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A PRISONER OF BIRTH by JEFFREY ARCHER

Published by Pan MacMillan October 2008

I have a confession to make, this is my first time with Jeffrey Archer, previously having shied away from his ouvre, I also have another confession to make, that on the basis of the fantastic A Prisoner of Birth, I am now well and truly hooked. His deceptively simple style calls to mind Ken Follett at his best and this tale of redemption and revenge is summer reading at its best.

Danny Cartwright is your archetypal East End lad, engaged to be married to his pregnant girlfriend Beth Wilson and about to be promoted at the garage business run by Beth's father. His life is changed forever during a night out with Beth and his best mate,Beth's brother Bernie, to celebrate their engagement. During the course of their evening they fall foul of upper crust barrister Spencer Craig and his three friends. Spencer, celebrating his 30th birthday, makes some less than flattering remarks towards Beth and before you can say knife, a major fight has broken out which leaves Bernie dead and Danny unbelievably charged with his murder.

Sentenced to 22 years in prison, Cartwright is determined to clear his name, no matter how difficult it seems. Luckily in prison Danny is taken under the wing of Sir Nicholas Moncrieff, an army officer serving an 8 year sentence for supposedly causing the unnecessary deaths of his men whilst on active service. Nick teaches Danny how to become a gentlemen and as the two of them bear more than a passing resemblance, especially once Danny starts acting and dressing like Nick, a cunning plan is set in motion that Danny hopes will allow to see that justice is finally served.

We can't reveal too much more about the plot as a brilliant plot twist about a third of the way in turns the story on its head but it is riveting stuff, in fact any one who has read Dumas, especially The Count of Monte Cristo will know just where this is headed. Archer, whose own dalliances with the law, gives the prison scenes (set in Belmarsh where Archer himself spent time exactly at the time the book is set) a real air of authenticity and one does wonder if the Nick character is modelled on him a little.

Although Archer has his critics he certainly knows how to tell a first rate story and although some of the class issues that centre the novel may be a little hackneyed the plot drives you along with such vigour that you quickly get swept up in the proceedings.

Highly recommended.

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