I have not read Barbara Taylor Bradford books before and probably won’t after this book. Thanks to Net Galley I had the opportunity to read this book. I did not care for the writing style or the lack luster style. I was glad to have the read the book but would not highly recommend it.

This is a big book - lots of pages, lots of details, lots of characters- but it boils down to the story of James and Alexis, who come from opposite ends of the merchant class in Victorian England. James is a striver. Alexis, after losing her fiancé, is trying to improve the lives of others. There's nothing much surprising here but it's the beginning of what will no doubt be a family saga over a series of novels. Bradford has a long track record as a novelist but even veteran best sellers can benefit from a strong edit to pare away excess and insure continuity. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

Master of His Fate by Barbara Taylor Bradford is the first novel in a four-book series, tentatively titled The House of Falconer. This novel, set in Victorian England from 1884 to 1889 centers around two seemingly disparate characters, James Falconer and Alexis Malvern, whose stories are eventually merged in an exceedingly cunning manner. Commoner, James is a young man who begins his career working a market stall with his father, but soon establishes an ambitious plan for his future. Noble, Alexis is a young woman with a strong sense of independence, due to her active role in her father’s business.

Bradford artfully switches the story from one character to the other without ever losing the reader’s attention. Romance, drama and intrigue are purposefully balanced with an outstanding cast of characters, which includes the family of both main characters. European history is masterfully interwoven into the story, including the emergence of the infamous Jack the Ripper and the rising career of the then little-known Dr. Sigmund Freud. I loved the ending, which leaves the reader with a sense of hope and appropriately sets the stage for the next book in the series.

My thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book. However the opinions expressed in this review are 100% mine and mine alone.

James Falconer is a very ambitious young man. Working at a stall that his father owns begins his career as a merchant. He moves up until he is working for Henry Malvern, one of the richest and most prestigious companies in London. He gains money and power as he climbs up the ladder, When he works on a project with Alexis Malvern, something grows between them. Great story of Victorian England's class divide between the rich and the poor. I loved James. He was a charming and strong character. I want to know more about him. I received this book from Net Galley and St. Martin's Press for a honest review. The opinions expressed are my own.

I have been a fan of Barbara TAylor Bradford since her very first book......A. Woman of Substance....which is still on my bookshelf with others written by her. This Victorian Era saga will be one of those books that many readers will be grabbing off the shelf! I enjoyed it thoroughly and look forward to the future books to continue the story. Ms. Bradford’s style of introducing characters and then elaborating their story along with weaving storylines together lends to a great read . I totally recommend this book to readers. I was given an ARC of this book by the publishers and NetGAlley in return for an honest review, which this has been.

Lindas Book Obsession Reviews " Master of His Fate" by @Barbara Taylor Bradford,  St. Martin's Press, November 20, 2018

Barbara Taylor Bradford, Author of "Master of His Fate" has written an intriguing, intense, emotional, riveting, and captivating novel. Barbara Taylor Bradford is an amazing author that vividly describes her unique characters and dramatic settings. The Genres for this novel are Historical Fiction, Fiction, Women's Fiction, with a touch of Romance and Mystery and Suspense. The timeline for this story is set in Victorian England where there is a huge diversity between the very wealthy and the very poor. The author describes her colorful cast of characters as complex and complicated possibly due to circumstances and events. This is the first in a series, and I look forward to the next book.

Alexis Malvern is a beautiful and intelligent daughter next in line to inherit her father's extremely successful and lucrative business.  Tragedy occurs that forces Alexis to step back, and recover.

James Lionel Falconer should credit his grandparents for bring up to learn the ways of a gentleman. James has excellent manners and is educated through books in his grandparents house, where they are the head servants given much respect. As a boy, James watches and helps his father in the market stalls. When James is asked what his dream is to be he will say a "Prince Merchant". As James matures, he works his way up the ranks and is honest and hardworking.  He is determined to make something of himself. When Alexis is recovering, James works at the Malvern company. James has a head for business and notices that there is something wrong with the books. There are twists and turns, suspense, mystery, danger and murder. I would recommend this novel for readers who enjoy a book of substance.

I read Woman of Substance and the series many years ago and loved the stories and characters. When I saw this listed on Netgalley I was thrilled to be approved to read it. Somehow I didn’t realize this was a series and by the end of the book I was wondering what was happening with several plots left dangling. The blurb on Goodreads evidently covers the whole series as the majority of the blurb is not covered in this book.

It made more sense once I realized this is a series but this doesn’t seem to be the same author that I enjoyed years ago. I like the premise and many of the characters and storyline but things just seemed to be too perfect - everyone loves and adores each other, strong family loyalty, charming, good looking, etc. except for a character or two. I was disappointed that I didn’t enjoy the story more. It was slow reading for me but I still look forward to reading the rest of the series to find out more about James, Alexis, and even his malevolent cousin.

Before the story begins, there’s a list of several families and how people are related, but there were so many it was too confusing to remember. While reading an ebook, it was difficult to go back to the beginning to figure out the characters and then continue reading.

The story has a slow, easy walk sense to it with some romance, mystery, injury, and death happening intermittently. It was interesting to find more modern terms and topics in the story that I didn’t expect with sexual relations and birth control. I love to read historical details about culture, dress, architecture, etc., and Ms. Bradford doesn’t disappoint in this story.

Thanks to Netgalley, the author and publisher for allowing me to ready this early copy.

I found this not up to the usual standard that I expect of Barbara Taylor Bradford it came across as very formal and stilted just didn't seem to flow the way her previous books The premise for the series is good and I will try further books in this series as sometimes the first in series can be stilted as the characters of the further books are built

This story is the story of James Falconer a barrow boy who dreams of owning his own emporium and his interactions with various members of the aristocracy during his socal climb. The book as a bit of a MR Selfridge type feel for me

Master of His Fate starts a new series by forever writer (40+ years) Barbara Taylor Bradford. It is a historical fiction set in Victorian England and follows and explores the differences of families in both the upper and lower classes.

BTB's third party narrative is a bit stilted, but I'll grant the benefit of doubt and say it's due to the era in which the book is set. James Falconer is a favored child within a lower class family. His grandparents are servants to a wealthy family, his father a merchant with two stalls in the local merchant mall. From his youth on, James knew he wanted to be a merchant mogul, owning his own merchant mall, and several large flagship stores. Towards that end, he does everything he can to improve his knowledge in all aspects of buying, selling and marketing, financial skills and acumen, becoming familiar with the finer goods, and determining what people want and how to give it to them.

Alexis Malvern is the daughter and heir of Henry Malvern who is the owner of a big business enterprise and real estate company and owner of the Malvern mall where James' father is a merchant. As sole heir to her father's legacy and second in command in his businesses, Alexis is focused on business to the point where she told her father she would never marry because she could not divide her attention so. An independent and forward thinking woman, she and a friend founded Haven House, a place where women victims of domestic abuse could find safe haven.

Though several other characters and stories are at play in Master of His Fate, this book focuses on James and Alexis and their lives.

While I wasn't blown away by this story, I have enough respect for BTB that I will give the second book in the series a read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for allowing me to read an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

In this epic new family saga by master storyteller Barbara Taylor Bradford, we meet the Falconer clan, James, is the golden boy, the one groomed to lead his family into the future. We are also introduced to Alexis Malvern, only child and heir to the family business, the Malvern company, where the Falconer's have a stall selling merchandise.

I truly enjoyed the story and anxiously look forward to the second installment in the four-part series. I felt like I was transported to the 1880's, I felt the passion, the love, the heartbreak and the hope.

I urge you to take the less than positive reviews with a grain of salt (heck, even my 5-star review) and read this family saga and form your own opinions!

This is well written and researched, up to BTB’s usual standards. This is the start of a new series and I will be reading the next book.
I was given a ARC by Netgalley, all opinions are my own.

I have been reading Barbara Taylor Bradford for a long time so I thought I’d give this one a try even though I haven’t read historical novels in many years.i love the descriptiveness of her books and this one surely delivered. I was a bit thrown when a chapter would end and after getting into James story, the next chapter would be about Alexis. In time I got used to that and was able to enjoy the book more thoroughly. I look forward to another installment in this series.

Why did I want to read this? The cover. I'm a sucker for covers and this one pulled my interest. And knowing who the author is and her other work was an extra bonus. I didn't go in to this expecting a detailed literary, historical fiction- her books generally teeter on the edge of literary fiction and romance genres with more on the romance format side. I know better, but I read some of the reviews before I started the book and was a bit leary based on them, but I found the story to fit exactly into what I was expecting. Characters are developed but not as richly as some literary book, but when it's a romance genre they usually aren't. For those who felt the story was rushed, well, they usually are. Could she had made this a longer, multi book story? Yes, but take it for what it's worth. It's a good historical romance to read.

Thoroughly entertaining read with good characters and storylines. An interesting and changing age some very forward thinking men and women.

Master of His Fate by Barbara Taylor Bradford is a beautifully written book about a self-made man named James Lionel Falconer. This is the first book in her newest historical saga and I found it incredibly hard to put down. I loved how the two families intertwined with one another and also loved the interesting characters in this story. Both the characters and the storyline are captivating. I've read every one of Barbara Taylor Bradford's books and I believe this one's my favorite. It's hard to resist reading a well written intriguing tale of a handsome man's rise to the top. I also love the time period chosen for this series---Victorian England. Master of His Fate is sure to mesmerize the reader with compelling characters, drama, and romance.

Well written, fully developed characters, and lovely location/situation descriptions. Highly recommend. I received a copy from the publisher. Opinions are my own,

I have loved many of Barbara Taylor Bradford's books. This is another series that I feel that I will continue to read. I like historical sagas and this one, though it starts a little slow, ends with me wanting to read more.
As the first book in Bradford’s House of Falconer series, set in Victorian England, follows James Falconer, son of a merchant, and Alexis Malvern, the daughter of one of London’s most successful businessmen, as their lives converge toward each other. James is a young man who wants to become a successful merchant.

Alexis is an upper-class woman known for her business and charitable work. She falls in love with wealthy banker Sebastian Trevelyan, the father of one of her friends. The pair is torn apart by tragedy. James and Alexis’s paths are separate, they really do not meet until late in the story when they are forced to work together in a common cause. The book starts slow but by the end, I wanted more.

This story follows the paths of James, a Malvern market worker and Alexis, heir to the Malvern fortune. They both fall in love affairs with someone much older than themselves.
I felt the most bad for Alexis as her fiance dies before their wedding. I think I enjoyed her journey more than James's journey, though I did like how ambitious he was in what he wanted.
I think they might start an affair of their own in the next book of the series.

# Master of His Fate # NetGally #
Barbara Taylor Bradford

To all you fans out there of Barbara Taylor Bradford’s sagas, this new book is for you! It is the first in a four book series, The House of Falconer. The first book, The Master of His Fate, introduces you to the families of the Falconers and the Malverns. The characters are magnificent and will easily win a place in your heart. Set in Victorian London, it opens that world up to you in the settings, the dress, the speaking and the countryside of that era. I, for one, loved this first book, and will anxiously await the rest of the series. There is society, class, romance, food and mystery that will open up these characters to you. Bradford is still the queen of this period of writing. I will definitely recommend this book to all my friends and family. It is a strong solid 5++ rating in my opinion.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGally for providing me an advance review copy of this book for my honest and fair review.

I love the beautifully written BTB books. Unfortunately this was not a favorite. I think I was put off by the slowly developing characters and plot and by the long descriptions of historical things that really didn't need to have that much space devoted to them. I knew I was not a fan of the setting of Victorian England, from past reading, but I thought I would try it again. I guess I still have not changed my mind. SInce there are more books coming in this series, I will be interested in trying the next-different time period and more character development. I do like BTB books! Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy.