The Chairman

A Novel

By: Stephen Frey

Narrated by: Scott Brick

Length: 12 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's summary

No one knows the dark side of "The Street" better than master storyteller Stephen Frey, author of such riveting novels as Shadow Account and The Day Trader. Now, in his most ambitious work to date, Frey proves that no writer can put a high-powered hero at greater risk, nor offer listeners more thrilling rewards.

A towering legend among New York private equity partnerships, Everest Capital is aptly named. When its founder meets an untimely death, 36-year-old superstar Christian Gillette gets the top job. But with the power and prestige come risks. The day he narrowly escapes a fiery explosion that consumes his limo and takes two innocent lives, Gillette instantly understands how intense those risks are.

It comes as no surprise to him that he has enemies in the world of multibillion-dollar deals. But now that he controls Everest, he's not going to let those enemies keep him from taking the firm - and himself - to even greater heights. Gillette has never hesitated to be aggressive, even ruthless, in his pursuit of success. This time will be no exception.

But in order to forge the alliances necessary to achieve his goals, Gillette forsakes a cardinal rule: Never trust anyone. The only certainties are the insidious campaign of corporate sabotage that could cost Gillette his job and the relentless assassination attempts that could cost him his life. To break a deadly conspiracy of greed, he'll be forced to walk, then run, an ever-blurring line between loyalty and betrayal, attack and retreat, survival and destruction...in the ultimate game of profit and loss.

With The Chairman, Stephen Frey presides with intensified skill over the market he has so dramatically cornered - sharpening his patented brand of hard-boiled high-finance intrigue to its keenest cutting edge yet.

©2005 Stephen Frey (P)2005 Books on Tape, Inc.

Amazing Speed

The writing speed is easily kept in pace by who I think is the best narrator I've heard, Scott Brick (a huge complement to you Scott). Easy to listen to, but still with enough suspense to keep you reading.
If you can't decide on which great Audible to hear next, take this one.

Excellent

Wow. Great story that keeps you on the edge of your seat up to the very end. The character developement was superb. The main character is somebody you start out not really liking but he grows on you. Add Scott Brick as the reader and you get five stars.

Another Excellent Stephen Frey Novel

I enjoyed this book. It has a good pace, the author knows his subject and can spin a good yarn. I have read all of his books and this is one of his best.

FANTASTIC. HIGHLY RECOMMEND

Very interesting. Great characters. Really good plot. Excellent reader.

I liked the world & the corporate intrigue. It was highly involving. I couldn’t stop listening. I highly recommend it. One of my favorites, and I’ve been a member for five years.

Good Read

Perhaps too many storylines and deliberate and obvious ed herrings, but a good read nevertheless. ....well written.

Captivating

Thanks for a thrilling and captivating story. There is a momentum in his story telling that held my attention until the end.

A great listen

This was one of the best books I've listened to - great character development and action. In the beginning I didn't know who to root for as every character seemed to have serious flaws. But one of the characters begins to evolve into a more positive person. There are many twists and turns in the plot that kept me guessing.

Excellent

Great listening experience.

There were just a few minor things that bothered me. The first is the the author pushed the envelope just a little too far in the area of coincidence. Suspension of reality is necessary in a novel - especially a mystery. I do understand that but there were just a couple of things that I though were tied together a bit too easily.

There were also one or two continiuty issues that bothered me. Don't want to say here - would spoil the plot. Nothing that would really change the structure of the book - just little things.

Scott Brick, as always us just fantastic. I can't say enough about his ability to bring a book to life. The only thing that bothered me about the performance may have been the fault of the producer or it might have been Scott's - not sure. IT has to do with pauses. The author tends to jump from one scene to another very frequently. In a written book the publisher can add an extra blank line to let you know the scene is changing. In this particular audio it seemed that Scott moved from one scene to another too quickly. Sometimes it wasn't clear that the scene had changed. I had to rewind frequently to see where I was in the story. With the creative Muvo not having a counter like the old OTIS player it was a challenge rewinding while driving.

None of these picayune complaints should stop you from this book. It is very, very enjoyable.

Great Listen

Loved it, going to get all of the Christian Gillette books, he sounds like a guy that gets _hit done.

An Excellent Book

This book was a pleasant surprise. Well written and Scott Brick was at his best. Highly recommended.