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Barbara Taylor Bradford was born in Leeds, and by the age of twenty was an editor and columnist on Fleet Street. Her first novel, A Woman of Substance, became an enduring bestseller and was followed by many others, most recently Letter from a Stranger. Her books have sold more than eighty-five million copies worldwide in more than ninety countries and forty languages, and ten mini-series and television movies have been made of her books. She lives in New York City with her husband, television producer Robert Bradford.
A sweeping saga set between 1884 and 1889 packed-full of the trials, endeavours, and love interests of five families. This is the start of a new series, and Barbara Taylor Bradford has introduced the different characters quite beautifully. The story glides from London, to Kent, Hull and Paris creating a fascinating full background in which it sits. From the up and coming Falconers to the Trevalians who head a private bank, fine threads connect the characters together, slowly creating a rich tapestry. This isn’t a book to rush through, it’s one to savour, to sink into and become at one with the story. Take time to introduce yourself to each individual, to understand them and where they sit in the story. Allow the highs and lows to fill your thoughts, to lift your heart, and be ready to console your feelings. Master of his Fate is a rather lovely and enjoyable opening to what promises to be a compelling new series.
A sweeping saga set between 1884 and 1889 packed-full of the trials, endeavours, and love interests of five families. This is the start of a new series, and Barbara Taylor Bradford has introduced the different characters quite beautifully. The story glides from London, to Kent, Hull and Paris creating a fascinating full background in which it sits. From the up and coming Falconers to the Trevalians who head a private bank, fine threads connect the characters together, slowly creating a rich tapestry. This isn’t a tale to rush through, it’s one to savour, to sink into and become at one with. Take time to introduce yourself to each individual, to understand them and where they sit in the story. Allow the highs and lows to fill your thoughts, to lift your heart, and be ready to console your feelings. Master of his Fate is a rather lovely and enjoyable opening to what promises to be a compelling new series.
As the clouds of war gather over Cavendon Hall, the next generation must step forward...
This follows on from Cavendon Hall and is a projected series of novels set around a stately home in Yorkshire and its occupants, upstairs and down. The present earl, Charles, divorced with four daughters and one son and heir, is to marry their neighbour and old family friend, Charlotte Swann. The son, Miles, has been in love with her daughter for years so the scene is set to follow both families through love, marriage, divorce, financial upheavals and lots of drama. A huge amount of plot is packed into the book as the country crashes through the roaring twenties into the Great Depression, no doubt the centre of the next episode. It’s great stuff. ~ Sarah Broadhurst
April 2015 Book of the Month. This follows on from Cavendon Hall and is a projected series of novels set around a stately home in Yorkshire and its occupants, upstairs and down. The present earl, Charles, divorced with four daughters and one son and heir, is to marry their neighbour and old family friend, Charlotte Swann. The son, Miles, has been in love with her daughter for years so the scene is set to follow both families through love, marriage, divorce, financial upheavals and lots of drama. A huge amount of plot is packed into the book as the country crashes through the roaring twenties into the Great Depression, no doubt the centre of the next episode. It’s great stuff.
A glorious family saga for Downton Abbey fans. This follows the lives of the aristocratic family of two sons and four daughters of the sixth Earl of Mowbray and the Swann family who serves them. It opens in the summer of 1913. Much occurs before war breaks out and the horrors of that dreadful period wreak havoc on our cast of characters. This is Barbara Taylor Bradford in her element, terrific stuff full of drama, passion, romance and danger.
Drama, danger and heartbreak. This is a gripping story from a master storyteller...A Quick Reads 2014 title.
A glorious family saga for Downton Abbey fans. This follows the lives of the aristocratic family of two sons and four daughters of the sixth Earl of Mowbray and the Swann family who serves them. It opens in the summer of 1913. Much occurs before war breaks out and the horrors of that dreadful period wreak havoc on our cast of characters. This is Barbara Taylor Bradford in her element, terrific stuff full of drama, passion, romance and danger. February 2014 Book of the Month.
A romantic and thrilling story, set in Nice, Venice and Libya, of a war photographer turned biographer of her father’s life as she stumbles upon a mysterious series of photos. Barbara Taylor Bradford, or BTB as she is known in the trade really is a master storyteller. A 'Piece of Passion' from the publisher... 'If you like your fiction poignant, gripping, and with just a dash of glamour, bestselling author Barbara Taylor Bradford may well be your cup of tea. And if you haven’t read her before, Secrets from the Past is a great place to start. Set in Venice and the South of the France, it’s a glittering novel of deeply-buried secrets, passionate love, obsession and redemption. It’s a tale of young woman who is in search of the truth – the truth about her father, her family, and – indeed – her very own life. She embarks on a journey to uncover the secrets of the past in a quest to understand a story from decades earlier. What I love most about Barbara’s books is how utterly transporting and absorbing they are whilst still being very easy to relate to. She writes about strong, clever women – women of substance – who face difficult situations, who have to make difficult choices. Reading her novels is like spending time with her: I always feel uplifted, inspired and invigorated afterwards!' - Thalia Suzuma, HarperFiction Editor
From the bestselling author of A Woman of Substance comes an explosive novel about one woman's journey to success. Seduction, passion and international intrigue. Playing the game has never been so thrilling. It's classic Barbara Taylor Bradford.
Shortlisted for the Woman’s Weekly best romantic novel written in the last 50 years. January 2010 Good Housekeeping selection. On My Bookshelf by Wendy Holden... My third choice, A Woman Of Substance by Barbara Taylor Bradford (HarperCollins), is, I believe, the greatest achievement in modern women’s commercial fiction writing to date. The heroine (as almost everyone knows) is Emma Harte, who begins her working life as a scullery maid and ends up running a global retail empire, via much heartbreak and mistakes with men along the way. It’s not only a rags-to-riches rattling good read, but it’s also about a strong and inspiring woman, which is a rare thing in modern fiction – all too often the heroines are middle-class wimps. The Good Housekeeping view... It is 30 years since Emma Harte, downtrodden housemaid who parlayed a small shop into the world’s greatest department store, first stormed into our consciousness as a woman of no mean substance. Barbara Taylor Bradford’s heroine was ruthless, ambitious, driven; she loved only one man, a man she could never marry; she outplayed all her enemies and exacted terrible revenge; but through it all, she was warm-hearted. And now there is a purple velvet celebration of its phenomenal success (31 million copies in print). The hardback limited edition (of which there are only 750 copies) comes complete with the Harte family tree and a ‘Life In Pictures’ section. Perfect for power-seeking, shoulder-padded friends and relatives. It will be made available via Barbara’s web site at www.barbarataylorbradford.co.uk.
The second volume in the building of the family empire, Deravenels sees Edward beget six children, two boys and four girls. Through trauma, disasters and much drama we whip through the generation and into the 70s to await the next instalment. I won’t tell you who lives and dies, who favours who and who will be scared by jealousy, I’ll just say that despite, on occasions, a tad too much peripheral detail (what is eaten or drunk) and not enough of Bess’s story, you are certainly left eager for the third.
A new chronicle in the style of her wonderful Harte series which began with A Woman of Substance. This is as big in scope, passion, emotional punch and plot. One glorious read with more to come.
A new chronicle in the style of her wonderful Harte series which began with A Woman of Substance. This is as big in scope, passion, emotional punch and plot. One glorious read with more to come.
This author burst onto the scene many years ago with Woman of Substance which introduced us to the dynamic Emma Harte. She then wrote some 15 blockbusters but none of them touched the passion and drama of the Harte family. Then unexpectedly, four years ago, she wrote Emma’s Secret and we were back in the world of that extraordinary dynasty, a generation on. Unexpected Blessings followed and now this, featuring Emma’s great-granddaughters. Wonderful stuff.Similar this month: None but try Adriana Trigiani or Danielle Steel.Comparison: Sidney Sheldon, Penny Vincenzi.
Her first book, A Woman of Substance, introduced us to Emma Harte and although Barbara Taylor Bradford has written some twenty blockbusters, it’s the Harte family ones that really stand out. Last year Emma’s Secret appeared and we were drawn back into a new generation of the powerful dynasty. This one follows Emma’s great-granddaughters with equal drama, passion and intrigue, especially when letters are discovered from Emma to her daughter and we are swept back to the 1950s.Comparisons: Danielle Steel, Penny Vincenzi, Louise Bagshawe.Similar this month: Jojo Moyes, Julian Fellows.
Her first book, A Woman of Substance, introduced us to Emma Harte and although Barbara Taylor Bradford has written some twenty blockbusters, it’s the Harte family ones that really stand out. Last year Emma’s Secret appeared and we were drawn back into a new generation of the powerful dynasty. This one follows Emma’s great-granddaughters with equal drama, passion and intrigue, especially when letters are discovered from Emma to her daughter and we are swept back to the 1950s.Comparisons: Danielle Steel, Penny Vincenzi, Louise Bagshawe.Similar this month: Jojo Moyes, Julian Fellows.
The legendary Emma Harte, heroine of A Woman of Substance, returns in Emma's Secret, an audiobook that showcases the storytelling power of Barbara Taylor Bradford.Paula O'Neill, beloved granddaughter of Emma Harte and the guardian of her vast business empire, believes that everything Emma left to the family is secure. However, beneath the surface, sibling rivalry and discontent flare. Linnet and Tessa, her daughters, are as different as two women can be. One of them wants desperately for the empire to be hers but has a devastating secret that may put her very life in danger.Into this volatile mix walks Evan Hughes, a young American fashion designer who is looking for Emma Harte. But Emma has been dead for thirty years. And Evan bears an uncanny resemblance to Paula O'Neill. Troubled by Evan's presence, Paula turns to her grandmother's recently discovered wartime diaries to find the truth, and Emma comes vividly back to life.The decades fall away. It is London in 1940: the Blitz. Emma, working hard under war-time conditions, is also holding her family together as bombs drop, sirens wail, and her sons go off to war. While she struggles with grief, her indomitability, willpower, and strength come to the fore. As the pages unfurl, Paula discovers the secret Emma took to the grave to protect others, a secret whose repercussions inevitably change lives and may shake a dynasty to its very foundations.
The legendary Emma Harte, heroine of A Woman of Substance, returns... The legendary Emma Harte, the heroine of A Woman of Substance, returns in this sweeping saga of power, corruption, love and secrets... Paula O'Neill, beloved granddaughter of Emma Harte and the guardian of her vast business empire, believes all that Emma left to the family is secure. However, beneath the surface tension is mounting and sibling rivalry brewing. Into this volatile mix walks Evan Hughes, a young American fashion designer. Her grandmother's dying wish was that Evan find Emma Harte. But Emma has been dead for thirty years... Troubled by Evan's presence, and her uncanny resemblance to the family, Paula turns to Emma's war-time diaries. Emma Harte comes vividly back to life. It is London during the Blitz. As bombs drop, sirens wail and her sons go off to war, Emma's trademark resilience, will power and strength all come to the fore. And as the pages unfurl, Paula discovers the secret Emma took to the grave.
During three eventful weeks in Paris, four friends visit old haunts, rekindle ties, and awaken in each other the sense of wonder, adventure, and possibilities they had shared so long ago. As students at the prestigious Anya Sedgwick School of Decorative Arts in Paris, Alexandra Gordon, Kay Lenox, Jessica Pierce and Maria Franconi share the challenges and excitement of developing their artistic talents to the fullest under Sedgwick's caring and demanding guidance. But once best friends, they part enemies, and after graduation they go their separate ways, pursuing careers and establishing lives in different corners of the world. Alexandra, a set designer, becomes a leading figure in New York's theatre world. Kay, who marries and moves to Scotland, designs a successful line of clothing. Jessica, an interior designer, makes her home in California, while Maria returns to her native Italy, where she continues to work in her family's textile business. For each of them, the arrival of an invitation to Paris to celebrate Anya Sedgwick's eighty-fifth birthday stirs up complicated feelings: nostalgic memories are coloured by poignant regrets and the reluctance to revisit their own pasts mixes with curiosity about the other women. It is ultimately their desire to deal with unfinished business that convinces all of them to attend the party. During three eventful weeks in Paris, they visit their old haunts, rekindle ties, and awaken in each other the sense of wonder, adventure, and possibilities they had shared so long ago.
Barbara Taylor Bradford delivers all the drama, suspense, and romance her readers expect in a riveting novel that begins with a murder in an old Connecticut barn... We first meet Katie Byrne at seventeen. A tall beauty with reddish-gold hair, she has always wanted to be an actress. Her two best friends share her passion for the theatre, and the three girls have spent much of their childhood rehearsing plays in an old barn in Connecticut. Leaving early one day to help her mother prepare dinner, Katie realizes she has left her schoolbooks at the barn and she and her older brother return to retrieve them. When they arrive, they find the barn, the setting of so many happy dreams, has become the scene of a nightmare: one of Katie's friends has been raped and murdered, and the other lies unconscious. Ten years later, Katie, a struggling actress in New York, is still haunted by the tragedy. Her friend Carly remains in a coma, and Katie desperately wants to achieve success and stardom not only for herself but also for her two old friends. Her big chance comes when she is discovered and wins a major role in a Broadway play. But Katie must face the demons of the past before she can embrace the possibilities of the future...
A contemporary novel from the author of A Woman of Substance about a young woman finding herself and her place in life, in love and in the world. Valentine Denning is a courageous photojournalist on the frontline in Kosovo. Her colleagues - Tony Hampton and American Jake Newberg - are her comrades-in-arms, men whom she loves and trusts. One is her best friend; one her lover. In a nightmarish ambush, all three are shot, Tony fatally, and for Val an even worse nightmare begins. For there are memories and lies - lies which force Val to find herself again by leaving her past life of heart-breaking war-danger for what seems like the gentler world of celebrity-shoots: but this too brings danger - a famous artist whose reputation as a playboy does not steel against a powerful attraction. Valentine's sense of searching for something leads her to retrace paths which she thought she had left behind.
In the blockbuster storytelling tradition that is Barbara Taylor Bradford's hallmark, here is an extraordinary novel about a remarkable young woman and the people whose lives she touches. At thirty-one Laura Valiant is a successful art historian who runs her own art advisory and acquisitions company. She and her husband Douglas Casson, a Wall Street lawyer, have a happy marriage marred only by the fact that they are still childless. But Laura's life changes radically in 1997, when her best friend from childhood, Claire Benson, tells her she is dying. Claire, who is divorced, begs Laura to become her daughter Natasha's guardian upon her death. Laura agrees and brings the fifteen-year-old girl to live with them in New York City after Claire dies. It is then that Laura's troubles begin - with Natasha, with the girl's father and grandmother, who suddenly reappear in her life, and with Douglas. Laura's love and trust in her husband are shaken when she discovers he has a secret life apart from her. But it is her problems which force her to examine her own life, and this sets her on a path that inevitably leads her to a series of shattering truths. These revelations give Laura the chance to start a whole new life which promises to give her the happiness and fulfilment she craves. From the streets of Paris and London to the art galleries and art auctions of New York, A Sudden Change of Heart takes the reader on an unforgettable journey where secrets, survival, love and redemption mesmerize the reader from the first page to the last. This is Barbara Taylor Bradford's fifteenth novel and it is told with the emotion and feeling readers have come to expect from one of the world's most beloved authors.
The story of a remarkable woman who discovers that her success, prestige and wealth cannot help when tragedy strikes. At forty-seven, Stephanie Jardine is at the apex of her career and her life, running the American branch of Jardine's, the prestigious Crown Jewellers of London. Having fully come to terms with her long widowhood, Stevie now draws emotional strength and contentment from her work and her family. Then, one day, an unexpected act of violence committed by a stranger on the other side of the world plunges Stevie into turmoil and despair. In order to save her injured daughter's life and ensure her future, Stevie must go back to her own past and confront a relationship which has only ever brought her heartbreak. As she battles to save her daughter, Stevie comes to understand how fragile life really is, and how it can be ineluctably changed by others when we least expect it.
From the internationally bestselling author of A Woman of Substance A forgotten past hides the key to the future. Meredith Stratton, at forty-four the owner of six elegant international inns, is about to celebrate her daughter's engagement. At this seemingly happy time in her life she begins to suffer from a strange illness that baffles everyone. Her doctor cannot find a physical cause for her debilitating symptoms, and, desperate for answers, she seeks the help of a psychiatrist. Through therapy Meredith peels back the layers of her life to discover the truth behind her most careful creation - herself. Determined to get well, Meredith traces her roots back to another country where she learns about childhood experiences that dramatically changed her life. What she discovers is not only the key to the past but to her future happiness and fulfilment as a woman. Moving from the Connecticut countryside, the busy streets and suites of London, Paris and New York, to the pastoral beauty of a chateau in the Loire, Her Own Rules is an exciting and suspenseful novel about secrets, survival, redemption and love.
A delightful novella from the internationally bestselling author of A Woman of Substance Jake and Maggie, each fleeing a failed marriage, meet and fall in love, but their pasts throw up obstacles. Jake Cantrell is suave, charming and a brilliant electrical engineer saddened by the failure of his marriage to Amy. Maggie Sorrell is a bright and elegant interior designer. She, too, has suffered a broken marriage. Jake and Maggie meet - but despite a blossoming relationship, some of the obstacles seem insurmountable: the fifteen-year difference in their ages, Amy's sudden illness, her reluctance to divorce Jake, and Maggie's own inner turmoil. But together they overcome the odds and find the ultimate: love in another town.
A compelling story of old loves and old secrets... Sebastian, the fifty-six-year-old patriarch of the Locke clan, is handsome, charismatic, a man of immense charm and intelligence. He heads up the philanthropic Locke Foundation, funded by the vast family fortune built by his forefathers. Committed to relieving the suffering of those in genuine need, Locke travels the globe, personally giving away millions a year to the poor, the sick, and the victims of natural disasters and wars. He is seen as a beacon of light in today's darkly violent world. That is why the police are so baffled when Sebastian is found dead in mysterious circumstances. Has he been murdered, and if so who would want to kill the world's greatest philanthropist? Could such an upstanding man have enemies? Vivienne Trent, an American journalist, met Locke as a child, married him, divorced him, but stayed close to him. Aware that there was another side to this engimatic man, she sets out to find the truth about his death and about Locke himself.
A gripping story of triumph over tragedy from the author of A Woman of Substance Mallory Keswick is a woman with the world at her feet. Then out of the blue, that world is shattered by violent tragedy and she loses all that she holds dear. Torn by grief, Mal knows that she must rebuild her life. She flees to a village on the Yorkshire moors where she learns to draw on the deepest reserves of her spirit. Returning to Connecticut, Mal opens a cafe and shop selling gourmet food and kitchenware and turns it into a highly successful venture. But there remains in her life an aching void, a grief that no individual, nor her new-found business acumen, can assuage. Then she meets Richard Markson, and once more, Mal's life has come to a crossroads. It is he who shows her that she has everything to gain - but only if she has the courage to take it.
A captivating story of family and friends, innocence and corruption. Four friends swore eternal friendship when all they had was each other. Now their dazzling careers, their seemingly successful lives, are to be disrupted by a devastating singer - and by the shadow of their past. Rosie Madigan is the angel... an award-winning costume-designer, she is blessed with worldly goods yet troubled by personal commitments. Gavin Ambrose is the Hollywood megastar: talented and idolized, true love has eluded him. Nell Jeffrey is the glamorous head of an international PR company: her secret love for Rosie's brother Kevin pierces her usual shrewdness. Kevin Madigan, undercover cop, inhabits a world of danger from which he tries to shelter his friends - but evil has a way of spreading. Angel is the stunning novel of family and friends, of love and loss, of innocence and corruption: it will captivate you from the first page.
A woman, an obsession, an unforgettable bestseller. Television war correspondent Nicky Wells is a media superstar. Courageous, beautiful and renowned for her hard-hitting reports from the world's most dangerous trouble spots, her life is shattered when she loses the only man she ever truly loved - a dashing English aristocrat, Charles Devereaux. Nicky seeks solace in her work and friendship with photographer Cleeland Donovan and, after a romantic interlude in Provence, begins to think she may fall in love again. But she is forced to remember Charles when confronted with disturbing evidence that he led a secret double life... Packed with passion, intrigue and suspense, Remember is an unforgettable story of a charismatic and sophisticated woman at the height of her professional career.
A glittering tale of a billionaire tycoon and the women that define him Maximilian West: filthy rich, corporate raider and a man of almost mythical power, glamour and charm. He appears to have everything. But in reality Maximilian is riven with internal conflict and torn apart by personal doubts. Many women have loved Maxim - and many strive to reach his fortress heart: Anastasia, his first wife; Camilla, the beautiful English actress; Adriana, the competitive American career woman; and Blair, the mistress who schemes to become his wife. But only one woman holds the key that will unlock Maximilian's secret - and set his soul free...
From the internationally bestselling author of A Woman of Substance Three generations of beautiful women and their journey from rags to riches Audra is an impoverished children's nanny from Leeds who sacrificed everything for her only daughter. Christina is a talented art student who won world renown as a fashion designer - yet who has known pain and heartache. Kyle is a rebellious young woman who chafes against her mother's success - and in whom her grandmother's spirit of duty and sacrifice is reborn. Moving from the Yorkshire Dales, through London, to the glamorous world of haute couture, Act of Will sparkles as it entertains.