Act of Will
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4.8 • 4 Ratings
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- £4.49
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- £4.49
Publisher Description
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, this classic novel sparkles as it entertains.
Reviews
Praise for Barbara Taylor Bradford:
'Queen of the genre.' Sunday Times
‘Few novelists are as consummate as Barbara Taylor Bradford at keeping the reader turning the page. She is one of the world’s best at spinning yarns.’ Guardian
‘A classic saga of loyalty, secrets, passion and intrigue…if you’ve been suffering withdrawal symptoms from Downton, this is for you’ Daily Mail
‘As romantic and thrilling as the rest’ Independent on Sunday
‘Another great yarn from the ultimate storyteller’ The Sun
‘The storyteller of substance.’ The Times
‘Pure gold – a runaway bestseller.’ Cosmopolitan
About the author
Barbara Taylor Bradford was born and raised in England. She started her writing career on the Yorkshire Evening Post and later worked as a journalist in London. Her first novel, A Woman of Substance, became an enduring bestseller and was followed by many more, including the bestselling Cavendon series. Barbara’s books have sold more than eighty-one million copies worldwide in more than ninety countries and forty languages. In October of 2007, Barbara was appointed an OBE by the Queen for her services to literature.
To find out more and join the huge community of her fans, find Barbara on Facebook @BarbaraTaylorBradford, follow her on Twitter @BTBNovelist and sign up to her newsletter at www.barbarataylorbradford.co.uk.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Though enjoyable, Bradford's latest novel lacks the sweep and grandeur that characterized her bestsellers, A Woman of Substance and Hold the Dream. Left to the indifferent care of an aunt after the death of her mother, well-bred Audra Kenton is sent to work at Yorkshire's Fever Hospital, where she trains as a nurse before taking a post in the home of an affluent suffragette. Though she captures the heart of a handsome bounder, Audra's independent spirit is not much appreciated by her working-class husband, and the two clash fiercely over her encouragement of their daughter's artistic genius. Audra's ceaseless efforts backfire, though, when Christina tries to repay the debt by choosing a lucrative career in fashion. With its trademark painted silk garments, the House of Christina is an instant success. But handing the flourishing business on to her only daughter proves harder than Christina expected, since Kyle, in her turn, rejects the world her mother has carved out to seek her own path as an artist. While written in a comparatively minor key, this is a light, pleasing tale of three generations, marked by ironic twists of fate and finely etched period detail. (June 20pSLAVES OF NEW YORK Tama Janowitz. Crown,
