A Prisoner of Birth
by Jeffrey Archer
|
List Price: Our Price: $3.99 You Save: $6.00 (60%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $0.01 (click here) Category: Book See more book details and other editions |
|---|
Book Reviews of A Prisoner of Birth
Book Review: COUNT ON ENJOYING THIS BOOK
Summary: 3 Stars
By his own admission, Jeffrey Archer's A Prisoner of Birth is a modern day tale of revenge and self-reinvention that borrowed from and relied heavily on Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo. For this reader it appears that Archer was inspired by more than one author. Prisoner also smacks of other Dumas works as well as G. B. Shaw's Pygmalion (My Fair Lady) and a previous Archer tome titled "Not a penny more, Not a penny less".
SUMMARY: A man from the wrong side of the tracks (Danny Cartwright) is convicted and imprisoned for a crime he didn't commit based on the false testimony of four supposedly upright individuals (Musketeers) from the right side of the tracks. While in prison he is schooled in etiquette and the kings English by a fellow cellmate (Sir Nicholas Montcrieff). Danny is not only a willing and amazingly astute Eliza to the Nicholas's Henry Higgins, he also possesses the street smarts that Nicholas lacks.
Through an unbelievable set circumstances (which I will not discuss lest it spoil the pleasure of other Prisoner readers) Danny is able to plot his revenge against his accusers and dispense his own particular brand of justice.
Even though you've undoubtedly come across many variations of this plot before, you will find that Archer's skill with the written word will make the 500+ pages of Prisoner fly by. 3 1/2 STARS
Book Review: A classic tale
Summary: 4 Stars
The UK paperback edition's backcover hosts an exerpt from the Sunday Time's review of this book according to which Mr. Archer is "well placed to be the British John Grisham". This might be partly true in the sense that the legal technicalities of the trials Danny - the main character - is subjected to are finely explained and presented in a way which is never boring. However, this statement is also inaccurate as whereas Mr. Grisham's books often denounce the moral and systemic corruption of the US Legal system, in this book judges, lawyers and even prison institutions are mostly depicted as highly moral pillars of society...obviously with the exception of Mr. Spenser Craig, QC whom the reader will soon discover to be a veritable black sheep of his profession. The character of Mr. Frasier Munro, a Scottish lawyer who assists Danny in connection with his succession troubles brings the reader back to a concept of the legal profession which unfortunately I believe has long disappeared when lawyers still had a truly intense personal relationship with their clients and sincerely cared for them. The book has some slow passages, not many though. The last 50 pages are truly engaging, to be swallawed in half an hour intense page turning. Overall a very good read.Book Review: Modern day spin on a tale similar to The Count of Monte Cristo
Summary: 5 Stars
A modern day spin on the premise of The Count of Monte Cristo. Two men share a jail cell--one from the wrong part of London, convicted for a murder he didn't commit and the other an aristocrat jailed for a dereliction of duty in the military. Ironically, they look enough alike to be brothers. During confinement, they become close friends. The aristocrat takes it upon himself to teach Danny, an uneducated laborer, to read and schools him in the manners of a gentleman. When something unprecedented happens, Danny takes over his friend Nicholas' identity, assets and freedom via a parole Nicholas had earned. What happens from that time on, is a tapestry of events, challenges, joys and much more, woven so expertly by Sir Jeffrey Archer. The intrigue is great, the twists present the unexpected and it is a book I could read over several times, each time discovering another nuance.
ARLISS ADAMS
www.devils-dance.com
The Twist of Fate series
Devil's Dance
The Devil's Due
Book Review: A BOOK YOU CAN'T PUT DOWN!
Summary: 5 Stars
I actually listened to the audio version, which was extremely well done. It's unabridged, thirteen cassettes, and I couldn't wait to get in my car to listen to the next installment. Think a modern day Count of Monte Cristo, with many added twists.
I liked it so much, that I'll read the print version, as well. Two men share a jail cell--one convicted for a murder he didn't commit and the other an aristocrat jailed for a dereliction of duty in the military. Ironically, they look enough alike to be brothers. During confinement, they become close friends. The aristocrat takes it upon himself to teach Danny, an uneducated laborer from the wrong part of London, to read and schools him in the manners of a gentleman. When something unprecedented happens, Danny takes over the identity, assets and freedom via parole, of his friend Nicholas. What happens from that time on, is a tapestry of events, challenges, joys and much more woven so expertly by Sir Jeffrey Archer.
I've always been a fan of his writing, and this is no exception. Be prepared to become addicted to this story and keenly interested in what happens to the characters. An excellent read!
[...]
Book Review: Starts great, then becomes predictable and average
Summary: 3 Stars
This one really hooked me at the beginning. I was telling my wife after the first disc (I listened to audio version) that she needed to read this. By the 3rd or 4th disc (of 13), my enthusiasm for the story had begun to seriously wane; it's as though Mr. Archer started with full creative powers, and then made a decision to mail it in. The characters, language, and conversations all become trite and predictable. And there is very little shading to the characters - each one is either a pillar of his society or the blackest villain to ever populate the earth...no in-between. The book does however create its own momentum, and so though increasingly disappointed, I did get to the end. At the end, there are a couple of plot/logic holes that made me a bit disgusted that I had continued. If you decide to read this, see if you can spot them - they both occur when the chief villain is in court on the stand being questioned by Sir Matthew, and have to do with incompleteness of the scenarios setup by the lawyer for how the murder and wounding had occurred, and the inability of the witness to see a question coming that anyone of the witness' intelligence would have prepared for...