The Man Who Robbed His Own Post Office

by Jeffrey Archer

The Man Who Robbed His Own Post Office is part of THE YEAR OF SHORT STORIES and is one of a limited number of free digital shorts released to celebrate the publication of Jeffrey Archer's magnificent seventh short-story collection, Tell Tale.

Taken from Cat O'Nine Tales, Jeffrey Archer's fifth collection of short stories, The Man Who Robbed His Own Post Office is an irresistible, witty and captivating short read.

Mr and Mrs Haskins are upstanding members of a seaside town, where they rose from their ordinary beginnings to make a huge success of their local fish-and-chip shop. From there it only got better as they took the post office to new levels of prosperity. But just they start to plan how they will enjoy the fruits of their labour the Haskins fall victim to the unscrupulous directors at the Post Office headquarters. Determined to ensure they receive what is rightfully theirs, they take drastic action...

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Crime, Contemporary, Ebooks

42 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

Jeffrey is published in 114 countries and more than 47 languages, with more than 750,000 5* reviews with international sales passing 275 million copies.

He is the only author ever to have been a number one bestseller in fiction (nineteen times), short stories (four times) and non-fiction (The Prison Diaries).

Jeffrey has been married for 53 years to Dame Mary Archer DBE. They have two sons, William and James, three grandsons and two granddaughters, and divide their time between homes in London, Cambridge and Mallorca.

Reviews

[Gary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another excellent tale by author Jeffrey Archer, one of the masters of short stories.
In this story an average couple, Mr and Mrs Haskins, make a success by running a Fish and Chip shop before moving on to take over a Post Office and turning that venture into a thriving business. But when they fall victims to the Post Office Directors they become determined to ensure that they receive what they believe to be rightfully theirs.
Not really a mystery but well written and enjoyable.

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Master storyteller Lord Jeffrey Archer has chosen to please his fans with a new venture; a short story released each month. Those familiar with Archer’s work will know that he can not only spin long and involved pieces, but also the short story that compacts adventure into a handful of pages. January brings us this interesting story about Chris and Sue Haskins, accused of stealing a large sum of money from the post office they own. While meeting in primary school, Chris and Sue found themselves in different circles and not showing much interest in one another. However, a few chance encounters paved the way to a wonderful relationship and eventual marriage. Starting with modest means, the Haskins’ sought to begin a business venture that could not fail. Working themselves to the bone, Chris and Sue sought to make more money than their modest fish and chip shop could produce. Working to purchase a busy post office, Chris and Sue continue to work hard and solidify strong relationships with their patrons. A letter from the Central Office governing post offices arrives with some less than pleasant news. Unsure what they will do, Chris and Sue begin to craft a plan that will work to benefit them and ensure they have a lovely nest egg. Thus begins a series of illegal events that will pad their bank accounts, as long as they are not caught. In a story that comes full circle, the Haskins’ soon find themselves before Mr. Justice Gray, baffled at the series of events that brought them to his court. Perfect for those who need a short break from their hectic lives, Archer treats readers to this wonderful short story that launches a year’s worth of intriguing pieces.

I have long been a fan of Lord Archer and his writing. While some propose to dust off the soap box and bemoan his legal issues, this has not diminished Archer’s ability to create powerful pieces that educate and entertain in short order. Commencing a short story collection not only allows Archer to continue honing his skills, but also gives readers something to enjoy when they have a little free time. In this piece, Archer focuses much of his attention on building up the backstory of Chris and Sue Haskins. Filling in just the right amount of backstory to provide context, Archer spins a story full of intrigue and fast-paced action. That this upstanding couple could turn to a set of criminal acts almost seems justified in the way Archer depicts it. With three decent length chapters, Archer keeps the narrative flowing such that the reader cannot stop reading until they have reached the final page, where even then Archer gracefully lets the reader down easily. I am so pleased to have come across this collection and will review each storey based on its own merits, binging with the five before me to catch up, before awaiting each instalment on a monthly basis thereafter.

Kudos, Lord Archer, for a masterful new story collection. How you find so many effective ideas that produce high quality publications I will never know.

Love/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/

A Book for All Seasons, a different sort of Book Challenge: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...

[Shirley Revill · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short story from the year of short stories by Jeffrey Archer that I really enjoyed.
Brilliant storyline and would love to see this made into a much longer story as I was really sorry when I turned the last page. Really entertaining and I will be reading more from this author in the future.

[Ankit Saxena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gripping..

It has started steadily and ended the same. But there's a difference. Started with flash and ended disappointingly. However, in-between its gripping. It holds me but the end was not quite as expected. I started reading Jefferey Archer with his short stories and find him having mastered in story-telling. This is one of his two short stories I read, the other one is The Wasted Hour. Both are Magical. His style of writing is like of the early 20th and mid & late 19th Century writers, amazing and mesmerizing.

It would have been 5.0/5.0; but because of its end
For me its 4.0/5.0

[Shabana Mukhtar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review of The Man Who Robbed His Own Post Office: The Year of Short Stories – January (Kindle Edition)

I guess the rating says it all.

I never believed I will NOT enjoy something that is written by our brilliant Jeffery Archer. The title says quite enough. The story spans over several year. A married couple trying to avenge a decision by municipal corporation. It sounds a little bit like 'Not a penny more, not a penny less'; but obviously not as entertaining.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a 3.5 star read.

An interesting (long) short story and exceptionally well written, however it wasn't what I was expecting it to be.

[Yashwanth Lakke Gowda · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5

[Vinay Leo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review at A Bookworm's Musing

Enjoyed the story, though it doesn't have many twists, and is straightforward. I like these ten minute reads which are perfect to read between longer novels without having to pick up the larger collection of short stories. That being said, I do have the book Cat O’ Nine Tales, so I might give it a go sometime this year.

[Coco.V]

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[pirasalbe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well written short story.

[Samita Kaur · Rating 4 out of 5]

I throughly enjoyed reading it. Read it on my kindle.

[Frank Carver · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is another short book in what is becoming the familiar (and to be honest, somewhat tedious) Archer fare. Someone finds a legal or practical loophole and tries to exploit it for his own financial gain. At this point Archer himself had spent time in prison, so as a reader you can’t help wondering if he is just telling elaborate versions of the stories he heard from his fellow prisoners. In some of these books there is a careful build-up to the crime, but in this case even the actual crime itself only gets a few pages.

Most of the book is just a lengthy and largely uninteresting backstory for the two main characters. We learn how they met, how they started a fish and chip shop and ran it for several years, then got a bank loan to take on a local post office. We learn what they named their dogs, and how they felt hard-done-by when their investment was devalued by post office cutbacks. Finally we get a few pages of description of how they skimmed everything from lottery tickets and postal orders to Christmas cash in order to claim back the money they thought they were owed. Despite the careful planning, there are problems, though, and things don’t go entirely to plan.

I think Archer wanted readers to feel sorry for the criminals in this story, which is why he offers the lengthy backstory but, like so many of Archer’s stories, in the end it just feels like a dry retelling of a court case. The irony of it is that years after this was written it was revealed that an accounting screw up had sent many innocent post-office managers to prison and ruined the lives of hundreds of families. Arguably that would have made a much more interesting and engaging story.

[Clive Gerrard · Rating 3 out of 5]

A rather sad story of two hard working people who lose all their savings due to the indifference of a large company, in this case - the Post Office. A sympathetically written story but it doesn't really take off for me ... This is something of a shame, as the basic premise showed potential but the ending lacked that twist that makes a good short story into a great one. It is however, well written and eminently readable.

Not great but not bad either .....

[Juhi Bansal · Rating 1 out of 5]

Confusion.. the only word that comes to my mind after reading this one - well not read it entirely :P ...completed 60% of it and then left it.

The only thing described nicely was how Mr and Mrs. Haskins get married... however apart from that,
there is nothing but a lot of words just put together leading to a puzzle which isn't told the right way.

Being a Jeffrey Archer fan ... this was a huge disappointment.

[Payal Pasha · Rating 2 out of 5]

Jeffrey Archer has been one of my favorite writers since I was still in college. I have read many of his books twice. But I was a little disappointed with this one. Reminded me of 'As the crow flies'. The story is fast paced and holds one's interest no doubt but only in anticipation that it will end in a punch. That never came. It was not an Archer climax. Too straight and simple for me.

[Mike Briley · Rating 4 out of 5]

A clever and amusing tale. I wonder where Jeffery Archer gets his ideas from!

[Sanika · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was an amazing short read.

[gauri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Na

Na nnnnnnnnhhgrff

I like the book....
A b c d e f g h i j k l m n

[Chris Payne · Rating 5 out of 5]

U don't do book reviews......


I don't do book reviews like you keep seeing, as I find that some give too much of the plot away and I personally hate that, as it makes the book not worth reading. I much prefer to take the authors back cover write up as a review as it can either intrigue you enough to read the book of provide you enough information to make you decide that the book is not for you.
My review rules are: The more stars, the more I liked it.
If there are too many typos or errors the less stars I give
If the storyline or plot is poor or contains too many errors, the characters are too weak, the ending lacking something, then the less stars I give.
Simple, uncomplicated and to the point without giving anything away.
Some of the books I read have been given to me by the author as a pre-release copy and this does not bias my reviews in any way

[Dr.J.G. · Rating 4 out of 5]

More along the lines of As The Crow Flies than any of his thrillers, in the sense it's about decent people working hard and rising financially until cheated, then trying to overcome the setbacks, it's another very satisfying story from Jeffrey Archer.
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[Diwakar Grandhi · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book was decent but there weren't any astonishing plot twists. The writing was good and it was certainly a good story to read in a short period. The book tell us about a couple who faced their own hardships and were downright honest in everything they did. However there comes a time when they were tested as their hard earned wealth was at stake. The story then moves on to what decisions they took at this crucial juncture and how they managed to handle the situation.

[Alvin Ang · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sometimes Institution and society had to be taught a lesson. The fact that many younger Corporate managers who rise thru the ladder in the utmost simplicity forgets the fact of how some honest people had to slave their way thru life and thus giving them no choice but a simple crime towards awakening of Justice

[Jaq {Gwen} · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one of the stories I liked best among 'The Year...' collection, despite the ending being a little bleak.
The main defect is that Archer was not able to transmit me the anxiety the two protagonist' must feel while they put in place their plan, and the format doesn't allow for much character development.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Riveting short story ..... NO SPOILERS.....

This is a tale that can create an interesting discussion, especially in a book club .
The 2 main characters are the couple that most people will know a couple like them , they work hard and want a better future . I won't go into any more detail other than to say ....if not for stamps it would have been the perfect. crime ??

[Alentia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amusing quick read.

The Man Who Robbed His Own Post Office is a super quick read, telling the story of a couple who bought a post office, only to be screwed over by the higher ups.

[Vijayshree Menon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liked the way it was segregated into three parts. One thing I like about the style of the author is that the story has a natural flow and he manages to keep an element of grip which makes it interesting.

[Swathi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating: 3.5/5

It was an interesting short story with a couple who have been charged with robbing their post office and forging fake passport. The back story of why a law abiding and honest couple did this was very interesting. I enjoyed it.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a freebie.
As always, Jeffrey Archer spins an entertaining yarn, but the ending was too rushed.

Worth a read for fans of the author or slice of life short stories.

[Kally Sheng · Rating 3 out of 5]

Brilliant!

As good as the first read!
It’s amazing how a simple story, no plot twists and excessive descriptive adjectives needed, told in a simple language is more enjoyable than those awards winning ones are!

[Janet Crabbe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good Short Read

Really enjoyed this short story, the characters were so ordinary and easy to relate to. Brilliant book for a spare 30mins.