The Collected Short Stories
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4.4 • 5 Ratings
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- £4.99
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- £4.99
Publisher Description
The Collected Short Stories brings together three of Jeffrey Archer’s classic collections of short stories: A Quiver Full of Arrows, A Twist in the Tale and Twelve Red Herrings.
Every reader will have their own favourites: the choices run from an imprisoned man who is certain that his supposed murder victim is very much alive, to a female driver pursued relentlessly by a menacing figure in another vehicle. An offhand remark is taken seriously by a Chinese sculptor in one tale, while a British diplomat unexpectedly becomes the owner of a priceless work of art in another . . . And over three of the stories, discover a hauntingly written, atmospheric account of two undergraduates at Oxford in the thirties: a tale of bitter rivalry that ends in a memorable love story.
These stories are packed full of the master storyteller’s unexpected twists, richly drawn characters and ingenious, witty denouements – some will make you laugh, others will bring you to tears. And, as always, every one of them will keep you spellbound.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Surprise endings are the stock-in-trade of former Tory MP, current candidate for mayor of London and prolific novelist Archer (The Fourth Estate). These 36 stories, culled from his three previous collections (12 Red Herrings, A Twist in the Tale and A Quiver Full of Arrows), contain many a good yarn in plots that feature numerous trial scenes, business dealings and complicated domestic relationships. Highlights include the suspenseful car chase in "Never Stop on the Motorway"; the snappy intellectual repartee between two rivals that camouflages their deep feelings for each other in "Old Love"; and the sudden twists and turns that ensue when a cuckolded businessman strikes back in "Trial and Error." Not one to shrink from stylistic challenges, Archer ably pulls off a tale of heartbreak in the form of a long letter in "Christina Rosenthal." His take on an entertaining man-meets-woman story in "One Man's Meat... " concocts four different endings that humorously illustrate the very real possibilities one might have to confront in the wake of a chance social encounter. Clever and entertaining, these tales make a good candidate for holiday gift giving.
