“Nothing Ventured” by Jeffry Archer expands the background of William Warwick a reader favorite from Archer’s Clifton Chronicles. This is not a detective story; this is a story about a detective. Warwick is a detective with a rich history and a complicated career.

“Nothing Ventured” opens when Warwick leaves school and, much to his father’s dismay, decides he wants to join the Metropolitan Police rather than become a pupil in his father’s chambers. Readers follow Warwick’s life and the varied and interesting cast of characters who cross his path, some good, some not so good, as he becomes a detective and eventually transfers to New Scotland Yard.

Archer brings Warwick to life for readers through the detailed background of Warwick’s education, training, and early work on the police force. The narrative is filled with cordial, friendly, family conversations about the present, the future, and the state of the government. The style is sociable, flowing, easy to read, and compelling. Archer develops a lasting relationship between readers and Warwick.

Warwick knows he is fortunate to have a supportive family. At work, he is just ordinary guy doing ordinary things, having lunch, compromising with parents, conversing with friends watching his budget, and looking for bargains. He certainly does not share with colleagues that he attended one of England’s leading public schools, or that he has a degree in Art History from King’s College London, and he positively does not mention anything about his father’s occupation. He walks, takes the tube, and watches James Bond movies. He is both ordinary and extraordinary at the same time. He worries about what to wear and what wine to drink, but can immediately spot a forged art masterpiece.

Readers follow him into the dark world of Art and Antiquities theft when he starts working at New Scotland Yard. This is a world where insurance companies ransom their stolen paintings, and forgers create everything from fake Rembrandts to counterfeit first edition books. Opportunities for criminals seem to be unlimited in an arena where people with too much time and money on their hands need an expensive hobby.

Archer creates a character-driven mystery that encompasses the world of art, the work of police, and the drama of court. It builds in intensity, and keeps readers turning the pages through twists and turns, triumphs and tragedies. I received a review copy of “Nothing Ventured” from Jeffry Archer and St Martin’s Press. Warwick is set to do battle against all manner of criminal elements, and is certain to become an enduring new character for Archer and eager readers.

Many thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Jeffrey Archer for an ARC in exchange for an honest book review of Nothing Ventured. My thoughts and opinions are 100% my own and independent of receiving an advance copy.

Nothing Ventured is about the origin story of detective William Warwick. He has a background in art history and has just made detective at Scotland Yard. His father had hoped he would follow in his family's footsteps and become a lawyer but William has a passion for law enforcement. This story is basically about an art heist with a ring of thieves involved. Warwick meets a pretty girl, Beth, who works as the curator of the museum. Her father happens to be mixed up in the art theft and is in prison for murder, but Beth claims he is innocent. There is a lot riding on the department to solve this crime so William can’t afford to split his loyalties. As things heat up, there is only a small window of time before the real painting will be lost forever.

This was okay for me. I liked all the characters very much and would love to continue reading about Warwick’s adventures. The supporting characters were equally strong and kept the story interesting. His father and sister, both attorneys, were key players as well as Beth as his love interest and I would hope they would be included in future books. The story was well written with lots of action and with the sequence of events leading to an exciting finish.

Some of the elements I didn’t necessarily jive with. Either I thought they clouded the story or they were out of character. One small one, as an example, is when William sleeps with the rich wife so that he can get his hands on the painting. Everything, up to that point, showed William to be a stand-up guy. He even felt like he had to be honest with his boss that he was getting serious with Beth when he thought he might have a conflict in the investigation. So there were things that just didn’t make any sense. I also don’t know why it was necessary for the story to have him sleep with the woman. A few of those affected my feeling overall about the book. However, I still enjoyed it as a mystery and would look forward to reading the next in the series.

A Matter of Honor is the first book I read written by Jeffrey Archer, and I’ve remained a diehard fan ever since. After the Clifton Chronicles, I’m really looking forward to the William Warwick series. Nothing Ventured doesn’t disappoint and sets up Warwick as a character to watch out for. The villain of the story, Faulkner, is also very interesting. The ending was unexpected and added a nice twist.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.

There are some writers that are master storytellers, and Jeffrey Archer is most certainly in that category. Nothing Ventured is the first book in a planned series featuring William Warwick. As readers of Archer’s last series, The Clifton Chronicles, will likely recall, William Warwick is the protagonist of Harry Clifton’s series of novels.

Like most of Archer’s work, Nothing Ventured is a story propelled by characters that are generally upstanding, with the occasional flaw. We are introduced to William, his family, and associates, with the expectation that they will reappear in future volumes. It is easy to invest in this likable and interesting assortment of characters, as they contribute to the resolution of the cases William works on as a young detective. Despite an intriguing tease for the next volume in the series, the novel ends on a high note.

This is the perfect series for readers who like mysteries/thrillers with lots of plot twists but want to avoid blood and gore. I highly recommend this for anyone looking for an entertaining, enjoyable read. Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read an electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review. Indeed, it was a pleasure.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Here is my review:

I have loved and read Jeffrey Archer for YEARS and I am so happy to get in on the ground floor of a new series!! And this one is going to be good, if the first is any indication.

We meet William Warwick as he is graduating from public school and deciding on what he will do next. His father, Sir Julian Warwick QC wants him, like his sister, to follow him into the law. But William has a different slant on how he will follow the law: He wants to be a policeman, preferably a detective with Scotland Yard!! And so he applies and is accepted by the Metropolitan Police Force. He has two years of training with constable Fred Yates, who had been on the job for twenty-eight years and has learned a "thing or two", which he passes on to his probationer charge.

After taking the detective's exam, he is placed with the Art and Antiques unit, which fits his schooling and interests to a T. He also meets "a girl", who is peripherally involved in one of the cases he is assigned to.

This was a GREAT read and I highly recommend it!!

This is a beginning of a new series. The protagonist is likeable and it will interesting to see where this goes. I found the writing somewhat simplistic but it was a pleasurable read.

This is the first in a new series from Jeffrey Archer. It introduced a whole cast of characters with little enough detail that he will be able to flesh them out in subsequent books. They are all interesting and even the villains are likable. A pleasant enough plot keeps one reading. It almost is like a cozy but more complex. There is little violence, no murder and provides interesting details about the art world. It was a fast, easy, pleasant read and I look forward to book 2. There are hints about what is to come but this book has an ending. It does not end in a cliff hanger as other of Archer's novel have been known to do.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an eARC of this book.

Jeffrey Archer has a faithful following in our library. I am sure our patrons will embrace this new series. It moves quickly and has relatable characters. Jeffrey Archer never disappoints me.

Published by St. Martin's Press on September 3, 2019

Nothing Ventured is a very British novel. Etiquette are good taste are paramount, upper lips are resolvedly stiff, young men are exceedingly proper in their courtship of young women (unless an older woman sneaks into their bed at night). The novel’s protagonist, William Warwick, is the fictional creation of Harry Clifton, a fictional author in Jeffrey Archer’s Clifton Chronicles. Archer is now giving Warwick his own series, beginning with Nothing Ventured.

William Warwick’s father, Sir Julian, is a barrister who has made a successful career of defending the accused. William rebels, refusing his father’s demand that he read law at Oxford. William wants to be the accuser so he can lock up all the villains his father has freed. They compromise on an art history education, followed by police school.

The meat of the story begins with a two–year probationary period, during which William bonds with an old constable who teaches him the lore of a beat cop. Thanks to his art history education, Warwick soon becomes a Detective Constable assigned to Scotland Yard’s Arts and Antiquities division, where he takes on two crimes.

William's initial investigation involves forged signatures on first editions, an offense that Warwick solves with legwork and ingenuity. The second, more complex plot thread involves the theft of a Rembrandt. The latter crime leads Warwick to investigate an underhanded art collector with the eventual help of the collector’s unhappy and conniving wife. Along the way, Warwick falls in love with an employee of the museum that lost the Rembrandt.

The museum employee’s father was unjustly convicted of murder, leading to the plot’s third thread. Warwick enlists his father, who enlists William’s sister, to prove his future father-in-law’s innocence. The alleged murderer has long maintained that the arresting officer removed the middle page of his three-page statement to make the statement appear to be a confession. That is only possible because the first page (which ends mid-sentence) merges seamlessly with the mid-sentence beginning of the third page. The plot thread therefore rests on an unlikely contrivance that I could not convince myself to accept.

The art theft is a more plausible tale, although the last paragraph has the villain making an incriminating statement that seems remarkably stupid. Trial scenes are interesting but undramatic. Warwick doesn't testify in the art theft trial, robbing it of any hope of exceitement, while Warwick’s father, handling the proceeding for William's girlfriend's father, lacks the flair and fire of an in-the-trenches barrister (read a Rumpole novel if you want to be entertained by a British barrister).

Although the plot generates little tension, the story is pleasant. Archer always writes with grace. Warwick and his father are a bit stiff, but Warwick does indulge in a brief episode of naughtiness that suggests a real human being lurking somewhere beneath his veneer of resolute propriety. Nothing Ventured is nothing special, but it is a quick and easy read.

RECOMMENDED

Nothing Ventured
(William Warwick #1)
by Jeffrey Archer

Hardcover, 336 pages
Published September 3rd 2019 by St. Martin's Press


Goodreads synopsis:
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.


***

4.5 Stars

This is the first book in the William Warwick series by Jeffery Archer.

This felt like a community story more than a single man searching for the truth. He is a very agile minded man who could have been a lawyer like his sister and father but instead chose to be a detective. He is quickly pulled into the art and antiquities section when he notices by happenstance that the painting his fellow officers have recovered was indeed a fake.

William meets Beth and is immediately enamored with her. Unfortunately, she has a stake in getting the missing masterpiece back into the possession of the museum. But she has other motives as well which are not related until near the end of the book which throws William for a loop.

I really liked how William’s father and sister were included in this book. The whole scene where his sister was cross examining him was classic! I wish I could watch that on tv just to see him squirm. And William’s father, Sir Julian Warwick QC was the type of man you wanted on your side when you were between a rock and a hard place.

When William makes that choice to sleep with Christina Faulkner, the wife of the man with the stolen painting, I thought it would be all over between him and Beth but that fact never truly came forth. I wonder if it will be brought up in future books. I have to admit that I feared for William after that occurred.

I am invested. I am ready for book two! I look forward to anything new Archer brings forth in this world. It is my first Jeffrey Archer book and I know for sure I will be picking up others. It is no wonder this man is a world-renowned author. This man knows how to craft a story. I am surprised tv series haven’t produced some of his books. Maybe they have and I am just not aware.

Great stuff. Pick this up for sure!

I received this as an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) in return for an honest review. I thank NetGalley, the publisher and the author for allowing me to read this title.

The first in a new Jeffrey Archer series starring William Warwick from the popular Clifton Chronicles. In this first installment, Archer rolls back the clock to when Warwick is a fresh college grad armed with an art history degree. Born into a wealthy family, young William is determined to enroll in police college, his lifelong passion to become a detective instead of following the predetermined legal path of his father. A highlight of this book is the relational dynamic between William, his father, and his sister, also a lawyer.

William’s art education comes in handy as he lands in an investigative Art and Antiques unit. I enjoyed William’s’ peculiar insight and ability to solve cases. The art-related subject matter was fascinating and William, a regular guy with great instincts is a memorable character. His challenges and successes will impact his character of the future. Archer has successfully set the stage for what is to come.

Nothing Ventured is described as NOT a detective story but as a story of a detective in the making. Perhaps therein lies the rub. This book was a bit more simplistic, in all aspects, than the books I have previously read by Jeffrey Archer. It had a sort of “Golly Gee Whiz” (although in a very British way) feel about it.

Sir Julian Warwick, a jurist who has made a brilliant career of defending villains of the worst order, has high hopes that his son will follow him at his old college reading law and ultimately join him in chambers. William Warwick antithetically wants to join the Metropolitan Police Force and spend his life “making sure those…villains are locked up…not allowed to go free…. thanks to his father’s skillful advocacy.”

The members of the Warwick family are introduced, and each allowed to play their part in the furtherance of the story. The first two thirds of the book see William promoted from division to division eventually ending up in the Art and Antiques Squad of Scotland Yard. There is dry humor, a love interest, the investigation of an art theft, a very cheap affair, and a very interesting trial.

The last third of the book was worth wading through the earlier extraneous bits of “this and that”. Thankfully and interestingly Sir Julian plays a significant role in the latter part of the book and this is where I found Archer at his best.

Nothing Ventured was an easy, pleasant read, setting the stage for the future installments of DC William Warwick which will undoubtedly be forthcoming.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advance copy

For readers who have not read the Clifton Chronicles this book is not dependent on having read that series. The main character William is supported by many well developed characters making him shine as a new detective rapidly making good impressions. Several plot lines run throughout the novel and intersect through character or situation. An art forgery with details of identifying originals,
overturning a prison sentence with legal details and of course relationships are all housed in this novel. William is not complex, he is smart but makes some inconsistent decisions. Beth, his girlfriend is idealistic and sweetly optimistic about everything. I enjoy Jeffrey Archer's novels. While this was not as engaging as The Clifton Chronicles it is a solid read.

Jeffrey Archer gives a new series featuring William Warwick. For those familiar with The Clifton Chronicles they will recognize Warwick.

William wants to be a detective and cannot be swayed by his barrister father to follow in his footsteps! He begins his career with a terrific mentor that helps him find his way to joining Scotland Yard as a detective in the Arts and Antiques.

We follow William as he hunts down a stolen masterpiece and comes against brilliant thief Miles Faulkner and his lawyer Booth Watson who bend the law to stay one step ahead of Detective Warwick.

Through twists, turns and tragedy Detective William Warwick shows what he's made of and is destined to become one of Jeffrey Archer's best characters.

I really liked this new series. Lots of art references and plot twists. It kept me up reading late into the night.

3 1/2 rounded up to 4 stars. The first novel in Jeffrey Archer's new series, featuring William Warwick from the Clifton Chronicles, sets the tone as the main character takes on the first rung of an upward journey within the Metroploitan Police. Art, antiques, rare books, insurance fraud, and murder had me hooked from the first page. Archer's scenes describing Belmarsh Prison carried extra weight, considering his first-hand experience as a prisoner there. As this is advertised as "first among many" in this series, the lengthy character set-up makes sense, but a stand-alone-reader may find the initial chapters slow going. I will definitely be putting future reads featuring William Warwick (and characters I hope to learn more about) on my tbr list!

Thanks to St. Martin's Publishing Group and Net Galley for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

I've been a fan of Jeffrey Archer's books for years, so I was excited to see that he had started a new series. As I expected, the book definitely didn't disappoint! I love Archer's style of writing. It's easy going and complex and manages to explain things in a way that are easily understood without the reader feeling talked down to. Even some of the British terms with which I'm not familiar are presented in a way that makes them easily understandable.

I really like the new character, William Warwick. Archer has presented him in a well-rounded way that bodes well for future books. All the characters are interesting and realistic. The story is complex, providing plenty of clues and red herrings along the way.

This book is good old-fashioned storytelling at its best. I look forward to the next installment!!

This is the first in a new series by prolific author, Jeffrey Archer. Taking place in the time period late 1970s to the early 80s, it traces the beginning career of a detective, William Warwick. Archer hints that a good future is in store for Warwick, the son of a well known attorney.

Well written with good character development, this was an engrossing, quick read. Archer has said that he has already begun the second book in this series, and I look forward to it!

William Warwick had wanted to be in law enforcement since he was 8 years old, much to the dismay of his father, an attorney. After completing his study of Art History at London University, William begins work as a beat cop. After two years, he is able to become a detective, and is assigned to a specialized unit, Art and Antiquities, where he participates in an investigation of a ring that steals valuable paintings, and then makes deals with the insurance companies. Currently the unit is focused on a Rembrandt that has been missing from the Fitzmolen museum for seven years. William and his coworkers devise a plan to catch the thieves, and this eventually leads to a courtroom setting. The author does a good job of developing an entertaining story, and the courtroom drama is every bit as interesting a read as the complex activities for nabbing the thieves. There is also some romance for William developed into the story. Other characters, such as William's sister and coworkers of William add interest and depth to this novel.
This was my first try at a Jeffrey Archer book, as something had made me think I would not like his style of writing. I found that to be entirely inaccurate in reading this book. I enjoyed the style, and I especially liked the frequent playfulness of the dialog, and sometimes the narrative. I plan to continue this series, and give a try to some of the author's other offerings.

When the author says that this is not a detective story; it is a story about a detective, he means exactly that. While there is a whodunnit, it isn’t difficult to figure out, it is how the detective goes about learning how to be exactly that, that the story is about.

William Warwick has gone against his father’s wishes (that he study law) and, instead, has gone into police work. He studies law in University but then goes on to become a beat cop rather than qualify for a plan to jump ahead in his career.

The story follows him in this journey and a year or two can pass quickly by. The main focus is once William has become a detective and his work in Scotland Yard’s art and antiquities branch.

William wants to work his way up the hard way but his expertise in certain areas is so useful to his superiors that he moves more quickly up.

It’s a great new start to a series but don’t expect this to be a mystery series. It is a fictional account about how a young man becomes a top ranking detective.

I was provided a digital advance reader copy of this book by the publisher via Netgalley.

Jeffrey Archer continues to amaze me with his masterful storytelling abilities. At the end of his last series, The Clifton Chronicles, Archer concluded the seventy-year saga of Harry and Emma Clifton. Harry was a successful international writer whose fictional character was William Warrick, police detective. The ever-resourceful Archer has begun a new series with the fictional William Warrick as the main character. And the first book in this new series is as compelling as all of Archer’s other novels.
William Warrick joins Scotland Yard on the arts and antiquities squad after serving two years with the London Metropolitan Police. He is following his own vision for his future rather than that of his father, Sir Julian Warrick QC. The elder Warrick hoped William would follow him and become a barrister, like his sister before him.
William’s first case is that of a missing Rembrandt, which opens many doors for him, including love. In his first court case, he is pitted against his sister. Like the Clifton Chronicles, family plays an important role in this new series. Archer has laid the groundwork for another saga which he promises to continue for eight books, with Warrick’s ability and determination, as well as Archer’s longevity, playing a role in the ultimate length of the series.
One of the things that I love about Jeffrey Archer is the conversational tone that he employs in his writing. He knows how to shape a story through vignettes that draw the plot line while allowing the reader space to make their own conclusions. Good characters and strong plotting are always part of Archer’s books, but his use of wit and intrigue are two of my favorite parts of his writings. (I must confess that even after multiple readings I still have not figured out one of the clues in his short story collection Twelve Red Herrings.)
Nothing Ventured is a great read and ends with a chuckle. You go Jeffrey Archer.
I thank Minotaur Books/St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for allowing me to read an Advanced Readers Copy in exchange for an honest review.