Book info

• Title Best Kept Secret
• Author Jeffrey Archer
• Year 2013
• Genre Historical

It is 1945 and the House of Lords’ vote on who should inherit the Barrington estate ends in a tie, casting a long shadow on the lives of those involved. Author Harry begins to promote his novel, whilst Emma, after her father’s mysterious death, searches for the girl found abandoned in his office on the night he died. Politician Giles defends his seat in the House of Commons and finds not only his future but his family’s fortune at stake. Ultimately his fate is dictated by Harry’s son Sebastian, even as Sebastian himself becomes embroiled in an international art fraud.

Thoughts

This book followed in the same fashion as the previous Clifton Chronicles, and was just as gripping - following the fortunes of various family members as they dip in and out of each other’s lives. It was fun reading about the squabbles of siblings, although I was less interested in the machinations of Giles attempting to retain his seat as MP.

You can sort of tell there is a focus on less detail in this book, and instead moving the story along at a cracking pace. Indeed, the author’s note at the end admits he’s having to stretch out the series to more than the planned number of novels.

The sequence towards the end of the book surprised me, as it seemed to take a turn towards the thriller genre coming out of nowhere. However, that just allowed for another cracking cliffhanger, which means I have to ge the next book on the go as soon as possible!

Rating: 4 / 5