Numbered Account: A Novel

Christopher Reich

May 1999 · Sold by Dell

About this ebook

In his explosive debut thriller, Christopher Reich tells the harrowing story of a young man willing to risk everything--his career, his integrity, and even his life--to hunt down his father's killer. Set in the secret, labyrinthine world of Swiss banking, Numbered Account, with its detail and intelligence, could have been written only by an insider--the author himself worked at a major Swiss bank for three years.

Former U.S. marine and Harvard Business School graduate Nicholas Neumann seems to have it all: a dream job, a beautiful fiance, a future bright with promise. But beneath the dazzling veneer of this golden boy is a man haunted by the brutal killing of his father seventeen years before. And when new evidence implicates the venerable United Swiss Bank in the crime, Nick finds himself willing to do whatever it takes to uncover the truth.

Leaving behind everything he holds dear, Nick takes a job in Zurich with the United Swiss Bank, and is soon plunged into a world where everything--loyalty, power, even life and death--can be bought and sold for the right price. As the secrets of the venerable bank are laid bare, suddenly Nick knows far too much--about the offer he never should have accepted, about the money he never should have handled, about the woman he never should have loved. And as the darkness gathers around him, Nick is faced with a shattering truth: To catch the criminal who murdered his father, he must become a criminal himself.

A work of searing intelligence and sheer storytelling genius, Numbered Account is one of those rare thrillers that not only make you sweat, but make you think.

BONUS: This edition includes an excerpt from Christopher Reich's The Prince of Risk.

Ratings and reviews

This novel has been around for awhile and a friend gave it to me to read and I'm glad he did. Mr. Reich has done a great job of plotting this novel with a strong emphasis on the military and the Swiss Bank. Don't let the banking theme turn you off, because this story is more than the boring debits and credits on a financial statement and Mr. Reich ensures that the reader becomes intrigued with the Swiss banking system. The reader will find in the story Nicholas Neumann, a 28-year-old Harvard MBA graduate accepting a position with a Swiss bank for the sole purpose of trying to find out who murdered his father 17 years earlier. Mr. Reich delivers a tightly controlled plot and pace, and the story comes together with no loose ends. Overall, I found Numbered Account a terrific novel and I highly recommend it and I look forward to reading another Christopher Reich novel. I would also like to add that Mr. Reich held his own with the likes of Clancy, Patterson and other well-known authors.

This was An unexpected pleasure.verrrry well .writen. f Antastic plot. aastic A

About the author

Christopher Reich was born in Tokyo and grew up in Los Angeles.  He worked in the private banking department of a major Swiss bank in Geneva before joining the bank's department of mergers and acquisitions in Zurich.  In 1995 he decided to pursue writing full-time.  He lives in Texas with his wife and child.