Lia Frederick has narrated 38 audiobooks on Listento.it by 6 authors, with an average listener rating of 2★ across 1 ratings. The most-rated is Mail Order Mystery.
Mail Order Mystery
Summary
Civil war devastated the country and left Rachel Sawyer stranded in a dead-end job as a seamstress with no prospects for marriage. Men are thin on the ground in Massachusetts, so Rachel and her best friend travel west, to Seattle, with the handsome Talbot brothers. Jason Talbot, the eldest brother and wealthy owner of a lumber company, is so far beyond her reach that falling in love with him is the most non-sensical thing she could do. So, of course, she does. But after one sensual midnight encounter, Jason pushes her away. Jason Talbot and his brothers are desperate to keep their lumberjack crews happy. And if that means traveling across the country to escort a hundred women to Seattle as mail-order brides, that's what he'll do. The brides are for other men. After losing his wife 10 years ago, he's not interested in risking another devastating blow to his heart. When Rachel catches his eye, his head and his heart are at war, and he's not sure which side will win. But when a thief springs up in their midst, and Rachel's determination to solve the mystery leads to murder, Jason realizes he'll do anything, not just to protect her from a killer, but to win her heart.
©2017 Cynthia Woolf (P)2018 Cynthia Woolf
Gideon
Summary
The Surprise Brides: One determined mama, four reluctant brothers, four mail order brides. Meet Jamie, Caleb, Gideon and Ethan. As the local preacher, Gideon Fraser often talks about the many virtues of a good marriage, but that doesn't mean he has the slightest inclination of claiming a bride of his own. No, he's been burned before, by greedy women who only want the prestige and money the Fraser family name can provide. When his mother's devious matchmaking results in his unexpected wedding, Gideon looks at the beautiful face of the woman who has sworn to be his and wants nothing to do with her. But Gideon is in danger of losing his heart until he discovers the truth. His new wife lied to him about everything. Ruby Haller needed a husband and fast. A treacherous man promised her the world, took her virginity, and left her without a father for her unborn child. When her father, the town minister, found out she was expecting a child, he offered her hand in marriage to the meanest man in town. Becoming a mail-order-bride appeared to be a safer choice. But instead of a rancher, she ends up the wife of a stubborn, bull-headed preacher and he's none too pleased when he discovers her duplicity. Worse? The local town beauty, who had been courting him for years, is determined to make her life a living hell. But Angel Springs, Colorado is a small town that can inspire big dreams. It's nearly Christmas, and as these two hearts heal, a holiday miracle just might be within reach.
©2015 Cynthia Woolf (P)2016 Cynthia Woolf
Christmas on Ladybug Farm
Summary
Christmas on Ladybug Farm is a short novel with a bonus holiday recipe section! 'Twas the Night Before Christmas... It's Christmas Eve, and Cici, Bridget and Lindsay are busy preparing for their annual holiday party. The tree is sparkling, the turkey is roasting, the stockings are hung and the eggnog is chilled. The scene is set for the perfect Christmas...with one or two exceptions. The entire state is in the midst of a heat wave. No one can find any mistletoe. The Christmas tree lights keep exploding, and, perhaps worst of all, something has gone terribly wrong with Ida Mae's fruitcakes. It wouldn't be Ladybug Farm if everything went according to plan, and as the ladies deal with one mishap after another, they remember Christmases past, laughter shared, and lessons learned. But when nightfall descends upon Ladybug Farm and one of their own still has not come home, they begin to worry that this Christmas will be one to remember for all the wrong reasons. All they can do is cling to each other as they watch and wait...and pray for miracle.
©2011 Donna Ball (P)2014 Blue Merle Publishing
Liam
Summary
All Liam Anderson wanted after the War Between the States, was a little peace. After 17 years in the army, he's tired of fighting and killing. Having lost his beloved wife to influenza, he's tired of hurting. And seeing his baby brother framed for murder, he's tired of injustice. He left everything behind to help his brothers escape, packed up his children and possessions, and took them all to a gold claim in Deadwood. Miss Eleanor Smith is a 32-year-old spinster. She gave up her dream of a home and family a long time ago. Instead, she has spent her life traveling the world, ministering to the weak, the injured, the poor, and the forgotten, following her preacher father from one hell hole to another. From what she's seen of men and the world, she's better off taking care of herself. And she gets along just fine, until she literally falls into Liam's arms, gets in the middle of a fight that isn't hers, and becomes a pawn for an enemy's revenge. Deadwood was supposed to be a fresh start for Liam Anderson and his younger brothers, but trouble followed him and his children. And when Eleanor disappears, only Liam can rescue her. The headstrong, independent woman awoke his dead passion, but refused to surrender to his touch. Can he convince her that merely surviving isn't enough? Despite his sins, he's the only man who can save her, and she's the only woman strong enough to heal his broken heart.
©2014 Cynthia Woolf (P)2015 Cynthia Woolf
The Marshal Takes a Bride
Summary
Marshal Tucker Burnett has cleaned up his gunslinger past and is now a respectable lawman. But he's determined to remain single even after his crafty mother has found eligible women for his brothers to marry. Until Dr. Sarah James returns home to Fort Worth, Texas due to an urgent telegram. Tucker is unable to forget that one night in Tombstone when Sarah patched up his body and his soul. Yet Sarah has returned with a secret of her own. A secret that could change Tucker forever.
©2015 Virtual Bookseller, LLC (P)2016 Virtual Bookseller, LLC
The Wanted Bride
Summary
Valerie Burrows is running from a wedding, her attorney fiancé, and the law. Pampered Valerie takes a bus to nowhere, where she learns her cash and credit cards have been stolen. Left with only her designer clothes and luggage she takes on a new identity and must learn to be self-reliant. She swears off men, especially attorneys, only to find the one man who refuses a one night stand and wants a relationship. Matt Jordan, the Colorado Crusher, is the most successful liability lawyer in the state. After the death of his brother-in-law, he realizes he's ready to settle down with a family of his own. His only requirements are intelligent, great-looking, wants more than a hook-up and doesn't lie. After witnessing the lies his father told his mother, he demands complete honesty. Yet Valerie Brown shows him sometimes in order to find yourself, you must become someone else. Even if that means lying.
©2014 Sylvia McDaniel (P)2016 Sylvia McDaniel
The Christmas Bride
Summary
Eugenia meets her match! Come spend Christmas with the Burnett family. In the historical western town of Fort Worth, Texas, matchmaking mother Eugenia Burnett has achieved her goals. Her three sons are happily married, and she has three grandchildren, with the fourth on the way. But she hasn't given up her matchmaking ways. Now she's introducing lonely widows and widowers. Until one widower, rancher Wyatt Jones, lets her know he's only interested in one woman: her. Sworn never to remarry, Eugenia doesn't want a husband. But Wyatt wants Eugenia and he's one determined cowboy. Come celebrate a western Christmas with the Burnett family and watch Mama Burnett meet her match.
©2016 Sylvia McDaniel (P)2016 Sylvia McDaniel
Jake
Summary
Jake Anderson killed a man defending his fiancée from a brutal attack, but lost her and his freedom in the process. Now he's on the run, tormented by the need for vengeance. Becky Finnegan will do anything to escape her drunken father's fists, including slave away at their mine. Her only hope is to strike gold and make a new life for herself somewhere far, far away from Deadwood. But then Jake arrives and does the unthinkable... forces her to feel, to hope... and to love. Jake would give his life to protect Becky, but all he can offer her is a broken heart, a criminal's life, and a past haunted by failure. How can he save her when he's already lost himself? Will he destroy everything, or can the beautiful rebel redeem Jake's lost soul?
©2014 Cynthia Woolf (P)2015 Cynthia Woolf
Nellie
Summary
Nellie Wallace is a young widow with two children. In post-Civil War New York, the men are scarce and none want the burden of a wife with children. Her dead husband's family is wealthy, and cruel. Desperate to escape their influence, and eager for a home, a husband, and a stable life for her children, Nellie decides to make a new life in San Francisco as a mail-order bride. Saloon owner Blake Malone is a bachelor and likes it that way. He worked hard for everything he has, but the San Francisco City Council won't approve his plans to build a family emporium unless he is a family man himself. The solution? A mail-order bride from New York who will bring him a ready-made family, stability, and the council's approval. Blake expects his future wife to care for his home and, other than helping him impress the city council, to stay out of his business. He expects life as usual. What he gets is an unexpected desire to win Nellie's heart, a dangerous threat to his new bride, and a rich benefactor determined to steal his new family out from under him. Blake believed his battle for success a hard one. But he will discover that the battle to win Nellie's heart and keep his family safe is going to take everything he's got.
©2014 Cynthia Woolf (P)2015 Cynthia Woolf
A Wedding on Ladybug Farm, Book 6
Summary
When Bridget, Cici and Lindsay left behind their safe suburban lives for a stately old mansion in the Shenandoah Valley, they redefined the concept of family. The friends, like the house, have faced many challenges and undergone major changes over the years. But the one thing they never imagined was that one day they would be expanding their house of women to make room for a husband. A second marriage in midlife is never easy, and Lindsay and Dominic know they will be facing their share of adjustments when they begin their life together. But she has the Vera Wang; she has a famous style columnist as her wedding planner; her best friend is the most popular caterer in the county, and she is marrying the love of her life. What could possibly go wrong? When the wedding takes place at Ladybug Farm, the answer is: almost anything. The three friends have weathered many storms together, but this one could shake the foundation of their life together. Only when they are faced with the loss of someone they all hold dear do they come to a renewed appreciation for the depth of their devotion to each other, the power of love, and the real meaning of family.
©2014 Donna Ball (P)2014 Donna Ball
Annie
Summary
Annie Markum grew up with a Bible in one hand and a disapproving father holding the other. At 22 she dared to dream of a different life and risked everything to become a mail order bride. One year later she finds herself on a friend's doorstep, penniless, pregnant, and a widow. Her husband was an honorable, churchgoing man, and she believes her father will allow her to come home. To get back to her father in New York will take money she doesn't have. She's got no choice but to accept work as a cook in a local saloon. Her father would never approve, but Annie is determined to earn enough for safe passage for herself and her beautiful new baby girl. It's never good to lust after another man's wife. Saloon owner Nick Cartwright learned that lesson the hard way. He took one look at Annie Markum and fell hard for his friend's mail order bride. A year later she's back in his life, a widow with a precious daughter to protect. Nick will do anything to convince Annie to give him a chance except the one thing she demands... ell his saloon. Annie has lived a sheltered life, and her innocence is one thing Nick wants to preserve. Life is rough, and Annie is soft, sweet, and all too kissable. He wants to keep her and her little girl, but Annie is determined to raise her daughter as far away from the saloon as possible. Annie fights her growing attraction to Nick. She might even be in love with him, but with Nick comes the saloon. And the whiskey. The gambling and the women. One of them will have to sacrifice everything to make a relationship work, and neither wants to budge. When it turns out that Annie's dead husband actually left her a fortune, her future seems set. Until someone decides to take both Nick and her newfound freedom away from her. And Annie realizes that sometimes, in life and in love, you have to fight dirty to win.
©2015 Cynthia Woolf (P)2015 Cynthia Woolf
Vintage Ladybug Farm
Summary
Come home to Ladybug Farm, the place for everyone who has ever had a friend... or a dream. Four years have passed since best friends Cici, Bridget and Lindsay left the suburbs for an old mansion in the Shenandoah Valley. They've survived broken plumbing, leaky roofs, and marauding sheep. They've faced fire, hail, snow, and financial set-backs. Yet somehow through it all they've managed not only to build a home, but a family. And now, much to their amazement, all their dreams seem to be coming true. The vineyard has been restored and Ladybug Farm Winery is on the verge of bottling its first vintage. Their friends Paul and Derrick are building a house next door. High school and college graduations are just around the corner for the two young people they have shepherded for the past four years. Life couldn't be more perfect. But Ladybug Farm still holds a few surprises for them all... Someone is getting married. Someone is keeping a monumental secret. And someone is leaving Ladybug Farm forever.
©2012 Donna Ball (P)2014 Donna Ball
Mail Order Doctor
Summary
Julia O'Brien is a practical woman. A nurse and midwife, she was perhaps the most surprised when she fell in love with Dr. Matthew Reynolds and agreed to be his mail order bride. She sets off for Tombstone carrying his letters and a heart full of hope. Dr. Matthew Reynolds didn't want a wife, and is shocked when Julia arrives on his door step with a marriage license bearing his signature. He discovers that his grandfather has wooed the young woman without his knowledge, and made promises in his name without permission. An annulment seems to be the easy answer, but Julia has nowhere to go. Now, his unwanted wife is sleeping in his house, working with him at his clinic, and generally driving him to distraction. When a call comes in from a desperate young mother, Julia handles the call alone. The young woman gives birth to a beautiful baby girl, but does not survive childbirth. Suddenly, Matthew is faced with a new choice, not only does he have a beautiful and caring wife, but a precious new daughter to fill his empty life. But Julia is not willing to accept less than his whole heart, and when the young infant's father attempts to steal her away, Matthew will have to move heaven and Earth to convince the woman he has grown to love that he can be what she needs.
©2015 Cynthia Woolf (P)2016 Cynthia Woolf
Tame a Wild Heart
Summary
Catherine Evans fell in love when she was three years old - head-over-heels, forever kind of love. The very first moment she saw 12-year-old Duncan McKenzie, she told God and her pony that she was going to marry that boy. He was handsome. He was kind. He was strong and smart and all the good things a boy should be. For 13 years she loved him with every beat of her heart. And on her 16th birthday he walked away from her father's ranch, and from her. He didn't look back over his shoulder. Not even once. And from that day forward, Catherine Evans swore off all men. Her heart turned to stone, her will to iron, and her vow to God changed. She'd run her father's ranch. She'd succeed. She'd survive. And she would never, ever love another man as long as she lived. Duncan McKenzie left the ranch 10 years ago, desperate to escape temptation in the form of a budding young lady too innocent to claim for his own. But Catherine's frightened father summons him home. The ranch is under attack and the old man's stubborn daughter refuses to seek help. Duncan left a sweet young girl behind a decade ago. He returns to a defiant siren, a woman whose heart is as wild as the land she would sacrifice her life to protect. When Catherine's father coerces her into marrying Duncan, the fire in her eyes spells trouble, but it's the kind of trouble Duncan has no desire to resist. Marriage is the only way he can protect her. Especially when Duncan's own past comes calling in the form of one extremely dangerous and vengeful outlaw, Catherine's cowardly enemies want the ranch badly enough to kill for it, and his reluctant bride is very much in their way.
©2011 and beyond Cynthia Woolf (P)2014 Cynthia Woolf
The Outlaw Takes a Bride: A Western Historical Romance
Summary
Everyone deserves a second chance. After the death of his best friend in the Battle of Atlanta, Tanner Burnett walked away from the civil war. Now, 10 years later, he runs with the Sam Bass gang, trying to escape the memories of that horrible battle. But when a stagecoach robbery goes bad, he rescues injured Elizabeth Anderson, wanting only to get her to a doctor and rejoin his gang. But the injured beauty needs a nurse, and Tanner is unprepared for the way Beth soothes his wounded heart and heals his spirit...until he takes her to Fort Worth, Texas, and learns she's his brother's mail order bride. Other historical romances by Sylvia McDaniel: The Burnett Brides: Rancher Takes a Bride Outlaw Takes a Bride The Marshal Takes a Bride The Christmas Bride The Cuvier Women: Wronged Betrayed Beguiled A Hero's Heart
©2012 Virtual Bookseller, LLC (P)2015 Virtual Bookseller, LLC
The Wind Cries Mary
Summary
On May 27, 1969 in the sleepy power town of New Canaan, Connecticut, ten-year-old Mary Mount, the daughter of an IBM research scientist was abducted and murdered. Several persons including serial killers became suspects. A year and a half after Mary's abduction and murder, John Rice, a 17-year-old honor student and Boy Scout in New Canaan, brutally murdered four members of his family. Rice became another suspect in Mary Mount's murder. Rice found not guilty of the murders of his family by reason of insanity was released back into society after spending only five years at Connecticut's Whiting Institute for the criminally insane. The Wind Cries Mary reveals more shocking twists to the story and enlists Criminal Profiler Greg Cooper for his expert analysis concerning Mary Mount's killer and the possibility of John Rice as her murderer.
©2009 Erika Grey (P)2013 Erika Grey
Zach
Summary
Originally published in 2014 under Seduced by a Sinner. Zach Anderson is a desperate man. He needs to find a killer before the man destroys Zach's entire family. He also must convince Lily Sutter, the woman he loves, that she loves him and wants to marry him. Neither task is an easy one. Lily Sutter is a sinner. Just ask anyone in Deadwood. She had a baby out of wedlock, and she doesn't deny it. She was seduced and left by one man; she refuses to be taken in by another. The fact that Zach makes her blood boil and her heart race, just by being near, has nothing to do with anything. ZZach Anderson is a desperateach Anderson is a desperate man. He needs to find a killer before the man destroys Zach’s entire family. He also must convince one Lily Sutter, the woman he loves, that she loves him and wants to marry him.Neither task is an easy one. Lily Sutter is a sinner. Just ask anyone in Deadwood. She had a baby out of wedlock and she doesn’t deny it. She was seduced and left by one man; she refuses to be taken in by another. The fact that Zach makes her blood boil and her heart race, just by being near, has nothing to do with anything.
©2014 Cynthia Woolf (P)2016 Cynthia Woolf
Cora
Summary
Cora Jones has a dilemma. She was engaged to be married but her fiancé Asa Woods was killed in the Civil War. She'd never been madly in love with Asa, but she did care for him deeply and grieved his loss. When she stopped grieving she decided she wanted to put everything behind her and became a mail order bride for Harry Belcher. Cora sailed to San Francisco to meet Harry. She's checking into her hotel when she hears a voice from the past say her name. No, it can't be. She turned to find Asa Woods behind her, just as Harry comes up to her, too. What's a girl to do when one fiancé returns from the dead and she has another one calling to her from across the lobby? Cora decides to have both men court her in order to make up her mind. Who will she choose - the man back from the dead who wants her for his wife or the man who sent for her to be his bride?
©2015 Cynthia Woolf (P)2015 Cynthia Woolf
Tame A Wild Wind
Summary
In Tame A Wild Wind, an exciting, historical, western, romance, Sam Colter is running from his past as a Texas Ranger, from the pain of losing his wife and daughters, from his own broken soul. He finds peace running a ranch and minding his own business until the beautiful, widowed ranch owner, Cassie O'Malley, offers him a devil's bargain...to become her lover with no strings attached. Trouble is, once he's tasted her fiery passion, he wants it all... Cassie O'Malley is a woman with a plan, run her ranch and avoid entanglements. The handsome ex-lawman wreaks havoc on her body and her heart, but she can't risk the shattering pain of losing another husband. Marriage is out of the question until Sam's past follows him home to the ranch. If revenge is a dish best served cold, there's none colder than the corpse of the man Sam Colter saw hanged for murder. The dead man's brother is determined to make Sam pay, and the pretty Cassie will suit his purposes just fine.... This is a historical, western romance and piece of historical fiction. It has been re-edited and new material added.Tame Series, book 2
©2011 forward Cynthia Woolf (P)2014 Cynthia Woolf
Progressive Dinner Deadly
Summary
Retired octogenarian schoolteacher Myrtle Clover is fit to be tied when her book club votes to change to a supper club. Who wants chips and dip when they can have Dickens and Twain? The first supper club is a progressive dinner... where Myrtle loses interest during the hors d'oeuvres. But when a body is discovered during the main course, the evening quickly gets interesting. Myrtle pits her sleuthing skills against her police chief son's to find the killer.... if the killer doesn't find her first.
©2011 Elizabeth Spann Craig (P)2013 Elizabeth Spann Craig