Emma’s Secret (48 page)

A
CKNOWLEDGEMENTS

F
irstly, a word about this book. It is the fourth in the series which began with
A Woman of Substance,
followed by
Hold the Dream
and
To Be the Best.
Those chronicled the rise to power of three families, beginning at the turn of the nineteenth century in England. This novel picks up the story in 2001 with the current families, the descendants of Emma Harte, Blackie O’Neill and David Kallinski.

By popular demand I have brought back my most beloved character, Emma Harte, the protagonist of
A Woman of Substance
and
Hold the Dream.
To do so I had to return to the 1940s and the tumultuous war years in Great Britain at one point in this story. In order to give a sense of time, place, mood and historical events of that period, I have used as a leitmotif segments of the great rhetorical speeches of Sir Winston Churchill. Apart from being my own personal hero, I believe that it is to him we owe the survival of Western Civilization. Without his extraordinary leadership during the Second World War, when he fought appeasement of Germany, Nazi terror and the evil of Hitler, the world would be a very different place today. Certainly we would not have freedom, justice and the decencies of life we have come to cherish. We all owe him so much.

In a long and complex novel many people give assistance in different ways. I would like to acknowledge the debt of gratitude I owe to my friends Edwina Sandys and her sister Celia Sandys, the granddaughters of Winston Churchill. Edwina generously gave me twelve never-released discs of the great Churchillian speeches, which were invaluable. Her sister Celia arranged a private tour of the Cabinet War Rooms in Whitehall which was most edifying. I must thank Phil Reed, Curator of the Cabinet War Rooms, for being a most articulate guide.

My friend Jane Ogden is owed my thanks for being a patient listener and for sharing her memories of growing up during the war years. Susan Zito of Bradford Enterprises gave me enormous help with research and proof reading, and she knows how much I appreciate her involvement in all my novels. I owe a really big thank you to Liz Ferris of Liz Ferris Word Processing, who coped with a long and complex manuscript with great diligence, at top speed, and presented a meticulous manuscript.

I wish to thank my literary agents Morton Janklow and Anne Sibbald of Janklow and Nesbit, who have represented me since 1981, and have always been there for me. And thanks also to my long-time British editor Patricia Parkin, of HarperCollins, UK who has worked with me since
A Woman of Substance,
and thanks to my editor in the US Jennifer Enderlin of St Martin’s Press, New York.

Finally, but by no means least, I must thank my husband Robert Bradford, not only the greatest sounding board and intelligent critic, but my most enduring and loving supporter.

T
 H E
   T
 H R E E
   C
 L A N S

The Hartes shown in line of descent

Emma Harte:
Matriarch: Founder of dynasty and business empire

HER CHILDREN

Edwina:
Dowager Countess of Dunvale:
Emma’s daughter by Edwin Fairley (illegitimate).
First born

Christopher ‘Kit’ Lowther:
Emma’s son by her first husband Joe Lowther.
Second born

Robin Ainsley:
Emma’s son by her second husband Arthur Ainsley.
Third born

Elizabeth Ainsley:
Emma’s daughter by her second husband Arthur Ainsley. Robin’s twin.
Third born

Daisy (Ainsley):
Emma’s daughter by Paul McGill (illegitimate).
Fourth born

HER GRANDCHILDREN
Shown in line of descent

Anthony Standish:
Earl of Dunvale,
son of Edwina and Jeremy Standish, Earl of Dunvale

Sarah Lowther Pascal:
Daughter of ‘Kit’ and June Lowther

Jonathan Ainsley:
Son of Robin and Valerie Ainsley

Paula O’Neill:
Daughter of Daisy and David Amory

Philip McGill Amory:
Son of Daisy and David Amory; brother of Paula

Emily Barkstone Harte:
Daughter of Elizabeth and Tony Barkstone; half-sister of Amanda

Amanda Linde:
Daughter of Elizabeth and Derek Linde (Elizabeth’s second husband)

EMMA’S GREAT-GRANDCHILDREN

Tessa Fairley Longden:
Daughter of Paula and Jim Fairley (Paula’s first husband)

Lorne Fairley:
Tessa’s twin, son of Paula and Jim Fairley

Toby Harte:
Son of Emily and Winston Harte II; brother of Gideon

Gideon Harte:
Son of Emily and Winston Harte II

India Standish:
Daughter of Anthony Standish and Sally Harte, Earl and Countess of Dunvale

Linnet O’Neill:
Daughter of Paula and Shane O’Neill (Paula’s second husband)

Chloe Pascal:
Daughter of Sarah and Yves Pascal

Fiona Amory:
Daughter of Philip McGill Amory

Emsie O’Neill:
Daughter of Paula and Shane O’Neill

Desmond O’Neill:
Son of Paula and Shane O’Neill

THE HARTES continued

Winston Harte:
Emma’s older brother and business partner

Randolph Harte:
Son of Winston and Charlotte Harte

Winston Harte II:
Son of Randolph and Georgina Harte

Toby Harte:
Son of Winston and Emily Harte; Brother of Gideon

Gideon Harte:
Son of Winston and Emily Harte

Frank Harte:
Emma’s younger brother

Rosamunde Harte:
Daughter of Frank and Natalie Harte

Simon Harte:
Son of Frank and Natalie Harte; brother of Rosamunde

THE O’NEILLS

Shane Patrick Desmond O’Neill (‘Blackie’):
Founding father of dynasty and business empire

Bryan O’Neill:
Son of Blackie and Laura Spencer O’Neill

Shane O’Neill:
Son of Bryan and Geraldine O’Neill

Linnet O’Neill:
Daughter of Shane and Paula O’Neill

Emsie O’Neill:
Daughter of Shane and Paula O’Neill

Desmond O’Neill:
Son of Shane and Paula O’Neill

THE KALLINSKIS

David Kallinski:
Founding father of dynasty and business empire

Sir Ronald Kallinski:
Son of David and Rebecca Kallinski

Michael Kallinski:
Son of Ronald and Helen ‘Posy’ Kallinski

Julian Kallinski:
Son of Michael and Valentine Kallinski

About the Author

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 eighteen others, most recently
Emma’s Secret.
Her books have sold more than seventy million copies worldwide in more than ninety countries and forty languages. She lives in New York City with her husband, producer Robert Bradford.

Visit www.AuthorTracker.com for exclusive information on your favorite HarperCollins author.

By the Same Author:

A Woman of Substance
Voice of the Heart
Hold the Dream
Act of Will
To Be the Best
The Women in His Life
Remember
Angel
Everything to Gain
Dangerous to Know
Love in Another Town
Her Own Rules
A Secret Affair
Lower of a Woman
A Sudden Change of Heart
Where You Belong
The Triumph of Katie Byrne
Three Weeks in Paris

Copyright

This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are he work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

HarperCollins
Publishers
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Hammersmith, London w6 8JB

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First published in Great Britain by HarperCollins
Publishers
2003

Copyright © Barbara Taylor Bradford 2003

Barbara Taylor Bradford asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work

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EPub Edition © 2003 ISBN: 9780007330638

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