The latest volume in the mammoth Clifton chronicles by Jeffery Archer
was launched in India recently, and I was lucky to read it within 3
days of launch. The book, like all other Archer novels was
unputdownable. The story revolves around the second generation Cliftons
now, and slowly focus shifts from Harry Clifton to his son, Sebastian
Clifton and his life, first as a teenager and then as a young man trying
to make his mark in the world.
The book is set mostly in England, and is an account of only 8 years
(1957-1964), yet it contains many surprises and many ups and downs for
the Cliftons. The book opens with Harry and Emma rushing to the hospital
to find their son safe, which was expected. The book then follows the
journey of Don Pedro Martinez, an Argentine smuggler who wants to better
the Cliftons for reasons too numerous to list here. The story is
beautifully paced with the Cliftons and Martinez efforts to belittle the
other.
In this race, the Barrington Shipping Company is also put into the
gamble and the company fights with gritted breath to stand on its
shoulders with many elements coming into play. The legendary Irish
Republican Army (IRA) also makes an appearance in the novel and the
ending of this one seems to be fated on how good or how bad the IRA
operatives are.
This book, like all other Archer books is full of murder, theft,
romance and surprises. However, some part of the narration seems to be
too sloppily written by the master author. At times, the reader is left
with some of the story guessable and at times, we find that some parts
of the narrative has no apparent connection to the whole of it. Still,
it is a welcome addition to the already existing volumes of the Clifton
Chronicles.
For the readers, who wish to read this volume, it is advisable that
they first read the previous three books so that they come to terms with
the story line, otherwise many parts of the story would seem Greek and
Roman to them. In any case, Archer has enough twists and turns of plots
to convert any non-believer in his folds. And like all of his novels,
this one too ends in a cliffhanger where we are left to guess the fate
of some of the key elements in the story. But the wait is not long,
because the next volume of the series comes in 2015. Till then, happy
reading.
Title: Be Careful What You Wish For
Author: Jeffrey Archer
Publisher: Pan Macmillan
Price: Rs. 399
Rating: 3.5/5
[This review was published here.]
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