Nothing Ventured

Author: Jeffrey Archer
Genre: Historical Fiction (UK)
Type: ebook
Source: NetGalley
Publisher: St Martin's Press
First Published: September 3, 2019
Opening Lines: "You can't be serious."

Book Description from GoodReads: Nothing Ventured heralds the start of a brand new series in the style of Jeffrey Archer’s #1 New York Times bestselling Clifton Chronicles: introducing Detective William Warwick. But this is not a detective story, this is a story about the making of a detective . . .

William Warwick has always wanted to be a detective, and decides, much to his father’s dismay, that rather than become a lawyer like his father, Sir Julian Warwick QC, and his sister Grace, he will join London’s Metropolitan Police Force.

After graduating from university, William begins a career that will define his life: from his early months on the beat under the watchful eye of his first mentor, Constable Fred Yates, to his first high-stakes case as a fledgling detective in Scotland Yard’s arts and antiquities squad. Investigating the theft of a priceless Rembrandt painting from the Fitzmolean Museum, he meets Beth Rainsford, a research assistant at the gallery who he falls hopelessly in love with, even as Beth guards a secret of her own that she’s terrified will come to light.

While William follows the trail of the missing masterpiece, he comes up against suave art collector Miles Faulkner and his brilliant lawyer, Booth Watson QC, who are willing to bend the law to breaking point to stay one step ahead of William. Meanwhile, Miles Faulkner’s wife, Christina, befriends William, but whose side is she really on?

This new series introduces William Warwick, a family man and a detective who will battle throughout his career against a powerful criminal nemesis. Through twists, triumph and tragedy, this series will show that William Warwick is destined to become one of Jeffrey Archer’s most enduring legacies.

My Rating: 3 stars

My Review: Jeffrey Archer is a favourite among many of my library patrons and I've enjoyed the first book from his popular Clifton Chronicles series. Now, Archer is back with a new series which stars Detective William Warwick, one of London's Metropolitan Police Force's newest officers.

Nothing Ventured focuses on two art-themed schemes and readers are given a brief background on Warwick's family life. Art fans will enjoy the mentions of famous art pieces/artists and the ensuing art fraud, but those topics didn't quite hold my interest and I felt the tension was lacking just a bit. 

There is a romantic aspect, but their connection happens quite quickly leaving readers to be told about their relationship but not actually witnessing it. The author's blurb states that this book is "not a detective story, but a story about a detective" but I came away feeling that I didn't get to know Warwick as well as I would have hoped. The good news is, this is a series so I figure readers will get to know Warwick better as the series progresses.

While I'm not overly enthusiastic with this first book in the series, this was a good read and I appreciate that Warwick is a smart and eager good guy. He's a breath of fresh air and I'm hopeful that we'll get to know Warwick (and his family who added wit) better in future books.

Disclaimer:  My sincere thanks to St Martin's Press for my complimentary digital copy of this book, via NetGalley, in exchange for my honest review.