As the Crow Flies

Rating:
Summary: Good Friends and Evil Villains
Review: A truly captivating story with superb characters. The friends are realistic and the villain is unrelenting and truly evil.

There is love, drama, evil, revenge, and a truly wonderful ending.

Definitely 5 stars!

Rating:
Summary: Birth of an Empire
Review: As the Crow Flies is a standard rags-to-riches story, with characters progress from humble beginnings to eventually rule a business empire. I really can't help by compare this to "A Woman of Substance" by Barbara Taylor Bradford in some respects, since they are both England-based department store stories covering the same time period.

However, Archer's story behind the story of a store I can't help but compare to Harrods focuses on the real problems facing a young entrepentuer, particularly the growing pains of expansion, particularly obtaining access to the capital market. Here the duchess character provides extremely shrewd insights, first backing the shop with 60 pounds, then later suggesting a front man, in the form of Charlie's old army Colonel. In those times, the man with the right tie and a nobility title got access to capitial.

Of course, there is the obligitory villain, in this case a lady only a few generations down from a merchant, but who inherited none of the good sense, and all of the snobbishness of the gentry. She doesn't see what her own husband and father see - all she cares about is the success of her two boys. Unfortunately, one takes absolutely no responsibility for his actions, and ends up at the end of a hangman's noose in the end, and the other has no merit, but she attempts to give him control of the empire Charlie built.

Are there flaws? Sure there are. Guy crosses paths a bit too often, though admittedly it's a key focus of the book. Cathy also gets elevated from outsider to inner circle. Certainly she was Daniel's fiance', but she was also referred to in his suicide note. However, she remains in the inner circle after Daniel's death.

Still, I loved the writing technique of each chapter covering a time period as seen by a certain character - and the next one backing up and summerizing it from a DIFFERENT character's perspective. Some things one character might have thought was hidden may be an open secret to others, or one character may be deceiving another as to what they knew, and how they acted on it.

Archer tends to try to twist his tales at the end with a surprising revealation, though except in his short stories (which I highly recommend), he usually doesn't succeed with me. Old Charlie's secret was completely predictable to me, and totally in character.

Rating:
Summary: By far Archer's most superb book!
Review: Ever since I read my first Jeffrey Archer novel a year ago, I have never failed to be impressed by the fluid and seemingly uncanny flair for writing he appears to posess. I managed to cover every book of his, from Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less to The Eleventh Commandment within a space of six months, apart from As the Crow Flies as I felt that it would be quite a chore to plough through 738 pages (UK paperback edition). How wrong I turned out to be. Right from the very moment I completed the first chapter of ATCF to the very last page, I simply could not get the incredible story out of my head- the enterprising and brilliant Charlie, the scheming Mrs. Trentham, the practical, intelligent Daphne- just kept flooding my thoughts. I finished the book within three days, which was a rather short period of time by my standards. This is one book which is equal to, if not better than, Archer's classic novel, Kane and Abel, especially in terms of plot twists. Jeffrey Archer tells the story from a multitude of viewpoints, making the book all the more interesting, given the fact that we, the readers, actually get to sample the feelings of the many characters. Archer's strength lies in his ability to tell the story of a person right from his or her birth (take K&A or The Fourth Estate for example), which is also evident in ATCF. Without the slightest doubt, As the Crow Flies justifies the fact that, to quote the Mail on Sunday, Jeffrey Archer is 'probably the greatest storyteller of our age'!

Rating:
Summary: Another Excellent Novel by Jeffrey Archer
Review: I really enjoyed this book of Archer's just as much as every other book of his that I've read. This book is about business, as opposed to politics. I enjoyed reading most about how the main character built up his business, and the ingenious ways he solved his various business problems. Just as in all his other novels, there is a big clash between the main character with his long-term enemy, whech keeps you on the edge of your chair. A really excellent book.

Rating:
Summary: An excellent book that keeps you enthralled.
Review: I was very impressed with this novel. At first I thought it would be a mediocre book,but it ended up being very interesting. The style of storytelling is excellent. This book is about Charlie Trumper from his childhood to his retirement. A fictional biography that spans a whole lifetime crossing different continents. I am a mystery books lover, and this book has some mystery. The characters are excellently portrayed. As your read the book you can share the emotions with the characters. Mr. Archer did an excellent job as portrayin the villain of this story as on old spiteful lady. You have to read the book to appreciate, love, and hate the characters. Definitely a book worth reading.

Rating:
Summary: Trumper: The Art of The Deal
Review: One of Archer's best works, in which his talent as a storyteller is matched by his skill as a writer. He deftly handles the challenge of telling a lengthy tale from several different points of view, and helpfully provides dates at the start of each segment so that readers may know exactly which part of the action is dealt with in the following segment.

The story of Charlie Trumper, a humble British fruitseller who rises to much greater heights in 20th-Century London, is an endearing one that readers will remember for years and probably be tempted to revisit relatively soon after the first read. Trumper, his wife Rebecca and the devious Trenthams are so fully fleshed out as to become perfectly visible in the mind's eye, and the other minor characters in the book are worked in skillfully. The ending, it must be said, is a bit fantastic in its improbability; a tidily Dickensian coincidence. A lesser book might suffer as a result, but this one's tale is strong enough to stay in the reader's mind long after that last page has been turned.

Rating:
Summary: A must read highly addictive book?
Review: Starting at the beginning of the 20 the century and across two world war's the book portrays the tragedy courage and triumph of a simple but honorable man called Charlie Trumper who starts out life as a vegetable seller in the east end of London and ends up as one of the most prominent people in the Churchill era .His quest to become a successful businessman is aided by Becky and Daphne. But unknown to Charlie someone is plotting revenge agents him.

For young Charlie Trumper the most important thing is to get his hands on the biggest burrow in the world. After the war when he returns he has to start over again on the quest to become a successful businessmen. Able to win the hearts of customers, he rapidly expands his business through the help of Becky and Daphne. But the past seems to follow him, when Charlie's only true love Becky falls in love with Guy Trentham a handsome war hero. As he continues on his mission he encounters another enemy Mrs. Trentham who is the Mother of Guy Trentham and will stop at nothing to take over the Trumper Empire.

In his own unique style Jeffrey Archer captures the details of each character in an immaculate detail. His attempt to inspire the reader through the characters that he portrays is successful. Even evil characters like Mrs. Trentham have been given the chance to explain the reasoning behind their actions. Like a converging spiral his storyline converges on the plot waiting for the last possible minute until revealing it. The appearance of new characters suddenly is perhaps the only negative factor towards the book.

Rating:
Summary: Twists and Turns
Review: This book was recommended by one of my Amazon Friends and I am so glad I read it. Since I am so stingy with 5 star ratings, I wish I could give this one 4.5 stars as I couldn't put it down. As The Crow Flies could also be called, "The Life and Times of Charlie Trumper." It is the epic story that spans the entire life of a British entrepreneur and all the people (good and bad) who affect his life. It is the consummate rags to riches story. I read this novel while on a cruise ship-a perfect "vacation book!"

Rating:
Summary: Jeffrey Archer Is Undisputed Master of Storytelling
Review: This is the third novel by Jeffrey Archer that I have read and I can't wait to read more. His amazing storytelling ability, completely enchanting characters, and surprising twists all combine to make a totally enjoyable novel.

Archer uses his rags-to-riches theme with Charlie Trumper, young barrow boy from the Whitechapel area of London's East End. Charlie masters the fine craft of becoming the best fruit and vegetable man in all of the East End, a talent he hones at his grandfather's side and one that stays with him for life and gives him his greatest thrill.

The reader watches Charlie grow from eight-year-old urchin to World War I soldier and chairman of his own London department store. Along the way both triumph and tragedy are his companions, but it is his bitter and hate-filled feud with the Trentham family that will leave you aghast and shocked, but always mesmerized and turning the pages.

For Jeffrey Archer has written here the ultimate page-turner, one you will be loathe to put down for such mundane tasks as going to work or sleeping. And as always with Jeffrey Archer, you will never guess the ending. He will surprise you and make this reading experience one you'll long savor.

Rating:
Summary: Jeffrey Archer Is Undisputed Master of Storytelling
Review: This is the third novel by Jeffrey Archer that I have read and I can't wait to read more. His amazing storytelling ability, completely enchanting characters, and surprising twists all combine to make a totally enjoyable novel.

Archer uses his rags-to-riches theme with Charlie Trumper, young barrow boy from the Whitechapel area of London's East End. Charlie masters the fine craft of becoming the best fruit and vegetable man in all of the East End, a talent he hones at his grandfather's side and one that stays with him for life and gives him his greatest thrill.

The reader watches Charlie grow from eight-year-old urchin to World War I soldier and chairman of his own London department store. Along the way both triumph and tragedy are his companions, but it is his bitter and hate-filled feud with the Trentham family that will leave you aghast and shocked, but always mesmerized and turning the pages.

For Jeffrey Archer has written here the ultimate page-turner, one you will be loathe to put down for such mundane tasks as going to work or sleeping. And as always with Jeffrey Archer, you will never guess the ending. He will surprise you and make this reading experience one you'll long savor.