First Among Equals (Mass Market Paperback)

~ (Author) "Mr. Speaker Rose and surveyed the Commons..." (more)
Key Phrases: Prime Minister, Chief Whip, Simon Kerslake (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A dramatic plot . . . An absorbing read." -- —Detroit Free Press

Review

"This engrossing, well-spun tale of ambition and will-to-power is a pick-hit in the summer sweepstakes. Archer received his usual high marks for readability and gives his novel a pleasing sense of substance."-Publishers Weekly

"All the elements that make for a great commercial fiction: ambition, lust, greed, duplicity...a whale of a tale."-Newsday

"Top-flight entertainment."-United Press International

"Archer invests his novels with drama, irony and suspense-First Among Equals is no exception...fascinating."-The Boston Herald

"A razzle-dazzle fictional turn...engaging...pertinent and compelling."
-The Washington Times Magazine

"Archer is a master entertainer."--Time Magazine

"There isn't a better storyteller alive."-Larry King

"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

"Cunning plots, silken style...Archer plays a cat-and-mouse game with the reader."
-The New York Times

"A storyteller in the class of Alexander Dumas...Unsurpassed skill...making the reader wonder intensely what will happen next."-The Washington Post

--This text refers to an alternate Mass Market Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 496 pages
• Publisher: HarperTorch (October 15, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061007161
• ISBN-13: 978-0061007163
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,380,396 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars 4 tight election races by political insider, December 8, 1999

By	Bill Mac "hmcs_kenogami" (windsor, ontario Canada) - See all my reviews

(The following refers to the unabridged audiobook version)

First Among Equals profiles the lives of four fictional British politicians from their entry into the House of Commons until one becomes Prime Minister. Since Archer was a politician through some of the period that First Among Equals covers, the novel possesses an insider's knowledge. It also contains scheming, shady deals, sex, personal tragedy and terrorism. It is an enjoyable story but a little too orchestrated to be plausible.

Archer starts by introducing the reader to four different characters, all of whom have different skills and different reasons for wanting to be the Prime Minister. While the reader is given some background on the characters, the novel really begins in earnest with the 1964 British general election. Two are Conservative Party and two are Labour Party members. For the next 27 years, Archer guides the readers through the ups and downs of the men's careers, their personal challenges, and their conflicts. The reader gets a sense of the hard work and sacrifice that is required for a politician to be a good MP and Cabinet Minister. It is also clear that good luck has a lot to do with progress; supporting the right leadership candidate at the right time and picking the right issues to tackle.

Archer tells a story and tells it well. He effectively builds suspense, can lead the reader in one direction and then switch direction quickly. First Among Equals is also not a nasty novel. Even the rogues have their redeeming points and are sometimes portrayed sympathetically.

First Among Equals is a good read although I did have some problems. I did find some of the election races just too close. Archer's twists of direction began to get predictable and manipulative. The box cover indicated that only one of the four could get to be Prime Minister and the novel does end with one's appointment. However, the novel doesn't exclude the possibility of another individual achieving the Prime Ministership later. I was also very disappointed by the ultimate resolution of the novel. The last chapter struck me as unrealistic and contrived. I just could not believe that it would actually happen as Archer described it. Archer constructed a Lady and the Tiger ending without any explanation for the ultimate decision. I also had a bit of difficulty believing that politicians are as straightforward as most of the ones portrayed.

Still, First Among Equals is enjoyable and educational to some degree. Politics and politicians can be quite boring. First Among Equals definitely is not boring.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Top-class, May 28, 2002

By	Vijay Krishna (Chennai, TN, India) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

'First Among Equals' is quite a different tale. Some of my friends told me that they found the initial part boring. Well, I didn't find that assessment to be true. This novel makes a very interesting reading, and like many other Archer novels, it picks up action as you reach 200-odd pages.

This is a tale of four aspiring gentlemen: Fraser, Gould, Kerslake and Seymour who enter the House of Commons in the 1960s, each aspiring to win the highest office - and to reach 10 Downing Street. But only one man can do it. Archer, the master storyteller that he is, narrates in detail the lives of each men - the ups and downs each must face - and winds it up with the final battle.

The suspense is gripping and the man who becomes the Prime Minister is revealed only in the very last paragraph of the novel.

Overall a great story... hats off.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great political tale, December 22, 2003

By	FrKurt Messick "FrKurt Messick" (Bloomington, IN USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)

There is the theoretical idea in Westminster Parliamentary systems that all Cabinet ministers are equals, and that the Prime Minister is simply First among Equals, rather than the nearly all-powerful figure most have become (similarly, the Pope as Bishop of Rome is theoretically merely the first among equals of bishops -- see how that works?).

In fact, the office of the Prime Minister is a powerful position, one that drives many people to do strange and bizarre things in aid of attaining the office. Like the characters in the novel, Jeffrey Archer (now Lord Archer, most recently guest of Her Majesty's prison system) had Prime Ministerial ambitions, too. Unlike many of the characters in this novel, Archer 'settled' for less than the Premeirship earlier in his career, discovering writing as a lucrative and creative outlet, and one that allows him to work out his personal and professional angst in a very unique manner. Much in this novel reflects Archer's own struggles.

The novel is very accurate and true to form in the mechanics and atmosphere of the House of Commons and House of Lords. Having been a Member of Parliament, Archer knew the environment from the inside, and drew realistic scenarios and created realistic characters of such degree that I have required this novel as a text when I've taught British politics.

The major cast of characters -- Seymour, Kerslake, Fraser and Gould -- fit composites of many back-benchers I knew when I worked in Parliament. Unlike the majority of back-benchers, these are men of ambition and ability (alas, somewhat rare combinations in politics in any nation). Each has an eye on the brass ring of No. 10 Downing Street, and each has, at the outset of political careers, an equal chance at success.

A week can be a long time in politics, it has been said, so the span of several decades might as well be an eternity. We see the personal and professional ups and downs of these individuals against a backdrop of real political history from the 1960s forward; this book written in 1984, the 'future' was speculative, but not beyond reason, and still makes for a good read. The careers of the foursome are not linearly upward; true to form of many political careers (including Archer's own), there are near misses and great falls, from which some recover, and others do not.

The ending is an interesting one, again part of Archer's speculative history, hinging upon one event that perhaps he knew well would never in fact happen. However, it is still a believable political event, and given that actual politics is often unbelievable, this novel makes a generous alternative history.

Archer's gift of storytelling is strong, and perhaps best when he is dealing with situations he himself has survived. 'First Among Equals' is one such story.