Rachel Wesson has 8 audiobooks on Listento.it, narrated by 3 narrators. The most-rated is A Baby on the Doorstep.
Orphan Train Disaster
Summary
It's 1911, and Lily's plans for her factory are not progressing as fast as she would like. Maria, her sister Rosa, and friend Leonie are still working at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory. Maria and Conrad have agreed it's pointless finding new jobs when they will soon be joining Lily's factory. Rosa can think of nothing but her upcoming marriage, and Leonie worries how she is going to look after her four siblings when their mother falls very ill. Frieda is fighting barriers at the hospital. It seems some doctors believe being female and becoming a doctor are not compatible despite her achieving high marks in the recent exams. Will she be allowed to qualify or have her dreams come to a standstill? After Alice's experience, Lily is having major doubts about sending children on the orphan trains. But when a major disaster happens, does she have any choice?
©2020 Rachel Wesson (P)2020 Tantor
Orphan Train Christmas
Summary
Kenny Clark knows Santa is magical and only he can find his family. Kathleen Collins fights poverty and desperation every day in her bid to find new homes for the orphans of New York. But what about her happily ever after? In this concluding story to the Orphan Train Trilogy, can the magic of Christmas bring happiness at last?
©2018 Rachel Wesson (P)2019 Tantor
Orphan Train Escape
Summary
Bridget Collins is in dire straits - she needs to get out of New York, fast. With two young siblings under her wing, her options are limited. Her priest sends her as an outplacement agent on the orphan trains that run from New York to out west. With almost 40 orphans under her care, she's relieved that fellow and more experienced outplacement agent Carl Watson is there to guide her. But Carl is dealing with his own trauma and finds it difficult to handle the pain the orphans are dealing with. Through tears and laughter, everyone on the orphan train has a lesson to teach about love, life, and loyalty. And Bridget finds a new, unexpected calling. Every child deserves a happy home and Bridget is determined to do whatever it takes to ensure that happens. No matter what the cost....
©2018 Rachel Wesson (P)2019 Tantor
Orphan Train Strike
Summary
Two New York girls, Maria Mezza and Alice Doe, wake up one November morning in 1906. Their lives are about to change forever. Maria is heading to her first job in a shirtwaist factory wishing she was heading to the country side. Alice is leaving New York to find a new family in Illinois country side. Three years later, the paths of the two girls will converge once more. Gone is the innocence of youth yet both girls are desperately hoping their lives will improve. Maria is caught up in the Shirtwaist Strike while Alice is on the run for her life. Orphan Train Strike is set against a turbulent period in society which saw 20,000 women take to the streets of New York in a bid for freedom of choice. Can Alice and Maria overcome the events of their past and secure happiness with the aid of Lily, Kathleen, and the rest of the gang at the Sanctuary? Or has Lily's belief that the Orphan Trains are not the answer to New York's problems come true?
©2020 Rachel Wesson (P)2020 Tantor
Orphan Train Tragedy
Summary
Kathleen Green longs for a child of her own. Her work with the orphan trains only serve to heighten her need. When tragedy strikes, will she get the child she always wanted? Will the cost be worth it?
©2019 Rachel Wesson (P)2020 Tantor
Orphan Train Trials
Summary
Bella Jones and Kathleen Collins are as close as sisters and that's how they want things to stay. But fate intervenes. Kathleen's brothers have disappeared; they traveled from New York on the Orphan Train and nobody has heard from them since. She can't shed her gut feeling something awful has happened to them. She goes looking for them, but is she prepared for what she will find? Twins Megan and Eileen Doyle have lost so much already. Bella can't let them travel on the Orphan Train alone. She must confront her fears and deal with her past. Can she keep the girls safe, or will they too fall victim to abuse? Both Bella and Kathleen are tested in ways they never dreamed possible. Will justice prevail and allow both girls to get their happily ever after? Or is the cost simply too high?
©2018 Rachel Wesson (P)2019 Tantor
A Home for Unloved Orphans
Summary
Her heart broke as she took in the scene before her. There were too many orphans and not enough beds. The rags they wore barely covered them, and they hadn’t eaten in days. How could anyone let innocent children live like this? She picked up a tiny baby who’d cried as she moved past his cot. “I’ll be back soon, little one.” Virginia, 1933: Lauren Greenwood was born to look pretty and land a rich husband. For her and her high-society family, it’s easy to forget that America is in the devastating grip of the Great Depression, where children run wild in the streets, endless queues for soup kitchens line sidewalks, and desperation hangs in the air. But when a young servant comes to Lauren, pregnant and begging for help, her world crumbles. Someone she loves is responsible, and when she finds out the shocking truth she must decide: Protect the Greenwood name or be cast out? When the servant girl is thrown mercilessly into the street, Lauren knows what choice to make. Suddenly, she is homeless and without a penny to her name - utterly broken by her family’s betrayal. With nowhere else to go, Lauren takes the servant to a home for unwanted children. She is appalled to find orphans living in squalid conditions, their hunger keeping them awake and making them too weak to even play. The orphanage is on the brink of closure - and those it shelters may lose the roof over their heads.... Yet Lauren refuses to allow such suffering. And when she sees an advertisement in the local newspaper, with an anonymous benefactor promising to donate money to families crippled by the Depression, it could be the answer to her prayers. Can she save the orphans - and her new home - in time for Christmas? A heartbreaking yet hopeful tale about a brave young woman who gives up everything to help unloved children who have nothing. Fans of Before We Were Yours, The Orphan Train, and Diney Costeloe will adore this poignant historical novel, which shows that a little bit of kindness can go a long way. Listeners absolutely love Rachel Wesson.
©2020 Rachel Wesson (P)2020 Bookouture, an imprint of Storyfire Ltd.
A Baby on the Doorstep
Summary
An absolutely gripping and heartbreaking historical-fiction pause-resister "Virginia, 1934: In the middle of the night, he crept through the bushes, thankful for the darkness, for the clouds covering the stars. Tenderly, he opened his bag, lifting the small bundle out. With tears in his eyes, he held her tight, not wanting to let her go. But he had no choice - it was the only way. 'This is your new home, little one. You’ll be safe here.'" Distant rumblings of conflict in Europe have reached even the secluded, snow-dusted mountains of Virginia, where Lauren Greenwood faces a battle of her own. The Great Depression is crippling America, leaving millions of its victims without shoes on their feet and clothes on their backs. Hope House - the orphanage Lauren runs - is suffering more than ever. The one thing Lauren is not short of is love. But with just a handful of dollars to her name, every day is a struggle to feed the orphans and keep a roof over their heads. Yet she refuses to give up. When a baby is left on the porch, Lauren welcomes her with open arms. The abandoned newborn, Maisie, is left with a crumpled letter - her parents begging Lauren to look after the girl and promising to return for her one day. Lauren refuses to allow another child to fall prey to the Depression, and vows to provide little Maisie with the love and protection of a mother. But when the debt collectors come calling, threatening to shut down the orphanage, Lauren runs out of hope. Any day now the children could be thrown onto the frozen streets, where survival is impossible. With tragedy just around the corner, how can she ever reunite Maisie with her parents? And if she doesn’t manage to save the orphans, how will she live with herself? A totally heartbreaking tale with a beautiful and hopeful message - when all else fails, love can save the day. Fans of Before We Were Yours, The Orphan Train, and Diney Costeloe will be swept away.
©2021 Rachel Wesson (P)2021 Bookouture, an imprint of Storyfire Ltd.