Archer returns to the poor vs rich formula

A Prisoner Of Birth
Jeffrey Archer
Pan MacMillan
Rs255
532 pages

Jeffrey Archer’s new novel A Prisoner Of Birth is described as his most powerful work since Kane And Abel and the claim is more than justified. A Prisoner begins with a trial of an “innocent man being blamed for his best friend’s murder”. And it pivots around the Rich versus Poor dichotomy.
 
Danny Cartwright (the Poor) is accused of killing his best friend. The witnesses to this crime are Spencer Craig, Lawrence Davenport, and Gerald Payne (The Rich) — three “pillars of the society”. A staunch believer in the justice system, Danny is sentenced to life imprisonment for his ‘crime’. When he’s sent to Belmarsh Prison (the same one where Archer spent time when he was sentenced  for perjury), he meets friends who help him out. And the story takes off from there. The central idea of the book has been used before but it is the treatment that makes this one different.

On the flip-side, though it is a page-turner, the basic premise — the reason for Danny’s conviction, sounds a bit contrived. But the later part of the story holds up on its own and hooks the reader. However, details about Danny’s life, his escape, and the too many coincidences fail to convince. The characters, too, aren’t realistically drawn. The good ones are too good to be true, and the bad are so bad that you don’t believe in them.

A Prisoner is inspired by The Count Of Monte Cristo and Archer acknowledges the plot similarities, but this one concludes on a more positive note, compared with Alexander Dumas’ book. The best part of the book is the ending, written so superbly that you want to go back and read it once again.

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