From Publishers Weekly
Bradford's trilogy on "merchant prince" Emma Harte and her many heirs began with the runaway bestsellers A Woman of Substance and Hold the Dream. This final book picks up the story a decade after Emma's death, when the third generation has the thriving businesses she started well in hand. Heading up the family is Paula McGill O'Neill, who runs the luxurious department stores that anchor the Harte empire. Super-wife and mother Paula brings a whirlwind of energy to that exacting job; as a result of her near-perfect efficiency, the first half of the book seems rather saccharine. But Jonathan Ainsley, an unscrupulous cousin she had banished from the fold, is waiting to move in for the kill when Paula indulges her desire to carve out a fiefdom of her own, risking everything by overextending her resources. Although this lengthy battle for supremacy is the focal point, a host of dramatic subplots continues the amorous, sorrowful and shady doings of the O'Neills and the Kallinskis, two families whose fortunes are entwined with the Hartes. Despite constant jet-setting between glamorous watering places, these wealthy lifestyles are beginning to be awfully repetitious. Fans will welcome this new installment, but it's impossible not to agree with many of the characters who sigh about the drive and vigor lost along with that elegant pirate Emma Harte. Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Club dual main selections. Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
With this third volume of the cycle begun in 1979 with A Woman of Substance , Bradford continues the saga of Emma Harte, her descendants, and the far-flung business empire she founded. Now, some 11 years after Harte's death, the story revolves around Paula Amory O'Neill, Emma's granddaughter and principal heir, and the ups and downs faced by her family and friends. Readers will happily re-acquaint themselves with the sprawling Harte clan and their friends and associates, the O'Neills, and Kallinskis. A more than satisfactory sequel to the previous segments of this generational tale, with an ending that promises still more to come. Literary Guild Main Selection.Judith A. Gifford, Salve Regina Coll. Lib., Newport, R.I.Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.


Book Description

First there was A Woman of Substance, which began the enthralling story of Emma Harte and propelled Barbara Taylor Bradford straight to the top of bestseller lists across the country. Its sequel, Hold the Dream, proved every bit as compelling and successful. Now, completing this multimillion-copy trilogy is To Be the Best, the final chapter of a heartrending saga and the culmination of an outstanding literary achievement,

Paula McGill O'Neill learned her grandmother's lessons well. As the head of the thriving Harte department store chain, Emma Harte's favorite grandchild wields her power with a masterful and compassionate hand. Yet even as she keeps Emma's visionary dream alive, Paula dares to set out in a bold new direction...to create something she can truly call her own. But instead she finds herself faced with the ultimate challenge, a diabolical enemy who vows to wrest control away from her....an enemy she knows too well.

Sweeping around the globe and touching on the powerful emotions that define our lives, this is Barbara Taylor Bradford's grand farewell to characters both familiar and cherished -- a triumphant conclusion that will live on in our hearts forever.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

First there was A Woman of Substance, which began the enthralling story of Emma Harte and propelled Barbara Taylor Bradford straight to the top of bestseller lists across the country. It's sequel, Hold the Dream, proved every bit as compelling and successful. Now, completing this multimillion-copy trilogy is To Be the Best, the final chapter of a heartrending saga and the culmination of an outstanding literary achievement.

Paula McGill O'Neill learned her grandmother's lesson well. As the head of the thriving Harte department store chain, Emma Harte's favorite grandchild wields her power with a masterful and compassionate hand. yet even as she keeps Emma's visionary dream alive, Pauls dares to set out in a bold new direction...to create something she can truly call her own. But instead she finds herself faced with the ultimate challenge, a diabolical enemy who vows to wrest control away from her...an enemy she knows too well.

Sweeoing around the globe and touching on the powerful emotions that define our lives, this is barbara taylor Bradfor's grand farewell to characters both familiar and cherished - a triumphant conclusion that will live on in our hearts forever.

FROM THE CRITICS

Joyce Cohen

It's easy to laugh at a book in which the heroine's husband says to her, ''You look beautiful,'' and then adds, ''So stop titivating yourself.'' But don't worry. Reading ''To Be the Best'' does not require that you keep a dictionary close at hand.... The weak plot sends us around the world, fromYorkshire to Hong Kong to Sydney, providing a handy excuse for place-name dropping. In the end, good triumphs over evil....''To Be the Best'' is so earnest and so sweet that it's almost possible to forgive this kind of silliness. -- New York Times

Publishers Weekly

Bradford's trilogy on ``merchant prince'' Emma Harte and her many heirs began with the runaway bestsellers A Woman of Substance and Hold the Dream. This final book picks up the story a decade after Emma's death, when the third generation has the thriving businesses she started well in hand. Heading up the family is Paula McGill O'Neill, who runs the luxurious department stores that anchor the Harte empire. Super-wife and mother Paula brings a whirlwind of energy to that exacting job; as a result of her near-perfect efficiency, the first half of the book seems rather saccharine. But Jonathan Ainsley, an unscrupulous cousin she had banished from the fold, is waiting to move in for the kill when Paula indulges her desire to carve out a fiefdom of her own, risking everything by overextending her resources. Although this lengthy battle for supremacy is the focal point, a host of dramatic subplots continues the amorous, sorrowful and shady doings of the O'Neills and the Kallinskis, two families whose fortunes are entwined with the Hartes. Despite constant jet-setting between glamorous watering places, these wealthy lifestyles are beginning to be awfully repetitious. Fans will welcome this new installment, but it's impossible not to agree with many of the characters who sigh about the drive and vigor lost along with that elegant pirate Emma Harte. Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Club dual main selections. (July)

Library Journal