Twelve Red Herrings - Paperback

by Jeffrey Archer (Author)

The bestselling author Jeffrey Archer once again astonishes, delights, and electrifies with this story collection, Twelve Red Herrings.

Archer, the internationally bestselling author of Honor Among Thieves and Kane & Abel, serves up this inventive collection of a dozen short stories -- with a twist. Cleverly styled, with richly drawn characters and ingeniously plotted story lines, each of the twelve pieces ends with a delightfully unexpected turn of events.

An imprisoned man is certain that his supposed murder victim is very much alive....A female driver is pursued relentlessly by a menacing figure in another vehicle....A young artist gets the biggest break of her career....A restless beauty manages the perfect birthday celebration....An escaped Iraqi on Saddam Hussein's death list pays an involuntary visit to his homeland. In each tale, human beings are given an opportunity to seize, a crucial problem to solve, or a danger to avoid. How will they react? How would you? Capping off the collection are two additional rewards. In the final story, Archer offers a choice of four endings. And buried in each story is another diversion -- a red herring which Archer challenges his readers to uncover.

Back Jacket

"ONE OF THE TOP TEN STORYTELLERS IN THE WORLD."
-Los Angeles Times

EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED...
A wrongly convicted murderer exacts a flawless plan of revenge...Headlights in a rear-view mirror tail a female traveler on a lonely stretch of road ...A serial bride secures her future by marrying only the wealthiest of men...An escaped Iraqi with a price on his head pays an involuntary visit to his homeland... A brush with death proves the biggest break of an aspiring artist's career...Two strangers, struck by lust-at-first-sight, consider a myriad of possibilities for where the day will take them.

...AND YOU'LL STILL BE SURPRISED.
BECAUSE NOTHING IS WHAT IT SEEMS.
Bestselling author Jeffrey Archer, "one of the most captivating storytellers writing today" (Pittsburgh Press) engages the reader in a cunning game of cat-and-mouse as he spins twelve ingenious tales of duplicity, love, murder and revenge, each capped with a startling twist. But be careful, for buried in each tale is a red herring-a wicked diversion that Archer challenges readers to uncover for themselves. Artfully entertaining and suspenseful, this is Jeffrey Archer at his inventive best.

"Outstanding...White-knuckle suspense and witty denouements."
-The Daily Express

"Archer hits the bull's eye with an exemplary collection of short stories."
-Daily Mail (London)

Author Biography

Jeffrey Archer was educated at Oxford University. He has served five years in Britain's House of Commons and fourteen years in the House of Lords. All of his novels and short story collections--including And Thereby Hangs a Tale, Kane and Abel, Paths of Glory and False Impression--have been international bestselling books. Archer is married with two sons and lives in London and Cambridge.