The Triumph of Katie Byrne

by Barbara Taylor Bradford

Barbara Taylor Bradford delivers all the drama, suspense, and romance her readers expect in a riveting novel that begins with a murder in an old Connecticut barn… We first meet Katie Byrne at seventeen. A tall beauty with reddish-gold hair, she has always wanted to be an actress. Her two best friends share her passion for the theatre, and the three girls have spent much of their childhood rehearsing plays in an old barn in Connecticut. Leaving early one day to help her mother prepare dinner, Katie realizes she has left her schoolbooks at the barn and she and her older brother return to retrieve them. When they arrive, they find the barn, the setting of so many happy dreams, has become the scene of a one of Katie's friends has been raped and murdered, and the other lies unconscious.Ten years later, Katie, a struggling actress in New York, is still haunted by the tragedy. Her friend Carly remains in a coma, and Katie desperately wants to achieve success and stardom not only for herself but also for her two old friends. Her big chance comes when she is discovered and wins a major role in a Broadway play.But Katie must face the demons of the past before she can embrace the possibilities of the future…

Genres: Fiction, Romance, Mystery, Chick Lit, Novels, Contemporary, Thriller

426 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Barbara 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.

Reviews

[Connie]

Garbage. I couldn't even finish it and it was a book on tape. The crime scene was sensationalized and written in such poor taste, plus Ms. Bradfod found it necessary to keep repeating the brutal specifics of the crime over and over again throughout the book. Disgusting and completely inappropiate.

The author seemed to have no comprehension of how varied people can react in a tragedy. I was so annoyed that the mother of a murder victom was critisized by the main character for not wanting to be with people shortly after hearing that her only daughter was in a coma and somehow she should have been more open and comforting. Ms. Bradford has obviously never experienced a tragedy herself beyond losing a fish or is one of the people who get a high off of it.

The author relied completely on descriptions and cultural backgrounds to give her characters depth instead of actually writing thoughtful, meaningful, and interesting people.

I cannot believe people read this crap.

[Judi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Spoiler Alert -- How can we cheer for a character to triumph when we don't get to see her struggles? The book starts good with a murder mystery but then jumps ahead 10 years. Katie already has an acting career and is offered the perfect part. She is hesitant to take it but the reader doesn't get to feel her angst. The entire part 2 of this book is completely irrelevant - unless you want to read very lengthy, boring descriptions of the Bronte sisters and Yorkshire. Part 3 - miraculous recovery and the murderer is not a character that was ever introduced in the book. I understand that the book is about the main character dealing with and overcoming the past but there is no development of the story.

[JP · Rating 1 out of 5]

I hated every part of The Triumph of Katie Byrne by Barbara Taylor Bradford. The plot revolves around Kathy Byrne's life and the murder of her two friends, and how it affects her acting career and subsequent "success". However, the book fails to deliver on multiple fronts.

The text frequently stops to give context and character descriptions that don't support the main plot, making them feel like random facts. Additionally, the narrator attempts to be omniscient, making a special emphasis on the protagonist, yet fails to create a distinct voice for other characters.

The second section of the book reads like a lesson on the Bronte sisters, completely breaking away from the style and themes of the previous section. While it may provide some interesting information, it feels like a Wikipedia entry and disrupts the rhythm of the book. Also, this section introduces some characters and the complexities of their relationships, without adding to the plot and, subsequently, making it feel more messy.

Finally, the third section rushes to solve everything, including the murder mystery, in just a few pages, without any meaningful character growth. The book is so bad that, when the romantic interest is introduced, I confused him with the killer as it didn't make sense his late appearance. Again, the book is poorly written with extremely one-dimensional characters that lack depth, and is filled with useless descriptions.

Another detail that made me want to skip multiple pages is the diary entries of the protagonist, which instead of feeling like a tool to learn more about her, is just a repetition of what the reader already knows.

Overall, The Triumph of Katie Byrne is a lousy draft with no redeemable qualities. I would give it zero stars, but it's surprising to see that it has been rated higher than three stars on this site. Therefore, I feel obligated to give it one star so everyone knows this book is shit. I even feel guilty for the poor trees that had to be cut just to be printed in such a terrible book.

[Carrie · Rating 2 out of 5]

What a serious eye-roller of a book. I think I skipped entire paragraphs. It was like someone's first attempt at a novel and they tried to cram too much into it ... but at the same time, there was hardly any content at all. From what I've read on Goodreads, it sounds like an anomaly for this author so I would give another book a try ... once I've checked out the reviews.

[Candi Higley · Rating 4 out of 5]

We first meet Katie Byrne at seventeen. A tall and lanky beauty with reddish-gold hair, she has always wanted to be an actress. Her two best friends share her passion for the theatre, and the three girls have spent much of their childhood rehearsing plays in an old barn in Connecticut. Leaving early one day to help her mother prepare dinner, Katie realizes she has left her schoolbooks at the barn, and she and her older brother return to retrieve them. When they arrive, they find that the barn, the setting of so many happy dreams, has become the scene of a nightmare: one of Katie's friends has been raped and murdered and the other lies unconscious.
Ten years later, katie, a struggling actress in New York, is still haunted by the tragedy. Her friend Carly remains in a coma, and Katie desperately wants to achieve success and stardom not only for herself but also for her two old friends. Her big chance comes when she is discovered and wins a major role in a Broadway play. A promising love affair adds to the excitement of working in the theatre; but Katie must face the demons of the past before she can embrace the possibilities of the future.

[Nancy · Rating 2 out of 5]

A rather predictable story after the opening -- I frankly expected more.

[Kamelle Reigh · Rating 1 out of 5]

Bradford is one of my go-to's when bargain hunting but this one is such a disappointment. The only chapter worth reading is Chapter 1. It's amazing that I finished it. Mystery ain't for you Ma'am.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

another good book from Bradford. read some of her books years ago.

[Mari · Rating 1 out of 5]

En jaksanut lukea loppuun...

[Aps_rajesh · Rating 2 out of 5]

A. Serious. Waste. Of. Time. I never read contemporary novels but thought I would pick this up and this is my first time reading this author.

Bad Choice. This Author shouldn't write mystery novels, that much is certain.

It started off okay(did not like the crime scene but it was visualized well and the emotions were all there). But as it went on the mystery just seemed to disappear up until the last few pages. So basically with this you get the mystery in the first 20- 50 pages and then some bunch of drama stuff and in the last 25 pages they bring up a completely new character as the killer. The entire 200 pages between this is completely irrelevant and pretty much not needed from my point of view.

It did have a good lot of information about the Bronte sisters, but please, it has no relevance to this mystery at all... I believe the author just found out some really cool facts about the bronte sisters and wanted to include them in some book...

It dragged on and on until I figured it wasn't going to go anywhere so I just read the ending.

The romance between the lead and the new character Chris is also so rushed and not properly written out. I feel like it would be been better if she could've met Chris before she went to London. And the author could have built up the scenes between them slowly instead of just rushing through the whole romance part. "They just connected and she instantly liked him."

Katie's character lost me there. She has witnessed a brutual crime happen to her two best friends, she always keeps her door locked, I felt like she would never let strangers into her life, which is natural to anyone who has been through a tragedy. But suddenly this guy shows up very close to the place she lives(and where the murder took place) and she's not even wary that he might be the killer or whatever.

Total disappointment. Would not recommend it.

[Betty · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author definitely needs to avoid mysteries. She did a good job with the middle part of the book where she writes about the life of the Bronte sisters. But the entire murder "mystery portion of the book just did not do it for me. It starts out with the tension of the murder and someone perhaps stalking Katie. Then the whole murder part disappears from the story in the middle part of the book while she writes about the Bronte sisters. Then Katie comes back to the US and the murder plot picks up again. The murderer comes totally out of nowhere. No real suspense leading up to who he is. Total let-down by an author I have liked before.

[Lauren · Rating 1 out of 5]

I read this book because its fictitious setting is described as very close to the place where I grew up. This was one of the worst books I've ever read and I cannot fathom how this woman has had such a prolific career. I would never recommend any of her books to anyone and I hope no one bothers to ever recommend one to me. This book was lacking in plot, dialogue, detail and editing. I didn't care about any of the characters.

[Megan Toomey McBride · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is terrible. The entire second part is complete pointless, unless you are into overly descriptive paragraphs of English scenery or you’re obsessed with the Bronte sisters.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read, and really enjoyed, some of the other Barbara Taylor Bradford books. This one does not even deserve her name as author. I do not know who might have written this poorly put together novel, but it not like any of the author's books that I've ever read. Only if you want a history lesson of the Bronte Sister's, would I even recommend that it "might" hold your interest. It reels one in at the beginning with a murder mystery (and not a good one)....Proceeds to ten years later across The Pond....with lots of scenic descriptions, food menus, characters that are not developed, and really boring. If you've endured the novel, the end only gets you slightly interested just because you want to know "Who" committed the murder...and, even that was a total let down. Sorry folks. The only good thing about the book was BTB's name, but not her quality!

[Theresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I do enjoy Bradford's novels, but this one although okay left me a little underwhelmed. I did read it from cover to cover, but maybe I'm not an 'actor' plot liker! These three girls have been friends from childhood and acting has become their passion to hopefully achieve greatness in adulthood. But a teenage incident shatters all of their dreams! Death, disability and fear is their future, but Katie is determined to survive..... There are a lot of people trying to help her at home in the States and in United Kingdom. For Katie it is a surprising interest in the Brontes and their way of life and literary skills that seems to guide her future and the calmness of their countryside that opens her heart and spirit....

[Eileen Mandell · Rating 4 out of 5]

The tragedy is exposed within the first few pages. As 3 best friends discuss their future on BROADWAY an event unfolds that changes everything for Katie. She attempts to hold on to her dreams but is caught in the memories of her high school friends. After much practice and encouragement, she gains the confidence to try again. I enjoyed this book because of my interest in high school theatre. The suspense in the book is well written as you would expect from Barbara Taylor Bradford. It is an easy book to read about the coming of age of Katie and the strength of character!!!

[Amber Laha · Rating 1 out of 5]

First dnf of the year. Bad characterization and poor dialogue that made no sense for the age and time made for a bad experience. I also found it distasteful how she made Katie's life perfect in comparison to her best friends. Also, it seemed that she felt she had to sell the idea of her having this perfect life in order to make us buy that her best friends attacks affected her. She was overselling something that didn't make sense.

[Hijinx Abound · Rating 1 out of 5]

I loved The Cavendon series so I thought I'd check out more of her books. This was slap dash. Staring with a trashed and then going forward in one direction.'c sideways and then backtracking. I liked Katie but I didn't really care what happened to her and the love story was, at best, half ass. Not for me.

[Donna Stewart · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lovely descriptions of landscapes and architecture. Sadly, a terrible event is the main focus of the story and how it affects the main character's life. A certain suspense is held throughout the whole book, of a possible outcome, which keeps the reader somewhat uneasy. I'm not sure the ending is plausible, but I was motivated to read to the end.

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was sure I had read this a good while ago, but I hadn't. very good story and how she was able to come to terms with what happened to her friends.
For anyone who has not read it it is one of BTB's tales with her usual slant.

[Linda Leedham · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book I could barely put down, I hadn't known this author, but I will definitely be reading another one of hers. The First part of the book captivated me with the crime scene, the 2nd part less so until it mentions the crime again and it was like this to the end,

[Tiffany · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable, dramatic, and glamorous.

[Mad Leon · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really have nothing much to say, just drivel.

[Helen Windle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Enjoyable, easy to read, but a bit predictable

[Lnicolaikent · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were to many time gaps and not enough substance in the lives of the characters Bradford just glazed over the tragic main event with little sensitivity.

[Seija · Rating 2 out of 5]

Koronan täytekirja naapurista, ei kummonen. Siis suomeksi luettuna 🙃.

[Rita · Rating 3 out of 5]

Easy reading mystery concerning a rape, murder, beating of young girls and the theatre career that all wished for and one achieved. Bradford's first murder novel. Better than I expected.

[Chelsea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good storyline. Did not enjoy the writing style.

[Souad · Rating 3 out of 5]

En arrivant à certaines pages, je m'ennuyais ! Je n'ai pas vraiment apprécié.

[AKKaCreiSi · Rating 1 out of 5]

Mal.