An Eye for an Eye: The New William Warwick Crime Thriller
“Archer’s bold thriller structure bares all motives and manipulations, so there are few surprises and no secrets here, but the suspense of each interaction resembles the final rounds of a chess game.”
Looking for a thriller with short snappy chapters, quick changes of points of view, villains who disclose their plans to each other and thus to you, and plenty of British twists and conversations? An Eye for an Eye was written for you, by a plot master extraordinaire.
Jeffrey Archer taps into both English customs and American patriot history as he introduces the residents of Hartley Hall, Simon and his wife Hannah, and the mission that the Prime Minister summons Simon into. The residents of Hartley Hall may not be particularly wealthy, but they live with portraits of ancestors, some prestigious other artwork, and, most precious to them, a “fair copy” (written by hand) of the American Declaration of Independence.
Ironically, that makes them a target for the clever and unscrupulous Booth Watson, who spots the family’s fragility and quickly crafts a plan to pry the historic document out of their hands. Maneuvering with him is Miles Faulkner, a dedicated enemy of some of the Hartleys’ friends, especially Inspector Ross Hogan. And Faulkner’s exit from prison moves powerful dark forces into play.
The success of Miles and his team is actually made possible by Simon’s own vulnerability, as this newbie in politics attempts to convince the Saudis to make an enormous purchase of armaments and related transport, from the eager hands of his own nation. Simon’s no expert at any of these things, but with the Prime Minister’s request, he jumps into training: “Simon had been in Riyadh for a week, after a crash course of ‘familiarisation training’ at the Ministry of Defence. He had been briefed by a small team of experts, who covered everything from submarine pistons to Sharia customs and belief, and how to address a prince of the realm. A Mr Trevelyan from the Foreign Office had been on hand to assist him, but tonight Simon was on his own.”
Unfortunately, all that training becomes swiftly irrelevant as Simon’s set up to take a murder charge as a replacement for a Saudi prince whose nastiness can’t be exposed. Brutally treated in a Saudi jail, he soon loses body weight, confidence, and relevant options. But keep an eye on him, because what he can’t lose is his humanity, and it will serve him well enough.
Meanwhile, in his absence, Booth Watson’s nefarious plan to lay hands on the valuable American document quickly takes shape. First step: Discredit Simon’s allies in the world of museum artwork and royal patronage. That includes the criminal investigation professional trying to extract Simon from jeopardy, too.
Which in turn puts the Britisher in even deeper trouble, as negotiations begin to ensure Simon will never leave prison alive. “Why is [Simon] Hartley so important to you?” the Saudi prince’s team leader asks a treasonous British negotiator, who says smoothly, “A great deal of money is at stake.” Ah, big money, the common language of evil.
Archer’s bold thriller structure bares all motives and manipulations, so there are few surprises and no secrets here, but the suspense of each interaction resembles the final rounds of a chess game, with each party clicking to the next position to allow the challenge of “Check!” Who’ll survive, and how? That’s what Archer won’t reveal until the final pages, laden with quick twists and revelations.