Kane and Abel

Jeffrey Archer

They had only one thing in common . . . William Lowell Kane and Abel Rosnovski, one the son of a Boston millionaire, the other a penniless Polish immigrant – two men born on the same day on opposite sides of the world, their paths destined to cross in the ruthless struggle to build a fortune.

Kane and Abel is the marvellous story, spanning sixty years, of two powerful men linked by an all-consuming hatred, brought together by fate to save . . . and finally destroy . . . each other.

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This is a very well-written book, the scenes are set beautifully and the characters are developed into three dimensional people you really come to care about. The first half, where most of the character development takes place is amongst the best I’ve ever read, I think it’s amazing; unfortunately I feel the second half of the book lets it down, the moment the rivalry between Kane and Abel starts up I began to lose interest.

I’m not sure why, but I found it hard to understand why someone would risk their fortune and their business ruin someone because of one decision, a decision you can’t even say was unreasonable.

I know that man people consider this Archer’s best book, but I have to disagree.

Though things falter in the second half, they do pick up again towards the end, allowing the book to finish on a positive note.