Archer's Clifton Chronicles titles published early

Macmillan is publishing the final two books in Jeffrey Archer’s bestselling Clifton Chronicles series in the same year due to "reader demand".

Whereas each of the five previous instalments have been published one a year, the sixth and penultimate instalment, Cometh the Hour, will be published worldwide on February 25th 2016, with the seventh and final book following on in the same year in November 2016.

The Clifton Chronicles is described by publishers as Archer's "boldest undertaking yet" for bringing to life "key" historical and political events of the 20th century over the course of one family’s story. Macmillan calls it "a thrilling episodic saga of love, loss, betrayal and ambition, taking the reader on an exhilarating journey from the back alleys of Bristol to the teeming streets of New York City and the gulags of Stalinist Russia". The fifth book of the series, Mightier than the Sword, reached number one in the UK, India, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Canada, and number three in the US.

Archer said: "I became so excited by Cometh the Hour (book six), that I just went on writing. I’m delighted to say that the final volume of The Clifton Chronicles will be available by the end of the year."

Publisher for Macmillan Adult Books, Jeremy Trevathan, added: "It has been a real privilege for us all at Pan Macmillan to have been involved in publishing this extraordinary series of books from Jeffrey. Each book has sold more than the book before in all formats. Every book in the Clifton Chronicles has been No. 1 in hardcover and paperback, here in the UK and around the world. We will be doing something extra special for 2016 building to a fitting climax to a series of books that will be seen as classics of popular fiction."

The books' publication will be supported by a "highly integrated" global marketing, sales and PR campaign, with activity coordinated across Macmillan's family of companies around the world in the UK, USA, Australia, South Africa and India. Marketing activities are said to include major outdoor, print and online advertising as well as social media outreach and engagement. Macmillan aims to draw in new readers as well as already loyal fans through use of "strategic giveaways" of first in the series Only Time Will Tell, refered to as "a valuable recruitment asset".