Numbered Account

Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: Starts with a neat premise, but laborious to read. Very similar plot to the faster paced "The Firm". Plot gets bogged down in minute detail. overall, a miss. :(

Rating:
Summary: Good idea, but...
Review: The cover of this novel initially got my attention, then after I read the back cover I decided to purchase it. I am not a fast reader and the further I got into this book the longer it took to finish a new page. I put it down after page 100 and gave it away. I am currently reading his followup "The Runner". The similiar front covers sent up flags, but the WWII setting got my attention. I made it past page 100. It is a better, faster paced book. I recommend "The Runner" over "Numbered Account".

Rating:
Summary: A highly detailed financial thriller.
Review: Numbered Accounts is a long book that definitely requires an investment on the part of the reader. The book is similar to a Tom Clancy novel in that you get flooded with details on how the Swiss banking system works. If you don't mind that, then you will enjoy the detail. Still, the book seemed to be about 100 pages too long.

Nick Newman goes to work with United Swiss Bank to find out why his father was killed. Then you throw in a terrorist using the bank money to buy a nuclear weapon and a takeover attempt by a rival bank, and you have the plot in a nutshell. I honestly considered quitting reading this book around page 250, but then the action picked up.

Author Christopher Reich takes his time in revealing the motivation, fault and crimes of the characters. As he slowly reveals more, I became drawn into Nick's fate. Nick finds himself in an incredibly complex situation and has to fight his way out of it using both brains and force.

This book is a business thriller and so the love interest with Sylvia Schon wasn't that interesting. I skipped over most of those parts. A previous reviewer said he felt cheated by Riech's treatment of this relationship. I didn't because I had my suspicious about her from the beginning. Reich could have perhaps made more of Nick's relationship with Anna, although he does give glimpses of the depth of their relationship.

The plot twists are pretty straightforward and the action is exciting. Perhaps one weakness is that the villian Mevlevi is introduced quite late in the book and it takes awhile to care about the scenes he is in.

Overall this is good book with average characters, but a highly detailed plot. A must read for those interested in the financial thriller genre.

Rating:
Summary: A Prophetic Novel
Review: Christopher Reich has done an excellent job plotting this novel. He weaves the various elements together very skillfully, and is particularly strong with the military elements. Frankly, I was a tad disappointed with the story that revolved around the Swiss Bank--I guess I was just expecting more. This part of the tale becomes downright dull at times. However, this novel was incredibly PLAUSIBLE. It's one where you really can't punch holes in the plot, because it all makes logical sense, and that is quite a feat in such a grand-scale story. Reich deserves high marks for this. In light of current world events, I found this novel eerily prophetic.

Where the story is weak, is Reich's actual writing. He's not a particularly strong stylist, even by bestseller standards. His dialogue, especially, can be downright wooden, most notably when he is describing the "romance" element in the story. Quite honestly, I don't think the novel would have suffered for leaving the love story out entirely.

I won't nitpick, though. The book is strong, and is very satisfying at the end. One thing I liked is that Reich was not shy about having his central character actually confront evil KNOWING what he would have to do to resolve the situation. As opposed to the sort of character who is after say a mass murderer, but must be THOROUGHLY persuaded before he will harm a hair on that murderers head. Reich does not insult our sensibilities with such drivel. A writer to watch in the future.

Rating:
Summary: Never A Dull Moment
Review: This book was one of the best books I have ever read! Every one of the 753 pages was full of suspense and excitement. The author made you feel like you knew and felt what the characters were going through, good and bad. It is one that is impossible to put down. Superb ending also. Will watch for any book written by this author.

Rating:
Summary: Hall of Fame Great Thriller!
Review: Numbered Account is one of the most interesting and compelling books I've read in the last few years. The story of an American MBA who takes a job with a Swiss bank to discover who murdered his father 17 years earlier was hard to put down. Not only was it suspenseful, but chock full of insider information about how Swiss banks really work. Numbered Account is as good as anything Paul Erdman wrote, and frankly, as enjoyable as any of the novels coming these days from the big names like Grisham, Follett and Clancy. I also recommend Reich's second book, The Runner and The Last Convertible by Anton Myrer

Rating:
Summary: Entertaining
Review: Numbered Account describes the story of Nicholas Neumann, a 28 year old ex-Marine officer and Harvard business school graduate. Nicholas father was murdered when he was only ten years old. When his mother dies, he is led to believe that his father's employer, the United Swiss Bank, was involved in his fathers murder. Resolved to clear up the mystery surrending his father's murder, he moves to Switzerland and begins work for the United Swiss bank. Here he is soon involved in the intrigue and corruption that sorround the bank and its activities.

Personally, I was excited when I discovered Numbered Account. I had always been intrigued by the Swiss Banking System as well as Wall Street, etc. Christopher Reich does a good job describing the banking system. However, the story leaves a bit too be desired. At times the plot just drags too much, and when I finally made it towards the end of the book, the events do not seem to flow logically. Also, there a few loose ends that Reich never clears up. Oh, well! The book is an entertaining read, though, but it's just too long!

Rating:
Summary: Fool me once...
Review: I bought this title based on a recommendation from Amazon. I will be more careful in the future. This novel plodded along with dull characters, poor prose, and a not-very-interesting plot. I think the author (who has gone on to be published again!) must know someone in the publishing biz. I should have such friends! I must admit I could not get past the first 100 pages. Life is too short.

Rating:
Summary: hope my colleagues aren't so!!
Review: I was very attracted to this book before reading it cos it spoke about banks' whirling-money world and, since I'm attending Finance courses (I'm just studying on the book mentioned in this one!) I thought it could be interesting. It is, indeed. It mixes really well banking thecniques, love stories, revenges and omicides, all in the serious and impeccable facade of Swiss banks. The novel is quite long, but your attention is quickly captured and you'll often say:"Ok, just only one more chapter" while you'll read at least 3 or 4 more instead! It is very well written, we can easily tell not only Reich deeply knows the financial system but he knows, as well, how to create a sophisticated cobweb of intrigues you'll desperately want to work out.

Rating:
Summary: Numbered Account Pays High Dividends
Review: After being introduced to the murky and dangerous world of Swiss banking, I am glad that I chose another line of work. Mr. Reich, through his main character of Nicholas Neumann, has woven a very interesting web of mystery and intrigue. The villians are plentiful and at times it is difficult to tell who all of them are, which is part of the reason that the book keeps you up later than you planned on. The mind boggles at the amount of money that can be moved through this process and the manner in which this is done is explained so that even I could understand it. Paul Erdman has made a lot of money with books that explore the world of high finance and Swiss banking. He no longer has that genre to himself however, as Christopher Reich has proven in his first novel that he is a talent to be reckoned with.