A Poisoned Passion: The True Story of A Young Mother, Her War Hero Husband, and the Marriage that Ended in Murder (St. Martin's True Crime Library)

A Poisoned Passion: The True Story of A Young Mother, Her War Hero Husband, and the Marriage that Ended in Murder (St. Martin's True Crime Library)

by Diane Fanning

4.2 (250)

4.2 stars from 250 reviews

274 pages~4.6 hr readPublished by St. Martin's PaperbacksPublished 2009-01-01

$2.99Deal83% off peak

Last checked: Jun 6, 2026

Price history: $0.99 $17.99

Good deal — this title is discounted today.

Price range: $0.99 $17.99

Buy on Amazon - $2.99

0 readers are tracking this book's price

Fans of these authors will like this...

  • Ann Rule
  • Michelle McNamara
  • Diane Fanning

Fans of these books will like this...

  • Bitter Harvest
  • The Killer Across the Table

Perfect for you if...

  • You love true crime stories where the spouse with the most to gain turns out to be the perpetrator.
  • You're fascinated by how ordinary professionals can commit extraordinary violence.
  • You appreciate meticulously researched accounts that follow the investigation from missing person to murder conviction.

Maybe not for you if...

  • You prefer crimes with clear, straightforward perpetrators rather than psychological manipulation and calculated planning.
  • You're sensitive to detailed descriptions of violence and abuse within marriages.
  • You want uplifting or redemptive narratives rather than accounts of betrayal and brutal murder.

About this book

By age twenty-four, Air Force Staff Sergeant Mike Severance had survived multiple combat missions in Afghanistan and Iraq. His life in Texas, however, would become far more dangerous. In winter 2005, Mike's wife, veterinarian Wendi Mae Davidson, reported him missing. She told police he had been acting erratically—frequenting local clubs, staying out late, and sometimes not returning home. She filed for divorce the following day. Mike's body was later discovered in a stock pond on a private ranch, weighted down with cinder blocks, a rock, a boat anchor, and other equipment. The corpse bore forty-one stab wounds. An autopsy revealed a different cause of death: exposure to pentobarbital and phenobarbital, drugs commonly used in veterinary medicine. Evidence pointed to Wendi, and she was convicted of first-degree murder. Diane Fanning's account examines the true story of a war hero and the marriage that ended in his death.

Get the best deal every time

We track price drops, sale patterns, and predict when this book will go on offer next.

Price History

Kindle price over time. Green zones = periods when the book was free.

Sign up to unlock
Free$8.99$17.99Apr '20Jul '23Jul '25Mar '26
$0.99$17.99

Currently on sale at $2.99 — 83% off peak. Price has dropped 9 times over the last 6 years. Goes on sale roughly every 42 days.

Sales Rank

Amazon sales rank: lower number = better selling book. #1 is the bestseller.

Sign up to unlock
#619#579,560#1,158,500May '18Jul '23Sep '25May '26

Currently around #52K in the Kindle store — a steady mid-list seller. Climbing the charts — 68% improvement recently.

Rating & Reviews

Purple line = star rating over time. Blue area = total review count growth.

Sign up to unlock
3.5★4.3★5.0★Jul '23Apr '26May '26Jun '26RatingReviews

Currently 4.2★ from 250 reviews

Gaining approximately 2 new reviews per month. Rating has remained stable at 4.2 over the tracking period.

Sale Prediction

Sign up to unlock
Free$8.99$17.99Apr '20Jul '23Jul '25Mar '26PredictedJun '26

Actual Predicted

This book is currently discounted at $2.99. It typically returns to around $17.99.

Prices shown in USD from Amazon US. We continuously pull new data to improve tracking. If dates look old, it usually means there has been no significant change since the last data point.

Never miss a deal on this book

Create a free account to unlock full price history charts, sale predictions, and get notified instantly when the price drops.

Diane Fanning

1 book on Vagrant Press

View all books →

More Biography Memoir books you might like

View all Biography Memoirbooks →
Fall and Rise: The Story of 9/11
Fall and Rise: The Story of 9/11

by Mitchell Zuckoff

$8.99Deal
4.8 (1,753)
$1.99$16.99
Breaking Through: My Life in Science
Breaking Through: My Life in Science

by Katalin Karikó

$4.99Deal
4.8 (854)
$1.99$14.99
Know My Name: A Memoir
Know My Name: A Memoir

by Chanel Miller

$1.99Deal
4.7 (19,544)
$1.99$14.99

Today's Best Deals

View all deals →
The Help
The Help

by Kathryn Stockett

$1.99Deal
4.8 (36,951)
$1.99$14.99
Grey: Fifty Shades of Grey as Told by Christian (Fifty Shades as Told by Christian Book 1)
Grey: Fifty Shades of Grey as Told by Christian (Fifty Shades as Told by Christian Book 1)

by E L James

$2.00DealMust ReadHighly rated with thousands of reviews. A proven favourite.
4.5 (118,851)
$1.99$9.99
Before We Were Yours: A Novel
Before We Were Yours: A Novel

by Lisa Wingate

$1.99Deal
4.6 (158,897)
$1.99$13.99
One of Us Is Lying
One of Us Is Lying

by Karen M. McManus

$1.99Deal
4.5 (48,412)
$1.99$10.99
Meetings Suck: Turning One of the Most Loathed Elements of Business into One of the Most Valuable
Meetings Suck: Turning One of the Most Loathed Elements of Business into One of the Most Valuable

by Cameron Herold

$4.99DealHidden GemHighly rated but flying under the radar. Fewer readers have found this one yet.
4.2 (439)
$4.99$9.99
Buy A Poisoned Passion: The True Story of A Young Mother, Her War Hero Husband, and the Marriage that Ended in Murder (St. Martin's True Crime Library) on Amazon - $2.99

Affiliate link. We may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.