Genre: Crime/Detective/Mystery
Source: Review Copy
Format: Paperback
Pages: 336
Publication Date: 5 September 2019
My Rating: 3 stars
Blurb from Goodreads
Nothing Ventured heralds the start of a brand new series in the style of Jeffrey Archer’s #1 New York Times bestselling Clifton Chronicles: introducing Detective William Warwick. But this is not a detective story, this is a story about the making of a detective . . .
William Warwick has always wanted to be a detective, and decides, much to his father’s dismay, that rather than become a lawyer like his father, Sir Julian Warwick QC, and his sister Grace, he will join London’s Metropolitan Police Force.
After graduating from university, William begins a career that will define his life: from his early months on the beat under the watchful eye of his first mentor, Constable Fred Yates, to his first high-stakes case as a fledgling detective in Scotland Yard’s arts and antiquities squad. Investigating the theft of a priceless Rembrandt painting from the Fitzmolean Museum, he meets Beth Rainsford, a research assistant at the gallery who he falls hopelessly in love with, even as Beth guards a secret of her own that she’s terrified will come to light.
While William follows the trail of the missing masterpiece, he comes up against suave art collector Miles Faulkner and his brilliant lawyer, Booth Watson QC, who are willing to bend the law to breaking point to stay one step ahead of William. Meanwhile, Miles Faulkner’s wife, Christina, befriends William, but whose side is she really on?
This new series introduces William Warwick, a family man and a detective who will battle throughout his career against a powerful criminal nemesis. Through twists, triumph and tragedy, this series will show that William Warwick is destined to become one of Jeffrey Archer’s most enduring legacies.
What I Liked
The blurb mentions— “this is not a detective story, this is a story about the making of a detective” and this holds true. This is the story of William Warwick. William, his family and most of the characters in this book were very interesting to read about. I don’t feel like I got enough of them. The plot was interesting enough to make me wonder what will happen next.
What I Didn’t Like
There was a lack of emotions and the basic human element in the way this book is written. It was intentionally done and while it’s not necessary to have that in a crime fiction book, this style of writing may not be my thing. The characters were interesting, but that was it. I couldn’t connect to them and as a result, I couldn’t root for them either. The author includes some dry humor which I’m not sure how I felt about. It seemed out of place. The plot was thrilling, and I enjoyed reading the story but it didn’t captivate me.
Here’s the thing. I have only read two books by Jeffrey Archer, this book and Tell Tale, a collection of his stories, both of which have been published in the last few years, so none of them are the books that he is known for. So far, I have not been captivated by his stories. I enjoy them when I read them and I like his writing, but it doesn’t stick with me. However, I will give his books another try in the future, probably Kane and Abel, The Clifton Chronicles and/or the next book in this series.
