In 2021, Jeffrey Archer was sitting next to a member of the Royal household on a cruise around the British Isles when the man shared how someone could steal the Crown Jewels. That conversation, as surreal as it seemed at the time, sparked the inspiration for the sixth book in Archer’s bestselling Detective William Warwick series, Traitor’s Gate (Harper Collins).
In it, notorious criminal mastermind Miles Faulkner — and Warwick’s arch nemesis — intends to pull off the crime of the century by stealing the most valuable jewels on Earth during what is supposed to be a clandestine operation to transport them across London. The mission should be impenetrable. But Faulkner has a man on the inside, and that ratchets up the tension for Warwick and his crew — and keeps the reader clamoring for more.
“People love a story where they know it’s going to end in a thrilling chase and the goodies will win … well, almost win in this case,” Archer said in an interview with BookTrib, noting that after 45 years and well over 275 million copies of his books sold, there’s still so much about the craft of storytelling he delights in.
In the case of Traitor’s Gate, Archer said he got caught up in the research, weaving in fascinating titbits of history for the setting, and fleshing out the secondary characters, some of whom are based on actual historical figures.
“I much enjoyed researching Colonel Blood and his efforts in 1671, while being able to compare this with Miles Faulkner’s attempt to steal the Crown Jewels in 1671,” he said. “Research always gives one so much fun, because things come out of it which you don’t expect.”
With the research nailed down, Archer moved onto writing the actual heist, something he hadn’t written since one of his earlier novels, Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less. It turned out to be more challenging than he thought, because a heist is only successful if you believe it can be done. Archer wasn’t sure this crime could be pulled off.
But Faulkner was.
In Traitor’s Gate, Archer deftly combines existing storylines from the series with a page-turning new plot, ultimately setting up a novel that takes Warwick and Faulkner’s rivalry to a new level.
It’s not a spoiler to suggest we have yet to see the end of their rivalry — no matter how things wrap up for Faulkner in Traitor’s Gate.
“If you are going to write a series, as Sherlock Holmes showed us, you need a hero and Moriarty,” Archer said. “Faulkner is my Moriarty.”
In the seventh book in the series, Archer said “Faulkner will steal a copy of the Declaration of Independence that was handwritten by Thomas Jefferson — and William Warwick will have to get it back.”
If that sounds audacious, it is — but if anyone can make it seem plausible, it’s Jeffrey Archer. At 83, he said his goal remains the same as it was when he started: to get his books in the hands of as many readers as possible.
“The biggest challenge is remaining a bestseller,” he said. “But it won’t stop me writing because I enjoy it so much.”
Cue the collective sigh of relief from around the globe.
About Jeffrey Archer:
Jeffrey Archer, whose novels include the Clifton Chronicles, the William Warwick novels and Kane and Abel, is one of the world’s bestselling authors, with sales of over 275 million copies around the world.
Famous for his discipline as a writer who works on up to fourteen drafts of each book, Jeffrey also brings a vast amount of insider knowledge to his books. Whether it’s his own career in politics, his passionate interest in art, or the wealth of fascinating background detail – inspired by the extraordinary network of friends he has built over a lifetime at the heart of Britain’s establishment – his novels provide a fascinating glimpse into a range of closed worlds.
A member of the House of Lords, the author is married to Dame Mary Archer, and they have two sons, two granddaughters and three grandsons. He splits his time between London, Grantchester in Cambridge, and Mallorca where he writes the first draft of each new novel.
