Angel (MM to TR Promotion) [Paperback]

Barbara Taylor Bradford (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 23, 1997

From the internationally beloved bestselling author of A Woman of Substance, The Women in His Life, and Remember--an enthralling novel of four friends transformed by an uncommon bond. When the four orphans met, they felt bound by a loyalty deeper and fiercer than friendship. But into their midst comes two interlopers who will disrupt--and irrevocably tranform "the family".

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Once again Bradford's ( A Woman of Substance ) characters are purely secondary to the settings--rather like Architectural Digest married to Vogue . No matter what disaster strikes plucky heroine Rose Madigan--and there are many--every item of her apparel is minutely described, with particular attention paid to its label. This trick goes a long way to cover up the basic superficiality of the dramatis personae. Rosie is a world-famous costume designer for the screen and the sister of an undercover policeman named Kevin. In their early youth, the two were part of a circle of six friends who banded together against the vicissitudes of their respective family lives. One has been lost to drugs, one has vanished without a trace, another, Nell Jeffrey, is a high-powered theatrical agent, and the last, Gavin Ambrose, has become a major movie star. Gavin and Rosie, currently friends and co-workers, were once lovers, as Kevin and Nell are now; Gavin is unhappily married and Rosie is strongly tied to her estranged French husband's family, whose members live in a lavishly appointed chateau. Rosie scuttles off to France whenever she can to offer emotional and financial support to her in-laws. Meanwhile, she makes the acquaintance of rock music megastar Johnny Fortune, who showers her with gifts and passionate declarations of love, little suspecting that her brother is involved in an investigation which will bring disaster to Johnny's mafioso family. The dialogue is even more unbelievable and studded with cliches, while the love scenes are unintentionally hilarious. This is the '90s, though, and at least everyone uses protection as they go from bed to bed. Those who thrive on fantasies about the rich and famous will lap this up. Major ad/promo.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

'The storyteller of substance' The Times 'Vintage Barbara Taylor Bradford.' Sunday Express '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 --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Ballantine Books (June 23, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345418581
• ISBN-13: 978-0345418586
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,989,918 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

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 25 of her novels to date have been major worldwide bestsellers. Her 26th book, Playing The Game, will be published on October 12th by St. Martin's Press.

Bradford was born in Leeds, West Yorkshire (UK) as the only child of Freda and Winston Taylor. She grew up in the Leeds suburb of Armley and after Town Street Church of England School worked in the typing pool at the Yorkshire Evening Post before going into journalism. By the age of twenty she was the fashion editor of Woman's Own Magazine and an editor and columnist on Fleet Street for the London Evening News.

Bradford's books have sold more than eighty-two (82) million copies worldwide in more than ninety (90) countries and forty (40) languages. Ten (10) of her books have been made into miniseries and television movies, making her one of the best-selling authors over the last 30 years.

In April of 2003, Mrs. Bradford was inducted into the Writers Hall of Fame of America alongside Mark Twain, Langston Hughes and Dr. Seuss. She was awarded an OBE by Queen Elizabeth II in the Queen's 2007 Birthday Honours list for her contributions to literature. Her original manuscripts are archived at the Brotherton Library at Leeds University, alongside the works of the Bronte sisters. In 2009, Barbara's publishers began a worldwide 30th anniversary celebration of A Woman of Substance. The first annual Woman of Substance Awards took place on September 10th 2009 at the Dorchester Hotel in London. She lives in New York City with her husband, of 43 years, television producer Robert Bradford.

Her official website is: www.barbarataylorbradford.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars pretentious, October 13, 2001

By 

ardnam "ardnam" (NJ) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Angel (Mass Market Paperback)

Don't waste your time or money. Everything-the characters, plot, etc.-was not believable. It was a chore to get through this "novel".

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not her best, but ok...., November 7, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Angel (Mass Market Paperback)

I don't think there will be any BTB books that equal her trilogy, "A Woman Of Substance", "Hold The Dream" and "To Be The Best". In my opinion, those three were phenomenal. I've read a number of her books, but I just consider them light entertainment. I heard this one on audio CD, as I travel quite a bit for my job, and it really passes the time while driving. "Angel" did just that, passed the time. Agreeing with others, yes, it was predictable. There was no closure to a few subplots but the reader, Lorelei King made it quite enjoyable to listen to. I'm not sure that had I read the hard copy, I would have liked it nearly as well. All in all, not bad, just not great.

1.0 out of 5 stars Boring and crap, March 10, 2011

By 

E. S. Charpentier (Brainerd, MN United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Angel (Mass Market Paperback)

"Angel" is an extremely long novel about Rosie, Nell, Gavin and Kevin who are friends. Gavin is a movie star and Rosie designs costumes for his movies and, in theory, other people's movies. Kevin is Rosie's brother and an NYPD officer. Nell is a successful publicist. The first 140 pages of this book introduce these people and tell us what they all think of each other. The next third of the book elucidates how, even though they are all fabulously rich and successful (except Kevin's not rich, because he's a cop, but he's still very good at it), none of them are very good at having a personal life and managing romantic relationships.

In the last third of the book, the four friends seem to begin to suck slightly less, but alas, they do not. The book also begins to suck slightly less, but then, just as it threatens to have some sort of plot, the loose ends are abruptly severed (NOT tied up) and the book ends happily ever after. Wow, was this a giant waste of my time.