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Everything to Gain: A Novel of Family and Love Shattered by Violence—and the Courage to Face Darkness
Mallory Keswick can't imagine how her life could possibly be better. She has a wonderful, fulfilling marriage to a man who loves, supports, and nurtures her. She has a lovely home and beautiful twins who bring joy to her days, to all of which she devotes herself wholeheartedly. Mallory feels she has finally found the elusive sense of family that never quite rang true in her own childhood—until an exceptionally cruel act of violence tears apart the fabric of her happiness. Devastated, distraught, and wondering how she will ever go on, suddenly Mallory's spirit is being tested as never before, forcing her to discover new reserves of courage and strength to confront the darkness that has left her with nothing more to lose and . . .
420 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1994
148 people are currently reading
1090 people want to read
About the author
Barbara Taylor Bradford
279 books1,930 followersBarbara Taylor Bradford was a British-American best-selling novelist. Her debut novel, A Woman of Substance, was published in 1979 and sold over 30 million copies worldwide. She wrote 40 novels, all bestsellers in the United Kingdom and the United States.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 96 reviews
December 14, 2017
Easy read! good storytelling and writing (paperback!)
July 12, 2011
This was a paperback I found at my house that I kept in the car and read here and there, so it took me awhile to get through it. I haven't read any books like this in years and I haven't been missing much. The perfect (so, so perfect I could hardly stand it!) heroine has a perfect life and is then shattered by tragedy. This didn't happen till over halfway thru the book and I felt like I would never find out what the big tragedy was. Why did I read the whole book? I had to find out what happened and how she overcame everything to become perfect once again, but a waste of time!
March 15, 2009
This was a book that really got under my skin. Not many books actualy get to me enought to bring me to tears, but this one did. You feel like you are part of this womans life. The main character the same age as myself was telling the story and describing her life over the past 10 years. An amazing book about a woman who went from having everything to losing it all and then coming back with more strength than ever. It was a great book
December 1, 2018
I envy Barb for her mass following, fawning readers and gigantic bank account.
But.
I swear to god, I have never read such trash in my life.
Main character, Mal, is a mega pain in the ass. So self absorbed and her ego is astounding.
Still I carried on, in sheer pain, and when I reached 50% things took a turn. A massive turn. Mal's perfect life was turned well and truly upside down. Thought it might improve from there but it got worse and my eyes began to bleed so much I've had 5,000,000 blood transfusions.
Hated it. Pure hated it.
There was a huge plot hole, Andrew's dodgy work mate etc....
At least I've tried a BTB, now to seek out Dame Barbara Cartland, surely her stuff can't be any worse than this eye stabbing book I've just read.
But.
I swear to god, I have never read such trash in my life.
Main character, Mal, is a mega pain in the ass. So self absorbed and her ego is astounding.
Still I carried on, in sheer pain, and when I reached 50% things took a turn. A massive turn. Mal's perfect life was turned well and truly upside down. Thought it might improve from there but it got worse and my eyes began to bleed so much I've had 5,000,000 blood transfusions.
Hated it. Pure hated it.
There was a huge plot hole, Andrew's dodgy work mate etc....
At least I've tried a BTB, now to seek out Dame Barbara Cartland, surely her stuff can't be any worse than this eye stabbing book I've just read.
December 29, 2020
The first thing I want to emphasize is that “Everything to gain” is a book for housewives. It’s literally written in Wikipedia - Barbara Bradford’s novels are most famous among stay-at-home-mothers and housewives. As I’m not one of them , I couldn’t fully enjoy the book.
The greatest problem of the story for me is that the main character, Mallory, is awfully ideal. She has a wonderful husband and children, perfect mother-in-law, best friend who always supports her, pretty dog, cozy house and so on.
All the things she has are described so thoroughly, that by the end of the first few pages you feel like if you’ve read a boring historical book. By the way, it’s the next problem of the book - too detailed description of things of little worth. Sincerely, even reading “War and Peace” wasn’t so boring. I agree that details are the clue to better understanding of the character, but reading thousands of paragraphs about the “Indian Meadows” was annoying.
Coming back to an “ideal woman” - the plot revolves around Mallory, a woman, who had everything, lost it, and then returned to “normal” life. Half a book(or even more) she remembers her family, some funny and touching moments, gets everything arranged for the holiday on the 4 of July. Then a cruel incident happens: her husband, twins and dog are killed. I’d say that the moment she realizes that her family is dead is really tragic - I could feel her emotions, that despair, which an author successfully transmits.
Barbara Bradford has chosen a good strategy to make the reader sympathize Mallory. For each person reading about loosing close-to-heart people is touching, cause most people have experienced that. But... to my mind, this storyline is too hackney.
Then comes a process of Mallory’s recovery. One moment she’s about to commit a suicide. The ghost of her child stops her, and that moment is one of the most notable - a mysterious disappear of the blade brings the reader to the idea that dead people never leave us, they are always somehow near and silently support us.
The rest of the book is obvious: Mallory starts her own successful business, meets a man with whom she finally feels safety and starts, I’d say, a new life. The more breathtaking ending would have been if she had committed a suicide, for instance. I’d rather read about the emotions of a person who’s really about to make such a decision. When saying “really about” I mean that Mallory’s character wouldn’t do that even without the child’s appear. She is too ideal for that. Her destiny is to start something again and again and finally get a perfect life. That’s how I see that character.
So, I won’t read this book again and won’t recommend it to others. It’s too simple and there are various stories of the same plot you can easily find. It didn’t impress me, and I’ve spent a lot of time to read the story (it’s quite short), cause every 3 pages I had a strong wish to close the book. But if you like dime novels or just don’t like to think when reading - “Everything to gain” is a good choice for you.
The greatest problem of the story for me is that the main character, Mallory, is awfully ideal. She has a wonderful husband and children, perfect mother-in-law, best friend who always supports her, pretty dog, cozy house and so on.
All the things she has are described so thoroughly, that by the end of the first few pages you feel like if you’ve read a boring historical book. By the way, it’s the next problem of the book - too detailed description of things of little worth. Sincerely, even reading “War and Peace” wasn’t so boring. I agree that details are the clue to better understanding of the character, but reading thousands of paragraphs about the “Indian Meadows” was annoying.
Coming back to an “ideal woman” - the plot revolves around Mallory, a woman, who had everything, lost it, and then returned to “normal” life. Half a book(or even more) she remembers her family, some funny and touching moments, gets everything arranged for the holiday on the 4 of July. Then a cruel incident happens: her husband, twins and dog are killed. I’d say that the moment she realizes that her family is dead is really tragic - I could feel her emotions, that despair, which an author successfully transmits.
Barbara Bradford has chosen a good strategy to make the reader sympathize Mallory. For each person reading about loosing close-to-heart people is touching, cause most people have experienced that. But... to my mind, this storyline is too hackney.
Then comes a process of Mallory’s recovery. One moment she’s about to commit a suicide. The ghost of her child stops her, and that moment is one of the most notable - a mysterious disappear of the blade brings the reader to the idea that dead people never leave us, they are always somehow near and silently support us.
The rest of the book is obvious: Mallory starts her own successful business, meets a man with whom she finally feels safety and starts, I’d say, a new life. The more breathtaking ending would have been if she had committed a suicide, for instance. I’d rather read about the emotions of a person who’s really about to make such a decision. When saying “really about” I mean that Mallory’s character wouldn’t do that even without the child’s appear. She is too ideal for that. Her destiny is to start something again and again and finally get a perfect life. That’s how I see that character.
So, I won’t read this book again and won’t recommend it to others. It’s too simple and there are various stories of the same plot you can easily find. It didn’t impress me, and I’ve spent a lot of time to read the story (it’s quite short), cause every 3 pages I had a strong wish to close the book. But if you like dime novels or just don’t like to think when reading - “Everything to gain” is a good choice for you.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 27, 2020
“God knows, you’ve nothing to lose, you’ve already lost it all, but you do have everything to gain”.
Everything to gain, by Barbara Taylor Bradford, is a story about the great loss, the inner devastation and the great effort made to start a new life. The book tells the story about Mallory Keswick’s ideal life that was suddenly destroyed by people’s cruelty and inhumane behavior. Most of the events happen in Indian Meadows, Connecticut, New York, and Yorkshire.
The story begins with the following words: “I have been alone for so long now; it is almost impossible for me to think in terms of living with another person again.” And from the very beginning we understand that in the life of a main character something confusing has happened. Here we also feel uncertainty, doubt and longing radiated by the main character. We cannot understand why but it seems interesting. Mal says goodbye to Richard, who is leaving for Bosnia as a special correspondent, and tries to decide whether she should marry him. Then, we are unexpectedly in a huge flashback, that gives us answers to all the questions. There appears Andrew, who is Mal’s husband, and this is a confusing thing. After it we realize that our main character is a happily married woman that has two lovely children - Clarissa (Lissa) and Jamie. Everything that is described in the main part of the story shows its readers that Mallory and Andrew’s marriage is the thing that the one might envy. They are so in love with each other that it seems impossible that something may destroy their life. In this family, harmony is not disturbed by anyone. All family members love and support each other (It is so strange to see a good relationship between a daughter-in-law and a mother-in-law). I personally was proud of Mal - she was able to build such an atmosphere in her family, not having a proper example in her childhood.
During the story, the reader gets so used to the characters that feels torn apart after their death. We literally can feel Mallory’s pain. Andrew, a successful, kind man who is loved by everyone, Lissa, and Jaime (Mal calls them her little Botticelli's angels), two adorable little creatures, and their little dog Trixie, that becomes an integral part of the Keswick’s family, are shot on their way home just before the Christmas holidays. Mallory is broken. Her life is divided into before and after. She tries to kill herself several times, but the love of her deceased family, best friend, caring servants, other members of the family and even her own HOME prevents her from making the fatal step. Mal, who is talented in painting, starts working at her own café and shop, to keep in everyone’s mind Andrew’s legacy. She is broken for a long time, especially when she finds out that her family has been killed just by the fatal accident, but she makes a great effort to start from the beginning. In the end of the book, we meet Richard again and realize that after some time he will probably become her new family and make her happy again.
I liked the main character so much. I should admit that she is a strong person. While reading, I was thinking, what would I do in such a situation? I understood that I could not survive this. Moreover, I adored the Keswick’s, they are an example of an ideal family for me. However, there was only one thing that I did not quite liked - the overabundance of descriptions. Of course, it helps to jump into the story, imagine Indian Meadows and feel the atmosphere, but sometimes it was boring.
I do not like easy reading like this one, but I am impressed. If you have some time and want to relax, you may read it. Nevertheless, if you are depressed, I would not recommend it to you, because it can really break your heart.
After this book you will probably start appreciating every moment with your family and never give up, facing some life difficulties. Remember, you do have everything to gain.
Everything to gain, by Barbara Taylor Bradford, is a story about the great loss, the inner devastation and the great effort made to start a new life. The book tells the story about Mallory Keswick’s ideal life that was suddenly destroyed by people’s cruelty and inhumane behavior. Most of the events happen in Indian Meadows, Connecticut, New York, and Yorkshire.
The story begins with the following words: “I have been alone for so long now; it is almost impossible for me to think in terms of living with another person again.” And from the very beginning we understand that in the life of a main character something confusing has happened. Here we also feel uncertainty, doubt and longing radiated by the main character. We cannot understand why but it seems interesting. Mal says goodbye to Richard, who is leaving for Bosnia as a special correspondent, and tries to decide whether she should marry him. Then, we are unexpectedly in a huge flashback, that gives us answers to all the questions. There appears Andrew, who is Mal’s husband, and this is a confusing thing. After it we realize that our main character is a happily married woman that has two lovely children - Clarissa (Lissa) and Jamie. Everything that is described in the main part of the story shows its readers that Mallory and Andrew’s marriage is the thing that the one might envy. They are so in love with each other that it seems impossible that something may destroy their life. In this family, harmony is not disturbed by anyone. All family members love and support each other (It is so strange to see a good relationship between a daughter-in-law and a mother-in-law). I personally was proud of Mal - she was able to build such an atmosphere in her family, not having a proper example in her childhood.
During the story, the reader gets so used to the characters that feels torn apart after their death. We literally can feel Mallory’s pain. Andrew, a successful, kind man who is loved by everyone, Lissa, and Jaime (Mal calls them her little Botticelli's angels), two adorable little creatures, and their little dog Trixie, that becomes an integral part of the Keswick’s family, are shot on their way home just before the Christmas holidays. Mallory is broken. Her life is divided into before and after. She tries to kill herself several times, but the love of her deceased family, best friend, caring servants, other members of the family and even her own HOME prevents her from making the fatal step. Mal, who is talented in painting, starts working at her own café and shop, to keep in everyone’s mind Andrew’s legacy. She is broken for a long time, especially when she finds out that her family has been killed just by the fatal accident, but she makes a great effort to start from the beginning. In the end of the book, we meet Richard again and realize that after some time he will probably become her new family and make her happy again.
I liked the main character so much. I should admit that she is a strong person. While reading, I was thinking, what would I do in such a situation? I understood that I could not survive this. Moreover, I adored the Keswick’s, they are an example of an ideal family for me. However, there was only one thing that I did not quite liked - the overabundance of descriptions. Of course, it helps to jump into the story, imagine Indian Meadows and feel the atmosphere, but sometimes it was boring.
I do not like easy reading like this one, but I am impressed. If you have some time and want to relax, you may read it. Nevertheless, if you are depressed, I would not recommend it to you, because it can really break your heart.
After this book you will probably start appreciating every moment with your family and never give up, facing some life difficulties. Remember, you do have everything to gain.
December 28, 2011
The only novel that's gotten me to cry...except maybe for Harry Potter, when Dumbledore died. The novel is about a woman in grief over the most painful loss anyone could ever face. I love how we experience Mal's life with her husband and her children, and literally could feel the emotioons jumping out of the pages. From the beginning of the story, I thought Mal was a little weird but then her life unfolds through the rest of the pages and somehow has me empathiziing with Mal's happiness. It came to a point where her husband and children became special to me too, as crazy as that sounds and so when the tragedy hits, the novel has me also understanding Mal's pain and I'm sitting there trying to choke back a sob. Intense. The novel is basically about having hope in a time when that seems impossible and is definitely a beautiful, sad and inspirational read.
June 8, 2016
Another so-so book. Woman loses family, goes into deep depression, starts a new business, becomes wildly successful, finds a new man. All the while she visits and lives in England where she gets all the ideas for her business. Just your typical run of the mill life. Sorry I've read too many like this.
October 8, 2012
Barbara Taylor Bradford's story is set in both U.S. and England. Mallory seems to have it all with a wonderful loving husband and 6-year-old twins. After tragedy we see the effort to sustain life and rise above grief.
This is a vert typical Bradford book--enjoyable with a happy ending.
This is a vert typical Bradford book--enjoyable with a happy ending.
October 31, 2008
It was quite a boring book, too many details
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December 23, 2020Yurkina Natalie
My review "The Difficult Fate of One Woman".
The name of the book:”Everything to Gain” by Barbara Taylor Bradford.
Just imagine the situation: she had her own happiness, she had a family that you can only dream of, but at some point everything collapses. And how to live with it? What should this poor woman do, who is not ready for such a turn of fate? Will she be able to cope and live on?
I really enjoyed reading "Everything to Gain" by Barbara Taylor Bradford. To my mind, this book is informative, engaging and well written. This amazing work tells the story of a heroine with an incredibly strong will and temperament. Her name is Mallory Keswick. She is a very kind, nice and humble woman who can't imagine how her life could possibly be better. She has a wonderful, fulfilling marriage to a man who loves, supports, and nurtures her. Moreover, this woman has a lovely home and beautiful twins who bring joy to her days, to all of which she devotes herself wholeheartedly. Mallory feels she has finally found the main sense of family. I think that the family for Mallory is the most important thing in life, this is her meaning. And in my opinion, she had a real feminine happiness that other people can only dream about. But, unfortunately, her life has changed. The usual course of events collapsed overnight. After a terrible incident, due to which the heroine lost her family, she learns to live on, tries to be strong. Personally, I closely watched how this woman was looking for the strength to live in herself, she went through this difficult path that fate gave her. However, despite all the difficulties, Mallory eventually took on a new reason to live. This man's name is Richard. He gave her a new chance. I was very glad that the heroine met a new man who appeared in her life. After all this tragedy, Mallory has found a family again. For the first time since her husband's death, she felt the very salvation she needed. Mallory found it difficult to overcome all the obstacles, but she was able to. She coped with all the hardships and I believe that she deserved new happiness, new joy.
As for me, I can safely say that this book is the best that I have ever read. Barbara Bradford's book has a clear and gripping plot that can immediately attract the reader's attention. The plot focuses on a simple woman who has experienced a sad drama. Moreover, the dialogues between the characters are very touching. The composition of the characters is perfectly matched. Also, at first glance, it may seem that Mallory is not able to withstand such a twist of fate, but her character is much stronger than you might think. I admire this heroine.
She lost everything, but then she gained everything. This is an incredible story of a strong woman.
I recommend this book to you. It is really worth reading and thinking about many things. Sometimes it seems to people that it is very difficult for them to live and everything is not as good as they would like. But please take a look at Mallory. It was much harder for her. But the heroine deserved a new gift of fate, which is called "woman’s happiness" and she received this gift.
My review "The Difficult Fate of One Woman".
The name of the book:”Everything to Gain” by Barbara Taylor Bradford.
Just imagine the situation: she had her own happiness, she had a family that you can only dream of, but at some point everything collapses. And how to live with it? What should this poor woman do, who is not ready for such a turn of fate? Will she be able to cope and live on?
I really enjoyed reading "Everything to Gain" by Barbara Taylor Bradford. To my mind, this book is informative, engaging and well written. This amazing work tells the story of a heroine with an incredibly strong will and temperament. Her name is Mallory Keswick. She is a very kind, nice and humble woman who can't imagine how her life could possibly be better. She has a wonderful, fulfilling marriage to a man who loves, supports, and nurtures her. Moreover, this woman has a lovely home and beautiful twins who bring joy to her days, to all of which she devotes herself wholeheartedly. Mallory feels she has finally found the main sense of family. I think that the family for Mallory is the most important thing in life, this is her meaning. And in my opinion, she had a real feminine happiness that other people can only dream about. But, unfortunately, her life has changed. The usual course of events collapsed overnight. After a terrible incident, due to which the heroine lost her family, she learns to live on, tries to be strong. Personally, I closely watched how this woman was looking for the strength to live in herself, she went through this difficult path that fate gave her. However, despite all the difficulties, Mallory eventually took on a new reason to live. This man's name is Richard. He gave her a new chance. I was very glad that the heroine met a new man who appeared in her life. After all this tragedy, Mallory has found a family again. For the first time since her husband's death, she felt the very salvation she needed. Mallory found it difficult to overcome all the obstacles, but she was able to. She coped with all the hardships and I believe that she deserved new happiness, new joy.
As for me, I can safely say that this book is the best that I have ever read. Barbara Bradford's book has a clear and gripping plot that can immediately attract the reader's attention. The plot focuses on a simple woman who has experienced a sad drama. Moreover, the dialogues between the characters are very touching. The composition of the characters is perfectly matched. Also, at first glance, it may seem that Mallory is not able to withstand such a twist of fate, but her character is much stronger than you might think. I admire this heroine.
She lost everything, but then she gained everything. This is an incredible story of a strong woman.
I recommend this book to you. It is really worth reading and thinking about many things. Sometimes it seems to people that it is very difficult for them to live and everything is not as good as they would like. But please take a look at Mallory. It was much harder for her. But the heroine deserved a new gift of fate, which is called "woman’s happiness" and she received this gift.
January 5, 2023
" The past was always there, lived inside of you, and it helped to make you who you were. But it had to be placed in perspective. The past could not dominate the future".
Everything to gain by Barbara Taylor Bradford, is a story about the great loss, devastation and the great effort made to start a new life. The book tells the story about Mallory Keswick’s ideal life that was suddenly destroyed by people’s cruelty and inhumane behavior. After it i realize that the main character is a happily married woman that has two lovely children, Clarissa and Jamie. Everything that is described in the main part of the story shows its readers that Mallory and Andrew’s marriage is the thing that the one might envy.
They are so in love with each other that it seems impossible that something may destroy their life. In this family, harmony is not disturbed by anyone. All family members love and support each other .
During the story, i get so used to the characters that feels broken after their death. Her life is divided into before and after. She tries to kill herself several times, but many who love her such as her deceased family, best friend, caring servants, other members of the family and even her own home prevents her from making the fatal step. Mal, who is talented in painting, starts working at her own café and shop, to keep in everyone’s mind Andrew’s legacy.
She is broken for a long time, especially when she finds out that her family has been killed just by the fatal accident, but she makes a great effort to start from the beginning. In the end of the book, Mal meet Richard again and realize that after some time he will probably become her new family and make her happy again.
Tho for me at first, I hardly understand the plot at all. But after reading it many time, i liked the main character. Still the tragedy really hurts my heart till now
Everything to gain by Barbara Taylor Bradford, is a story about the great loss, devastation and the great effort made to start a new life. The book tells the story about Mallory Keswick’s ideal life that was suddenly destroyed by people’s cruelty and inhumane behavior. After it i realize that the main character is a happily married woman that has two lovely children, Clarissa and Jamie. Everything that is described in the main part of the story shows its readers that Mallory and Andrew’s marriage is the thing that the one might envy.
They are so in love with each other that it seems impossible that something may destroy their life. In this family, harmony is not disturbed by anyone. All family members love and support each other .
During the story, i get so used to the characters that feels broken after their death. Her life is divided into before and after. She tries to kill herself several times, but many who love her such as her deceased family, best friend, caring servants, other members of the family and even her own home prevents her from making the fatal step. Mal, who is talented in painting, starts working at her own café and shop, to keep in everyone’s mind Andrew’s legacy.
She is broken for a long time, especially when she finds out that her family has been killed just by the fatal accident, but she makes a great effort to start from the beginning. In the end of the book, Mal meet Richard again and realize that after some time he will probably become her new family and make her happy again.
Tho for me at first, I hardly understand the plot at all. But after reading it many time, i liked the main character. Still the tragedy really hurts my heart till now
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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December 23, 2020Everything to gain is a powerful novel written by the American writer Barbara Bradford. The story is set in United States in old times and shows the life of the woman, Mallory Keswick, whose world is shattered by violent tragedy and she loses all that she holds dear.
Everything to gain is rich and detailed in plot and provide many layers for the reader to explore. The intricately constructed chain of events will hold your attention right up to the final page. The book is moving at times and amusing at others.
The main character Mallory (Mal) is a dedicated person who finds ability to continue her life after the violent murder of her husband and twin daughters. She flees to a village on the Yorkshire moors where she learns to draw on the deepest reserves of her spirit.Mal opens a cafe and shop selling gourmet food and kitchenware and turns it into a highly successful venture. But there remains in her life an aching void, a grief that no individual, nor her new-found business acumen, can assuage. Then she meets Richard Markson, and once more, Mal’s life has come to a crossroads. It is he who shows her that she has everything to gain – but only if she has the courage to take it.
In conclusion, I would like to note that the only reservation of the book is its length. It has more over 300 pages, so it is rather long. However, it’s difficult to put the book down. I highly recommend Everything to gain to everyone as the greatest achievement of this famous writer.
Everything to gain is rich and detailed in plot and provide many layers for the reader to explore. The intricately constructed chain of events will hold your attention right up to the final page. The book is moving at times and amusing at others.
The main character Mallory (Mal) is a dedicated person who finds ability to continue her life after the violent murder of her husband and twin daughters. She flees to a village on the Yorkshire moors where she learns to draw on the deepest reserves of her spirit.Mal opens a cafe and shop selling gourmet food and kitchenware and turns it into a highly successful venture. But there remains in her life an aching void, a grief that no individual, nor her new-found business acumen, can assuage. Then she meets Richard Markson, and once more, Mal’s life has come to a crossroads. It is he who shows her that she has everything to gain – but only if she has the courage to take it.
In conclusion, I would like to note that the only reservation of the book is its length. It has more over 300 pages, so it is rather long. However, it’s difficult to put the book down. I highly recommend Everything to gain to everyone as the greatest achievement of this famous writer.
January 14, 2019
Being a fan of A Woman of Substance back when I was 20, I thought this would be a sort of trip down memory lane, so I grabbed it when I found it at a second hand store --at least I didn't pay its full price-- only to soon discover a series of issues. Besides the fact that I am no longer impressed by the perfect lives of perfect people, this book was totally boring! You start expecting for the advertised tragedy to happen, only to discover that this happens after more than half the book, and then the resurfacing process is described in haste, so it the rest of the main character's "new life". To make things worse, almost the entire book's summary is on the front flap, why even read the thing? Probably the last book by BTB that I am reading, since there are too many authors out there, who are far more compatible with my present reading preferences, even though I will always have a soft heart for A Woman of Substance.
May 20, 2024
I hate to rate this so poorly. 85% of the plot is excellent, but then it just fell out of interest and I fail to understand some of the passages. The author writes about the characters being excited to make their first trip to London, but then just two paragraphs later we are being told about how they want to visit all of their regular and favorite places to visit. ???
I hate to say it, but ultimately I think this was poor, at best, especially since the first half of the book was very good.
I was gifted two or three other titles by Ms Bradford; I might never get to them and simply regift them again.
I hate to say it, but ultimately I think this was poor, at best, especially since the first half of the book was very good.
I was gifted two or three other titles by Ms Bradford; I might never get to them and simply regift them again.
March 3, 2023
Mallory Keswick's story was a fairytale relationship of husband, babies and a warm home, until the day is changed forever! The loss, the excruciating pain left even me, the reader, in tears throughout. However trying to find peace in her husband's family home, lead to a realisation that through the loss Mallory will eventually find some sort of calmness despite her heart and body houses such hurt, anger and vengeance! Family is saying that she has 'everything to gain', but will she? Oh boy this novel left me a little emotionally wrung out, but still a good read!!
January 24, 2025
I listed this book as "Other Cultures" shelf because the lifestyle of the heroine Mallory Keswick and her husband Andrew, much like the other Bradford books, is alien to what I grew up with. Despite having several large homes; we took in widowed and elderly single family members and the only "Help" we had was a one day a week cleaning lady. No nanny, butler, housekeeper, grounds manager, etc.
WARNING: Plot twist reveal:
That being said, I liked the book esspecially for the musing and attempts to describe the grief, questioning, temporary loss of faith, and deep despair, then inflicted on Mallory when both her children, husband, and even their dog were killed in a tragic street shooting. Then her following efforts to heal by returning to Andrew's childhood home to reclaim her memories were quite touching. All in all, it was a good read.
WARNING: Plot twist reveal:
That being said, I liked the book esspecially for the musing and attempts to describe the grief, questioning, temporary loss of faith, and deep despair, then inflicted on Mallory when both her children, husband, and even their dog were killed in a tragic street shooting. Then her following efforts to heal by returning to Andrew's childhood home to reclaim her memories were quite touching. All in all, it was a good read.
December 27, 2025
I found "Everything to Gain", by Barbara Taylor Bradford to be an okay read. There was too much detail throughout. This took away from the storyline and caused the novel to be tedious at times. As mentioned by others, the reader had to literally read half of this novel to find out the tragedy that befell Mallory Keswick. She was also not one of the more likeable characters. This also added to the novel dragging on at times.
I believe that this novel could have been something special, if it weren't for the extensive details throughout.
I believe that this novel could have been something special, if it weren't for the extensive details throughout.
July 11, 2019
Oh such boring garbage. First time reading BTB. I hated there main character. What an ego. Maybe after watching true crime docs around the injustice towards young black men... it was kind of hard to swallow the explanation of the “youths” and the carjacking. The dialogue also was painful.
Happy it’s done. Think I’ll pass on this fluff in the future. Read while watching tv. So that was nice. Go multitasking!
Happy it’s done. Think I’ll pass on this fluff in the future. Read while watching tv. So that was nice. Go multitasking!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 24, 2020
This book is a great example of good writing which fails to excuse the persistent, unbelievable female fantasy parade; the extended descriptions of scenes such as the "small suite" with a baby grand piano in it; and careful attribution of fatal crimes to a multi-racial gang and a 14 year old black child on crack committing murder. Way, way over the top.
September 2, 2022
This story was brilliant from start to finish.
From the start the story shown that nothing could be wrong.
When tragedy strikes for the character it's heart breaking.
But I wish their way more to the story.
But I know by reading the end character has everything to gain.
That is perfect title for this book.
Barbara Taylor Bradford really shows that this story has everything to gain.
From the start the story shown that nothing could be wrong.
When tragedy strikes for the character it's heart breaking.
But I wish their way more to the story.
But I know by reading the end character has everything to gain.
That is perfect title for this book.
Barbara Taylor Bradford really shows that this story has everything to gain.
February 13, 2023
My first Barbara Taylor Bradford and I have mixed reviews - there was considerable "fluff" to the basic storyline. Novel takes place in both Connecticut, USA and England. Since Ms. Bradford is an English author, I enjoyed her knowledge of England's age-old attractions -- particularly Chapter 14's description of Ripon Cathedral and Marmion Tower.
October 13, 2023
Alot of privilege comes out in this book with owning multiple properties and flying back and forth to them which I can't relate to. Lol. But it also shows how to overcome LOSS and her setting up a business. I couldn't recall if she was a romance writer or not when I picked up the book at a neighborhood library but it had just a small amount. An enjoyable easy read.
September 14, 2024
This book was a combination of love, romance and tragedy. It opened my eyes to many things and ways of life. It told of her life before, during and after the deaths of her husband, Andrew and the twins, Lissa and Jamie. I was surprised when I read that the twins were killed too. Also the way Andrew died.
May 18, 2018
I enjoyed the book although I found it to be quite slow to get into the actual plot that was written on the blurb. An easy read though and I absolutely balled my eyes out, which showed me how invested I became in the storyline!
May 20, 2018
It was just OK. The writing seemed trite at times so I have to admit skimming through a lot of the details. I will try another of Bradford's books to see if my feelings change. I always believe in giving an author another chance.
September 25, 2020
Not one of B T B better books
I chose this book hopping to enjoy it. I was sadly disappointed. I felt when I got to the end I was still waiting for the book to get going. To me so much more could of been made of this story
I chose this book hopping to enjoy it. I was sadly disappointed. I felt when I got to the end I was still waiting for the book to get going. To me so much more could of been made of this story
January 7, 2022
"Everything to Gain" is a lovely book. It is such a poignant story. Heartbreaking in some ways, but it's also a story about the human spirit and living life. It really spoke to my heart, and I'm blessed to have read it.
September 13, 2023
Incredible and heart-wrenching. I love the way Bradford writes but I'm always hesitant to pick up her books for some reason. The way this was set up made the loss hurt even more and really the whole character arc of Mallory was an emotional rollercoaster.
November 8, 2024
I really didn't like it. Took way too long to find out what happens. If you enjoy descriptions about houses, places, just about everything this is for you. The only time I enjoyed it was when they were in England and she described the countryside. That was it for me. But you may like it. The storyline drug out forever!
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