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Barbara Taylor Bradford

The unputdownable multi-million copy bestseller charting the rags to riches story of Emma Harte.
A WOMAN'S AMBITION…

In the brooding moors above a humble Yorkshire village stood Fairley Hall. There, Emma Harte, its oppressed but resourceful servant girl, acquired a shrewd determination. There, she honed her skills, discovered the meaning of treachery, learned to survive, to become a woman, and vowed to make her mark on the world.

A JOURNEY OF A LIFETIME…

In the wake of tragedy she rose from poverty to magnificent wealth as the iron-willed force behind a thriving international enterprise. As one of the richest women in the world Emma Harte has almost everything she fought so hard to achieve-save for the dream of love, and for the passion of the one man she could never have.

A DREAM FULFILLED-AND AVENGED.

Through two marriages, two devastating wars, and generations of secrets, Emma's unparalleled success has come with a price. As greed, envy, and revenge consume those closest to her, the brilliant matriarch now finds herself poised to outwit her enemies, and to face the betrayals of the past with the same ingenious resolve that forged her empire.

Bea Holland

HarperCollins

The Harte Family Saga

A Woman of Substance

The unputdownable multi-million copy bestseller charting the rags to riches story of Emma Harte

In 1905 a young kitchen maid leaves Fairley Hall. Emma Harte is sixteen, single and pregnant.

By 1968 she is one of the richest women in the world, ruler of a business empire stretching from Yorkshire to the glittering cities of America and the rugged vastness of Australia. But what is the price she has paid?

A Woman of Substance is as impossible to put down as it is to forget. This multi-million copy bestseller is truly a novel of our times.

'Queen of the genre' Sunday Times

Diana Quick

From the internationally bestselling author of A Woman of Substance comes the continuing story of indomitable heroine, Emma Harte

Emma Harte is now eighty years old and ready to hand over the reins of the vast business empire she has created.

To her favourite grandchild, Paula McGill Fairley, Emma bequeaths her mighty retailing empire with these heartfelt words: ‘I charge you to hold my dream.’

A towering international success, this is the powerfully moving tale of one woman’s determination to ‘hold the dream’ which was entrusted to her, and in so doing find the happiness and passion which is her legacy.

Hold the Dream

The enthralling sequel to Barbara Taylor Bradford’s universally loved novels, A Woman of Substance and Hold The Dream.

Set in Yorkshire, Hong Kong and America, this remarkable novel continues the story of an unorthodox and endlessly fascinating family. As the spirit of Emma Harte lives on in her granddaughter, Paula O’Neill, an engrossing drama is played out in the glamorous arena of the wealthy and privileged, underscored by a cut-throat world of jealousy and treachery.

Paula must act with daring and courage to preserve her formidable grandmother’s glittering empire from unscrupulous enemies – so that Emma’s precious dream lives on for the next generation…

‘A compulsive read’Daily Mail

To Be the Best

The legendary Emma Harte, heroine of A Woman of Substance, returns…
The legendary Emma Harte, heroine of A Woman of Substance, returns…

At the centre of this sweeping saga stands Paula O'Neill, beloved granddaughter of Emma and the guardian of her vast business empire. Paula believes that all that Emma left to the family is secure. However, beneath the surface sibling rivalry and discontent are beginning to flare.

Into this volatile mix walks Evan Hughes, a young American fashion designer. On her deathbed, Evan's grandmother told her to find 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 Emma's recently discovered war-time diaries to find the truth…

The decades fall away. It is London during The Blitz and Emma Harte comes vividly back to life. Working hard under war-time conditions, she is also holding her family together as bombs drop, sirens wail and her sons go off to war. As she struggles to cope, the indomitability, will power and strength that have forged Emma into the woman she is all come to the fore.

As the pages unfurl, Paula discovers the secret Emma Harte took to the grave to protect others.

Emma's Secret is vintage Barbara Taylor Bradford. Emotion, drama, intrigue and passion fill the pages in a spellbinding novel which only she could write.

Emma’s Secret

The great-grandaughters of Emma Harte, the heroine of A Woman of Substance and Emma’s Secret, follow in her legendary footsteps…
The great-grandaughters of Emma Harte, the heroine of A WOMAN OF SUBSTANCE and EMMA'S SECRET, follow in her legendary footsteps…

Evan Hughes, Emma's American great-grandaughter, is trying to integrate into the powerful Harte family. She is caught between her estranged parents, her new family, and new love. Meanwhile a dangerous enemy hovers in the background.

Tessa Longden, Evan's cousin, is battling her husband for custody of their daughter, Adele. When Adele suddenly goes missing, Tessa seeks her sister Linnet's help.

Linnet O'Neill, the most brilliant businesswoman of the four great-granddaughters, shows that she is the natural heir to her mother, Paula. But her glittering future at the helm of the vast Harte empire means many sacrifices.

India Standish, the traditionalist in the family, falls in love with a famous British artist from a working-class background. Madly in love, India is determined to marry him.

When Evan discovers letters from Emma Harte to her grandmother, the story is swept back to the 1950s. In the post-war boom years Emma builds her business empire, using a combination of determination and sheer nerve, and she embarks on a relationship with a handsome acquaintance from the war years. But it is the revelations in Emma's letters to her grandmother that give Evan a new perspective and help to set her free from her own past.

This latest dramatic story in the on-going saga of an extraordinary family dynasty is full of love, passion and jealousy and is Barbara Taylor Bradford at her inimitable best.

Unexpected Blessings

The conclusion to the extraordinary tale of Emma Harte, the original Woman of Substance, and the powerful Harte clan…
Love, passion, duty and honour collide as the members of this extraordinary dynasty try to protect their family name at all costs.

Linnet O'Neill, heir apparent to Emma Harte and all she created, is determined to bring the Harte empire into the twenty-first century. But she and her mother Paula, head of the dynasty, lock horns. When Paula falls dangerously ill, Linnet is suddenly alone at the helm, just as her great-grandmother Emma once was.

Linnet finds herself following in the footsteps of the original woman of substance as she battles to save what Emma created – upsetting her sister Tessa, who believes herself to be the rightful heir, in the process.

Meanwhile, Emma's American great-granddaughter Evan faces her own headache. Her adopted sister Angharad is making trouble in the family, latching on to Jonathan Ainsley – deadly enemy of the Hartes – and so putting them all in danger.

And when grief and heartbreak strike the family, all of Emma's great-granddaughters are tested to the limit as the extraordinary story of the Harte family takes another astonishing turn …

Just Rewards

Forty years ago, the world was introduced to Emma Harte. Now meet M, a new woman of substance guaranteed to win our hearts all over again. A new era has begun…

When those you love are threatened, there’s nothing you won’t do to protect them… you’ll even resort to Breaking the Rules.

Following a terrifying encounter in the quiet English countryside, a dark beauty flees to New York in search of a new life. Adopting the initial M as her name, she embarks on a journey that will lead her to the catwalks of Paris where she becomes the muse and star model to France’s iconic top designer Jean-Louis Tremont.

When M meets charming and handsome actor Larry Vaughan they fall instantly in love with one another. Soon they become the most desired couple on the international scene, appearing on the front cover of every celebrity magazine, adored by millions. With a successful career and a perfect marriage, M believes she has truly put the demons of her past to bed.

But M’s fortunes are about to take another dramatic turn when a dark figure from her past, someone who she thought she’d never see again, is back and determined to shatter M’s world forever.

From the chic fashion capitals of London and Paris, to the exotic locations of Istanbul and Hong Kong, Breaking the Rules is an enthralling story of love and redemption, secrets and survival from the bestselling author of A Woman of Substance.

Zoe-Anne Phillips

Breaking The Rules

The prequel to the million-copy bestseller, A Woman of Substance, where, high on the Yorkshire moors, the story of Blackie O’Neill and Emma Harte begins…
Orphaned and alone, 13-year-old Blackie O’Neill must leave County Kerry to find work and put food in his mouth. His only chance of survival lies with his mother’s brother, far away in Leeds.

There, amid the noise and bustle, the mills and manufactories of the clothing industry that have made Leeds one of England’s most prosperous cities, Blackie’s spark of ambition becomes a flame. Working in his Uncle’s business, he nurtures a dream of throwing off the impotence of poverty, of building houses and perhaps even of becoming a gentleman.

And then, high on the Yorkshire moors, in the mists of a winter morning, he meets a kitchen maid called Emma Harte. And as the Victorian world gives way to the freedom of the Edwardian age, so a young man and a servant girl seize a chance, against the odds, to build a better life…

‘Heart-soaring and hopefuly, this is a story about love, courage and ambition. A true treat for anyone fell in love with the original novel’ Yours

‘This captivating read chronicles 13-year-old orphan Blackie O’Neill’s migration from Ireland . . . when he meets Emma Harte, it ignites a lifetime of friendship’Woman

Don’t miss this stunning new novel from Barbara Taylor Bradford!

The Harte Family Saga - The book series

The Harte Family Saga - The book series

The Harte Family Saga books in order

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