Finding Wonder

by Lauren St. John

A WINNING TICKETA STOLEN HORSETHE ADVENTURE OF A LIFETIMEOrphaned Roo Thorn feels like the unluckiest girl in the world. Until she discovers a letter. A letter which urges her to 'Grab life by the wings and fly.'With the help of her aunt, Joni, Roo sets out to buy her dream horse - a fiery showjumper named Wonder Boy.Then Wonder vanishes without a trace.Determined to save him, Roo and Joni investigate his disappearance. But as the mystery deepens and more prize horses are stolen, the pair find themselves drawn into a thrilling - but dangerous - adventure . . .How far will they go, and what will they risk, to find Wonder?'Lauren St John's horse stories are as good as any of the classics.' LoveReading'Absolutely brilliant!' Abi Elphinstone, author of Sky Song

Genres: Middle Grade, Animals

368 pages, Paperback

Published September 7, 2023

About the author

Lauren St John grew up on a farm and game reserve in Africa, the inspiration for her acclaimed memoir, Rainbow's End, and her award-winning White Giraffe series for children. Dead Man's Cove, the first in her Laura Marlin mystery series, won the Blue Peter Book of the Year Award in 2011. Her bestselling One Dollar Horse trilogy for teenagers was followed by The Glory, a breathtaking YA adventure and romance about a long distance horse race across the American West. Formerly a sports and music journalist, Lauren is the author of Seve and Hardcore Troubador: the Life & Near Death of Steve Earle, a superb, gripping biography of an Americana legend. The Obituary Writer, her first adult novel, was published in 2014 and she is currently at work on her second. Both The White Giraffe and The Glory have been optioned for film.

Reviews

[Monique · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredibly good horse book. With most horse books, you see quite a lot of clichés. I didn't find that in this book. The book followed the mystery of the lost horses. During the search she encountered different types of horses from dressage to racehorses. As a result, quite some different disciplines in horserinding were covered. Very enjoyable!

[Leonie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I adored this book so much Lauren made me fell in love with Roo ever since the beginning and I was rooting for her throughout John has a way of making her characters feel like real people that you feel the warmth and joy also the love she added in and everything I loved there was a mystery elements I don’t tend to read middle grades on animal mysteries but this latest debut I know this book isn’t very first because she has a backlist but I really had a fun time reading this one!

[Olivia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book, In one part of the book I feel like Skylar is correct, Wonder Boy is not the horse for her, either Wander Girl or (even though she can't have him) Shamal. By the end of this book I did find it slightly boring at the end when Joni and Roo actually found a home and met Wander Girl though otherall I love this book and give it a 4 star rating.

[Daphne Kinzel · Rating 3 out of 5]

De andere boeken van deze auteur trekken mij meer.
Waarom gaan ze op het einde niet in de buurt van hun vrienden wonen? Daarnaast vond ik het onrealistisch dat het hoofdpersoon maar 11 jaar oud was.

[Becky Sumbler · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book left me with questions. Why is there no mention of Roo's dad's funeral? He died and then they went on their adventure straight away. Overall an interesting story and I didn't guess who the 'bad guys' were, so it wasn't too predictable.

[Gita Joncheere · Rating 3 out of 5]

Geweldig leuk boek! Heel leuk voor mensen die van paarden houden

[Sophie Crane · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was looking for a similar book to Finding Black Beauty and my mum found me this at our local library. I haven't been able to put it down. It is full of suspense and made me want to keep reading to find out more.


The main character experiences a rollercoaster of emotions from extreme sadness/grief to joy/ relief. I liked following her along on her journey.

It is a mystery book involving vanishing horses. Every time I thought I knew who was responsible I was surprised to find out things weren't that clear.

A great book for horse lovers and fans of mysteries.

[Ruth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read & reviewed for The Bookbag: http://www.thebookbag.co.uk/reviews/F...

[LudmilaM · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely detective adventure.

[Vonprice · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant middle grade whodunnit mystery. You can read my full review here: http://vsviewfromthebookshelves.home....

[Daisy · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I love horses and mystery novels 10//10 must read

[Chantelle Christian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Didn’t have the ending I thought it would have thought that Rhianna would have let ruby keep wonder .

[Amelia · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25

[Sian Cosgrove · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely book read it at bedtimes with my boys but great storyline and it had us wanting to read on even though we’re not hugely into horses!

[Emma Labuscagne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book , I just despised the cussing

[#ObsessedWithWarriorCats · Rating 5 out of 5]

BEAUTIFUL
The ending was slightly abrupt but it's good bc you don't know what's coming

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fabulous throughly enjoyed reading Roo & Joni’s Journey in discovering who stole Wonder and the other horses and unearthing a sinister plan and a fresh new way of life for them both

[Mythical Mishmash · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF at page 68

The writing style felt very juvenile and mushy. Lots of brand dropping and awkward dialogue threw me quite off of picking this one up anymore.

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 🌟 Love love loved it <3 Lauren St John will always be the coolest author to me. She's written so many of my comfort books, and this one is joining the list. However, despite its comforting-ness, Finding Wonder prompted me to think about things in ways that were not always comfortable. It was challenging and bold. I learnt a lot and added lots of things I want to try onto my bucket list. The mystery aspects of the story were oftentimes farfetched but I read it knowing it was primarily written for a younger audience which meant I could enjoy the adventure and excitement of it all without feeling shocked at the more outrageous scenarios. I adored the found-family situation and all the characters who were part of this family. All in all, it was a truly wonderful story.

[Bethan · Rating 4 out of 5]

It took me a few chapters to get into this story, but once I did, I loved it! It reminds me of the books I used to enjoy reading when I was young (Animal Ark, Anne Fine, and Jaqueline Wilson etc.) but with a great mystery to unravel along the way.

I loved the names of the horses, and how they are used as chapter titles. This would be a great book to springboard discussions of luck "do we make our own or is it fate?"

It's perfect for teens and is a great adventure and mystery story for horse lovers.

[Silya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Echt een heel leuk boek over paarden misterie en je dromen volgen ik geef het vooral een vijf omdat ik persoonlijk nooit echt leuk vindt om boeken opnieuw te lezen omdat je dan al weer wat er gebeurt maar omdat er in dit boek zoveel verschillende dingen tegelijk gebeuren vind ik hem toch heel leuk om op nieuw te lezen dus daarom heb ik dit boek een vijf sterren gegeven

PS: ik vind het boek in het algemeen heel leuk dus daarom ook vijf steren

[Carolienvanderwaarde · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mooie mix van paarden, detective en je dromen waar maken