While Jeffrey Archer is more renowned for his witty style of narration coupled with an ornate sense of plot design, he was first noticed and became famous as a great writer following the phenomenal success of “Kane and Abel”. Griping family sagas drawn over entire generations have always been his forte as is proved by the success of another work of his – “The Fourth Estate”.
Preface
I happened to chance on K&A much after I had munched and enjoyed his other books like “Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less” (delightful) “As the Crow Flies” (disappointing) and “Twelve Red Herrings” (delectable). It was about 3-4 years ago that I resurrected my reading interests, thanks to the long and tiring local train journeys in Mumbai. I happened to read this book between a Robert Ludlum and a Tom Clancy and it served its purpose well as a welcome break from the “spies-chase-baddies” yarns.
Jeff Archer may not have been too adept with the bow and arrow as his name suggests but adept he is - in the way he builds up his characters stage by stage, traces their roots, leads us into the innermost recesses of their minds and wonderfully brings out the feeling of hate and in some cases, respect for each other. It’s a pity that we don’t have too many writers like him around today. Lets hope that he emerges from his latest castigation (for miscellaneous misdemeanours) unscathed and churns out another of those masterpieces for which he is loved.
The Plot
The year is 1906 and two baby boys are born at the same time on the same date in two different parts of the world. William Lowell Kane is born with a silver spoon in his mouth in an affluent Boston banking family and Abel Rosnovski, in the throes of penury to a poor Polish immigrant couple. Nearly half the book shuttles alternatively between these two protagonists, tracing their lives from their birth to schooling, early interests, the raw knack and talent for managing business and finance, their happiness and sorrows, their trials and tribulations.
Archer leaves no stone unturned and narrates with a painstaking detail every single and relevant incident that has a tremendous impact on their respective lives and makes them what they are in life. The story begins as a narration of the lives of two different men but soon reaches a stage where both men grow up and become respected business tycoons.
Kane becomes a name to reckon with in the Banking profession across the world and gobbles up more and more banks, thanks to an uncanny foresight and a sense of cunningness that would put a jackal to shame. Abel, on the other hand makes optimum use of the limited opportunities that life bestows on him and attains fame and fortune in the Hotel industry.
It’s at this stage that their paths cross for the first time and the death of a very dear friend makes Abel believe that Kane was responsible for it. One thing leads to another and soon both men are at loggerheads and hell bent on destroying each other. A relentless battle spanning three generations ensues with each using the tremendous resources at his disposal to outwit and ruin the other. Kane’s son and Abel’s daughter are drawn unknowingly into this web of destruction but fall in love and marry each other.
The hatred of the two patriarchs for each other is so bitter that they disown their children and continue their quest for one-upmanship. Both men score small victories but fail to realize that they are so evenly matched that it is virtually impossible for one to decimate the other. It’s like a game of chess, an interminable one in which each knows what move the other is going to make next and a game that will only stop if something unusual happens. To find out what that “unusual element” is, read the book…
Thus Spake Cheeky
The book is quite lengthy but doesn’t get onto the reader’s nerves at any point. The pace is easy and uncluttered and the characterization of the main protagonists is clinical in precision. The contrasting lives and traits of Kane and Abel are highlighted very well and so are their radically different ways of running their respective business empires and their general outlook towards life. The other characters are few in number and blend well with the flow of the story.
What makes the story all the more interesting and engrossing is the fact that Kane and Abel never once come face to face with each other throughout the book – not knowingly at least. It’s surprising that the only time they meet (by an act of providence), the interaction is very brief and very cordial.
The book has more twists and turns than the myriad paths of the Egyptian pyramids and is guaranteed to keep the reader engrossed throughout. Incidentally, Archer came out with a sequel to this, “The Prodigal Daughter” where Abel’s daughter goes on to become the President of the United States.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and am sure you would have/will too.