The Insiders: A Portfolio of Stories from High Finance [Hardcover]

David Charters (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 14, 2004

In this remarkable debut collection, David Charters reveals the secretive world of international bankers, brokers, and business executives with an insider's acuity. Sharp suits, fast cars, lavish expense accounts, and exclusive clubs are the comforts of lives lived at a furious pace, where betrayal and blackmail are paths to success, extramarital sex is an equal opportunity job perk, and an initial public offering might be a matter of life or death.

An ambitious middle manager offers his wife to his new boss. An overheard conversation between two powerful executives leads to unexpected consequences for the eavesdropper. A cocky young investment banker is sent to Moscow on his first big opportunity---and finds more than he bargained for. A Ferrari-driving businesswoman plays a wicked prank after an anonymous sexual encounter. These and other characters are brought to life with a few deft brushstrokes, as each story veers through twists and turns to a surprising end.

David Charters is a keen-eyed observer and denizen of this world, and the stories of The Insiders are witty, suspenseful, entertaining---and too close to truth for comfort.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A rip-roaring ride through the executive suites of highest high finance. I can't remember when I enjoyed a book as much as The Insiders. It reads fast and furious with enough laughs to keep you from worrying if everything Mr. Charters says is actually true. I can't recommend the book enough. A brilliant performance."
- Christopher Reich, author of The Devil's Banker and The First Billion

"Charters . . . has written twenty-five well-turned tales. The dialogue rings most true at its most outrageous."
- Financial News (U.K.)

"No tale is quite what it seems, leaving the reader surprised, shocked, or gleeful at the come-uppance and putdowns."
- The View (U.K)

"[A] finely honed fist of short stories."
- What's On London (U.K.)

About the Author

David Charters worked five years in the British Foreign Office, and later became managing director of Deutsche Bank's Equity Capital Markets team, where he oversaw the flotation of Amazon.com and France Telecom. He is also the cofounder of The Beacon Fellowship Charitable Trust. He is married, has six children, and lives in London.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 176 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press; First Edition edition (October 14, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312333811
• ISBN-13: 978-0312333812
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 5.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,269,742 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My flight home, October 18, 2004

By 

A. D. Miller, Jr. (Colonia, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Insiders: A Portfolio of Stories from High Finance (Hardcover)

Facing a long boring flight home from London to Newark in December of 2002 I found Mr. Charters book in a book shop in Heathrow, having spent my entire business life in the international investment banking industry I bought it, more out of curiosity then any thing else. What a pleasant surprise, I laughed out loud at some of the tales in the collection, the people in the business section of the Continental flight might have been disturbed by my laughter but I could not help my self. This is a real laugh out loud enjoyable collection of stories, if you are involved in the financial world they will hit closer to home then you might care to admit, if you are from outside the financial world you will find them outrageously funny any way! Enjoy this cleverly written book, I did!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An enjoyable snapshot of the seedier side of finance, January 9, 2005

By 

Ben (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Insiders: A Portfolio of Stories from High Finance (Hardcover)

The Insiders provides an amusingly enjoyable collection of short vignettes profiling sticky situations investment bankers, corporate executives, and other denziens of the high-powered financial world find themselves in. Though all of the characters are fictional, readers who have worked on Wall Street or other places like are bound to recongize some of the tales as hitting suspiciously close to home. David Charters is a Brit, and as such all of the stories are set in the City of London (England's version of Wall Street), but the behaviors displayed by the characters are just like stories we've all heard coming out of the United States' financial corridors. So much for cultural differences!

Overall, The Insiders is a highly enjoyable, lighthearded read that will bring a smile to your lips. It's great for a long plane ride or a quiet weekend (when you aren't stuck at the office working on your next transaction, that is). Whether you work in the world of "High Finance" or are simply interested in it, don't miss this great little book!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Delightful tales of business characters, November 27, 2005

By 

Rogerio Lessa - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Insiders: A Portfolio of Stories from High Finance (Hardcover)

Thoroughly enjoyable collection of short stories on the lives of people involved with the financial world. Sensitive perspective of ambitions,busyness,pressure, competition, bitterness and deceit of employees of all levels and big tycoons of The City of London, which are also found in any other major financial district in the world. I highly recommend its reading.