Company Man

A Novel

By: Joseph Finder

Narrated by: Scott Brick

Length: 17 hrs and 48 mins

Publisher's summary

Joseph Finder's New York Times best seller Paranoia was hailed by critics as "jet-propelled," the "Page Turner of the Year," and "the archetype of the thriller in its contemporary form."

Now Finder returns with Company Man - a heart-stopping thriller about ambition, betrayal, and the price of secrets.

Nick Conover, the son of a factory worker, is the CEO of a major corporation in a company town. Nick, once the most admired man in Fenwick, Michigan, is now, having presided over massive layoffs, the most despised. A single parent since the recent death of his wife, he's struggling to insulate his 10-year-old daughter and angry 16-year-old son from the town's hostility.

When his family is threatened by a nameless stalker, events spin quickly out of control and Nick is faced with a dead body and damning circumstances. To protect his family, he must cover up the homicide with the help of his old friend and corporate security director.

Now Audrey Rhimes, a police investigator with an agenda of her own, is determined to connect Nick to the homicide. In the meantime, Nick begins to unravel a web of intrigue within his own corporation, involving his closest colleagues, that threatens to gut the company and bring him down with it. With everything he spent his life working for hanging in the balance, Nick Conover discovers that life at the top is just one small step away from a long plunge to the bottom.

©2005 Joseph Finder (P)2005 Audio Renaissance, a division of Holtzbrinck Publishers, LLC

Critic reviews

"A frightfully good suspense thriller." (Booklist)
"Mr. Finder's Company Man confirms what his Paranoia made clear: he has unusually keen instincts for back-stabbing in the business world. And somehow or other, exotica about the workings of a company that manufactures office furniture become unnaturally interesting here." (The New York Times)

Awesome....

As with his first book, Paranoia, this book had me hooked from the start. Very real, hard lessons and consequenses of the corporate world as well as how it can spill over into your personal life. Full of twists and turns.

I can't wait for his next book.

Addicting

Hello my name is Louise and I became addicted with Paranoia. Company Man didn't seem to move as fast as the previous. But looking back a lot was happening. Can't deny that the snowball effect and wry sense of humor that abounds in my opinion is totally enjoyable.
I'm anxious to receive his latest novel.

NO ONE TO LIKE

The plotting was OK, a little too formulaic, and I kept thinking of movies I had seen. However the main reason for the low score was that I couldn't like any of the characters at all and so I was not engaged enough to care too much what happened to them. I was glad when it ended.

Intrigue, loss and lust are the beginning.

Joseph Finder is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors.

His style is rough edged and unappologetic. Though his free use of profanity may be off putting to some, I found it added sincerity to
the dialog without becoming crass or tiresome.

This story takes many twists which to the authors credit, somehow resolve just as you expect them to but without the let down of experiencing that "I knew that was coming" feeling.

All in all, this would make a fine film and is well worth a read/listen.

Not a great hero but enjoyable

I did very much enjoy this audiobook and definitely recommend it, although I don't think it was nearly as good as Paranoia. From the start to the end, I felt Nick, the hero, just had no sense. But I do think Finder did a very good job of telling an interesting story. There weren't many surprises but the story still did a nice job of describing interesting characters that helped move the pace along.

Outstanding.

What steps would a man take to protect his children? One cannot think of any that a good father would not take.

This is another nail biter from Joseph Finder. It has a lot of twists and turns. An interesting accompanying story regarding corporate intrique and betrayal. Also how a good reputation can turn bad through no fault of one's own.

Scott Brick, one again, proves he is an excellent performer.

Well done!

Great Business Read and Murder Novel

Enjoyed Company Man. Author gives you the feeling that this could happen to any rich ceo. At times you wish that it would.

Not Too Bad!

The end was a dead give-away before the story ended. That was the disappointing part. The book kept you paced, with a few twists here and there. I can't honestly say that the ending give-away would have given the book a better rating.

Verbosity doesn't make up for logic.

Not a bad listen, especially if you are in industry and happen to like suspense, too. Brick isn't my favorite reader, but he does a credible job here. He does not have enough variation in his voices to make the characters distinct, though. My biggest complaint is that Finder uses far too many words to describe the settings, people, and emotions. Sometimes you wonder if anyone would say or feel as he describes. It's almost like he has to REALLY describe things to make you believe them. Still recommend this, but Paranoia is a better listen.

Engrossing yet depressing

I had to give this 5 stars - the narrator was terrific as he always is, and the story had unexpected twists and turns, and it held my interest through 17 hours! I DID find it depressing though, because much of the story had dishonorable people and I tired of this.