known. Less known is the need of the victims to balance between their individual interest and the public good: signing confidential settlements as opposed to going public with the complaint is at the heart of the issue.
Sadly, everything else in the novel is rather substandard. First of all, the whole concept of the never-ending series of childish harassment pranks after a murder has occurred is ridiculous. Bird feeder tipped, hummingbird syrup splashed out, roses in full bloom cut and petals pulled off? Anonymous messages in the mail? Fecal matter on the lawn? Dead rat in the mailbox? All that after killing and heavy bodily assault that borders on rape! Why not painting mustaches on family portraits and placing whoopee cushions on the chairs? Why not making scary faces or yelling "Booo!" at Kat?
Neither do I like the author's manner of writing: dialogues and inner monologues are interspersed with remarks and asides to the reader. Yet another literary gripe relates to the pretentious habit of preceding each chapter with a sample question sent to Charity, Kat's friend and a newspaper advice columnist. It's not that the questions are totally silly - which is to be expected - it's that the whole thing has no connection to the plot. In addition to the characters having no depth - a weakness that is acceptable in an entertainment read - they also talk in inane platitudes, using "written" rather than spoken language.
Not a good book at all, but at least the author should be commended for raising the lesser-known aspects of health care product liability issues.
One and three quarter stars.
October 22, 2023
Here is a flamboyant mystery. Kat Colorado is hired to investigate the harassing of a whistle blower of a medical company whose major product could be lethal. Kat soon finds herself targeted by harassers, and at some point her life is threatened.
Our characters live in a rapid-paced world, from skateboarders to wild drivers to soaring red-tailed hawks. And we see all sides of the story, the deep investment of the company and its workers in survival, the heroism of the whistleblower, the reasonable anger of others caught up in the problem.
Insight abounds. When hate seems to rule, we learn its lesson near the book's end. Insight abounds through attitudes, and also in the advice column excerpt that opens most chapters. Gritty humor balances anger. The reader is taken into the hearts and minds over fields of black and white and gray. Eye opening, thought provoking, and of course entertaining.
Our characters live in a rapid-paced world, from skateboarders to wild drivers to soaring red-tailed hawks. And we see all sides of the story, the deep investment of the company and its workers in survival, the heroism of the whistleblower, the reasonable anger of others caught up in the problem.
Insight abounds. When hate seems to rule, we learn its lesson near the book's end. Insight abounds through attitudes, and also in the advice column excerpt that opens most chapters. Gritty humor balances anger. The reader is taken into the hearts and minds over fields of black and white and gray. Eye opening, thought provoking, and of course entertaining.
August 8, 2016
Kijewski's character Kat makes for a great series. I've read all her books and recommend the entire series.
December 31, 2023
Here is a flamboyant mystery. Kat Colorado is hired to investigate the harassing of a whistle blower of a medical company whose major product could be lethal. Kat soon finds herself targeted by harassers, and at some point her life is threatened.
Our characters live in a rapid-paced world, from skateboarders to wild drivers to soaring red-tailed hawks. And we see all sides of the story, the deep investment of the company and its workers in survival, the heroism of the whistleblower, the reasonable anger of others caught up in the problem.
Insight abounds. When hate seems to rule, we learn its lesson near the book's end. Insight abounds through attitudes, and also in the advice column excerpt that opens most chapters. Gritty humor balances anger. The reader is taken into the hearts and minds over fields of black and white and gray. Eye opening, thought provoking, and of course entertaining.
Our characters live in a rapid-paced world, from skateboarders to wild drivers to soaring red-tailed hawks. And we see all sides of the story, the deep investment of the company and its workers in survival, the heroism of the whistleblower, the reasonable anger of others caught up in the problem.
Insight abounds. When hate seems to rule, we learn its lesson near the book's end. Insight abounds through attitudes, and also in the advice column excerpt that opens most chapters. Gritty humor balances anger. The reader is taken into the hearts and minds over fields of black and white and gray. Eye opening, thought provoking, and of course entertaining.
December 13, 2023
A whistle blower is dead, is it murder or not? Kat gets involved in a series of attacks on Amanda Hudson (the whistle blower) and her husband. When the attacks start going after Kat, she gets very mad. She starts digging into all the information Amanda had and following any lead she could find. Love all the Kat Colorado books.
January 12, 2018
Love this series!
February 26, 2018
It kept me guessing until the end!
July 16, 2018
This is another good Kat Colorado book. Great characters with a good story!
June 13, 2019
Enjoyable, fast-reading female PI novel, with a nicely complicated plot and a plot involving whistleblowing and corporate corruption.
October 15, 2019
Noted at the time that this was a good mystery about the death of a whistleblower. (Kat Colorado series)
July 8, 2014
Kat Colorado's goldfish have been attacked! Now, that is plain mean. It was bad enough they almost killed her dog - but her goldfish????
It often gets to over 100 degrees in the Sacramento area. That has to have an effect on the natives there. People tend to be on the tough independent side. So, if you want to be a private detective in Sacramento, you better know how to do tough with lowlife who have farm-boy muscles and beer-fueled brains. Kat has come a long way since the first book in this series - she is doing proactive tough in this 5th book, 'Wild Kat'.
Kat rescues a man, Jude Hudson, pulling him from a crashed car on the freeway, which burst into fire shortly after she got him out of the car. Just before, it had raced past her vehicle clearly going over 80. He survives, and Kat thinks the incident is over.
Then Jude and his wife, Amanda, come to Kat's office. The car had been sabotaged. It actually was Amanda's car and she had been the target, not Jude. They need Kat's expertise and want to hire her as a bodyguard for a few days.
Amanda works as an accountant for Louden Industries. They manufacture medical devices - heart valves, pacemakers, etc. The problems start when Amanda noticed that one of the heart devices had a lot of failures and people were dying. The company did not appreciate her discovery - in fact, they told her to forget it. Well, it turns out Amanda is made of the same kind of stuff that people who are sometimes called 'holy fools' are made of, and she wants to get the word out and save lives. The company soon realizes she is a whistleblower, and that's when the threats amp up beyond messing up their house and her desk at work. Soon she is told her job is no longer accounting, but cleaning the men's room. Still, she begins to call the people who have received the device, and discovers recipients died as the device failed. However, the company had them sign non-disclosure agreements and paid the patients' families off. She perseveres and writes the FDA, including documentation.
Jude has to travel a lot for his job, so Amanda is alone out at their ranch most of the time. After her car is wrecked, they realize this has become more serious, but no matter what Jude or anybody says, Amanda is determined to get this officially noticed.
Then she is almost raped, and stabbed with a screwdriver.
Kat is not sure herself that Amanda is doing the right thing the right way, but she definitely doesn't like seeing her friends being hurt.
Time to load the .380.
I realize now after reading five of these that the author is on a completely different frequency than me, so it's become a matter of curiosity to discover how different her plots and characters are from my own thinking and experience. Kijewski is a very intelligent author and her themes are smart. I agree with most of her political and street-wise views, when they are included. But some of her characters are people who, while they seem realistic and possible to me (most of the time), also reflect thinking I've never seen or felt. Part of the attraction of the series for me are these absolutely different pathways of reasoning the author is putting into her characters. Is it because her setting is these farm/small town folks, and I'm most familiar with urban or suburban settings? I don't know. There is a little of 'they wouldn't act like that' occasionally. For some readers, it might be too much, but not for me.
I found this book to be fun and exciting, but it isn't perfect. However, for a beach read, it's perfect. Relax, let the plot holes go (and a very odd denouement) and enjoy.
It often gets to over 100 degrees in the Sacramento area. That has to have an effect on the natives there. People tend to be on the tough independent side. So, if you want to be a private detective in Sacramento, you better know how to do tough with lowlife who have farm-boy muscles and beer-fueled brains. Kat has come a long way since the first book in this series - she is doing proactive tough in this 5th book, 'Wild Kat'.
Kat rescues a man, Jude Hudson, pulling him from a crashed car on the freeway, which burst into fire shortly after she got him out of the car. Just before, it had raced past her vehicle clearly going over 80. He survives, and Kat thinks the incident is over.
Then Jude and his wife, Amanda, come to Kat's office. The car had been sabotaged. It actually was Amanda's car and she had been the target, not Jude. They need Kat's expertise and want to hire her as a bodyguard for a few days.
Amanda works as an accountant for Louden Industries. They manufacture medical devices - heart valves, pacemakers, etc. The problems start when Amanda noticed that one of the heart devices had a lot of failures and people were dying. The company did not appreciate her discovery - in fact, they told her to forget it. Well, it turns out Amanda is made of the same kind of stuff that people who are sometimes called 'holy fools' are made of, and she wants to get the word out and save lives. The company soon realizes she is a whistleblower, and that's when the threats amp up beyond messing up their house and her desk at work. Soon she is told her job is no longer accounting, but cleaning the men's room. Still, she begins to call the people who have received the device, and discovers recipients died as the device failed. However, the company had them sign non-disclosure agreements and paid the patients' families off. She perseveres and writes the FDA, including documentation.
Jude has to travel a lot for his job, so Amanda is alone out at their ranch most of the time. After her car is wrecked, they realize this has become more serious, but no matter what Jude or anybody says, Amanda is determined to get this officially noticed.
Then she is almost raped, and stabbed with a screwdriver.
Kat is not sure herself that Amanda is doing the right thing the right way, but she definitely doesn't like seeing her friends being hurt.
Time to load the .380.
I realize now after reading five of these that the author is on a completely different frequency than me, so it's become a matter of curiosity to discover how different her plots and characters are from my own thinking and experience. Kijewski is a very intelligent author and her themes are smart. I agree with most of her political and street-wise views, when they are included. But some of her characters are people who, while they seem realistic and possible to me (most of the time), also reflect thinking I've never seen or felt. Part of the attraction of the series for me are these absolutely different pathways of reasoning the author is putting into her characters. Is it because her setting is these farm/small town folks, and I'm most familiar with urban or suburban settings? I don't know. There is a little of 'they wouldn't act like that' occasionally. For some readers, it might be too much, but not for me.
I found this book to be fun and exciting, but it isn't perfect. However, for a beach read, it's perfect. Relax, let the plot holes go (and a very odd denouement) and enjoy.
July 3, 2008
My third and final of the books I bought in this series. Without picking the whole book to pieces, and ruining the experience completely, I have to say I wasn't as satisfied with this one as I was with the previous two novels by this author. Why? Well, let me think about that a bit.
The book opens with a dramatic rescue from certain fiery death, and that whole sensory experience is rich and involving. As a way of being introduced to a potential client, it was thoroughly random but hey, Kat's a P.I., so why not?
I know that Kat gets emotionally involved with her clients - it's her weakness - but Jude and Amanda didn't do it for me. Their devotion was evident, but didn't move me, and yet I didn't believe in the affair, either.
The story of the workplace whistleblower, the repeated allusions to Karen Silkwood's story, set me up for a really dramatic denouement, and thus, the "who" of the whodunit felt like a total cheat.
The book opens with a dramatic rescue from certain fiery death, and that whole sensory experience is rich and involving. As a way of being introduced to a potential client, it was thoroughly random but hey, Kat's a P.I., so why not?
I know that Kat gets emotionally involved with her clients - it's her weakness - but Jude and Amanda didn't do it for me. Their devotion was evident, but didn't move me, and yet I didn't believe in the affair, either.
The story of the workplace whistleblower, the repeated allusions to Karen Silkwood's story, set me up for a really dramatic denouement, and thus, the "who" of the whodunit felt like a total cheat.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Read
October 6, 2009Kat Colorado meets Jude Hudson by accident, quite literally. He crashes his car in front of her and she pulls him from the wreckage before it catches fire. After he heals he comes to Kat and tells her it was no accident, the car had been sabotaged by someone wanting to harm his wife, and he wants to hire Kat to help them. Amanda Hudson worked at a company that was making defective heart valves. When she tried to tell someone, no one would listen or do anything about it. Kat gets drawn into the conflict as she tries to find out who’s behind it and she puts her own life in danger. The story didn’t end as I expected and it was the type of book that left me wanting more. I’ll have to check and see if there’s a sequel.
December 23, 2018
Ever try to do something you feel is the right thing to do, only to have the entire world jump up and grab for your throat in thanks? Amanda Hudson receives worse treatment after discovering her company has been producing a faulty medical device, thus resulting in deaths nationwide.
Sacramento PI Kat Colorado becomes involved when Amanda's husband Jude hires her as protection. The plan works, for a while anyway. Just when it seems the harrassment of the Hudsons is over with the arrests of a few hired goons caught trashing their house, Amanda is found dead. The death is ruled an accident, but Kat, having become close to the Hudsons and itching with suspicion, thinks differently, and embarks on her own investigation which uncovers more than just a late do-gooder's crusade for justice.
Sacramento PI Kat Colorado becomes involved when Amanda's husband Jude hires her as protection. The plan works, for a while anyway. Just when it seems the harrassment of the Hudsons is over with the arrests of a few hired goons caught trashing their house, Amanda is found dead. The death is ruled an accident, but Kat, having become close to the Hudsons and itching with suspicion, thinks differently, and embarks on her own investigation which uncovers more than just a late do-gooder's crusade for justice.
August 31, 2015
#5 in the Kat Colorado series.
Kat Colorado series - It was a matter of principle that prompted Amanda Hudson to blow the whistle on the company that employed her - and manufactured a defective, potentially lethal product. It was a matter of pride that made Amanda hang on to her job with stubborn determination, despite the harassment, anonymous threats, and attacks that terrified her. And, by the time her hot-headed husband hired Sacramento P.I. Kat Colorado, it was matter of life and death. For Amanda and Jude Hudson. For Kat, who would learn some hard - and deadly - lessons about vengeance, justice, and love.
Kat Colorado series - It was a matter of principle that prompted Amanda Hudson to blow the whistle on the company that employed her - and manufactured a defective, potentially lethal product. It was a matter of pride that made Amanda hang on to her job with stubborn determination, despite the harassment, anonymous threats, and attacks that terrified her. And, by the time her hot-headed husband hired Sacramento P.I. Kat Colorado, it was matter of life and death. For Amanda and Jude Hudson. For Kat, who would learn some hard - and deadly - lessons about vengeance, justice, and love.
August 18, 2008
WILD KAT - 5th in Kat Colorado series
Kijewski, Karen - VG
When Kat Colorado agrees to search for the source of threats aimed at a whistle-blowing employee for a medical parts manufacturer, the private eye discovers that her new client is more than just an accountant on a righteous crusade. And someone is ready to commit murder to protect the company's dirty secrets.
This lady definitely writes a good book.
Kijewski, Karen - VG
When Kat Colorado agrees to search for the source of threats aimed at a whistle-blowing employee for a medical parts manufacturer, the private eye discovers that her new client is more than just an accountant on a righteous crusade. And someone is ready to commit murder to protect the company's dirty secrets.
This lady definitely writes a good book.
August 16, 2013
Maybe it is because I haven't read any of the other books, but I really do not like the character of Kat. Seems like a very immature 30something and just the way she "talks" really bothers me. Not to mention that Amanda character talk about naive. I won't be reading any other books by this author or with Kat in them.
November 16, 2011
It was ok. It was overly descriptive and I ended up skipping about 100 pages in the middle and didn't miss much of the plot with where I had skipped to. Not bad, but if it could have been a whole lot shorter.
August 27, 2012
About a whistle-blower at a medical products company who is being harassed, presumably by her employers. When she dies in a hot-tub "accident," Kat suspects murder, but it turns out that Amanda has made life unpleasant for people other than the people at work.
Read
April 6, 2014The principle character in this series is Kat Colorado, a private detective in Sacramento, California.
Kat Colorado is a wise-cracking, thirty-something California bartender-turned-P.I., a curious cat with nine lives.
Kat Colorado is a wise-cracking, thirty-something California bartender-turned-P.I., a curious cat with nine lives.
February 25, 2015
Amanda Hudson discovers her company is manufacturing a potentially defective heart valve and becomes a whistle blower with harsh complications from her fellow employees. Kat is called in to protect her and find the perpetrators.
April 9, 2015
Good story.
Kat helps a woman who is a whistle blower. The company she works for manufactures defective heart valves. Kat gets very involved in their life after she saves the life of the husband in a car accident. They hire her to protect the wife.
Kat helps a woman who is a whistle blower. The company she works for manufactures defective heart valves. Kat gets very involved in their life after she saves the life of the husband in a car accident. They hire her to protect the wife.
October 28, 2019
A nice read and easy to follow story line.
Overall, a good book for the researcher and enthusiast.
Read for personal research
- found this book's contents helpful and inspiring - number rating relates to the book's contribution to my needs.
Overall, a good book for the researcher and enthusiast.
Read for personal research
- found this book's contents helpful and inspiring - number rating relates to the book's contribution to my needs.
August 24, 2009
Very Good; Continuing character: Kat Colorado; Kat helps a whistle blower attempt to find out about defective products and cover-ups at her company, then tries to figure out who killed her.
March 31, 2011
too long, too slow
October 14, 2019
Readable.
August 8, 2015
Cheesy but surprisingly good
March 17, 2016
Karen Kijewski is a fun read. Her character is Kat Colorado, a bartender turned P.I., who loves to solve the mysteries she gets involved with throughout her life.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews