City of Thieves

Cyrus Moore
Sphere
€14.50


In this, his first novel, Moore, the former number one UK telecoms analyst, lifts the lid on the shennanigans going on in the City, where obscene amounts of money can be made if certain influential analysts can be persuaded play ball.
His progatonist is Niccolo Lamparelli, a high-ranking business analyst with the Financial Telegraph. He thinks all his Christmasses have come at once when he gets a call from Larry Sikorski of the US corporate bank, Saracen Laing, offering him a job with an irresistible financial package.
Another perk is that his closest friend, Jack, also works as an analyst at Saracen Laing. Like Nico, Jack spent his summers in Japan as a child, where their fathers worked for a time, and they became attached to Miso-san, a wise old fisherman, who taught them fishing, karate and the importance of honour and integrity. At Miso-san’s request, Jack, older than Nic, always looked out for him and bailed him out whenever he was in trouble. Nic owes Jack.
Nic becomes wary when he is pressured to change his ‘Sell’ rating to a ‘Buy’ for Globecom, a leading telecoms company. When he refuses, he is invited to address a Globecom meeting, explaining his rating. The meeting is a disaster, and Larry subsequently orders him to make a formal apology to Globecom, which he refuses to do.
In the meantime, we meet Dr Picton, who is fronting for the prince of a certain Arab state. We also meet Arnaud Veryrieras of the Financial Services Authority, who has been tailing Dr Picton for years, in an attempt to capture him for fraud. Dr Picton is in contact with a certain ‘suit’ from Saracen Laing, and the intrigue begins to build when a Japanese telecoms company comes up for sale.
The world of the City is teeming with multi-nationals, witty, if chauvinist male banter, the lavish lifestyle that goes with outrageous wealth, beautiful and ambitious women, provocative TV panel discussions, and treachery at every turn. As Charlie, a veteran analyst, advises Nico, ‘Rule number one: stand up for what you believe in. Rule number two: don’t follow the crowd. And rule number three: never trust anyone in this business. They’re all a bunch of lying, dirty, mother*******’
This is a brilliantly constructed, intelligent, thrilling read, and an eye-opener for anyone unfamiliar with the world of corporate finance.


Afric McGlinchey
Reviewed in The Irish Examiner