Undermoney
A Novel
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- $24.99
Publisher Description
From a seasoned global finance insider comes “a gripping thriller that takes you into the world of New York hedge funds, Russian money launderers, and DC power politics [that] makes you feel like you’re actually there” (Bill Browder, author of Red Notice).
When a US airdrop of billions of dollars disappears in the desert sands of Syria, only a small group of military operatives knows its ultimate destination or why it has been stolen. Their goal is no less than the restoration of America’s geopolitical dominance on the global stage. Essential to this scheme are Greta Webb, a sophisticated CIA operative who is an expert on dark money, not to mention lethally skilled in hand-to-hand combat, and Elias Vicker, the damaged, dangerous soul who runs the world’s largest hedge fund.
To achieve its goals, the group must form dangerous alliances. One is with the hidden family that manages the largest private pool of capital that has ever existed. Another is with Fyodor Volk, the ruthless founder of Russia’s most successful private military company, a mercenary with ties to Vladimir Putin. Volk has his eye on Greta. She would be wise to avoid him but cannot.
Arcing from Manhattan’s finest apartments to Washington, DC, from Middle Eastern war zones to private European bank vaults, Undermoney follows the Americans as they are enmeshed in the world of dark money and confront ever-increasing danger. Ultimately, they must decide whether their objectives are worth the cost of sacrificing not just a few but potentially many human lives. “Unexpectedly timely” (The New Yorker),Undermoney is a “wildly entertaining peek behind the curtain of American politics, financial skullduggery, and high-stakes global conflict” (Nelson DeMille).
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Newman's overstuffed debut, a financial political thriller, opens on a promising note when ex-military types from the U.S., assisted by Russian contractors, intercept a $2 billion cash drop in the remote Jordanian desert for use as seed money for an eventual presidential campaign. Ben Corn, Nebraska's junior senator and a decorated combat vet, is to be that candidate. Three years after the heist, the cabal selects billionaire Elias Vicker's Industrial Strategies hedge fund as the vehicle to launder their cash with members of the group managing a shadow takeover. Industrial Strategies, as it turns out, is in business with individuals with direct connections to Vladimir Putin and are manipulating markets through sabotaging key infrastructure. Much of the book is taken up with intricate backstories of various characters' financial shenanigans, with little action to move things along. Loose ends suggest that this may be intended as a series opener. Readers will hope Newman, a veteran of the world of global finance, provides a stronger hero and a more exciting plot next time.