Sons of Fortune (Archer, Jeffrey) [Englisch] [Gebundene Ausgabe]

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.