From Publishers Weekly
The deplorable practice of sending orphan children to the far reaches of the British empire, which continued even after WWII, provides the factual background for bestselling author Bradford's 12th novel (after Love in Another Town). The prologue, set in 1955, introduces five-year-old Mari Sanderson, who adores her mother, Kate, and enjoys an idyllic childhood that includes sitting on her favorite rock near the river, watching the teeming wildlife near their Yorkshire home. One morning, however, Mari finds Kate dead on the kitchen floor. The scene shifts to New York in 1995, where 44-year-old Australian migre Meredith Stratton can't understand her unexplained bouts of fatigue and frequent nightmares. Meredith heads the highly successful Havens Inc., which operates six inns. On a business trip to Europe, she visits an inn overlooking the ruins of Fountains Abbey and is oddly drawn to the ruins and the water, acknowledging a sense of deja vu. When she falls in love with Luc de Montboucher, the architect who will remodel the inn, she becomes convinced that she must confront the mysteries in her past. Emboldened to begin a focused search and to consult a psychiatrist, she ultimately discovers the circumstances that sent her to Australia. Though her serviceable prose lacks all style and resonance, Bradford's narrative does hold a few surprises, and its revelations about the "lost children of the empire" (as they were identified in newspapers and TV documentaries in England) makes this a surefire tearjerker. $1,000,000 ad/promo; author tour. Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
Although her small chain of elegant inns is prospering, attractive 44-year-old Meredith Stratton cannot shake a lingering sadness. An unhappy childhood spent in Australian orphanages and later with an unloving adoptive couple provided little emotional sustenance and left unanswered questions about her birth parents. A trip to England and France to purchase new business properties triggers recurring nightmares Meredith hasn't had for years. In desperation, she works with a psychiatrist to unlock memories that help her find the mother she thought had abandoned her. Along the way, Meredith draws support from her children and friends and even finds romance with a French architect. The web of characters supplies a convincing context for Meredith's past, present, and future, and compelling flashbacks propel readers to continue the search with her. Certain to join the ranks of Bradford's other best sellers (e.g., Dangerous To Know, LJ 9/1/95), this novel skillfully blends mystery and romance. For most popular collections.--Kathy Piehl, Mankato State University, Minn.Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Kirkus Reviews
Bradford's (Love in Another Town, 1995, etc.) latest romantic heroine swans through her 40's having it all--great kids, a promising relationship simmering, and a tidy business. But gnawing at her psychic innards is a lost childhood. Her journey takes her from shrink to sleuthing before the final celebration. An introductory flash reveals the tot ``Mari'' and her beset but adoring mother in their English cottage--a scene that concludes with Mari screaming, ``Me mam's dead!'' Back in the present there are the generally serene travels of lovely Meredith Stratton (tall, blond, eyes deep green), mother of Catherine and Jon, amicably divorced from Jon's father, and immensely successful in creating upscale hostelries at home and abroad. (Classy Meredith supplies her inns with such elegant touches as hot-water bottles in silk cases!) Her favorite inn is at Silver Lake in Vermont, where as a teenager she worked with the late innkeepers Jack and Amelia. They adored her baby, Catherine, conceived at Silver Lake. Meredith remembers nothing of her early childhood before the misery of an Australian orphanage and nasty adoptive ``parents.'' Now, however, when she visits monastic ruins in northern England, heartstrings to her buried past begin to ping. She suffers ``weak'' spells--in spite of an exciting tendre for the French designer Lue, and the happy news of Catherine's engagement. Then, thanks to sessions with a psychiatrist, some thunderclap recalls, and the help of a friend, Meredith's past begins to unroll. The conclusion swells with joyful noises and mega-happiness. This time out, Bradford taps an old scandal involving the transporting of English children, but, still, Meredith's childhood tragedy does seem implausible, and it's not until the hunt for ``Mari'' is underway that the tale moves at all. Fans may be assured, though, of lush digs and a Big Tear reunion. Lukewarm romance in one of those silk cases--and always saleable. ($1,000,000 ad/promo; author tour; TV and radio satellite tour) -- Copyright ©1996, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
Book Description
Meredith Stratton, at forty-four the owner of six elegant international inns, is about to celebrate her daughter's engagement. At this seemingly happy time in her life she begins to suffer from a strange illness that baffles everyone. Her doctor cannot find a physical cause for her debilitating symptoms, and desperate for answers, she seeks the help of a psychiatrist. Through therapy, Meredith peels back the layers of her life to discover the truth behind her most careful creation -- herself.
Determined to get well, Meredith traces her roots back to another country, where she learns about childhood experiences that dramatically changed her life. What she discovers is the key not only to the past but to her future happiness and fulfillment as a woman.
Told with the power, drama, and emotion found in her previous bestsellers, Barbara Taylor Bradford addresses the universal themes of love and loss, passage and renewal, and the inexplicable twists of fate that shape our lives. She has once again created a memorable character with whom readers will empathize and admire -- a woman who has always had the courage to live by her own rules.
Moving from the Connecticut countryside to the busy streets and suites of London, Paris, and New York, to the pastoral beauty of a chateau in the Loire Valley, Her Own Rules is an exciting and suspenseful novel about secrets, survival, redemption, and love.
Performed by Lynn Redgrave
From the Publisher
A successful, talented woman's search for her true identity is at the heart of Barbara Taylor Bradford's suspenseful new novel, Her Own Rules. As always, the bestselling novelist, beloved the world over, has captured expertly the soul of her accomplished strong-willed heroine, while infusing her page-turning narrative with unexpected events and taut psychological surprises. Meredith Stratton us, in many ways, a self-made woman. As the hardworking founder of Havens, Inc., a group of luxury inns in New England, England, and France, she heads a thriving multinational company that is poised for further expansion. A single mother now in her forties, Meredith has raised two gifted children, Cat, an illustrator, and Jonathan, a law student at Yale. But, despite her achievements, Meredith is haunted by an unhappy childhood, much of which she no longer remembers. As usual, Barbara Taylor Bradford seamlessly weaves extensive research into her narrative to lend her story an unequaled verisimilitude. Focusing on her native Yorkshire, the author recreates a world that holds special meaning not only for her characters, but for the novelist herself. Her Own Rules is vintage Barbara Taylor Bradford -- an enduring story of a remarkable woman.
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