I didn’t quite get what was happening and after they had arrived in America/England I actually had to read other reviews about this book to find out what was happening. After that I quite enjoyed the individual stories but of course was left wondering till the end how the stories became entwined.

I have always loved Jeffrey Archers book and while I found this book fasted paced and Archers writing is always engaging, it just didn’t sit right with me. I found myself getting confused easily and beginning to get fed up. This book reminded me of a sliding doors scenario, if you chose a different path would it be how you wanted. While this is a great plot for a book I found it a little far featched in this one.

Another great read from Jeffrey Archer.

I unexpectedly enjoyed reading The Clifton Chronicles and am now a bit of a Jeffrey Archer fan so I was very keen to get started on Heads You Win.

No spoilers here, but I loved the way this story was delivered. Two Russians, mother and son, escape but did they choose the right escape route?? Full of twists and turns as you would expect from this author that kept the book moving along at quite a pace. Maybe some of the escapades refer to are a little far fetched but I read for pleasure and this book definitely achieved that.

As you would expect there was a political element here and the authors personal knowledge of the intricacies of parliament were plain to see. There was also banking, another theme that occurs in the authors novels. These were easy to follow and full of drama.

The ending, despite the length of this book, somehow felt a little rushed and I found the more frequent switch between characters a little difficult to keep up with. I wasn’t particularly surprised by the ending and wouldn’t be at all surprised if a sequel appeared.

It is many years since I last read a book by Jeffrey Archer.

He can still present an enjoyable, entertaining and topical yarn.

Whilst I found the 'Sliding doors' approach used in this novel a little confusing, I liked the way that the plots unfolded .

Archer is still able to create some well crafted characters. I found that I had to reread the closing chapters to understand the denouement.

My thanks to Netgalley for a copy in exchange for this review.

Kept my attention wondering how everything would turn out in the end. A story of hardship & courage. Archer at his best!

Absolutely Superb.
Having read many of Jeffrey Archer's books years ago I was excited for this one.
I had forgotten just what an excellent story teller he is.
An unusual plot, taking two different scenarios based on one decision, I couldn't work out how on earth this was going to end neatly. I should have had more faith.
Beautifully written, this is testament to the Author's pure talent. For example, the wedding speeches made me cry and I was up until the early hours, knowing I should be switching off on a school night but not really caring.
Many, many thanks for the entertainment and also for the insight into Russian history (taught as though from an old uncle with tales to tell rather than a history teacher)
Loved it.

2 boys with similar backgrounds leave Russia , one escapes to New York with his mother, the other and his mother to London .the book follows their lives and their successes . Jeffrey Archer never fails to please. An enthralling novel with a most unexpected ending.

Jeffrey Archer is a master storyteller. However, I found it difficult to get into this book and perversely, difficult to put down. The story takes a surprising twist and I found that, unlike the other Archer books I have read, it lacked the anticipation of a twist in the tale and the authority of a long story cut short. It was a promising read which failed to deliver in the way that one would expect Jeffrey Archer to deliver..

It started off as a real page turner, but by the end I was bored and often confused. The premise was very good, but as it developed I became confused as to who was who and had trouble remembering who everyone was. It was overlong and not very well written, but typical Jeffrey Archer. The plot became really ridiculous and stretched way beyond credibility. I was not happy about the ending, though do admit that the very end was clever.

Another vastly readable and enjoyable book by this author. He provides , as usual a spellbinding tale. If you enjoy blind ambition overcoming an array of difficulties across 30 years then culminating in a final devastating twist then this is a read for you. Alexander Karpenko and his mother must flee from Russia after the murder of Alexander’s father. Their escape is orchestrated and they must decide whether to hide in a crate bound for America or Great Britain. Fate decided with a toss of a coin. The story is then narrated in dual time / sliding doors technique. The story unfolds with the paths followed in each country. The politician in England and the entrepreneur in America . An ambitious tale foe characters and author.

I'm a big fan of Jeffrey archer but this book didn't hit the spot for me unfortunately. A great start but then drifted off and I couldn't get a connection with the characters.

Okay before I start I love Jeffrey Archer and have read everything by him from when I first got into his writing in the 1980's.
This book is very like most Archer books a very easy read that spans many years and takes the reader on an interesting journey. It is hard to say too much without spoiling the book however the premise is that a mother and son flee from Russia and on a coin toss will either go to London or New York. Here the story splits with two stories evolving with a what happens if......so one is set in New York the other in London and follows the fortune of the two.
To say much more will spoil the book. I must say I would normally give any book by Archer 5 stars however for me the ending was confusing and I am still not sure what happened (though there is a but of a why didn't I see that earlier moment).

This is the first Jeffery Archer book that I have read in years but it gave me a lot of déjà vu moments as his writing can be formulaic. Two characters from completely different lifestyles and background who rub up against each other with lots of treachery, power plays and unscrupulous business dealings. This book was slightly different in that the usual formula was mixed with the plot of the movie ‘Sliding Doors’ where you follow one character into two different lives depending on a split second occurrence at the start of the movie. . Towards the end of 'Heads You Win' the main character says “All of us can point to a moment in our lives when something happens that causes us to go in a totally different direction. It can be as simple as that time you stepped onto a train and decided to sit next to me”which is very reminiscent of the 'Sliding Doors' plot.


Alexander is a teenager in Leningrad in 1968 when his father is killed by the KGB for planning a trade union for dock workers. Alexander and his mother, Elena, flee to the west to escape further reprisals from the KGB. Alexander’s uncle plans the escape and at the dockside flips a coin to decide which ship they will hide on – one destined for London or one for New York.

The story then diverges into following Alexander, now named Sasha, in London and Alex in New York. The story had me hooked until then but soon turned dull as both Sasha and Alex turn to making vast amounts of money and later politics in bids to be in the UK Parliament and US Senate respectively. The second half of the book was almost too tedious to read as it was full of political rhetoric that bored me silly and didn’t move the plot on.

None of the characters were in the slightest likeable unless you like people who only want to make money at any cost and who will turn against you when the price is right. These characters are not very bright either as time and time again they are taken in by someone pretending to be their next best friend who clearly isn’t.

I plodded on as I wanted to know how the author was going to resolve the two sides of the character. This all happened in the last few pages and was deeply disappointing and a complete cop out. I was left feeling rather aggrieved at having spent many hours of my life forcing myself to read this in the hope that it would have at least a decent ending.

With thanks to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Another great read by Jeffrey Archer, this book held my attention from beginning to end - the very end, a twist I didn’t see coming. This is the mark of a great storyteller.

The story followed two intertwining characters, Sacha/Alex. It was skilfully done. Jeffrey At her doesn’t disappoint.

I found this book really difficult to stay with. The parallel story lines were implausible and confusing. It was not immediately clear that Alex and Sacha were in fact the same person, further complicated by the fact that they were both travelling with the mother Elena. It was difficult to maintain continuity with either storyline, because of the frequent switching back and fore between the two stories/characters/locations. As the story progressed, the effort to merge both stories became completely unbelievable, and unconvincing.
There was a great deal of reference to the politics of UK at the time, which Sacha became heavily involved in, with the author naming politicians and positions, many factual, and presumably some fictional. In the US, it was the banking world that was the vehicle for the character Alex’s progress through life. It also touched on Russian politics, just to add to the mix. The use of factual occurrences in all three countries during the period the story is set, is overdone and again, not convincing.
The ‘twist’ ending was beyond belief, a curved ball of staggering proportions, which left the story/stories with no conclusion whatsoever. Very disappointing from this author, whose work I normally enjoy.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for my advance copy of this book, I so wish I could have liked it more.

I think Jeffrey Archer is a good storyteller and this book does not disappoint. I loved the two different lives being lived dependent on the decision made by the toss of a coin and showing how some things are down to nature and some nurture.

I'm hoping this may be the start of a series....

would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this book

a political thriller...
what ship did mom and son escape on....two separate stories told side by side...and is the grass always greener on the other side

spellbinding and totally engrossing book that hooks you in both sacha and alex lives grips you as they grow up in their respective countries

a bit heavy on the politics at the end and i started to lose it a bit but the actual storyline regarding sacha and alexs lives grips you

Alexander and his mother escape from Russia with the help of his uncle after his father was betrayed and killed for trying to set up a trade union in the docks. Two ships are sailing, one for England and one for America – which one to choose? The story splits as we follow Alex to America and Sasha (a diminutive of Alexander) to England where their lives follow similar but different paths. But which is the real Alexanders story? I was engrossed from the beginning and the ending was a complete surprise. Although this can be read as a complete story, there is certainly more to come.
There is no question in my mind that Jeffrey Archer can tell a good story and Heads you Win is no exception. However, my one niggle is that it had too many similarities with the Clifton Chronicles.

A typically well-written Jeffrey Archer yarn, although this one differs in that it offers two possible outcomes as a result of the toss of a coin. When Alexander and Elena stow away on a ship out of Leningrad they could end up in the UK or the USA. This book tells both tales, with both similarities and differences in what happens in each country. I am not sure that it entirely works (but don't want to give away anything about the ending) but is still worth reading.

Thanks to Net Galley and Pan Macmillan for an ARC of this book in exchange for a review.
I am a big fan of Jeffrey Archer, a great storyteller, creates characters his readers can identify with, draws the reader into his story, the pages turn themselves and the reader just wants to keep reading.
This new book does not disappoint, it’s yet another 5 star read. Alexander Karpenko and his mother are escaping from Leningrad, Russia, the KGB have murdered his father. When they reach the docks they have the choice between hiding in a container bound for America or Great Britain, the choice is made by the toss of a coin The story is then told in alternating chapters, one man, two lives with lots of twists, some politics and some great characters.