Customer Reviews

The Founders

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The Founders features Ian Ross, one of a group of five founders of a company that is about to launch new technology that will make 3-D television accessible and affordable, and make millions for The Founders. It quickly becomes apparent that someone is out to eliminate all the founders for reasons that emerge over time.

As the puzzle unravels, novelist Norman Carmichael's story moves among numerous venues in Europe and the US with effortless familiarity and a nice sense of place. The novel is part thriller, part business plan (How many thrillers have you read with spreadsheets in the text?) and part cautionary tale, with generous measures of geek-talk, terrorist speculation and many good guys and bad guys - which are which is not always obvious.

Ian Ross is a likeable guy, if a bit earnest, and has wide-ranging interests that include fine wine, European basketball and an elegant actress named Christina whom I would have liked to know better. Some characters are more well-developed than others and some minor ones are the most interesting, the European police detectives and a small-time terrorist named Rasheed.

This is a good book to take on a plane trip to Europe, the time will pass pleasantly and you might learn something about any number of subjects. Start it with your aperitif and finish it with time for a nap before breakfast.

The book is an interesting mix of culture, history, fine wine, mystery and intrigue. The author has a knack for weaving these together in an interesting way. The background for the book is a technology company that revolutionizes the advertising industry but the real story is about people and power. The author takes the reader to Spain for most of the action which is interesting. There were also some surprises at the end that kept it from being predictable. I found it quite entertaining.