Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less [Hardcover]

Jeffrey Archer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1986

One million dollars - that's what Harvey Metcalfe, lifelong king of shady deals, has pulled off with empty promises of an oil bonanza and instant riches. Overnight, four men - the heir to an earldom, a Harley Street doctor, a Bond Street art dealer and an Oxford don - find themselves penniless.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"One of the top ten storytellers in the world."-Los Angeles Times"Archer...has an extraordinary talent for turning notoriety into gold, and telling fast-moving stories." -The Philadelphia Inquirer"A master at mixing power, politics, and profit into fiction."--Entertainment Weekly"Archer plots with skill, and keeps you turning the pages."--The Boston Globe"Cunning plots, silken style...Archer plays a cat-and-mouse game with the reader."--The New York Times"A storyteller in the class of Alexandre Dumas...unsurpassed skill...making the reader wonder intensely what will happen next."--The Washington Post"Archer is one of the most captivating storytellers writing today. His novels are dramatic, fast moving, totally entertaining-and almost impossible to put down."-Pittsburgh Press --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Publisher

Jeffrey Archer’s mastery of characterization and “white-knuckle” suspense, combined with a gift for the ingenious plot twist, demonstrate why he is one of Britain’s best-selling authors. In this collection of audiobooks, a fine cast offers readings of some of the master storyteller’s most spellbinding work. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 230 pages
• Publisher: Doubleday (April 1986)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 038511222X
• ISBN-13: 978-0385112222
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (82 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,713,803 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Ultimate Revenge Novel---Liberally Laced With Humor, June 15, 2004

By 

Antoinette Klein (Hoover, Alabama USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less (Mass Market Paperback)

Have you ever wanted to get even? I mean *really* even. That's the plot in Jeffrey Archer's first novel. Four disparate men are each swindled out of their life's savings by a clever con man. How they combine to get even and try to reclaim what is rightfully theirs makes for a brilliantly plotted, fact-paced read peopled by sympathetic characters. Stephen, an Oxford professor, Robin, a Harley Street physician, Jean-Pierre Lamanns, a French art dealer, and James Brigsley, an English lord, all find themselves in identical circumstances. Singularly, they are powerless, but united they develop a plan to win back their lost money without exacting any further punishment than attaining not a penny more, not a penny less, of that which was stolen from them.

Although this is quite different from Archer's later family sagas such as KANE AND ABEL, AS THE CROW FLIES, and others, it is no less ingenious or entertaining. This is a light-hearted romp filled with humor, romance, and revenge. There's also a knock-your-socks off ending to end all endings.

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A truly enjoyable read - one of the best books I've read., May 27, 1999

By A Customer

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This review is from: Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less (Mass Market Paperback)

Couldn't wait to read this each day and was sorry when I finished it because I didn't have the pleasure of anticipation the next day. Jeffrey Archer has woven a thoroughly enjoyable tale of a scoundral - Harvey - who cheats anyone anyway he can. Through an innocent third party, he manages to dupe four men out of a total of $1,000,000. One of these, a university professor, determines to follow his father's motto: don't get angry, get even. The professor puts together a dossier on Harvey and contacts the three other men and convinces them to come up with a way to get the money they lost back. (They had all invested in north sea oil shares that turned out to be worthless.) The schemes they develop and carry out are not only brilliant, but also very humorous reading. The delightful twist at the end had me laughing all through the last chapter. This book is skillfully written and sure to be enjoyed by Archer fans. Anyone who has not read his books, would surely become a fan after reading "Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less".

27 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Early novel shines -- almost, August 9, 2000

By 

Marcy L. Thompson (Sammamish, WA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less (Mass Market Paperback)

In some ways, this is my favourite Archer novel -- the plot and the characters are wonderful.

The book suffers from his lack of experience (it was his first published novel). The story is slow to get started (considering the length of the novel) and the ending is more contrived than the endings of his later books. Occasionally, the dialogue is stilted, and there are viewpoint shifts that happen without notice.

However, Archer is a great storyteller, and this story just keeps moving. Essentially, this is a revenge tale, in which four men swindled by a master con-artist decide to get back exactly what he stole from them. They embark on a series of scams in order to extract the money from the miscreant. The scams are just barely believable, and one of the strengths of the book is the way that the author drags you in and gets you to believe that these exotic plots can work.

This is an excellent short novel, with lots of light suspense and much to admire. It is well worth the time it takes to read.