The financial crisis is definitely a marker of the 2000s. The people and corporations have been profiled in the news, in books, and in fiction.
The Darlings by Cristina Alger looks at the Darling family who are typical NYC “royalty.” They have the vacation homes, the fabulous NY apartments and wardrobes — going from boardroom to charity event to party. It all seems rosy if a bit shallow, and might even provoke some jealousy.
But when a financial manager commits suicide, the suspicious profits of his funds bring an SEC investigation to a head. Carter Darling’s idyllic existence seems like it’s going to crumble if this fund proves to be a fraud.
I’m a bit undecided on this novel. The beginning intrigued me as we were figuring out who was who and what was what, and it sort of lagged in the middle, but I felt that the end was strong and compelling.
If you enjoy “ripped from the headlines” sort of stories with a contemporary setting, then this novel will probably not disappoint. There’s a nice mix of character development (though I probably would have personally liked more) and plot.
Jennifer Donovan happens to married to a financier who actually worked on Wall Street, but they are about as far from the Darlings as you can get. She blogs at Snapshot.
i NEED to get my hands on this!