Now on its fourth book, Archer's Clifton Chronicles seems to be on a downward spiral. I really enjoyed the first two in the series, but then the third wasn't up to the same standard - with one of the most significant reasons being the ill advised plot featuring the irritating Lady Virginia. Sadly, this latest instalment continues the trend, including a couple of unwelcome cameos by the aforementioned Lady V.
Much of the early part of Be Careful What You Wish For revolves around boardroom battles at Barrington Shipping. This dragged on and in the end became rather silly, which didn't bode well for the rest of the book. Pantomime villain Don Pedro features quite strongly again, and I felt that Archer lost the plot with The Argentinian antagonist's quest for revenge against the Barringtons and Cliftons.
To make up for the tiredness of the revenge plot, Archer does introduce a Northern element to the plot to freshen things up a bit. As a resident of North Lincolnshire, I enjoyed the visits to Yorkshire and tales of fish and chips in Grimsby. The new down-to-earth characters worked well and are good additions to the series.
Praise over with, I'll have to mention another weakness that many authors are guilty of. Rather too many conveniences and coincidences were used to help the plot along. Reminiscent of Harlan Coben's Myron Bolitar series (and many others, I'm sure), every time a character needed help with something, they just happened to have someone in the right place at the right time. I realise that authors may need to this in places, but it seemed a bit overdone to me.
The Clifton Chronicles started off as a great series, but Archer seems to have lost his way with it, which is a great shame. It's not a complete failure as there were enough strands to keep me going, but that interest is waning. The ending ensures that most readers will eagerly await the fifth instalment, but Archer needs to get back to what made the opening books so enjoyable.