This anthology contains three gripping historical mysteries from The Sergeant Frank Hardy Mysteries series, set in the late nineteenth century of New Zealand:

DEAD SHOT

When the Hardys offer care for a thoroughbred stud horse that has been threatened with death, they are unaware how close they will come to death themselves. The horse has been targetted by a brutal gang from Australia, assisted by someone closer to home than they would have imagined. The action is precipitated when Frank and Mette have their first argument and Mette is kidnapped and does not stop until she is rescued.

LYING UNDER WATER

During an epic flood, Frank and Mette Hardy’s farm is nearly entirely under water. They take in two other families and the three groups shelter in tents in a high paddock. But a killer is among the group, and when a neighbour is found with one of Frank’s carving knives in his neck, Frank must battle the unknown killer alone. Meanwhile, Mette is about to give birth and must do so with little assistance.

COME TO GRIEF

When Frank is offered work following a suspected gold thief, he and Mette take a ship to the South Island of New Zealand. But the ship they choose to take, the same one from which the gold was stolen, is the SS Tararua, which sank with massive loss of life in 1881. To complicate matters, Frank saves a baby from the sinking ship, and Mette is accused of kidnapping her own baby.