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A Matter of Honor
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Manufacturer: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Author: Jeffrey Archer
Publisher: St. Martin's Paperbacks
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Our Price: $7.99
You Save: $ ( % )
Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Author: Jeffrey Archer
Publisher: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Average Customer Rating:
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A Matter of Honor Description
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 813
EAN: 9780312933548
ISBN: 0312933541
Label: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Number Of Items: 1
Book Pages: 368
Publication Date: 2004-12-28
Publisher: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Product Release Date: 2004-12-28
Studio: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Dewey Decimal Number: 813
EAN: 9780312933548
ISBN: 0312933541
Label: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Number Of Items: 1
Book Pages: 368
Publication Date: 2004-12-28
Publisher: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Product Release Date: 2004-12-28
Studio: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Editorial Review of A Matter of Honor
It seems innocent enough. A disgraced British colonel bequeaths a mysterious letter to his only son. But the moment Adam Scott opens the yellowing envelope, he sets into motion a deadly chain of events that threatens to shake the very foundations of the free world.
Within days, Adam's lover is brutally murdered and he's running for his life through the great cities of Europe, pursued not only by the KGB, but by the CIA and his own countrymen as well. Their common intent is to kill him before the truth comes out. While powerful men in smoke-filled rooms plot ever more ingenious means of destroying him, Adam finds himself betrayed and abandoned even by those he holds most dear.
When at last he comes to understand what he is in possession of, he's even more determined to protect it, for it's more than a matter of life and death-it's a matter of honor.
Within days, Adam's lover is brutally murdered and he's running for his life through the great cities of Europe, pursued not only by the KGB, but by the CIA and his own countrymen as well. Their common intent is to kill him before the truth comes out. While powerful men in smoke-filled rooms plot ever more ingenious means of destroying him, Adam finds himself betrayed and abandoned even by those he holds most dear.
When at last he comes to understand what he is in possession of, he's even more determined to protect it, for it's more than a matter of life and death-it's a matter of honor.
Customer Reviews of A Matter of Honor
Customer Rating: 
Review Summary: Dark and sinister
Review: This is a darker, more sinister, and violent Archer book than most I have read. The USSR is still alive. A document, hidden in a lost icon, would turn Alaska back to the USSR if found. A page turner! I enjoyed it.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Excellent Read
Review: Although the details of Mr. Archer's personal life rival the plots of his novels - from near bankruptcy, to Britain's political inner circles, to prison cell - none of it gets in the way of his well-deserved reputation as an outstanding storyteller.
Next to "Kane & Abel" and "As the Crow Flies" this book is among my three favorites from Archer and I highly recommend it.
Set in the summer of 1966 with Lyndon Johnson in the White House, Harold Wilson at #10 Downing, and Leonid Brezhnev in the Kremlin, "A Matter of Honor" pits a most resourceful but unlikely British protagonist, Adam Scott, against an equally resourceful Soviet antagonist, Alexander Romanov.
When Adam's father, a disgraced military officer, dies, he leaves to his only son the princely sum of 500 pounds and two letters. The first is a missive from Adam's father, explaining the events that led to his resignation from the military, the circumstances that led to his possession of the second letter, and an expression of confidence that his son would conduct himself honorably should he decide to open the second letter and pursue whatever secrets it might contain. When Scott's curiosity gets the best of him, he opens the second letter and finds that it is from a now-dead elite member of Hitler's Third Reich - a man that Scott's father had been assigned to guard during the Nuremberg trials.
As one might guess, it is this second letter that proves to be the crux of the story. It leads Scott to a bank vault, deep beneath the streets of Zurich, containing an obscure work of Russian art - an icon - smuggled out of the country during the downfall of Czar Nikolai II. At the same time, the Kremlin has learned that this painting contains a secret that could forever shift the balance of power from West to East at the height of the cold war. Romanov, a rising KGB star, is tasked with finding the icon and returning it to the Motherland so its embedded secret can be unveiled to the world. While Romanov is not told the nature of the secret, he knows only that its contents must be acted on within 30 days and the clock is ticking.
The ensuing chase reveals that Mr. Scott's will to survive and ability to think on his feet are indeed a match for the best the KGB has to offer. It also presents an opportunity for Scott to restore his father's - and his family's - honor. Hence, the name of the book.
Archer gives us an outstanding plot that is authentically placed amidst the political tensions of the mid-1960s. I enjoyed every moment of this book. The characters are nicely developed, the cheetah-like pace kept me turning the pages until well into the night, and the story had an ending that while rather predictable, was highly satisfying nonetheless.
If you enjoy a good political thriller from the world as it was 40 years ago, along with a healthy dose of Mr. Archer's formidable imagination, don't pass up this book.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: A Matter of Honor
Review: Ironically, I picked this one up right after I finished Ludlum's The Gemini Contenders, and they have a lot in common - a secret hidden during WWII comes to light and becomes the responsibility of a later generation and the chase is on. I gave Ludlum 4 stars and give this one 5 for two reasons; Archer's book is an easier read and the hero of his book is around long enough to care about.
Thought to be a traitor, Gerald Scott resigned his commission from the army. When he died, he had little to leave his family, other than the taint of that resignation and an unopened letter from a Nazi war criminal. Adam, his son, inherits the letter and takes a simple one day trip to Switzerland to retrieve the contents of a bank box the letter refers to. From that moment on, Adam's life is anything but simple. Chased by the Americans, the Russians, the Swiss and the British, and unaware of the secret he's got in his possession, Adam has to get to safety. First, he has to solve the mystery of his inheritance, figure out where safety is and who he can trust, and manage to stay alive doing it all.
The secret itself seems a tad silly, but other than that, the story is fast-paced and very easy to follow, putting it a little bit above some overly convoluted thrillers I've read.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Best Book I've Read All Year - Mysterious and Deadly
Review: I recommend this book highly.
It seemed so innocent. A totally disgraced British colonel Scott sends a mysterious letter to his one and only son. The moment young 17 year old Adam Scott opens the yellowing and fragile envelope, he sets into motion a deadly chain of events that threatens to shake the very foundations and pilars of the free world.
Within days, Adam's lover is brutally murdered by the men that his father set in motion and he's running for his life through the great cities of Europe, pursued not only by the KGB, but by the CIA and his own countrymen as well. Their common intent is to kill him before the truth comes out, before the truth comes out.
These powerful men in smoke and cannabish-filled rooms plot ever more genious means of killing him dead dead dead, Adam finds himself betrayed, sad, and abandoned even by those he holds most dear.
When at last he comes to understand what he is in possession of, he's even more determined to protect it, for it's more than a matter of life and death-it's a matter of honor to his lover (rest his soul), his mother and his brothers and sister.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: TOPNOTCH VOICE PERFORMANCE
Review:
Topnotch voice performer Martin Jarvis, remembered for his outstanding reading of "As The Crow flies," gives another vital, arresting reading of this thriller by master storyteller Jeffrey Archer.
With a seemingly unending supply of plots and ploys Archer has penned another fast moving tale. The New York Times wrote of the hardcover edition, "Sizzles along at a pace that would peel the paint off a spaceship." And, it does.
Adam Scott is the son of a dishonored British colonel. His legacy? A letter holding secrets concerning the Nazi regime (Goering's suicide), information about his father's disgrace, and clues to the location of a priceless Russian icon.
Knowledge is one thing, taking possession is another as both the KGB and CIA are after what Scott's inheritance. The chase begins, careening throughout the world with murder as a byproduct.
Discovery of the truth may later both lives and history.
- Gail Cooke
Review Summary: Dark and sinister
Review: This is a darker, more sinister, and violent Archer book than most I have read. The USSR is still alive. A document, hidden in a lost icon, would turn Alaska back to the USSR if found. A page turner! I enjoyed it.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Excellent Read
Review: Although the details of Mr. Archer's personal life rival the plots of his novels - from near bankruptcy, to Britain's political inner circles, to prison cell - none of it gets in the way of his well-deserved reputation as an outstanding storyteller.
Next to "Kane & Abel" and "As the Crow Flies" this book is among my three favorites from Archer and I highly recommend it.
Set in the summer of 1966 with Lyndon Johnson in the White House, Harold Wilson at #10 Downing, and Leonid Brezhnev in the Kremlin, "A Matter of Honor" pits a most resourceful but unlikely British protagonist, Adam Scott, against an equally resourceful Soviet antagonist, Alexander Romanov.
When Adam's father, a disgraced military officer, dies, he leaves to his only son the princely sum of 500 pounds and two letters. The first is a missive from Adam's father, explaining the events that led to his resignation from the military, the circumstances that led to his possession of the second letter, and an expression of confidence that his son would conduct himself honorably should he decide to open the second letter and pursue whatever secrets it might contain. When Scott's curiosity gets the best of him, he opens the second letter and finds that it is from a now-dead elite member of Hitler's Third Reich - a man that Scott's father had been assigned to guard during the Nuremberg trials.
As one might guess, it is this second letter that proves to be the crux of the story. It leads Scott to a bank vault, deep beneath the streets of Zurich, containing an obscure work of Russian art - an icon - smuggled out of the country during the downfall of Czar Nikolai II. At the same time, the Kremlin has learned that this painting contains a secret that could forever shift the balance of power from West to East at the height of the cold war. Romanov, a rising KGB star, is tasked with finding the icon and returning it to the Motherland so its embedded secret can be unveiled to the world. While Romanov is not told the nature of the secret, he knows only that its contents must be acted on within 30 days and the clock is ticking.
The ensuing chase reveals that Mr. Scott's will to survive and ability to think on his feet are indeed a match for the best the KGB has to offer. It also presents an opportunity for Scott to restore his father's - and his family's - honor. Hence, the name of the book.
Archer gives us an outstanding plot that is authentically placed amidst the political tensions of the mid-1960s. I enjoyed every moment of this book. The characters are nicely developed, the cheetah-like pace kept me turning the pages until well into the night, and the story had an ending that while rather predictable, was highly satisfying nonetheless.
If you enjoy a good political thriller from the world as it was 40 years ago, along with a healthy dose of Mr. Archer's formidable imagination, don't pass up this book.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: A Matter of Honor
Review: Ironically, I picked this one up right after I finished Ludlum's The Gemini Contenders, and they have a lot in common - a secret hidden during WWII comes to light and becomes the responsibility of a later generation and the chase is on. I gave Ludlum 4 stars and give this one 5 for two reasons; Archer's book is an easier read and the hero of his book is around long enough to care about.
Thought to be a traitor, Gerald Scott resigned his commission from the army. When he died, he had little to leave his family, other than the taint of that resignation and an unopened letter from a Nazi war criminal. Adam, his son, inherits the letter and takes a simple one day trip to Switzerland to retrieve the contents of a bank box the letter refers to. From that moment on, Adam's life is anything but simple. Chased by the Americans, the Russians, the Swiss and the British, and unaware of the secret he's got in his possession, Adam has to get to safety. First, he has to solve the mystery of his inheritance, figure out where safety is and who he can trust, and manage to stay alive doing it all.
The secret itself seems a tad silly, but other than that, the story is fast-paced and very easy to follow, putting it a little bit above some overly convoluted thrillers I've read.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Best Book I've Read All Year - Mysterious and Deadly
Review: I recommend this book highly.
It seemed so innocent. A totally disgraced British colonel Scott sends a mysterious letter to his one and only son. The moment young 17 year old Adam Scott opens the yellowing and fragile envelope, he sets into motion a deadly chain of events that threatens to shake the very foundations and pilars of the free world.
Within days, Adam's lover is brutally murdered by the men that his father set in motion and he's running for his life through the great cities of Europe, pursued not only by the KGB, but by the CIA and his own countrymen as well. Their common intent is to kill him before the truth comes out, before the truth comes out.
These powerful men in smoke and cannabish-filled rooms plot ever more genious means of killing him dead dead dead, Adam finds himself betrayed, sad, and abandoned even by those he holds most dear.
When at last he comes to understand what he is in possession of, he's even more determined to protect it, for it's more than a matter of life and death-it's a matter of honor to his lover (rest his soul), his mother and his brothers and sister.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: TOPNOTCH VOICE PERFORMANCE
Review:
Topnotch voice performer Martin Jarvis, remembered for his outstanding reading of "As The Crow flies," gives another vital, arresting reading of this thriller by master storyteller Jeffrey Archer.
With a seemingly unending supply of plots and ploys Archer has penned another fast moving tale. The New York Times wrote of the hardcover edition, "Sizzles along at a pace that would peel the paint off a spaceship." And, it does.
Adam Scott is the son of a dishonored British colonel. His legacy? A letter holding secrets concerning the Nazi regime (Goering's suicide), information about his father's disgrace, and clues to the location of a priceless Russian icon.
Knowledge is one thing, taking possession is another as both the KGB and CIA are after what Scott's inheritance. The chase begins, careening throughout the world with murder as a byproduct.
Discovery of the truth may later both lives and history.
- Gail Cooke