The Crash by Robert Peston
London, 2007. It's summer in the City: the economy is booming, profits are up and the stock market sits near record highs.
But journalist Gil Peck is a lone voice worrying it can't last. Deep in the plumbing of the financial system, he has noticed strange things happening which could threaten the whole economy. But nobody wants to hear it: not the politicians taking credit for an end to boom and bust, not the bankers pocketing vast bonuses, not even Gil's bosses at the BBC, who think it's irrelevant.
When Gil gets a tip-off that a small northern bank has run out of money, everything changes. His report sparks the first run on a UK bank in 140 years. The next day, Marilyn Krol, a director of the Bank of England dies in an apparent suicide.
For Gil, it's personal. Marilyn was his lover: was his scoop connected to her suicide? Or is there something more sinister in her death? Gil is determined to find out.
The more he investigates, the more he is drawn into the rotten heart of the financial system, where old school ties and secret Oxbridge societies lubricate vast and illegal conflicts of interest. The whole economy has been built on a house of cards, and Gil is threatening to bring it down.
When simply reporting the facts can make or break fortunes, Gil has to ask himself: is he crossing the line between journalist and participant? Are his own conflicts of interest making him reckless? And in a world ruled by greed where nothing and no-one is too big to fail, what price will he pay for uncovering the truth?
About the author
Robert James Kenneth Peston (born 25 April 1960) is an English journalist, presenter, and author. He is the political editor of ITV News and host of the weekly political discussion show Peston (previously Peston on Sunday). From 2006 until 2014, he was the business editor of BBC News and its economics editor from 2014 to 2015. He became known to the wider public with his reporting on the late 2000s financial crisis, especially with his exclusive information on the Northern Rock crisis.[1] He is the founder of the education charity Speakers for Schools
Review
‘The Crash’ is definitely what I class a ‘thinking man’s ‘ thriller! Packed full of details about the financial system and the crash of 2008 but not dumbed down for the reader. The author expects that his readers will have the ability to grasp complex systems, interrelated activities and how they relate to the overarching plot. However, he manages to explain them in terms that a layman with no prior knowledge will easily be able to understand them! But that should be no surprise to Robert’s readers and of course his viewers. This is the first book that I have read by the author but I will keep my eye out for what he brings out next!
This was a nail-biting and tense thriller that takes about around the financial crash of 2008 and it is a very authentic and realistic take on the events. Of course, this is due to the extensive experience the author brings to the table on this subject since it was himself who broke numerous stories about Northern Rock and the subprime banking crash. Here we find Gil Peck, an ambitious BBC reporter and author of his economics blog Peckonomics who is breaking the story about the coming melt down of the worlds economy. His big scoop is when he gets a tip-off about a northern bank losing their customer's money, setting off a run-off for the first time in modern banking history which culminates with the Bank of England stepping in to save the bank. When one of his closest friends and on and off again lover Marilyn Krol, a director at the Bank of England, is discovered in her home after committing suicide, Gil wonders if he should have been able to help her more. Gil doesn't believe that she would have done this and thinks she has been murdered and it has something to do with the crash. He decides to investigate with the help of his best friend and fellow reporter Jess but will they get to the truth in time…
I really liked Gil, he was determined to get the crux of the story no matter what but he was also concerned about hurting people in the process. Although he has his flaws, he was a great protagonist and maybe his flaws actually helped make him relatable. You can feel the pressure he is under, trying to get the next story, his mother's illness and then the death of Marilyn. Then having to navigate that bunch of killer sharks is bankers and politicians! Geez no wonder he needs a spa day! There is also the shadow of his sister’s death which he has never recovered from.
You will definitely be able to work out who the characters are based upon quite easily if you like your politics. It made me feel as a reader that I was getting a peak behind the curtain at this world and how it operates. It certainly is a world where power rules!
Let me know if you pick this one up.
