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Title: The plot saves it...just barely.
Review: I'm a Stephen Frey fan, so bear with me. This was a stinker...a financial thriller version of 'The Firm.' Not nearly as good as The Takeover or Vulture Fund. Why? Unrealistic and grossly cliched dialogue and description primarily.For instance: Pierce, a military guy, is described as "steely-eyed" and with "ramrod" bearing. Characters are always "interjecting" or "replying" or "shooting back" or "interrupting" or "uttering" as opposed to just "he said." And the redundancies: "...he murmured quietly" (how else?) and "it was a Manichaean struggle between good and evil" (is there any other kind?). And the cliches: She was "like a cat on a hot tin roof trying to get off." Actually, I fault Frey's Dutton editor on this (you can see who she is in the acknowledgments section), because this book has a complex plot and fast-paced story, and Frey pulls it off, albeit just barely. I'm a fan. I'll give him another shot.
