The Darlings A Novel

I was skeptical about reading just a rehash of the Madoff affair, but I have to say that Alger does much more than that by giving us a true insider look at the wheeling and dealing that goes on behind the scenes. I admit to a certain fascination with the lives of the top 1% and she writes brilliantly about this particular set, nailing their upper east side clannishness,their school picks (Spence, Groton, later schools like Dartmouth, Harvard), dress codes, habits in a way that makes us live the life from the inside. Much of the great writing centers on setting up iconic scenes from the Hampton s to charity fund raisers, a world few of us get to see outside of page 6 of the NY Post or Vanity Fair. The suspense and pacing kept me reading almost all night to finish. I also liked the fact that she wove in such a strong cast of characters (not just Carter and his wife) so that you saw from each person's perspective how the disaster unfolded and the implications for everyone involved (and the sad consequences of collateral damage). Despite their privilege, some of the characters are very likable even if you started out wanting to hate them. Good versus evil, family loyalty versus saving yourself - big themes, complicated SEC investigations, shady lawyers and a suicide/mystery - this book has a little bit of everything. It was one of the most absorbing reads of the year with terrific detail and insider knowledge. Alger knows well what she writes about and her prose shows her mastery of detail, pacing, character and suspenseful build up. A first rate novel.

I picked this book up after reading a review of it, and I wasn't disappointed. Cristine Alger is an excellent writer on her debut novel. She really knows her subject, and I doubt this book could have been written so realistically by someone who wasn't an insider. Alger's bio states that she went to Harvard, and worked at Goldman, Sachs & Co., which is why this novel rings so true.If you ever wanted to know what went on behind the scenes during the Bernie Madoff debacle, this book gives us a hint at how the super-rich live and do business. It's a world away from how most of us live our lives(the 99%), and honestly, I wouldn't trade any of them. It seemed to me to be a lot of work having to keep up with the 'Jones'.The Darlings are part of the super-rich of New York City, Carter Darling is the head of family, a man who's self-made, yet just as he's ready to retire, he finds out that he should have been questioning his partner's questionable investing, with steady, perfect returns, not possible in a real market. Too late Carter realizes his mistake and tries to make things right. The suspense Alger creates is wonderful. The novel takes up only a week of time, so it races along to its unpredictable conclusion.Alger gives it to us clean, and without emotion. This is no contrived reality show, this is what 'normal' looks like to the super-rich. Apartments where the doorman is like an uncle to your children, where scholarships to private, $40,000 a year schools are given out as favors. Summers spent in the Hamptons, to give your children a break from New York City, at a price of tens of thousands of dollars a month. The super-rich truly do live in a different world than the rest of us, though after seeing it up close, I'm pretty sure it's not a better world. The price for staying on top means you have to be willing to sell out anyone who might topple you from the height you've reached, and you spend your life working to maintain your lifestyle.The only flaw in Alger's book is that there are too many characters with too many similar sounding names. There is an Alain, and Adrian; a Mariam and Marian, and with the book switching between characters every chapter, I had a hard time orienting myself as to who was speaking at the moment. Despite this flaw, this novel is a page-turner. I found myself picking it up ever chance I had, racing to the finish to see what would happen.

When I buy books that I am unsure I really want to spend the money on I generally read the reviews as they seem ,at least for my reading needs, to be a pretty good indicator of value. I did that when I bought this book. I think it had only 5 star reviews at the time of purchase & there were 5 or so of these reviews. I purchased it that night. I enjoyed the 1st half of the book-all it really was was the Bernie Madoff story, with another family playing the Madoffs, revisited...but I thought it was a pretty good read. The second half, at least for me, was somewhat tedious. When I finished I went back to the rave reviews to see what other books these 5 star reviewers had reviewed...& SURPRISE, SURPRISE, they all had reviewed no other book than this one. Its nice to have good friends to jump start a writing career, but to me it now means that it might better, when looking for a book, to take that one more step & see what else the reviewer has reviewed. This is what happens with ebooks...3 or so better than great reviews from friends with no other reviews. Nothing wrong with that but it really makes the term "buyer beware" have some real meaning.What I would say to someone deciding whether to purchase this book would be to go to their library or wait til the paperback comes out as I don't think its worth the $15 it cost on Amazon.

Für die Aufbereitung meiner Englischkenntnisse war das Buch sehr hilfreich

I first got to know this author via The Banker's Wife. When 'The Darlings case' was mentioned in that book, naturally, I had to read this one next (I do wish I read it first though -- since The Banker's Wife contains mild spoilers for The Darlings -- but it didn't take away from my enjoyment of the book). I love this author's voice. LOVE the way she tells a story. The events of this book happen over the weekend but you get to know the characters so well that it feels as if you spent a lifetime with them. This isn't a thriller or financial thriller per se - it's a cautionary tale, if you will, of how far one can go to save their own behind and how much are they willing to sacrifice in the process. I found this story to be unputdownable - I got an audiobook to listen along as I read and the narrator (he is FABULOUS!) only made this reading experience that much more amazing! Highly recommend.

Brilliantly written examination of New York city society, about white WASP privilege, financial fraud, crime and family dynamics, touching and very readable, about class and in a class of its own.

Once you get into it, you start to care about these people, strangely enough. It must be because their story is so well written.Interesting to anyone who does not know how the whole thing --Wall Street, investment banking, hedge funds, etc. --works.

Bonne analyse des dérives du monde de la finance et de ses acteursImmersion intéressante dans le milieu feutré de la côte EstInstructif et néanmoins divertissant