First published 2021
Benjamin Myers' debut novel tracks disgraced financial analyst Jack Reiner's desperate gambit to resurrect his reputation through an impossible bitcoin trading algorithm. After being fired from his Wall Street firm for an unauthorized trade, Reiner retreats to a remote Nevada data center, burning through his last savings to build a high-frequency trading system that could either bankrupt him or revolutionize cryptocurrency markets. As international banking cartels and rival programmers catch wind of his project, Reiner must outmaneuver digital surveillance, protect his code from corporate espionage, and execute a trading strategy that exists at the razor's edge between genius and total financial destruction. With each algorithmic iteration, the stakes climb higher—and the line between mathematical breakthrough and personal ruin blurs completely.
Genres: science-fiction, business, contemporary, thriller, finance, algorithms
Vibes: fast-paced, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: desperate-gambit, financial-ruin, genius-protagonist
Setting: Nevada, Wall Street
Period: Contemporary
266 pages · Paperback · Independently published