The Ravenscar Dynasty (Ravenscar Series) (U)

Bestselling author Barbara Taylor Bradford introduced the illustrious Harte family in her blockbuster A Woman of Substance. Now she has created a powerful new cast of characters whose lives are filled with drama and danger, romance and revenge the Deravenels. IN ONE HEARTBEAT THEIR LIVES CHANGED FOREVER When Cecily Deravenel tells her eighteen-year-old son Edward of the death of his father, brother, uncle, and cousin in a fire, a part of Edward dies as well. Not only is he too young to shoulder the responsibility for an entire family, Edward is also suspicious of the deaths. So he vows to seek the truth. Avenge the deaths. And retake control of their global business empire.IN ONE MOMENT, AMBITION AND REVENGE ARE BORN.As he grows into a handsome, charismatic man, Edward is torn between duty and desire. There are women in his life for whom he'll risk everything and one woman who might destroy him. But madness and secrecy lie at the heart of the family, and Edward's enemies are far more ruthless than he knows. He will need his strength more than ever when the house of Deravenel is fatally rocked by betrayal from within. Who will become the ultimate ruler of the Deravenels?The Ravenscar Dynasty"The queen of the sweeping saga is back with what promises to be another of her blockbuster series." The Gazette (Montreal) "Bradford's characters are so real, readers clamor to know them better." USA Today Publishers WeeklyThe doyenne of popular women's fiction (Just Rewards) returns with the first installment of a projected trilogy centering on internecine power struggles within the early 20th century incarnation of the centuries-old Deravenel clan and their London-based family business. A suspicious hotel fire causes the death of patriarch Richard Deravenel along with that of one of his sons, his brother-in-law and his young nephew, forcing tall, handsome, bright, seductive, 17-year old Edward Deravenel out of Oxford into the world of commerce. He and cousin Neville Watkins (a successful businessman in his own right) plot to avenge their fathers' and brothers' deaths and seize the company, currently under the stewardship of a delusional absentee executive whose ambitious (and French) wife is behind the skullduggery. Edward's longtime friend, Will Hasling, also joins the fray, and Neville has his own motivations. Along the way, there are libidinous liaisons, wicked plots, personal catastrophes, a secret "love child" and lessons aplenty about the consequences of ruthless ambition. Expect strong, two-dimensional characters; tasteful and adroit sex; repetitive exchanges; a plot rich with period detail and reasonably backed-up friction. (Jan.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.