The Wantland Files

By: Lara Bernhardt

Narrated by: Heidi Bindhammer

Length: 8 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's summary

Oklahoma Book Awards Best Fiction Finalist

"The Wantland Files gripped me from the beginning and didn't let go. Filled with suspense, romance, and mystery, this novel has all the right elements to keep you guessing until the end." (Tamara Grantham, RONE-award-winning author of the Fairy MD series)

She sees dead people. He's sure they don't exist.

Psychic Kimberly Wantland investigates paranormal disturbances. Her television show, The Wantland Files, catapulted her from private paranormal investigator to media sensation. She receives thousands of requests for help every day, but the desperate pleas of a distraught mother terrorized by a ghost touch something deep inside her.

Her producer invites Sterling Wakefield, a renowned illusionist and confirmed skeptic, to join the investigation. Despite his mesmerizing eyes and playful smirk, Kimberly instantly dislikes Sterling.

Her investigation leads her to a conclusion she never expected - the mother’s children are in grave danger. Pushing all her powers to the limit, Kimberly must repel the spirit before it possesses the children, even though it means enlisting Sterling’s help and putting her own life at risk.

©2019 Lara Bernhardt (P)2021 Lara Bernhardt

Co-hosts and ghosts

The first book in the series introduces Kimberly and Sterling. They are very much opposites in just about everything — belief in the paranormal, the way they live their Ives, even in what they eat.

Kimberly's frustration and fury with Sterling practically jumped off the page. The back and forth banter and arguments were great. I halfway expected Kimberly to turn Sterling into a ghost before the end of the story. She had a lot more patience and restraint than I would have, though. I will admit I liked Sterling by the end. He supported Kimberly and was very protective of her in his own way.

Going through the story with Kimberly and Sterling as they figured out the ghostly mystery was entertaining. The supporting cast of characters was perfect. I especially liked the director and the makeup artist. They added some comedy and drama to the story at the perfect times.

Heidi Bindhamner performed the story, and did a great job with the characters and narrative.

A Slow Start But a Good Ending

I wasn't sure what I was in for when I started this book (audio). Maybe something like The Dead Files, I'm not sure. I thought Kimberly Wantland was slightly pretentious, a bit of a snob. But that may have been the narrator. She read Kimberly's part with a highly enunciated pronunciation and it gave the feeling of the prim, proper librarian shushing everyone. However, I thought she did a good job with Rosie. The character Sterling was throughout an ass. He is one of the most unlikeable characters I've ever come across.
That all being said, the storyline was good. Some of it was predictable, including the ending. However, no spoilers here. As slow a start as it had, the ending was excellent. Definitely makes it worthwhile to want to read the next book in the series. Whether you read the book or listen to it, it's definitely a worthwhile book to add to your reading list.

Great story

Great story, really enjoyed kept my interest. Enjoyed narrator. Would highly recommend. Looking forward to hearing the rest of her stories.

Great book!!

I would recommend this book to all my friends. The story was very interesting and the narrator was amazing. The narrator had so many different voices for all the characters and you could Decipher every one of them. Very enjoyable

Outstanding

An amazing story that has you hooked from the start. Psychic Kimberly sees the dead, too bad no one believes her. Loads of suspense, action and more. The Narrator draws you into their world and doesn’t let you go until the story has ended.