Only Time Will Tell
by Jeffrey Archer
(Macmillan, R250)
Only Time Will Tell is volume one of Archer’s The Clifton Chronicles. And if this first installment is anything to go by, bring on the rest.
The story starts in 1919 in the backstreets of Bristol after the Great War, outlining each of the characters, the main one being Harry Clifton.
Harry doesn’t like school and skips most days until he meets Old Jack Tarr. Under his mentorship Harry stays at school, wins a scholarship to college and event-ually Oxford.
He meets kids of his age, although not of his lowly standing in life. This is the early 20th century and children from poor bacgrounds usually left school in their teens and started supporting their families.
Enter best friend Giles Barrington and his wealthy family.
Each of the family members recounts the events of the inter-twining of the Clifton and Barrington families in their own way. And although it doesn’t take much detective work to surmise what turns the book is going to take, it finishes on a cliff-hanger.
Harry must decide whether to take up his place at Oxford or to join the army in the fight against Hitler.
To use even more clichés, the book is fast-paced, and tough to put down.
Unfortunately, we have to wait until next May for volume two. The book is only out in hardback, with the paperback due for release in December.