Maisie's sacrifices and the secret of Harry's parentage are the main focus of Only Time Will Tell. Harry has grown up thinking Arthur Clifton is his father and that he died in the war. Maisie knows the truth about Harry's parentage, and a few people know the truth about Arthur Clifton's death, but no one tells Harry anything. Then there are flashes of the past; Sebastian, who while waiting to visit a jail prisoner, reads a copy of the Daily Mail filled with photos of Prince Charles and Lady Diana talking at a garden party. "Diana looked really happy, while the Prince looked as if he was opening a power station," the accompanying story noted. MY THOUGHTS: Jeffrey Archer is a true story-teller. I swear he could take a shopping list and make a story of it. Early on, Harry brings an end to his popular book series, deciding instead to turn his attention to writing his best-ever work. Emma, who’s spent the last 10 years as chairwoman of the Bristol Royal Infirmary, gets a call from none other than Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, who offers her a job. Sir Giles, meanwhile, is ramping up his efforts as a member of Parliament on the opposing side – pitting him squarely against his sister Emma. Harry Clifton sets out to write his magnus opus, while his wife Emma completes her ten years as Chairman of the Bristol Royal Infirmary, and receives an unexpected call from Margaret Thatcher offering her a job.

Early on, Harry brings an end to his popular book series, deciding instead to turn his attention to writing his best-ever work. Emma, who's spent the last 10 years as chairwoman of the Bristol Royal Infirmary, gets a call from none other than Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, who offers her a job. Sir Giles, meanwhile, is ramping up his efforts as a member of Parliament on the opposing side - pitting him squarely against his sister Emma. The Chronicles continue to meander aimlessly in the penultimate episode. There are ten or more short stories that progress so rapidly that one could almost feel the weight of the author's deadline pressure. For a change, there are no famous Archerisq close votes or a cliff-hanger book-end - two definite new positives! However, substituting them are these plethora of' tales that appear to have been lifted straight out of a collection of 1970s' books and movies, summarised almost without much modification. The sunset book in the Clifton Chronicles is an average fare. Yes, it showed brilliance in parts, the cliched at places - but as the 7th book in the series it was much less dramatic. Lady Virginia is facing bankruptcy, and can see no way out of her financial problems, until she is introduced to the hapless Cyrus T. Grant III from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, who's in England to see his horse run at Royal Ascot.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

We’ve finally come to the last instalment in the Clifton Chronicles series. What was originally supposed to be a trilogy eventually turned into an amazing seven book series spanning more than 60 years, and I’m so glad it did. I have waited for this book (thankfully not so long in between book 6 and 7 this time!) to put an end to this fantastic series. I enjoyed every word and didn’t want the book to finish. So determined is Harry to see Babakov released and the book published, that he puts his own life in danger. And you’ll take their life from 1920 through to this century and see life in this country through their eyes and have an ever – running story through all of the books. I was surprised when I learnt this last book was being released so soon after the last book and I think it does show quite starkly. It was a bit of a mish mash of information. Archer seems to expect his readers to remember every little detail of the previous novels (and sometimes it's seems like he's forgotten, he's vague about aspects of the previous novels and has made a couple of mistakes) and doesn't alway elaborate on the plot so it does get a bit confusing. There seemed to be babies born with no preamble, dead relatives with no funerals, children adopting parents, 70 years olds embarking on new career paths with no real explanation, art prizes being flung around while personal lives were completely ignored and one of the most major themes of these novels was glossed over in one paragraph.

Meanwhile, Lady Virginia is about to flee the country to avoid her creditors when the Duchess of Hertford dies, and she sees another opportunity to clear her debts and finally trump the Cliftons and Barringtons. That being said, I’m finding it hard to get past Harry and Emma’s relationship being, for all intents and purposes, widely accepted within their families and social circles. There’s a decent chance they’re related by blood...and everyone’s just ok with that? I mean yeah, the wedding gets stopped and it’s mentioned once or twice that they can’t do anything in the circumstances but still. Everyone feels sorry for them and is hoping they’ll still get married, even if it can’t be proven that they’re not related? Hmm. I can’t imagine my friends or family being too thrilled at the prospect of me marrying a possible half sibling. Cometh the Hour, 6th in The Clifton Chronicles series was interesting mix of historical fiction, politics and family drama that revolved around Cliftons and Barringtons’ life. Like all previous book this too was about good vs bad, morals and principles, good things happen to good people and enemies gets their comeuppance, family, love and drama.

Jeffrey Archer on The Clifton Chronicles Series

Writing was easy to read, addictive and flawless. It was told in third person narrative from Emma, Harry, Giles, Seb, Bishra, and Virginia’s perspective; started in 1970 from where the previous book ended with result of court case against Emma and ended in 1978. Being second last book of the series, lot of things were happening. The Clifton Chronicles series is an international bestselling series written by one of the well known British authors named Jeffrey Archer. There is a total of 6 books in the series published between the years 2011 and 2016. All the novels of the series are based on the mystery and thriller genres. Author Jeffrey Archer has set the time frame of the series during the early 20th century and has depicted the life story of the central character named Harry Clifton throughout the series. Each of the novels of the series show the struggles that Harry Clifton had to face right from his childhood and up to the time of attaining his adulthood. Wow!!! Finished this fine series. Wonderful storytelling with Book 7 doing a great job of ending the Harry and Emma Clifton Chronicles, while leaving other generations in play in the event the author wants to bring the family story to the present as we end in 1992. Her brother Giles is a Member of Parliament but is working hard to get the woman he loves out of East Germany. Harry and Emma’s son, Sebastian is the director of the bank and his former girlfriend, Samantha, reappears with a surprise. Sebastian Clifton becomes chairman of Farthings Kaufman bank, but only after Hakim Bishara has to resign for personal reasons. Sebastian and Samantha's talented daughter, Jessica, is expelled from the Slade School of Fine Art, but her aunt Grace comes to her rescue.

She looked up and smiled. He didn’t know her name, and perhaps it was better that he didn’t. All he knew was that she spoke fluent English, was an interpreter by profession, roughly the same age as Karin, and would be wearing an identical outfit to hers. But there was one thing Walter hadn’t explained. Why was she willing to take such a risk? As the undercover officers start to draw the threads together, William realizes that the corruption may go deeper still, and more of his colleagues than he first thought might be willing to turn a blind eye. I really like the main characters even if they are sometimes a bit too good! The bold have some villains and bitches but our main family somehow masters to navigate through all rough waters! DISCLOSURE: I borrowed a copy of Cometh the Hour by Jeffrey Archer, published by St Martin's Press, from my good friend and fellow bookworm, Chris Adams. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.Firstly I have to state how disappointed I am that this is the final book in the series! I have loved the Clifton Chronicles, the twists and turns, highs and lows, never knowing who is going to turn up dead and who will get a giant wind fall. It has all the heroes and villains you could wish for although all of them are 2D and the characters are extremely under developed for a 7 part series. However, this doesn't put much of a damper on the exciting storyline. In a nutshell, the story is extremely enticing, captivating and highly exciting despite being sympathetic in its own way. The author devised one hell of a spellbinding tale that won't disappoint any of his readers. There is always a bit to say about the way the writer accumulates everything in the climax. Beautiful thing was that even if you might have been thinking about some other endings, you will finally be satisfied with the author's perspective. Atleast I was. My advice to the readers who have never read anything of Jeffrey would be to read the first parts of this series before this one and your favorite thriller/drama writer would be decided then and there.