Title: THE SINS OF THE FATHER
Series: BOOK TWO OF THE CLIFTON CHRONICLES
Author: JEFFREY ARCHER
Type of Book: PAPERBACK
Genre: HISTORICAL FICTION
Length: 339 PAGES
Publisher: ST. MARTIN’S GRIFFIN – A division of MACMILLAN PUBLISHERS LTD.
Release Date: 2012
ISBN: 978-1-250-03903-3
Price: $16.99 USD / $19.50 CAN
Rating: 5 OUT OF 5 STARS 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
First off I have to admit that I have not read book one in the Clifton Chronicles series. I received a free copy of this book through the Goodreads Giveaway program. Fortunately for me, it was not necessary to have read the first book to understand and to enjoy THE SINS OF THE FATHER.
Historical fiction is exceptionally difficult to write, especially if it includes specific years when significant events have taken place as is the case with this book. However, Jeffrey Archer is a professional and he is able to convincingly write about the time period in question.
This series has been referred to as: “Archer’s most ambitious work in four decades as an international bestselling author.” And it is easy to understand why.
The book begins in 1939 on the docks of New York City. Harry Clifton has decided to take on a new identity in order to cut all ties to his past. He chooses to call himself Tom Bradshaw (the name of a fellow shipmate who died at sea) but little did he know that he chose the wrong person to impersonate.
Upon arrival on the docks, he is immediately arrested and charged with first-degree murder.
When Sefton Jelks, a famous (and usually expensive) lawyer, offers his services for free, Harry has little choice but to accept his advice since he has no money. After Harry is tried, found guilty and sentenced, Jelks disappears, and the only way for Harry to prove his innocence would be to reveal his true identity which he has sworn not to do. He knows that in order to set free the woman he loves, he must let everyone back in England believe that he died at sea.
Harry begins serving out his prison sentence unaware that Emma (the woman he loves more than anything else) has given birth to a son – his son.
Emma refuses to believe that Harry is dead and travels to New York to try to prove her theory.
This novel revolves around secrets – both personal and familial and gives reader a glimpse into the lives of those on both sides of the ocean both before and during World War II.
“The Sins of the Father bears all the characteristic twists of a classic Archer novel, and leaves readers wanting more.”
The author does an amazing job of explaining the backstory so that it did not matter that I had not read the first book. Jeffrey Archer has a gift for drawing readers into the story and making them care about what happens to them. This is especially true of the character Emma Barrington. It is impossible not to admire her dedication and fortitude during a time in history when women were often not taken seriously.
Because of the astonishing amount of detail and the obvious amount of research that must have gone into writing this book and the amazing character development, I rate this book as 5 out of 5 Stars.🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Watch a video in which Author Jeffrey Archer talks about THE CLIFTON CHRONICLES:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=Y7nK1_6Tp00
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
It has often been said that Jeffrey Archer’s own story would make an international bestseller. He was born in London, brought up in Somerset, the son of a printer, and educated at Wellington School, and Brasenose College, Oxford.
After leaving Oxford he was elected to the Greater London Council, and three years later at the age of 29, he became Member of Parliament for Louth. After five years in the Commons and a promising political career ahead of him, he invested heavily in a Canadian company called Aquablast, on the advice of the Bank of Boston. The company went into liquidation, and three directors were later sent to jail for fraud. Left on the brink of bankruptcy, he resigned from the House of Commons.
Aged 34, determined to repay his creditors in full, he sat down to write his first novel Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less. Written at the home of his former Oxford Principal, it was taken up by the Literary Agent, Debbie Owen, and sold to 17 countries within a year. It was also made into a successful serial for BBC Radio 4, and was later televised in 1990 by the BBC.
Since then, Jeffrey Archer has produced over 25 published titles and sold over 270 million copies around the world, in 97 countries and more than 37 languages. He is the only author ever to have been a number one bestseller in fiction (eighteen times), short stories (four times) and non-fiction (The Prison Diaries).
Jeffrey’s latest project is a seven-book saga called the Clifton Chronicles. Book One, Only Time Will Tell, published in 2011, topped the charts around the world, spending 12 weeks at No.1 in India. Books two, The Sins of the Father published in March 2012, and three, Best Kept Secret published in March 2013, also went straight to No.1 in the UK, India, Australia and South Africa. The fourth book in the series, Be Careful What You Wish For, came out in hardback in March 2014, and spent twelve weeks in the top 10—four of them at #1—on the Sunday Times Best Seller list, and also went to #1 in Australia, India, and South Africa.
Jeffrey Archer was Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party from September 1985 until November 1986. In 1991, he was co-ordinator for the Campaign for Kurdish Relief, and he is also an amateur charity auctioneer. Jeffrey Archer was made a Life Peer in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List of 1992.
Jeffrey has been married for 48 years to Dame Mary Archer DBE, who is Chairman of the Science Museum. They have two sons, William and James, and two grandsons, and divide their time between homes in London, Cambridge and Mallorca.
To learn more about this author visit the following links:
MACMILLAN PUBLISHERS AUTHOR PAGE
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