Paul Kilduff's second novel is set in the world of high finance and opens with the intriguing statement: "If the City of London were an independent country, it would be ranked as the 20th richest in the world, just ahead of Belgium, Austria and Sweden." This is due to the fact that a single square mile, stretching from the Law Courts in the west to the Tower of London in the east, is looked on as the world's leading international centre of finance. An American dealer, Greg Schneider, is due to make a killing in Provident Bank shares if and when a multi-billion-pound takeover takes place. But is insider trading or some such crooked scam responsible for this impending bonanza? To find out, an expert stock exchange investigator is brought in, which leads to a leading research analyst going public, the discovery of a dead body in the Thames, and the consequent untangling of a web of deceit and conspiracy. Author Kilduff obviously knows his territory well, writes authoritatively about it, and spins a compelling tale. For anyone intrigued by the present spate of Tribunals in this country, this will prove to be riveting stuff.
Michael Painter is a journalist and critic