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Woah! This book was nothing like I imagined it would be. It was better! I downloaded it for free off of Amazon and am so glad I did. In this case I really ventured out of my comfort zone and even read a genre I haven't read before in my life and it was completely worth it. From beginning to end, this book captured my soul and wouldn't let go until I was done. I'm certain it won't be long before I continue and read the rest of the books from this beautifully written series.

I will begin by explaining why I didn't give this book the full five stars before I go into detail as to why this book captured my heart. The only reason this book fell short in my eyes is because I would have liked to see a more in-depth look into the characters themselves. The only first person perspective we see is the first chapter of every character's section of the book. It was a little confusing because the first chapter would be directly through the eyes of the character but after that, the rest of the chapters would jump suddenly to third person. It took me a little while to get used to it but after I did, it didn't take away anything else from the story.

Now that we have that out of the way, let me move on to explain all the reasons I absolutely loved this book and couldn't put it down even late into the night. I actually have a four-month old right now and I still found myself unable to stop reading, even knowing I would regret it the following day and be extremely exhausted. I mean, what an epic saga about a less then traditional family. I absolutely loved following this extraordinary family, and most specifically Harry Clifton, as he navigated through the journey that is life. I actually immediately took a liking to him because even through his humble beginnings, he was still able to persevere without letting obstacles stop him. Of course, he wouldn't have been able to do this without all the amazing human beings that guided him and propelled him forward through all the ups and downs in his life. With that being said, the character development in this work was phenomenal. So much so, that I was able to bond with all the characters, even the less likable ones, like Hugo Barrington. I was simply able to see the humanity in all of them, the reason they were the way that they were. I'm just glad there's more books left for me to read in this series.

Further on, the story moved at the perfect pace and I found myself getting enough from each character, in each of their sections of the book. I especially loved how each character's stories overlapped with the others and we often were able to fill in the gaps to the whole story just by reading further on. That was definitely a very creative technique that I thoroughly enjoyed. And let's not forget how following the lives of all the different, main characters prevented me from becoming bored and kept me interested, bordering on almost obsessive at times.

The writing itself was superb. It wasn't overly basic and yet it was still prompt and to the point. This book is definitely written in one of the more complex writing styles, at least in comparison to the latest books I've read. Jeffrey Archer definitely knows good writing and that's clearly displayed in this book.

Adding to the writing style, the plot was very interesting and unlike anything I have ever encountered before. So much so, that I can see an epic movie coming out of this book, easily. This book had so many highs and lows and yet- it worked all together, beautifully and seamlessly. Jefferey Archer has woven an epic saga, that has something for everyone. Every part of this book kept me on the edge of my seat and my heart pounding, waiting to know what will happen next. And that's saying a lot, considering this book's genre is not something I have enjoyed reading and thought I might ever enjoy. Well, now my opinion has changed and I will read more works from this author, definitely.

I have to warn future readers, however, that this first book ends in a major cliffhanger and even though I was disappointed, I didn't mind as much as I could have because I knew I would be reading the rest of the books. All in all, I recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a saga about one family's struggles and triumphs and also enjoys a historical aspect as a background in their reading material. This book is definitely not to be missed!

I bought the Clifton Chronicles on sale and didn't know what to expect. I was looking for a new author and series to follow. It turned out to be a pleasing read. The story is almost entirely character building and has very little plot.

Set between the World Wars in England. Harry Clifton is a fatherless boy that grows up on the docks of Bristol. He gets a scholarship to secondary school and life starts to get better. Falls in love with his best friend's sister. Harry's mother works lower-class jobs available to women to make the better life for Harry all the while keeping a secret that would destroy everything.

The character development is very intriguing and drives the story. For the most part it's very well done and the reveals can for deduced without being obvious. The story is told from multiple points of view and this gives you even more insight into the characters motivations and struggles.

Unfortunately, the author uncharacteristically explicitly gives away a major spoiler with about 10% of the book left and I spent the last 10% of the book wondering how the author was going to continue the series instead of enjoying the final two twists. My enjoyment of the book would have been immeasurably improved without a single sentence at the end of Chapter 51.

I'm looking forward to reading the second book of the series and finding out where the story goes.

3.5. This was definitely a page turner and definitely evoked a lot of emotion. However, some of the characters I loved started to feel too good to be true, which sometimes broke the spell. The book felt a lot like a TV show, somewhat like a soap opera. I often loved this book while I was listening too it, and I suppressed any niggling, “Really?!”-type thoughts. I'm glad to have “read” it, but I have no desire to continue with the rest of the series. I'm satisfied with having read the Wikipedia synopses of the other 6 books instead.