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The Fourth Estate

By: Jeffrey Archer
Narrated by: Jonathan Aris
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Summary

Lubji Hoch escapes from the Nazis, moves to Berlin and changes his name to Richard Armitage. After a successful career in the British Army, he takes over a struggling newspaper and with unrivalled ruthlessness begins building his media empire.

Meanwhile, Keith Townsend, the son of a millionaire and Oxford educated, returns to Australia from London to take over his father's newspaper with similar ambitions.

As both men move their quest for power to the world stage, they realise they are more than a match for one another's brilliance and ambition. Their rivalry leads them to the brink of financial ruin and finally to the ultimate showdown where one will become the world’s most powerful man, and the other will succumb to tragedy.

Based on the rivalry between media moguls Rupert Murdoch and Robert Maxwell, this fast-paced, suspenseful thriller full of status, corruption and deceit will captivate fans of Archer's blockbuster Kane and Abel.

The Fourth Estate is narrated by Jonathan Aris, a British television, film and theatre actor. He has appeared in Sherlock, the Night Manager alongside Tom Hiddleston and Hugh Laurie, and played the angelic quartermaster in Good Omens.

Jeffrey Archer is a bestselling British author and former politician. He was educated at Oxford and went on to become a Member of Parliament, the deputy chair of the Conservative Party as well as sitting in the House of Lords. His political career ended in scandal and he turned to writing, where he has been published in over 250 countries.

He is perhaps most famous for the "Clifton Chronicles" and his blockbuster Kane and Abel which was number one on the New York Times Bestseller list and inspired a popular miniseries starring Peter Strauss and Sam Neill.

After he was imprisoned for perjury in 2001, he wrote his highly acclaimed non-fiction series, Prison Diaries - Hell, Purgatory and Heaven - which were inspired by his experiences and loosely structured around Dante’s Inferno.

©2021 SAGA Egmont (P)2021 SAGA Egmont
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What listeners say about The Fourth Estate

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Somewhat disappointing

Similar formula to Kane & Abel but entertaining enough, especially if one hasn’t read the aforementioned.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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The Robert Maxwell & Rupert Murdoch story

amazing book, it shows what a crook Maxwell was and the amazing risks that both of them took. Great book

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Another brilliant story from my favourite author

Undoubtedly another brilliant story of such a well known event told in detail and so entertaining that the reader/ listener is captured and enthralled.
I’m starting to run out of new books from Lord Archer but will be content to wait for the next new book as and when it is published, thank you.

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2 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Modern day kane and abel

Really enjoyed this book , twists snd turns from the first to the last page, very typical Jeffrey Archer composition
Long book but worth every minute of your time taken to ride the rollercoaster of the two competitive business men
Highly recommended

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Not his best - usually love his books

Irritating accents. The storyline was interesting but complicated and I got bored during the middle

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Yet another fabulous novel from archer.

A real page turner.
what I like about JA's novels is that they are both thrilling but not complicated.
And the narrator was simply awesome. highly recommended

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Good

I enjoyed this book one little fault poor Cockney accent. Two ruthless men a shame

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2 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Brilliant

Great listen start to finish, excellent narrating highly recommend. Sorry when it Finnished . On to the next Jeffrey archer story

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

another good story.

A bit difficult to link everything together at start but developed into a gripping story . enjoyed a lot.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Sometimes confusing and a bit of deja-vu!

Basically this story uses the barely disguised lives of Robert Maxwell and Rupert Murdoch, in a fictionalised form . It was interesting as I had never bothered to find out much about these men before I read the book and it was only after reading it that I delved into the lives of the men who inspired the characters. Like the fictional Keith and Dick in the book they had awesome lives .
This is as always with Jeffrey Archer, a superbly written book and it is also well read. It made learning about the publishing industry a veryenjoyable exercise. I only gave the story three stars as it wasn't very original!!!!

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5 people found this helpful