Binding: Kindle Edition
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
Format: Kindle Book
Label: Delacorte Press
Languages: Array
Manufacturer: Delacorte Press
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 480
Publication Date: 2003-08-26
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Release Date: 2003-08-26
Studio: Delacorte Press

Hailed as “the John Grisham of Wall Street” by the New York Times, Christopher Reich returns to the world he knows so well--the dangerous, dazzling world of high finance and international intrigue. In this ingeniously crafted thriller, the bestselling author of Numbered Account and The First Billion introduces his most complex and engaging hero yet: forensic accountant Adam Chapel--and paints a frightening scenario where terrorism is big business and money is the ultimate weapon of war…

The explosion that shatters the smart Parisian apartment reverberates around the globe. In an instant, a suspected terrorist is dead and half a million dollars has vanished. Within days, the CIA is certain it has found a connection between the dead man and a planned terrorist attack on U.S. soil. Determined to avert another 9/11, they have assembled an elite counterterrorist task force, code name: Blood Money. Its mission: to follow the money trail. Its secret weapon: forensic accountant Adam Chapel. A man who trusts numbers more than people, Chapel has his own reasons for wanting to get the job done-- four of his colleagues were killed in the Paris blast. Now Chapel is thrust back into the line of fire when he teams up with British intelligence agent Sarah Churchill. The two are assigned to hunt down a shadowy mastermind who is moving vast sums of money from country to country, from bank to bank, leaving no tracks--as he prepares for an Armaggedon of his own devising.

As Chapel follows a disappearing money trail from Paris to Munich to the deserts of Saudi Arabia, Sarah uses her elite training to stalk the “shadow” and his elusive network. Meanwhile, their quarry is auditing their every move, laying a twisting trail of false clues and shocking surprises. With the clock ticking down, soon Chapel and Sarah have only days, hours, minutes to avert disaster as a master terrorist plots to unleash the first strike in a brilliantly orchestrated conspiracy--with an almost unimaginable goal.

Hurtling us from the winding alleys of Pakistan to the elite banking houses of Europe, The Devil’s Banker creates an adrenaline-fueled world where following the money has never been more dangerous, and evil has never been harder to unmask.


From the Hardcover edition.

Customer Rating:
Summary: solid thriller
Comment: the devil's banker is the first book i've read by mr. reich,
i'll read more of his works, for sure, even though the last couple of chapters were a let down, especially the ending, i'll give his other books a shot,
a fun thriller nonetheless.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Good bargain book
Comment: I've enjoyed many of Christopher Reich's books, and while this one is not his best (Numbered Account was far better), it was an enjoyable read. The overall plot was somewhat predictable, with terrorists, the French, and the fish out of water smarter than he appears American boy - but it had enough story twists (although most were slight) to keep me reading. A good take on the plane on a business trip book.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Not as good as I expected
Comment: After reading "Numbered Account", I was expecting this to be a better book than it was. It was somewhat choppy reading and had a really deflated ending. There are other books out there more worth your time.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: An absolute bore!
Comment: The title to my review says it all. I stumbled through this absolutely boring "thriller" until about page 320 where there is finally something interesting. Unfortunately for this novel, there are only 389 pages so that left only 69 decent pages of writing and the only reason I even gave it two stars.

I was greatly disappointed having read "Numbered Account" by the same author which was absolutely brilliant. Perhaps he is a one hit wonder author.

In this dreadfully slow book Adam Chapel, a type of forensic accountant is on the trail of some terrorists that plan to blow up something. It is not really known to Chapel or his partner Sarah (a foreign agent) exactly what will happen because the threat comes from a tape made in the apartment of a terrorist who blew himself up with Chapel's partners. The tape is incomplete so nobody knows exactly what the threat is.

Chapel tries to learn who is involved by tracing some of the transfers to an account used by someone who paid the rent on the apartment (supposedly the terrorist). Then nothing really happens as Chapel and Sarah chase paper trails for about 250 pages.

The ending of the book is dopey and the ultimate goal of the terrorists can be guessed not too far into the book. It seems like the author rushed this book out right after September 11 and the Patriot Act to use those ideas for a book that goes nowhere!

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Slowly builds into a solid novel...
Comment: Christopher Reich writes a different kind of thriller novel. As many reviewers have noted, his novels focus on international finance. This one is no different but its focus is on how terrorists can use finance to further their cause.

My biggest complaint of the book was that it took some time to develop the story and the characters. It actually made for some slow reading for the first 100 pages or slow but it continued to build up steam. The other problems that I had with the book was the slow development of key characters like Chapel and Sarah Churchill who are both the main story heroes. I would have liked to have learned more of their characters and why we should feel more 'bonded' to them. Both characters have a lot of potential but I don't feel either was developed as well as it should have been. LaClerc, a French crime stopper, is also another fascinating character who the reader wants to learn more about and understand.

Now with all that said, the novel is fascinating as it shows what American/French and English intelligence will do to work together, bicker with each other and struggle to fight terrorism. This novel follows Treasury Department employee Adam Chapel sifting through financial records and bank accounts to try and track the flow of money which in turn would help lead them to the terrorists. It truly becomes a race against time as they try and thwart a large scale attack against American targets.

The terrorists are an intriguing read as well as you can see the fanaticism of some of the leaders as well as the more human conflicted element of choosing between getting revenge, following orders and fighting with indecision on whether or not it could be worth losing your life or killing innocent lives. This was another part of the novel that was interesting and often difficult to read as these types of inner struggles are probably found in many worldwide.

If you enjoy the business world and enjoy financial discussions set against a backdrop of government intelligence and terrorism, it is a fun and interesting read. The last 100 pages of this book are hard put down and could lead to one or two late night readings. As usual, I will look forward to the next Reich novel.

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