Synopses & Reviews
Danny Cartwright and Spencer Craig never should have met. One evening, Danny, an East End cockney who works as a garage mechanic, takes his fianceé up to the West End to celebrate their engagement. He crosses the path of Spencer Craig, a West End barrister posed to be the youngest Queens Counsel of his generation.
A few hours later Danny is arrested for murder and later is sentenced to twenty-two years in prison, thanks to irrefutable testimony from Spencer, the prosecution's main witness.
Danny spends the next few years in a high-security prison while Spencer Craigs career as a lawyer goes straight up. All the while Danny plans to escape and wreak his revenge.
Thus begins Jeffrey Archers poignant novel of deception, hatred and vengeance, in which only one of them can finally triumph while the other will spend the rest of his days in jail. But which one will triumph? This suspenseful novel takes the listener through so many twists and turns that no one will guess the ending, even the most ardent of Archers many, many fans.
Review
"Narrator Roger Allam pumps this story up considerably by enhancing each character with engrossing vocal interpretations. He does a terrific job subtly morphing Danny's East-End accent into an upper-crust West-End one.... Every character in the story draws you in but there's a old Scottish lawyer and a venerable British defense barrister that'll have you cheering. Both are superb combinations of what Archer has put on paper and narrator Allam has brought to them vocally.... A sensational revenge story heightened by superb narration. You might find yourself sitting in a parked car finishing off a chapter."—Tom Alderman, The Huffington Post "...Roger Allam gives an award-worthy performance in this crisply paced production."—
Publishers Weekly, Starred Review
“Theres no better person to narrate this 21st-century adventure than Roger Allam…Allam narrates the multiple layers and numerous characters of this complex plot with alacrity. His reading, together with the storys ending, will leave listeners fulfilled.” - AudioFile Past praise for Jeffrey Archer:
“There isnt a better story-teller alive.”—Larry King
“A storyteller in the class of Alexander Dumas...Unsurpassed skill...making the reader wonder intensely what will happen next.”—The Washington Post
“One of the top ten storytellers in the world.”—Los Angeles Times
“Archer is a master entertainer.”—Time
“Cunning plots, silken style...Archer plays a cat-and-mouse game with the reader.”—The New York Times
“A worthy successor to the still best-selling The Da Vinci Code.”—Liz Smith, New York Post, on False Impression "...Roger Allam gives an award-worthy performance in this crisply paced production." - Publishers Weekly, Starred Review "Noted actor Roger Allam brings professionalism to his narration...The interview with Archer is an interesting finish to the book and showcases audio production in a way that print copy cannot." - Library Journal
Synopsis
International bestseller and master storyteller Jeffrey Archer returns with a tale of fate and fortune, redemption and revenge with A Prisoner of Birth.
Danny Cartwright and Spencer Craig never should have met. One evening, Danny, an East End cockney who works as a garage mechanic, takes his fiance up to the West End to celebrate their engagement. He crosses the path of Spencer Craig, a West End barrister posed to be the youngest Queen's Counsel of his generation.
A few hours later Danny is arrested for murder and later is sentenced to twenty-two years in prison, thanks to irrefutable testimony from Spencer, the prosecution's main witness.
Danny spends the next few years in a high-security prison while Spencer Craig's career as a lawyer goes straight up. All the while Danny plans to escape and wreak his revenge.
Thus begins Jeffrey Archer's poignant novel of deception, hatred and vengeance, in which only one of them can finally triumph while the other will spend the rest of his days in jail. But which one will triumph? This suspenseful novel takes the listener through so many twists and turns that no one will guess the ending, even the most ardent of Archer's many, many fans.
Synopsis
International bestseller Jeffrey Archer returns with his most enthralling novel since Kane and Abel
About the Author
Jeffrey Archer was educated at Oxford University. He has served five years in Britains House of Commons, fourteen years in the House of Lords and two in Her majestys prisons, which spawned three volumes of highly acclaimed Prison Diaries. All of his novels and short story collections—including Kane and Abel, Sons of Fortune, and False Impression—have been international bestsellers. Archer is married with two children and lives in London and Cambridge.
Roger Allam is a British actor who has worked extensively for the Royal Shakespeare Company, the National Theatre, and in the West End. He played Javert in the original London production of Les Misérables, and Falstaff in the Shakespeares Globe 2010 production of Henry IV Parts 1 and 2. He has been nominated four times for the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor, winning twice, and he has also won the Olivier Award for Best Supporting Actor. His film work includes roles in The Queen, Speed Racer, V for Vendetta, The Wind that Shakes the Barley, Tamara Drewe, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, and the television series The Thick of It. Roger has narrated audiobooks for numerous bestselling authors, including Jeffrey Archer, Ian McEwan, Ian Rankin, and Joseph Conrad. In reviewing the audiobook version of Jeffrey Archers Paths of Glory, Publishers Weekly declared, “Veteran actor Roger Allam brings an impressive range and energy to Archer's historical novel…. Allam's remarkable accents are the highlight of the audio book.” Roger lives in south-west London with his actress wife, Rebecca Saire, and their two young sons.