Wendy M. Wilson has 7 audiobooks on Listento.it, narrated by 1 narrator. The most-rated is Not the Faintest Trace.
Lying Under Water
Summary
The waters are rising, and so is the body count. Trapped by floods on their horse farm, Frank and Mette Hardy offer shelter to two other families. But when one of their guests is found with a carving knife from their own kitchen in his neck, they must keep themselves alive until help comes. Who among the small group of people trapped on the farm by floods is the killer? It seems that everyone has a reason to kill the man who died, and when Frank is sickened by poison, he makes a decision that almost kills his pregnant wife. A classic Agatha Christie/Knives Out mystery, set in New Zealand in 1880 in the midst of a depression with war pending and the temperance movement still in full swing.
©2020 Wendy M. Wilson (P)2020 Wendy M. Wilson
A Dark & Painful Mystery
Summary
New Zealand, 1878: Has the missing man been murdered in the dense bush, or has he simply abandoned his wife and children for another woman? Sergeant Frank Hardy and his new wife Mette attempt to solve two real mysteries from 19th century New Zealand: the whereabouts of Peter Kane who left his home to look for work and did not return and the brutal murder of an accommodation house owner who was splitting palings in the bush. Were they connected? If so, how? As one newspaper said at the time about the Peter Kane disappearance: "[T]he fate of the poor fellow may be cleared up, and the state of horrible suspense in which his unfortunate wife has been kept in for months brought to an end; and we would ask not only the people of Woodville, but of the other districts he may have visited, to take all possible steps to throw light upon what at present appears to be a dark and painful mystery." (The Manawatu Times, Volume III, Issue 81, 20 July 1878) This engaging novella is perfect for listeners who have enjoyed the other three Sergeant Frank Mysteries or who love Australian writers Paul Haworth and Peter Carey or historical mystery writers Anne Perry and Charles Todd. For listeners who have not listened to the series already, the novella includes a backstory/history of the two main characters. Please note: This book falls between book two and book three of the Sergeant Frank Hardy mysteries. However, you can start the series with this short listen.
©2019 Wendy M. Wilson (P)2019 Wendy M. Wilson
A Cold Wind Down the Grey
Summary
Greymouth, New Zealand, 1866: The Burgess gang was in town, and a young surveyor from one of the country's leading families had vanished in the back country. Inspector James has never forgotten that year. In the gold mining town of Greymouth, where drunks fell asleep smoking and burned down their houses, the town was constantly inundated with floods, and 57 hotels had sprung up in a year to accommodate the hordes of miners and gold thieves, Inspector William Henry James was tasked with keeping the town safe with a small force of troopers. In 1888, forced into retirement by government cuts, James walks home beside the Whanganui River remembering his association with a series of murders by the notorious Burgess gang: back in 1866 he had forced the gang to leave Greymouth. The gang took a steamer up to Nelson and within days killed five men on the Maungatapu Track. Soon after, Inspector James discovered the body of a young surveyor, George Dobson, murdered by Burgess and his crew. The gang was gone, but one guilty man remained, and James was determined to bring him to trial. The events that transpired haunted him for the rest of his life.
©2019 Wendy M. Wilson (P)2019 Wendy M. Wilson
Recalled to Life
Summary
In 19th century New Zealand, the Land Wars have finished, but life is hard. Cashiered from the British Army after years fighting in India and Crimea, Sergeant Frank Hardy awakes in an underground prison with no idea where he is or how he got there. As he searches his memory for clues, his partner and his fiancee search for him. The answer is buried in the past, and he will have to to dig it up before he can be free. The story began in Not the Faintest Trace, book one of The Sergeant Frank Hardy Mysteries, which brought together Sergeant Hardy and Danish immigrant Mette Jensen during the search for two missing Danish men. An event from the past returned to complicate Hardy's life, and as people start to die, his own life is threatened. Praise for the book: "A captivating historical thriller." (Andrew Noakes, journalist)
©2018 Wendy M. Wilson (P)2019 Wendy M. Wilson
The Sergeant Frank Hardy Mysteries Anthology
Summary
In late 19th-century New Zealand, Sergeant Frank Hardy, ex-British soldier, battles for survival and for his own life as he carves out a new existence for himself and his family in the prehistoric but stunningly beautiful bush. An atmospheric and engaging series.This audiobook includes three captivating historical mysteries from New Zealand. Not the Faintest Trace Sergeant Frank Hardy is asked to find two missing men. He is reluctant. He was looking for something more adventurous. But an attack by an axe-wielding warrior and a chance encounter with the cousin of one of the missing men draws him into the action. Recalled to Life Frank Hardy awakes in an underground cell with no idea how he got there and why he has been taken. While he attempts to escape, he searches his past to discover why anyone would want him hidden away. Meanwhile, his partner and his fiance search for him while dealing with a body that wasn't supposed to surface and a man who is looking for his missing brother. A Dark and Painful Mystery Sergeant Hardy and his wife Mette search for a man who left home to find work and did not return. Based on a true story. The three books are the first in an ongoing saga of life in New Zealand, where a seemingly bucolic countryside is fraught with danger - from earthquakes, floods and fires, to the vestiges of war - and all the hardship that went with founding a new country thousands of miles from the homes of the new settlers from places as disparate as England, Ireland, Denmark, Germany, and China. Note: In this updated edition, A Dark and Painful Mystery replaces Dead Shot to match an upcoming audiobook anthology.
©2019 Wendy M. Wilson (P)2020 Wendy M. Wilson
Dead Shot
Summary
New Zealand, 1880: A body in a ditch, a missing wife, money in short supply, and a thoroughbred horse wanted by the leader of a brutal Australian gang - Sergeant Frank Hardy has a lot to handle. The third book in this gripping historical mystery series set in New Zealand in the 1880s continues the story of ex-Diehard Sergeant Frank Hardy and Danish settler Mette Jensen, now his wife. The temperance movement has taken hold in New Zealand, and the country is locked in the depths of a depression as a new land war threatens. When Sergeant Hardy and his new wife find themselves in financial straits, Hardy takes on Dead Shot, a thoroughbred stallion from a town near the front. But the horse has been targeted by a brutal Australian gang trying to take over the racing world. Murder soon follows. When Hardy's wife disappears, apparently kidnapped by the gang, Hardy must track down the mysterious leader of the gang and take him out of commission. This well-researched novel is for lovers of historical thrillers set in unusual locations who enjoy learning a bit of history with a gripping story.
©2018 Wendy M. Wilson (P)2020 Wendy M. Wilson
Not the Faintest Trace
Summary
Sergeant Frank Hardy is an ex-soldier from Her Majesty's 57th Regiment who is scraping out a living in a small New Zealand settlement by driving a coach and playing rigged card games. But he's haunted by nightmares of things he's seen and done in wartime. When he's asked to find two missing Scandinavian settlers, he refuses - until he catches a glimpse of the cousin of one of the missing men. But while he searches for the bodies and loses his heart, someone from his past returns with revenge in mind, and the body count begins. Not the Faintest Trace is the first in a series of historical thrillers, each complete by itself but with a continuing story of the central characters. "My forebears lived in the wider area throughout the period covered in the book (and one was killed in the NZ Wars) - so I could have been a very hard-sell, but instead I loved the whole exciting story. I'm very happy to recommend this book and the second in the series and roll on the publication of the next one." (Val Burr, local historian, Palmerston North, New Zealand)
©2018 Wendy M. Wilson (P)2019 Wendy M. Wilson