Secrets from the Past, Barbara Taylor Bradford
Secrets from the Past, Barbara Taylor Bradford
2 Rating(s)
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Secrets from the Past
A Novel

Author: Barbara Taylor Bradford

Narrator: Stina Nielsen

Unabridged: 11 hr 26 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 04/09/2013


Synopsis

With Secrets from the Past, Barbara Taylor Bradford delivers her most powerful and emotional novel yet, about one woman uncovering the secrets surrounding her mother

At thirty, American photojournalist Serena Stone has already made a name for herself with her unique and dramatic coverage of wars in the Middle East, following in her famous father's footsteps. But after his unexpected death in France, she has left her job at the renowned photo news agency that he founded, weary of years of dodging bullets and exploding landmines. Leaving the front lines behind, Serena returns to New York where she starts work on a biography of her celebrated father. When Serena discovers that her former lover Zachary North is in trouble overseas, she's forced to leave the safety of her new life, and head back to a place she was trying to escape...and her life will never be the same again. She brings Zac back to health, first in the agency's bolthole in Venice, and later at her family home in France. It is there that she discovers a shocking secret in the huge photographic archive of her late father's work. It is a secret that will propel her back to war-torn Libya, risking her life looking for clues that she hopes will piece together the mystery surrounding her parents' marriage and the part of their life together she never knew about.

Well-kept secrets, passionate love, obsession, betrayal, redemption, and the power of the past to control the future propel this new novel from #1 The New York Times bestselling author Barbara Taylor Bradford.

About Barbara Taylor Bradford

Barbara Taylor Bradford, OBE, is one of the world's best loved storytellers. Her 1979 debut novel, A Woman of Substance, ranks as one of the top-ten bestselling books of all-time, with more than 30 million copies in print. All her novels to date have been major worldwide bestsellers.Barbara was born in Leeds, West Yorkshire, the only child of Freda and Winston Taylor. She grew up in the Leeds suburb of Armley and left school at 15 for the typing pool at the Yorkshire Evening Post. At 16 she was a reporter, and at 18 she became the paper’s first woman’s page editor. By the time she was 20, she had moved to London where she became a fashion editor and columnist on Fleet Street. Barbara started writing fiction when she was just seven, and sold her first short story to a magazine for seven shillings and sixpence when she was ten years old.Barbara’s books have sold more than 91 million copies worldwide in more than 90 countries and 40 languages. Ten of her books were made into Emmy-nominated miniseries and television movies by her late husband, the film producer Robert Bradford.In 2007, Barbara was awarded an OBE by Queen Elizabeth II in the Queen's Birthday Honours list for her contributions to literature. A passionate supporter of literacy, she is an ambassador for the National Literacy Trust; in 2019 she was made an ambassador for Women in Journalism and in the same year she was presented with The Leeds Award, which recognised her loyalty to, and depiction of, her Yorkshire roots. Her original manuscripts are archived at the Brotherton Library at Leeds University, alongside the works of the Brontë sisters. She lives in New York City.Her official website is: www.barbarataylorbradford.com


Reviews

Goodreads review by Tracy

I should break up with this author. No character depth, repetitive, predictable story line, and unrealistic. Having said that, her books are certainly readable. This one centered on a photojournalist who discovers a photo in her dad's archives that reveals a family secret. However, it wasn't too har......more

Reviewed by Joanne Book provided by the publisher for review Review originally posted at Romancing the Book Once again Barbara Taylor Bradford writes a contemporary novel with strong women at its core and their men beside them to be there to support them, love them and be there when needed. Secrets Fro......more

Goodreads review by Heather

I threw up a little in my mouth reading the dialogue in this book. The sisters were way too cordial with each other and their memories of their parents were way too perfect. They were a Hollywood family raised with complete ideals and absolutely no vices. Everyone was beautiful, kind and nobody had......more


Quotes

“Every novel from this acclaimed and beloved author is avidly read, and its engrossing historical dimensions, family traumas, romance, and vivid settings will prove irresistible.” —Booklist on LETTER FROM A STRANGER

“Loyal fans will tear up at the descriptions of enduring friendship and familial love.” —Publishers Weekly on LETTER FROM A STRANGER

“Vintage Bradford, with lavish descriptions of the pleasures of palate and palette, victims as virtuous as they are gorgeous, [and] cruel Lotharios.” —Kirkus Reviews on PLAYING THE GAME

“Scintillating…plenty of intrigue, secrets, and steamy encounters.” —Booklist on PLAYING THE GAME

“A page-turning plot that keeps you gripped through all of its 448 pages.” —Sunday Express on PLAYING THE GAME

“Satisfies on the fashion-and-passion front… at the heart of the action stands a determined heroine” —Publishers Weekly on BREAKING THE RULES

“A sprawling novel…readers will be happy to dwell in the glamorous world of Bradford's sophisticated characters.” —Booklist on BREAKING THE RULES

“Spellbinding.” —Complete Woman on BREAKING THE RULES

“For the thirtieth anniversary of A Woman of Substance, Bradford has written a marvelous spin-off with all the drama, glamour, and romance readers expect. With a twenty-first-century woman of substance and characters from the Harte series, this nonstop read has it all.” —RT Book Reviews on BREAKING THE RULES

“Her most exciting series yet...It's filled with romance, suspense and intrigue, and the richly detailed characters come vibrantly alive as expert pacing captures your attention from the very first page.” —RomanticTimes BOOKreviews, Top Pick, on the Ravenscar series

“Rife with dastardly internecine struggles, smoldering illicit passion, and cowardly insidious betrayals…[the Deravenels] pack as much intrigue as any Shakespearean royal drama.” —Booklist on Being Elizabeth

“The queen of the bestseller list still rules with The Heir.” —Miami Herald

“Bestseller Bradford's dynastic epic spanning the 20th century should tide over her fans…” —Publishers Weekly

“Bradford's characters are so real, readers clamor to know them better.” —USA Today on the Ravenscar series

“This expertly crafted epic novel further explores the triumphs and tragedies of the Deravenel family. It will enthrall readers with its vivid characters and fast-paced, larger-than-life plot.” —Romantic Times BOOKreviews (4 ½ stars) on The Heir

The Ravenscar Dynasty has it all--power, betrayal, mystery...The characters are all complex, dynamic, and powerful, leading us through Edward Deravenel's struggles one exciting step at a time.” —Romance Reviews Today

“Bradford's fiction has long focused on strong heroines who succeed against great odds. Her latest novel, The Ravenscar Dynasty...is the first of a planned trilogy of novels, all destined for best-sellerdom.” —Seattle Post-Intelligencer

“The Harte saga is as much a force of nature as a work of fiction…the issues at stake still compel readers after 25 years. Bradford understood early on readers' hunger for depictions of women who are strong and powerful and whose values embrace family. A quarter-century ago, Emma Harte crossed the no-woman's-land that once divided family and business, and now generations of readers consider her a role model in their own lives.” —The Washington Post

“A truly remarkable conclusion to her beloved Harte family saga…riveting and intense. Not many novels have the ability to completely immerse the reader, but this one draws you into the story from the very first page.” —Romantic Times BOOKreviews on Just Rewards

“Bradford gives her readers more of what she does best--strong, savvy female protagonists who relentlessly pursue great destinies, characters much like the author herself…well-written and full of emotion…completely riveting…the plot, while always complex, has suspenseful moments to keep the pace sharp…good reading…Unexpected Blessings clearly shows why Bradford is still the premier writer of family sagas.” —Miami New Times

“The exploits and adventures of Bradford's indomitable heroines continue to make for lusty escapist fiction in this robust fifth novel in the series.” —Publishers Weekly on Unexpected Blessings

“The enduring theme of family loyalty ennobles the Harte family saga and raises it to a heartwarming crescendo that longtime fans will appreciate.” —Book Page

“Readers who loved A Woman of Substance will enjoy Emma's Secret.” —Denver Post

“In her 19th novel, the grande dame of mass-market fiction revisits her first heroine--the indomitable Emma Harte.” —New York Daily News on Emma's Secret

“So many of us turn to novels like Barbara Taylor Bradford's…for our daily dose of amour.” —Woman's Day Magazine on the Harte Saga

“Promises to tantalize, mesmerize, and titillate readers of all ages. It has all the Bradford touches: strong and swift plot, hints of secrets about to be revealed…spellbinding.” —Roanoke Times on the Harte Saga

“A novel for everyone…A satisfying, lushly detailed saga.” —Rave Reviews on To Be the Best

“A master storyteller and character builder, Ms. Bradford again crafts another reader-holder novel…Act of Will is another winner.” —The Pittsburgh Press

“The men and woman are all gorgeous, rich, well-dressed.There are luxurious descriptions in this perfect page-turner.” —Philadelphia Inquirer on Hold the Dream

“A vibrantly characterized leading lady and a glimpse at the dazzling world of the rich and powerful.” —Working Woman on the Harte Saga

Voice of the Heart is the sort of book I cannot resist, indeed I pray to find.” —The Washington Times Magazine

“Meant to be read in a peignoir on a chase lounge whist nibbling scented chocolates.” —Cosmopolitan

“A rich tapestry of love and romance.” —San Diego Union on the Harte Saga

“It is easy to want every item Bradford catalogues, easy to imagine wearing it, eating and drinking it, driving it, smelling like it…The geography of Voice of the Heart takes a reader to all the right places.” —Los Angeles Times

“An extravagant, absorbing novel of love, courage, ambition, war, death, and passion.” —The New York Times on A Woman of Substance

A Woman of Substance [is] a long, satisfying novel of money, power, passion and revenge, set against the sweep of 20th century history.” —Los Angeles Times

“Wonderfully entertaining.” —Denver Post on A Woman of Substance