The Lives of Diamond Bessie
A Novel
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The Lives of Diamond Bessie
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Narrated by:
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Anthea Greco
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By:
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Jody Hadlock
About this listen
The Lovely Bones meets the wild, Wild West in this haunting tale inspired by a true story.
Pregnant out of wedlock, 16-year-old Annie Moore is sent to live at a convent for fallen women. When the nuns take her baby, Annie escapes, determined to find a way to be reunited with her daughter. But few rights or opportunities are available to a woman in the 1860s, and after failing to find a respectable job, she resorts to prostitution in order to survive.
As a highly sought-after demi-mondaine, Annie—now Bessie—garners many expensive gifts from her admirers and eventually meets and marries the son of a wealthy jeweler, a traveling salesman with a gambling problem. With her marriage, she believes her dream of returning to proper society has finally come true. She’s proven wrong when she suffers the ultimate betrayal at the hands of the man she thought would be her salvation. But Bessie doesn’t let her story end there.
Set against the backdrop of the burgeoning women’s rights movement, The Lives of Diamond Bessie is a captivating tale of betrayal and redemption that explores whether seeking revenge is worth the price you might pay.
©2022 Jody Hadlock (P)2022 Jody HadlockListeners also enjoyed...
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- Length: 19 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,169
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,035
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,032
Set against the colorful tumult of events that gave rise to our fledgling nation, this novel of romance and adventure introduces Phillipe Charboneau. The illegitimate son of an English nobleman, Phillipe flees Europe and, as Philip Kent, joins the men who set our course for freedom. The Bastard is the first volume in the Kent Family Chronicles, a series of novels that details one family's journey in the early years of the American nation.
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5 out of 5 stars
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An Amazing Tale
- By will on 11-06-13
By: John Jakes
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Sawbones
- By: Melissa Lenhardt
- Narrated by: Suehyla El-Attar
- Length: 12 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 99
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 93
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 93
Wrongfully accused of murder, Dr. Catherine Bennett is destined to hang...unless she can disappear. With the untamed territory of Colorado as her most likely refuge, she packs her physician's kit and heads West. But even with a new life and name, a female doctor with a bounty on her head can hide for only so long.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Oh Yeah!
- By Syd Young on 05-04-17
By: Melissa Lenhardt
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The Ripper's Shadow
- A Victorian Mystery
- By: Laura Joh Rowland
- Narrated by: Alex Tregear
- Length: 12 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 93
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 78
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 79
Jack the Ripper begins his reign of terror. Miss Sarah Bain, a photographer, supplements her meager income by taking illicit boudoir photographs of the town's local ladies of the night. But when two of her models are found gruesomely murdered within weeks of one another, Sarah begins to suspect it's more than mere coincidence.
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1 out of 5 stars
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Really not a good book.
- By Robin Thompson on 08-25-17
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Out of the Darkness
- The Story of Mary Ellen Wilson
- By: Eric A. Shelman
- Narrated by: Deb Thomas
- Length: 11 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 374
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 339
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 335
In New York City, in April of 1874, a most unusual event took place. A severely abused nine-year-old girl named Mary Ellen Wilson became the first child in America to be rescued from an abusive home. She had been beaten, burned, slashed with scissors, locked in a closet, and had never been outside of her tenement home in over 7 years. Thanks to the concern and dedication of a missionary named Etta Wheeler, the child was finally saved from her cruel captors.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Harrowing Story
- By musa on 03-21-17
By: Eric A. Shelman
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Born of Persuasion
- Price of Privilege, Book 1
- By: Jessica Dotta
- Narrated by: Amanda McKnight
- Length: 13 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 71
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 66
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Story4 out of 5 stars 67
The year is 1838, and seventeen-year-old Julia Elliston's position has never been more fragile. Orphaned and unmarried in a time when women are legal property of their fathers, husbands, and guardians, she finds herself at the mercy of an anonymous guardian who plans to establish her as a servant in far-off Scotland. With two months to devise a better plan, Julia's first choice - to marry her childhood sweetheart - is denied. Then, a titled dowager offers to introduce Julia into society, opening a realm of possibilities.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Debut Book in Series
- By Carrie Fancett Pagels on 10-31-13
By: Jessica Dotta
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For the Roses
- Claybornes' Brides, Book 1
- By: Julie Garwood
- Narrated by: Mikael Naramore
- Length: 22 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,138
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,020
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,019
The Clayborne brothers were a rough gang of street urchins - until they found an abandoned baby girl in a New York City alley, named her Mary Rose, and headed to Blue Belle, Montana, to raise her to be a lady. They became a family - held together by loyalty and love, if not blood - when suddenly a stranger threatened to tear them apart.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Beautiful Story
- By 🌸DARA on 12-14-13
By: Julie Garwood
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These Honored Dead
- A Lincoln and Speed Mystery, Book 1
- By: Jonathan F. Putnam
- Narrated by: Lloyd James
- Length: 8 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 276
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 242
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 243
Joshua Speed, the enterprising second son of a wealthy plantation owner, has struck off on his own. But before long he makes a surprising and crucial new acquaintance - a freshly minted lawyer by the name of Abraham Lincoln. When an orphaned girl from a neighboring town is found murdered and suspicion falls on her aunt, Speed makes it his mission to clear her good name. Of course he'll need the legal expertise of his unusual new friend.
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5 out of 5 stars
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What a Great Story!
- By Richard on 08-02-18
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Banner O'Brien
- By: Linda Lael Miller
- Narrated by: Pilar Witherspoon
- Length: 9 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 123
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 110
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 108
In 1886, lovely Banner O'Brien overcame every obstacle and won her coveted medical diploma. Still, she longed to escape from Oregon...and the nightmares that left her shaking, screaming one man's name. Banner fled to the Washington Territory to accept a position with Dr. Adam Corbin...arrogant, handsome, and, rumor said, violent. Although Banner respected his skills, she was unnerved by the very nearness of this moody, powerful man.
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2 out of 5 stars
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narrator great story awful
- By joanie on 11-18-19
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Except the Dying
- A Murdoch Mystery, Book 1
- By: Maureen Jennings
- Narrated by: David Marantz
- Length: 8 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 306
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 259
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Story4 out of 5 stars 260
In the cold Toronto winter of 1895, the naked body of a servant girl is found frozen in a deserted laneway. The young victim was pregnant when she died. Detective William Murdoch soon discovers that many of those connected with the girl's life have secrets to hide. Was her death on attempt to cover up a scandal in one of the city's influential families?
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1 out of 5 stars
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If you like the show - don't buy
- By Sarah on 06-09-16
By: Maureen Jennings
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Murphy's Law
- By: Rhys Bowen
- Narrated by: Nicola Barber
- Length: 7 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 2,909
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 2,581
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Story4 out of 5 stars 2,587
Molly Murphy always knew she'd end up in trouble, just as her mother predicted. So, when she commits murder in self-defense, she flees her cherished Ireland, under cover of a false identity, for the anonymous shores of late 19th-century America. When she arrives in New York and sees the welcoming promise of freedom in the Statue of Liberty, Molly begins to breathe easier. But when a man is murdered on Ellis Island, a man Molly was seen arguing with, she becomes a prime suspect in the crime.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Cream Puff Read
- By Jan on 12-19-13
By: Rhys Bowen
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Mata Hari's Last Dance
- A Novel
- By: Michelle Moran
- Narrated by: Zara Ramm
- Length: 7 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 153
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 138
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 139
Paris, 1917. The notorious dancer Mata Hari sits in a cold cell awaiting freedom...or death. Alone and despondent, she is as confused as the rest of the world about the charges she's been arrested on: treason leading to the deaths of thousands of French soldiers. As she waits for her fate to be decided, she relays the story of her life to a reporter who is allowed to visit her in prison.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Throughly enjoyable
- By scalante on 09-07-16
By: Michelle Moran
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Fates and Traitors
- A Novel of John Wilkes Booth
- By: Jennifer Chiaverini
- Narrated by: Christina Moore
- Length: 16 hrs
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 99
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 89
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 90
In Fates and Traitors: A Novel of John Wilkes Booth, New York Times best-selling author Jennifer Chiaverini renders for the first time as fiction the compelling interplay between these pivotal actors - some willing, others unwitting - who made an indelible mark on the history of our nation.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Read more like Wikipedia than a novel?
- By Star on 09-30-16
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Wanton Angel
- By: Linda Lael Miller
- Narrated by: Susan Bennett
- Length: 13 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 36
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 34
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 35
When Bonnie McKutchen left her wealthy husband in a storm of heartache and betrayal, she fled New York with nothing but the dress on her back. Eli McKutchen finally caught up with her in a Washington mining town, outraged to find his beautiful wife dancing for money in a gaudy saloon. Yet as his temper flared, so did his passion...for nothing could extinguish Bonnie's blazes once she set them.
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1 out of 5 stars
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Worst book ever read by Linda Lael Miller
- By Maureen on 06-09-16
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The Ambassador's Daughter
- By: Pam Jenoff
- Narrated by: Joanna Daniel
- Length: 11 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 243
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 221
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 220
Brought to the peace conference by her father, a German diplomat, Margot Rosenthal initially resents being trapped in the congested French capital, where she is still looked upon as the enemy. But as she contemplates returning to Berlin and a life with Stefan, the wounded fiancé she hardly knows anymore, she decides that being in Paris is not so bad after all. Bored and torn between duty and the desire to be free, Margot strikes up unlikely alliances: with Krysia, an accomplished musician with radical acquaintances and a secret to protect; and with Georg, the handsome, damaged naval officer who gives Margot a job.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Book 0 in the series
- By Stevon on 12-12-17
By: Pam Jenoff
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The Midwife's Tale
- A Mystery
- By: Sam Thomas
- Narrated by: Leila Birch
- Length: 10 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 96
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 84
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Story4 out of 5 stars 82
It is 1644, and Parliament’s armies have risen against the King and laid siege to the city of York. Even as the city suffers at the rebels’ hands, midwife Bridget Hodgson becomes embroiled in a different sort of rebellion. One of Bridget’s friends, Esther Cooper, has been convicted of murdering her husband and sentenced to be burnt alive. Convinced that her friend is innocent, Bridget sets out to find the real killer.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Only so so
- By Marie on 11-13-13
By: Sam Thomas
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Lions and Lace
- Van Alen Sisters, Book 1
- By: Meagan McKinney
- Narrated by: Suzie Althens
- Length: 14 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall0 out of 5 stars 0
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Performance0 out of 5 stars 0
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Story0 out of 5 stars 0
From the glittering mansions of the Astors and the Vanderbilts to the gas-lit streets of New York, this passionate novel by award-winning author Meagan McKinney brings together a desperate woman and a handsome stranger who could expose her scandalous secret....
By: Meagan McKinney
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Domina
- By: Barbara Wood
- Narrated by: Marion Castle
- Length: 20 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 31
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 27
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 27
Beautiful and courageous, Samantha Hargrave dares to dream that she will become one of the first female doctors - and surgeons - in America. Born in the slums of London and possessing a special gift for healing, Samantha struggles to enter the all-male medical profession. When her ambition encounters hostile rejection in England, she sails to America, where she meets an eccentric doctor who takes her on as an apprentice.
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1 out of 5 stars
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Really bad.
- By Anonymous User on 12-29-17
By: Barbara Wood
What listeners say about The Lives of Diamond Bessie
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 06-24-22
Enjoyable read
Enjoyed the story of Bessie. I live just outside of Jefferson and the story and history of this area is the book are quite believable. Thank you for all the research and time you put in to make such a entertaining novel.
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