Numbered Account

Nick Neumann has what, at first glance, appears to be the perfect life. The former U.S. Marine just graduated from Harvard Business School and has joined the fast-paced world of Wall Street. His girlfriend is beautiful, the scion of an incredibly wealthy family. But Nick does have one problem: the unsolved murder of his father weighs heavily on his mind. His father, murdered almost twenty years ago, worked for the secretive Swiss bank USB. And so Nick decides to follow in his footsteps: to move to Switzerland, join USB, and determine whether the trail can be followed or whether's it's gone cold. Within days of joining USB, Nick finds himself entangled in a nightmarish conflict. The "Pasha", USB's premier client, is moving ever larger sums of money through the bank in seemingly nonsensical fashion. The DEA, investigating large-scale money transfers through USB, begins squeezing Nick for information. And an attractive vice president at the bank seems to be paying very close attention to Nick's activities. This is Reich's first book and is, simply put, masterful. While its length (750 pages) is daunting, Reich's firsthand knowledge of the Swiss banking industry is invaluable and enlightening. I can almost guarantee that you'll be swept into this ambitious and fulfilling story: revenge and terror mixed into a near-perfect concoction.

Christopher Reich proves that you don't need profanity & sex to make a gripping thriller.Nick Neumann, the Pasha and Herr Kaiser are memorable characters, well-drawn, as is the United Swiss Bank, which becomes a real place to the reader as the book progresses -- especially the inner sanctum of the bosses.The Middle Eastern villain was a timely figure, given that the book was published three years before Sept. 11.The book is fast-paced and an excellent first novel. The mystery is sustained. Themes about fathers and sons, heroes and villains and questions of identity and capacity for good or evil run throughout without being overdone.I have no negatives, except maybe the relationship Nick left behind is a little under done; I'm eager to read more Reich.

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.

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.

The book jacket blurbs read "brilliant thriller, suspense, taut, sophisticated, well-written, sleek, fast moving, gripping." Others talk of "espionage, story telling genius." Numbered Account is all of those "words" but they really miss the point. It is, of course, a detailed, informative, exciting, educational novel about international finance. But do not let that focus deter the reader. If you like finance, read the detail and learn more. If you do not, read the book! With a Phd in History and a postdoctoral MBA in International Business, I can understand some of the finance. But that world changes so rapidly, much remains a mystery. So don't worry about understanding it all. Why? Because this novel, entertaining as it is, is also true from both an historical standpoint and from a political science analysis. What happened in this book HAS HAPPENED with the Swiss banks. Analysts know that. What happened IS HAPPENING. Analysts know that. Leave the direct murder out and you have a not uncommon panorama of history in the major Swiss banks - and, unfortunately a not-so-rare portrayal of the remarkable ability of the Swiss higher echelon to separate so finely the ethics of business and the morality of personal life. Are the Swiss worse than others? Yes - due in part to their special status in banking. Has their stance been harmful? Yes - it has killed hundreds of thousands - and humiliated, defeated, economically and emotionally destroyed, and rot-gut robbed millions - who trusted them. From WWI to today - and it continues unabated, satiated with denials, official racist and antisemitic and brutally savage public and not-so-private statements. Indirect killing, after all, still kills. Is the information about the Swiss banks new and formerly secret? No. Some of us have been writing about it for years. But forgetting is easier than remembering, acknowledging is much harder than denying - especially when no will to do so exists. And now, hopefully its time has come - through Congressional and International exposures - and brave and fascinating novels such as this groundbreaker. It is not a matter of moral courage to do so, as the novel points out, but an absence of any inclination or need to do so. It is, as the reader experiences, the SILENCE OF THE SOUL - or perhaps its death. It is always better, I think, to prick conscience through mystery and intrigue and carefully crafted plots. I am reminded of Anne Perry's Victorian mysteries - each one with a focus on a social issue that carries through to today - and perhaps stirs our concern a bit. Christopher Reich is a very courageous man. Make no mistake. He will be threatened as well as his family. And he knows that. His life will not be as private as he would like. It is a matter of reality, not a fanciful conspiracy theory. Hopefully, this book will be a bestseller. It is exciting enough, intriguing enough, well written enough - and brave enough. As for me, this is