Friday 25 November 2011

Book Review: Sons of Fortune by Jeffrey Archer

Synopsis from Goodreads
Title: Sons of Fortune
Author: Jeffrey Archer
Publication Date: December 9th, 2002
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
In hushed maternity ward, an infant dies, while twin brothers thrive. By morning, one mother is told that her only child is doing fine. Another is told that she has tragically lost one of her sons...

Twins seperated at birth, Nathaniel Cartwright and Fletcher Davenport have been raised in different worlds, and have both thrived among the best and brightest of their generation. In an era of violent change, freee love, and blind ambition, Nat goes off to war, while Fletcher enters political combat. With each choice they make--in love and career, through tragedy and triumph--their lives mirror one another...until a high-profile murder case brings them together. Until a high-stakes political battle turns them into rivals. Until a decades-old secret is exposed...and two powerful men must confront their bonds of fate and fortune.
My Review
It was an okay read. Knowing Jeffrey Archer's work, I expected the book to be filled with suspense and action. However, it was more like a realistic drama. The storyline was fast paced  and easy to read, but it was lacking a climax.. the developments and twists in the story were minimal; it was such a disappointment.
Fletcher and Nat were separated at birth, where Fletcher ended up with the Davenport's, a well established family. Nat, on the other hand, was raised by his birth parents, the Cartwright's, whom although were economically challenged, were very caring and loving towards their son.
They both grew up to be well-respected men, they married the women they love,  and are both lucky to have loyal best friends. All in all, they were fortunate enough. Both brothers met each other during their political battle against each other. They were rivals and were both liked by many people around them, so the competition was pretty tough.  As the story progressed, Nat's and Fletcher's journeys had major set-backs.. they both had challenges to overcome, and a high-profile murder case to fight.
While reading the book, I enjoyed it at first, but then, I was desperately waiting for the storyline to pick up its pace, but it was just too dull. Even when there were major events that happened in the story, it wasn't as effective.
I was also anticipating some action, ESPECIALLY when the brothers got to find out that they were related and twins, but it wasn’t even a big deal to them.
Overall, the book was fast-paced and it has some interesting aspects, but it lacked a lot for me.
2/5
Xoxo Meera