About the AudioBook: From the internationally bestselling author of Kane and Abel and A Prisoner of Birth comes Only Time Will Tell, the first in an ambitious new series that tells the story of one family across generations, across oceans, from heartbreak to triumph. The epic tale of Harry Clifton's life begins in 1920, with the words "I was told that my father was killed in the war." A dock worker in Bristol, Harry never knew his father, but he learns about life on the docks from his uncle, who expects Harry to join him at the shipyard once he's left school. But then an unexpected gift wins him a scholarship to an exclusive boys' school, and his life will never be the same again. As he enters into adulthood, Harry finally learns how his father really died, but the awful truth only leads him to question, was he even his father? Is he the son of Arthur Clifton, a stevedore who spent his whole life on the docks, or the firstborn son of a scion of West Country society, whose family owns a shipping line? This introductory novel in Archer's ambitious series The Clifton Chronicles includes a cast of colorful characters and takes us from the ravages of the Great War to the outbreak of the Second World War, when Harry must decide whether to take up a place at Oxford or join the navy and go to war with Hitler's Germany. From the docks of working-class England to the bustling streets of 1940 New York City, Only Time Will Tell takes readers on a journey through to future volumes, which will bring to life one hundred years of recent history to reveal a family story that neither the reader nor Harry Clifton himself could ever have imagined.
The plot is quite interesting and will keep you entertained and paying close attention till the end. The author tells us the saga of the Clifton's family, a lower class family of dock workers from which Harry Clifton is a talented son from Maisie, and the Barrington's family, a wealthy family from which Giles and Emma, children of Hugo and Elizabeth, turn to be and important part of Harry's life. The story starts with Harry fighting to rise in life through his studies. He finds an old man named Jack leaving in the docks, who tutors him and both ended up being great friends. And as he progress with studies through scholarships, life presents very tricky to Harry, with bullies and real friends crossing his path. The story is full of twists, some predictable, but the end is really unexpected.
This is suppose to be the first part out of five book series that is called "The Clifton's Chronicles", this first one in particular covering the period between 1920 and 1940. The whole story is told from different perspectives. There is an introduction from Harry's mother, Maisie, followed by the main stream by Harry, back to his mother, them to Hugo Barrignton, Old Jack, Emma and Giles points of view, before returning to Harry for the final part.
The only detail is that as this book is the first part of a series, the story does not wrap up on itself, on the contrary, it is left open on a hook for the next part.
Overall this is a masterpice composed by Mr. Jeffrey Archer, where each character is described in rich details and the voice that Roger Allam uses for each one is simply priceless. The female characters are read by Emelia Fox. Their narration is superb and contributes a lot to the success of this audiobook. Excellent fiction novel, a must have in the permanent library of any reader that enjoys this genre.
This audiobook was published by Macmillan Audio in August 2011 and Amazon.com was kind enough to provide this audiobook for me through their Vine Program for reviewing and I was not request to provide a positive review. Opinions expressed here are my own.
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this was my first jeffery archer book...and i must tell the viewers that one should buy it without any hesitation ..but beware as you might get emotionally attached to the characters of this book.be it the special bond b/w hary,giles &denkins as friend or the super devilish HUGO ,or the ever sacrificing mother mrs clifton.... This book is a must read who all like the perfect family saga and thriller....
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