The Eleventh Commandment - Softcover

Archer, Jeffrey

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1250016401 ISBN 13: 9781250016409

Publisher: St Martins Pr, 2013

Synopsis

ELEVENTH COMMANDMENT

Jeffrey Archer

Connor Fitzgerald has an impressive resume. Military hero. Devoted family man. Servant of his country--as an assassin. Just as he's about to put his twenty-eight-year career at the CIA behind him, he comes up against the most dangerous enemy he's ever faced: His own boss, Helen Dexter.

As Director of the CIA, Dexter has always been the one to hold the strings. But when her status is threatened by a greater power, her only hope for survival is to destroy Fitzgerald. Meanwhile, the country braces itself as tensions with a new Russian leader reach the boiling point...and it's up to Fitzgerald to pull off his most daring mission yet: To save the world. Even if that means risking everything--including his own life--in the process.

This edition of the book is the deluxe, tall rack mass market paperback.

About this title

Review:

Former MP and prospective Mayor of London Jeffrey Archer's latest offering is an ambitious international thriller of expansive scope, a tale of espionage, intrigue and suspense at the very highest echelons of power. Archer wastes no time diving into his rollercoaster of a plot; we are introduced to our hero, Connor Fitzgerald, "the CIA's most deadly weapon", as he completes his mission--to assassinate a presidential candidate in Colombia. The far-reaching consequences of his act are not immediately apparent as he makes his way back to a loving wife and daughter and his life of "normality"--as far as they are concerned he is an insurance specialist--but in his inimitable style, Archer drives the plot along at speed, never lingering for longer than necessary as we are introduced to a succession of characters of great stature, ranging from the President of the United States to his headstrong CIA director and a new, extremist president in Russia. As the plot develops, Connor becomes ensnared in a political intrigue which will see him have to draw on all his wits and resourcefulness as he struggles for self-preservation and the safety of the free world as we know it.

One might assume that, given Archer's proximity to genuine political power for much of his life, he would be in a position to bring a greater realism to his story of high-stakes political manoeuvring than other authors without his experience. He certainly encourages this belief on his page of acknowledgements, which includes a former director of the CIA and FBI and a U.S. National Security Advisor. However, readers anticipating evidence of any great insight into this world should prepare to be disappointed--this is not where the strength of the book lies, although there are some nice touches, and a certain suspension of disbelief is necessary to get the best out of it. Mind you, one doesn't doubt that Archer's eleventh commandment, "Thou shalt not be caught", is a maxim many politicians and power-brokers, himself included, have lived their lives by. Where he does succeed, though, is in story-telling, with a relentless plot and the creation of a sympathetic, if barely plausible, central character capable of drawing readers in and carrying them, thrill-a-minute, to a dramatic, surprising and ultimately satisfying conclusion. --Alisdair Bowles

Review:

"Archer delivers another page-turning, heart-stopping saga, with delightful twists, and a surprise ending... readers will surely wait for the next with bated breath." --Publishers Weekly on ONLY TIME WILL TELL

"General readers as well as Archer fans will enjoy this unforgettable tale, which abounds with cliff-hangers that propel its intriguing and intricate plot." --Library Journal (starred review) on ONLY TIME WILL TELL

"What appears at the outset to be a straightforward coming-of-age tale becomes, by the end, a saga of power, betrayal, and bitter hatred. The novel ends on a deliberately dark note, setting the stage for the sequel...An outstanding effort from a reliable veteran." --Booklist (starred review), on Only Time Will Tell

"By the time you make it to the last page, the drama of Harry Clifton's young life takes the reader to the edge of the cliff, where they must hang until the next Clifton Chronicle." --Sunday Telegraph on ONLY TIME WILL TELL

About this edition

• Publisher: St Martins Pr
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 1250016401
• ISBN 13: 9781250016409
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• Number of pages: 443