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The Governor, His Wife and His Mistress

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The Governor, His Wife and His Mistress

By: Sue Williams
Narrated by: Elisa Armstrong
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About this listen

When future governor Philip Gidley King sailed with the First Fleet to the new colony, he had his pick of the convict women to look after him.

Two years, and two sons later, he set out back to England to provide a report on Sydney and its newly tamed Norfolk Island, as his mistress Ann Innet begged him to return to her and their children.

After a year and a half he did – but bringing with him a shocking secret that would cut her to the core, and change all their lives forevermore.

This is the story of tangled love affairs, female friendship, twisted loyalties, betrayals, hardship, male infidelity and the tragedies and triumphs of life in a new land.

WARNING: CONTAINS OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE REFLECTIVE OF THE PERIOD IN WHICH THE FICTIONAL NOVEL IS SET

©2025 Sue Williams (P)2025 Bolinda Publishing Historical Fiction
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This book was incredibly interesting from start to finish. Although I knew most of the history this book filled out the characters- their struggles, their joys, their torments and their achievements. Ann Inett becomes a hero in this book and is revealed as a wonderful woman of generosity and ambition. Anna Josepha becomes her friend! I did not realise this aspect of their relationship. Gidley King is shown as a wise and long suffering man but the book paints him as a very just and thoughtful leader. This is consistent with my previous understanding but the story reaches far deeper into his psychology and his challenges in love, politics and health. Well done to Sue Williams for weaving all these threads together into a fascinating story and to Jonathan King who gave advice on historical accuracy.

Relationships and challenges.

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This is a fascinating account of the experiences of Captain Philip Ridley King, who was tasked with establishing a settlement of a small party of convicts and guards at Norfolk Island in 1788 and subsequently became governor of New South Wales in 1800.

Although the work is theoretically historical fiction, the characters in this book all existed. King’s mistress, Ann Inett, and his wife, Anna Josepha Coombe, are sympathetically portrayed and their stories are interspersed with interesting historical details. The experiences of the convicts transported to Australia in the First Fleet to arrive at Botany Bay in 1788 are vividly depicted. We vicariously experience the horror of the shipboard conditions and identify with the struggles of convicts such as Ann Inett and her friends to survive the harsh conditions at Botany Bay and Norfolk Island,

The difficulties encountered by Captain King on Norfolk Island were monumental and are described with great immediacy. Apart from a lack of supplies, the failure of crops due to the ravages of insects and bad weather conditions, he also had to deal with frequent uprisings and instability. Unsurprisingly, the adverse conditions ultimately took a toll on his health. One is left with much sympathy for the conscientious, long-suffering Captain King.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The historical facts have been skilfully incorporated into the interesting stories of the main characters.

Well Researched, Interesting Story

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A solid and engaging historical story with plenty of interesting detail. The narrator’s delivery was wooden & stiff at times, which took away the impact, but the strength of the story still made it worth listening to.

Spoilt by narrator

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the narrator is boring 😴 she detracts from the story
listening is painful. I'm reluctant to keep going after 2 chapters
but I have found it can't get a refund

the narrator distracted from the story

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In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.