The Sins of the Father (The Clifton Chronicles, #2) by Jeffrey Archer.

Follow Harry Clifton and his friends and family from 1939 to 1945. Although this is the second book in The Clifton Chronicles series, it can be read as a standalone.

I liked how Jeffrey used the same format for this book as he did in the first. Each character had chapters written from their point of view, so you as the reader get the whole story, as opposed to the characters who only get a snip.

I liked how Jeffrey gently gave you the backstory, so that if you had not read the first book, you were not left in the dark. Also if it had been awhile since you had read the first book, then your memory will be refreshed, which gives added value to the story.

I liked The Sins of the Father more than the first book. I thought the plot was far better and I liked that Harry and his contemporaries were now adults rather than teenagers.

I liked how the book progressed and I was unsure how the story would unfold. I found this novel to be a pleasant read. Character development was very good, regardless whether the person was a good or bad guy.

I found The Sins of the Father to be a comfortable read. Although it was set in times well before I was born, it had dilemmas etc that are still relevant today. This book kept me entertained and I am pleased that I purchased a copy. I thought the writing was of good quality and it captured mood, very well indeed. This novel was not outstanding but nevertheless it was a GOOD read and accordingly gets 4 stars from me.

The Sins of the Father was published in 2012 and is available as an Amazon Kindle eBook.

Only Time Will Tell (The Clifton Chronicles, #1) by Jeffrey Archer.

Let’s go back in time for this family drama set mostly in Bristol from 1919 to 1940. The central character is Harry Clifton, hence the title and not to be confused with the district in Bristol of the same name. Harry Clifton was born in 1920 and this book tells of his young life until he was 20.

I found Only Time Will Tell to be an okay read. It brought back many memories of Bristol, as I had lived there for 20 years. I liked the many mentions of places and roads that I remember. Even my old school of Merrywood was featured and as we lived in the district of Bedminster, Harry’s home in Stillhouse Lane really rang a bell with me. A quick check on streetmap.co.uk brought it all back to life!

The structure of Only Time Will Tell is very different from other novels. It starts with a prelude from the point of view of Maisie Clifton, Harry’s mother. Then you have Harry’s tale from 1920 to 1933, followed by chapters featuring other characters who are involved in Harry’s life. There are further updates from Harry and the other characters until Harry’s section finishes in 1940.

I liked how the other characters filled into the story all the bits that Harry was blissfully unaware of. This way the story built up depth and all those little bits fitted together to give the reader a complete tale. Lots of characters told porkies along the way and I was on my guard from early on that what they said could not be taken as gospel.

I found this novel a comfortable read. It was not spectacular but plodded along in a pleasant way. It was easy reading and told in a nice mature way. Nothing shined about this novel but it was convenient as my daily read and his writing is quality. So this quality writing without a WOW! Factor is an okay 3 star read for me.

Only Time Will Tell was published in 2011 and is available as an Amazon Kindle eBook.

A Matter of Honour by Jeffrey Archer.

Adam Scott has been left an unopened envelope in his father’s will. Should he open it or let sleeping dogs lie? Well, if Adam had not opened the envelope, Jeffrey would not have been able to write this novel. So Adam opens this mysterious envelope and has to deal with the consequences!

This novel was written over 30 years ago and I have not read a novel by Jeffrey Archer before. The author had a long political career with the Conservative Party and has been imprisoned for perjury and perverting the course of justice. But as this book was featured as a Kindle Daily Deal for just £1.09p - I thought I would turn a blind eye to his history, grab a copy and read his book with an open mind.

I was very surprised by A Matter of Honour. It is set in 1966 and is a thriller involving fakes, lies and secrets. Modern thrillers contain a lot of detail about email, the internet and mobile phones. But over 50 years ago things were very different! No email, no internet and telephones were connected by copper cables, were not cordless and people used public call boxes by inserting coins in the booth. But people still told lies and bad guys still had to be tackled.

Although this novel was set over 50 years ago, it is still easy to relate to - easy for me as I had used pounds, shillings and pence in my childhood! So in my mind I thought about the time I was a child when I wondered what the adults were doing and what the fuss was all about.

I liked the style of how Jeffrey Archer told his story and for the written word, sounded like Ian Hislop on the BBC television comedy panel show, Have I Got News For You. The character development of Adam Scott was spot on and you could imagine his accent to be similar to Ian Hislop.

I liked the plot of A Matter of Honour and how you developed suspicions of all the characters. The pace was good and the story was engaging. I liked how all the little details sparked in your head making you think, “this is relevant”.

I found this book to be a joy to read, as I was transported back in time and into another world. For all the modern technology we have today, I can imagine these things still going on because of the way people are underneath. I was fully entertained by the depth of this story.

I liked the way Jeffrey Archer wrote this novel and how the characters told lies so easily, making me chuckle because of his own imprisonment for telling porkies. I thought his writing was very clear and the story easy to understand.

A Matter of Honour was a pleasant surprise for me and very different from my usual current day crime thrillers. I enjoyed it as my daily read and the quality of this novel gets the top score of 5 stars from me. I suggest readers forget the time period this novel is set in and just enjoy this story for what it is.

A Matter of Honour was published in 1986 and is available as an Amazon Kindle eBook.