By: Jeffrey Archer
Essence: conspiracy, international involvement, KGB, secret artifact, race against time, thrill
A Matter Of Honour is a book that you cannot put down easily once you start and the fact that it is a short book makes it a perfect companion for a long journey, like the ones I have to take :|You will find the same pinch of suspense and mystery with multiple twists. Also, the story proceeds from at least two directions adding to the effect.It is almost like picturizing it on the screen. A very fast-paced and gripping plot.But, there was one thing that was redundant. The author's style is a bit predictable and since I had read a book of the same genre (review -> here) by the same author, I got that deja-vu feeling that wasn't very pleasant. Nonetheless, it is a good book that will keep you absorbed.It talks about the pursuit of a piece of art by the KGB, the Americans, The British police and a young bachelor who inherited a letter from his father's will that gave him custody of the artifact. But the thing is changing hands and passes through swiss banks and is constantly changing hands owing to the involvement of so many opposing groups. The plot is very intriguing and the chase also has a deadline involved, making it all the more thrilling. The ending, well, is predictable but not in the way that it unfolds. This again is a hallmark of the author. You just won't expect it to happen in that way. A few characters are very well portrayed but due to so many characters, not everyone gets the right focus and development as others. Also, towards the end, the twists just keep on coming and it gets kind of annoying after a while. This was a rare drawback.At the end, all things are tied up very well and you will feel satisfied that all those open-ended things were finally resolved. It is sometimes just great to see how the author ties up all the loose ends of a story so peacefully in the end without hiding any facts and without adding confusion. Infact, in this book, you can actually feel the ends being tied and you are like "ahh, so this explains that event".If you like thrillers and mysteries, you better not miss this one.