Book Review: The Sins of the Father

The Sins of the Father is the second book in a series called "The Clifton Chronicles," written by Jeffrey Archer.  As soon as I finished listening to the first book in the series, Only Time Will Tell, I checked our library's holdings and discovered they did have the second book, in audio form, as well.  I snatched it up, eager to answer some of the questions lingering from the first book.

In the first book, Harry Clifton decides that, in order to escape consequences of possible family lineage, he will assume the identity of an American man, Tom Bradshaw, who dies beside him after the two were plucked from the sea.  It seems like the best solution, until police officers approach and arrest him for the murder of Adam Bradshaw.  The second book picks up this story line and traces the lives of Harry and the Barrington family members after his arrival in America.  Emma Barrington, who cannot believe Harry is actually dead, travels to the United States in an attempt to free Harry from his new-found entanglements.

Once again, I enjoyed listening to this intriguing tale of the Barrington family saga.  Archer employs the same technique of introducing the story gradually through the varying perspectives of each important character.  He weaves twists and turns into the tale clear to the end of the second installment, which again ends with a cliffhanger.

I will agree with several other reviewers on Amazon who stated that this wasn't up to the same caliber as the first book in the series.  It definitely felt like filler in spots.  Plus, the conflict is belabored a bit too long and isn't even resolved at all in this installment.  I ended with the same questions I started with.  It also felt more difficult to keep track of the time frame for each of the characters in this one and since it was an audio book, I couldn't exactly go back over and review the dates mentioned.  Still, I did enjoy listening and was just as sucked into the story as I was with the first book.

Now I am left with the sad state of waiting with bated breath for the final three installments.  If they take three more years to appear (as I believe Archer mentioned in the author interview at the end of the audio version of the first book), then I will be very discouraged.  He has hooked me in and I want to know what happens in the lives of this interesting family.  Truly the mark of a great book!