When her half-sister dies, 25-year-old Elizabeth Deravenel
Turner takes charge of the family business, Deravenels, with
relish. Mary had been a thorn in Elizabeth's side, and she
regrettably feels nothing other than relief. The close relationship
she would have liked to have had with Mary was never to be thanks
to Mary's jealousy and blame for an accident of birth. With the
absence of Mary from her life, Elizabeth can finally relax. Or can
she?

Although Mary is dead, there is another Turner relative, Marie
Stewart, waiting in the wings to stake her claim on Deravenels and
throw Elizabeth from her position of power. Depending on who you
ask, Elizabeth's claim to power as head of Deravenels is tenuous at
best.

Not so in Elizabeth's eyes, however. Despite her young age, she
quickly and effortlessly slips into her role as the head of
Deravenels, feeling that it is nothing less than a position of
honor to carry on the work of her ancestors in this family business
and help it not only to survive but to thrive. Although Mary
squandered many assets on her husband, who was starting a business
of his own, Elizabeth is determined to refurbish the coffers and
make Deravenels as sound as it ever was.

Elizabeth not only has her hands full with the running of
Deravenels, she also has an active personal life. One day she
suddenly looks at her childhood companion Robert Dunley with new
eyes, and this lifelong friend takes on a new importance in her
life.

While Elizabeth and Robert are happily ensconced in their own
little cocoon of love, however, scandal abounds. Although
separated, Robert is a married man, and Elizabeth, as any other
rich and powerful figure, is under intense scrutiny from those who
work for her and from the public in general.

Each time life seems to be settling into a comfortable routine,
scandal rears its head again. And every time, Elizabeth scales each
mountain with aplomb. Will she emerge victorious, or will the
events and dramas of her life and business finally get the better
of her?

Barbara Taylor Bradford continues her series of novels that
began with THE RAVENSCAR DYNASTY and followed with THE HEIR. These
books parallel the events of York and Tudor England in a modern-day
setting. All the main players are there, and while they have
somewhat different names, they usually share the same initials.
Anyone familiar with these periods of history easily will be able
to match the current-day characters with their historical
counterparts.

In BEING ELIZABETH, Bradford transports us to a world of
opulence, power and riches that few of us will ever experience.
However satisfied or unsatisfied we may be with our present lives,
it's always fun to escape into the fantasy world of the
author’s mind. BEING ELIZABETH may thrill and twist and turn,
but it never disappoints.