Customer Reviews

Sons Of Fortune

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(21)
3 star:		(23)
2 star:		(26)
1 star:		(18)

 

 

Being a fan of Mr. Archer's from way back, I was delighted to see that he was back on track and making good use of his confinement. Boy, was I wrong! This novel reads like Danielle Steel wrote it- full of trite phrases and hokey dialogue that only shows that Mr. Archer must not be conversing a great deal lately. Also, the time frames do not match up with the characters: if they are twins, Nat goes to Vietnam when he is in his first year of college, (18) stays 2 years and comes back when he is 19? Simultaneously, his "twin" is now at Yale Law? Huh?
The worst part of the book is the ending- (stop here if you don't want to know...)a rival reveals secrets that lead Nat's talented and sensitive son to suicide (even though it had NOTHING to do with him..) and the two brothers find themselves at last- only to agree never to acknowledge each other. Neither of these incidents stop them from campaigning for governor...

This is an well crafted, well researched novel by the master storyteller Lord Jeffrey Archer that I decided to read immediately because of its special interest to me. It is a tale of destiny and fortune that spans the last half of the twentienth century, and is fast paced and foreboding. It is set in Connecticut, with the birth of two twins who are separated at birth and raised in disparate circumstances by parents who are unaware of the switch which occurred in the hospital nursery. (Of course, the reader's knowledge of the situation and desire to to see how the resultant issues are finally resolved is one of the compelling aspects of the book.)

Nathaniel Cartwright grows up with his middle class parents, an insurance salesman and schoolteacher. They all believe that his twin brother Peter died shortly after birth. Meanwhile, only two individuals are aware of the fact that the baby who leaves the hospital as Fletcher Andrew Davenport, son of a millionaire and major benefactor of the hospital, is in reality Peter Cartwright. We follow their lives as they grow up in CT.

Nat wins a scholarship to Taft, meets his lifelong friend Tom Russell, attends the University of Connecticut and eventually serves in Vietnam. Also, while at Taft Nat first opposes Ralph Elliot for school president, whose cunning and manipulative ways will influence both Nat's and Fletcher's lives in unforeseen ways. Meanwhile, Fletcher attends rival Hotchkiss, meets Jimmy Gates, son of a state Senator and eventually goes to Yale and studies law. Their stories seem to alternately move in parallel and then diverge as their fortunes rise and fall. After initial careers in NYC they both return to CT., Nat as a banker and Fletcher as a criminal defense attorney; as befitting a saga of this type they both become devoted husbands and fathers as well. As their careers proceed, it seems inevitable they they will both eventually run for public office.

This is a story that does a very good job of capturing the era. In fact, it is divided into seven books, and the very aptly chosen titles clearly indicate the author's intent for this to be a major literary work - GENESIS, EXODUS, CHRONICLES, ACTS, JUDGES, REVELATION, and NUMBERS. This book is of special interest to me. I was born and raised in CT, won a scholarship to a New England prep school and also attended college There. And now my wife and I once again live there, in close proximity to Taft and Hotchkiss. The narrative rings true to the time and locale. Even the politics are relatively accurate.

It took me a short while to get used to a story written totally in the third party, but after a few chapters I was completely involved. The story moves rapidly and continually between the two protagonists' lives; I almost hesitated to start the book (503 pages, not 400 as indicated), but it read very rapidly. The juxtaposition of the lives is very effective, but be warned, this is story, not a book of personal reflection and psychological insights.

I became increasingly involved, and several of the climactic developments during during the last few sections took me by complete surprise. I was tremendously impressed by the author's ability to weave a tale. If, I had had to guess at my rating with twenty pages to go it probably would have been five stars. Then, total disppointment. The last section seems excruiatingly slow, totally predictable, and completely unsatisfying and unrealistic. It is inexplicable; perhaps Sir Archer felt the story had been so good that the reader would accept a conclusion that basically says life goes on, but that is not the mark of a great story teller.

A few other minor complaints. First, for as meticulous research as was done, it is surprising that two of the towns involved in political events were Ipswich and Chelsea, both of which are in reality in Massachusetts rather than CT. (Any map or atlas would have shown this.) Second, at a crucial point the vote for the two candidates on page 498 is sloppily transposed. Last, the final election scenario is riduculous for 1992, and the consultation regarding the election outcome indicates an utter lack of knowledge of the difference between federal and state authority in elections. (This is too bad since I am quite a political junkie and most of the political background and maneveuring and mind numbing attention to detail of political campaigns was very accurately portrayed.)

So, if you like good stories of a broad sweep, read and enjoy SONS OF FORTUNE. You will be entertained (and surprised), but I suspect that like me you will also feel that the conclusion is an anticlimax. However, perhaps you won't care, especially if you are a confirmed Jeffrey Archer fan.

Fletcher Davenport and Nat Cartwright are two successful young men - but they also happen to be twins separated at birth as a result of the unscrupulous actions of a well-meaning nurse in the hospital nursery. Nat Cartwright, raised in a loving modest household, his mother, a school teacher and his father, a successful insurance salesman, serves with honourable distinction in Vietnam, and becomes an overwhelmingly successful currency dealer and banker. On the other hand, Fletcher begins his days as the son of a millionaire and his society wife, graduates from Yale and distinguishes himself as a defender in the field of criminal law. Popular among their friends and peers, both men become involved in politics, first in school and college, then at the municipal level and finally as opposing candidates for state governor, all the while unaware that they are twin brothers.

Is the story or plot believable? The best one could say is that it's possible but it isn't even close to being credible! Are the characters overly good, overly perfect, overly handsome, plain, nerdy or beautiful, or overly despicable and evil? No doubt about it! Is the ending too pat and too cute? Yep, no question there either! Do I care about any of that? Not even a teeny bit! If Jeffrey Archer showed up at my door and tried to explain that there was a deep, subliminal moral message and some special theme underlying the whole story, I'd cover my ears and tell him to go away. The story was simply too artificial, too contrived, too enjoyable and too well written and exciting to be accounted for as anything other than great brain candy.

Did I mention that I loved it from start to finish? Time Magazine put it best in their editorial review on the back cover of the book - "Archer is a master entertainer"!

(This is based on the British edition of this book, which I expect is almost identical to the American edition.)

I think Jeffrey Archer's best book was his first (Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less) but his other books have been entertaining. Sons of Fortune is much like Kane & Abel, but the two men whose fates are entwined are actually twins, unknown to each other because they were separated at birth without knowledge of the parents. Not plausible, but suspend disbelief for the sake of the story.

The two men's lives are followed from birth, and they run in parallel without ever quite meeting through most of the book. Both go into politics, and eventually compete directly against each other.

The problem that I couldn't get past is the book's completely wrong description of how American elections work (especially the Connecticut gubernatorial primary and general elections). I suppose that Parliamentary elections may work as shown here, but ours don't (and Archer should certainly know it). Most major plot elements in the last third of the book rely on impossible electoral events. The errors aren't small, and can't be overlooked by anyone who's ever seen election results.

Even without the errors, this would be Archer's weakest novel. With the errors, it's almost impossible to finish.

I am glad that I ignored quite a few reviews of this book. I found it to be quite wholesome and interesting.It is refreshing to read a modern novel without all the vulgar language that most authors today feel nessessary to inject. I am from the South and have been in Connecticut only on one occasion. It was a beautiful state. I only wish I could have seen more of it.
The book is fiction to say the least. I can't imagine this plot in real life,however, it is possible. I thought Archer probably dug down deep to come up with the numerous plots. I especially liked the courtroom discourses and arguments. It was quite believable. The election process was fascinating. I seem to remember this method of counting ballots from the last presidential election. I was wondering throughout the book, how it would end. I was completely taken back with the surprise ending. I was afraid that it would be 'onesided', but Archer managed to pull it of well. I still like his work and will continue to read more of Jeffrey Archer in the future.

Jeffrey Archer remains one of the most riveting story-tellers in contemporary fiction. Although SONS OF FORTUNE may not be another KANE AND ABEL, I was thoroughly enchanted and caught up in this story of Nat Cartwright and Fletcher Davenport.

A meddling nurse decides to play God and let one woman who gives birth to twins think one of them has died. She gives the other twin to her employer who has difficulty carrying a baby to full-term. So begins the story of two young boys whose lives parallel each other in remarkable ways through triumphs and tragedies. Nat grows up in his natural parents middle-class lifestyle while Fletcher becomes the heir to a wealthy family's largesse. Their days at boarding school and college are told in such a way that only enhances Archer's reputation as a master storyteller, albeit not so perfect on all factual information. Nat becomes a VietNam hero, Fletcher becomes a community savior. Both have lucrative careers in New York, but are brought back to their hometown in Connecticut. They are propelled into political careers that have them both running for Governor of the state. Meanwhile, an old nemesis of both is murdered and one stands trial while the other defends him. All the while, the reader is breathlessly waiting for the BIG NEWS to be revealed. Will anyone notice the similarities as they stand side by side? Will their innate connection tip anyone off to the true story? Will their lives change dramatically if the truth is ever revealed?

Unfortunately, an otherwise great book falters terribly in the final section. Senseless tragedy in each man's family only compounded this reader's frustration. After being dumbstruck at the ending, I can only offer this to those of you who share my feelings at the ending: go back and read the beginning of Chapter 31 and then reread the last paragraph when the mayor TURNS AROUND to face the two candidates.

Not perfect, but I still found it well worth reading and totally enjoyable if not a bit let-down by what could have been the most tear-jerking reunion ever, but wasn't.

I felt compelled to write a review for this after seeing it get canned by almost every other reviewer on this site.

Sons of Fortune is an entertaining read which moves quickly from scene to scene. This type of book is Archer's forte, and whilst not being close to Kane and Abel, the all-time Archer classic, it is interesting enough to keep most readers attention. Many here have complained about it being too absurd. I don't read novels to be shown lessons on how life can be lived. I like to read about the impossible. And anyway, nothing could be more fictional than Not a Penny More... , which is my second favourite Archer, if only for its ingenuity.

Yes, Archer does resort to tools used in his previous novels, which probably provides the only real negative for die hard fans of his such as myself. However, in none of his 'rivalry' novels has he used the trick of having the rivals help one another out, which provides the real twist to this novel.

Jeffrey Archer has never pretended to be a brilliant writer, but he is one hell of a storyteller, and Sons of Fortune only confirms that.

Archer is one of my favorite authors, but Sons of Fortune is nothing more than Kane and Abel nuked in a microwave. It has none of the emotion or well-drawn out characters that make Archer such an enjoyable author. It has all of the hallmarks of Archer books (two protagonists, a antoganist that stretches back to childhood, lots of women, business takeovers, etc.) with none of the juicy storytelling that allows Archer to rise above being a supermarket-rack novelist. The ending (last few chapters) is entirely implausible, as Archer allows the story to careen out of control. The end of the book turns into a Perry Mason movie. Archer needs to get off the two warring protagonists kick and get back to writing other storylines. A promising start turns into a disappointing finish.

The author was able to weave two stories pretty well for the first half of the book but then he went into an overdrive to finish up the rest of the book. The end is rushed, he did not take time to flesh some of the characters out and then rushes to end the book. It is like starting a good dinner with a great appetizer and then a okay entre and a bad or poor desert. He normally finishes well in most of his books. It was a let down at the end.

For long time Archer fans such as myself, a new book is always something to look forward to but after reading his latest I wonder if it was worth it. SONS OF FORTUNE is a hollywoodish story that's more Sleepless in Seattle than Die Hard and has a plot that keeps promising but fails to deliver.

We have here a pair of twins separated at birth, who separately keep blazing paths of glory. The story follows their individual but entwined lives right from school in Hartford and college in Yale and Harvard, jobs in NY, etc. till they finally decide to run for the Governor of Connecticut against each other.

To be fair to Archer, the twins' characters are well etched, but the other characters such as their best friends start off with detail and are mysteriously and suddenly ignored; becoming also rans in the story.

Too many plots within the plot, coincidences a dime a dozen and predictability are the three things that hamper this book from being a good one. Too many times one gets the feeling that Archer initiates a particular sequence or incident well but loses steam midway.

Overall, I would say the book is worth reading only if you have time to kill.

But I am sure you would agree that Archer only "Flatters to Deceive !"