The Fear Index

At the nexus of high finance and sophisticated computer programming, a terrifying future may be unfolding even now. Dr. Alex Hoffmanns name is carefully guarded from the general public, but within the secretive inner circles of the ultrarich he is a legend. He has developed a revolutionary form of artificial intelligence that predicts movements in the financial markets with uncanny accuracy. His hedge fund, based in Geneva, makes billions. But one morning before dawn, a sinister intruder breaches the elaborate security of his lakeside mansion, and so begins a waking nightmare of paranoia and violence as Hoffmann attempts, with increasing desperation, to discover who is trying to destroy him. Fiendishly smart and suspenseful, The Fear Index gives us a searing glimpse into an all-too-recognizable world of greed and panic. It is a novel that forces us to confront the question of what it means to be humanand it is Robert Harriss most spellbinding and audacious novel to date. Amazon.com Review Christopher Reich Reviews *The Fear Index * Is there a genre of fiction that Robert Harris has not mastered? His first novel, Fatherland , set in a triumphant Germanys post-World War II Berlin (yes, triumphant!) ranks as one of the finest what if? stories ever written. Pompeii sends us farther back in time, to the slopes of Mt. Vesuvius only days before the volcano was set to erupt. Ancient Rome at its pulpiest. Who knew aqueducts could be so sexy? The Ghost Writer (winner of the 2008 International Thriller Writers award for Best Novel) claims the shadowy world of contemporary North Atlantic politics as its subject. Classy Brit espionage best enjoyed with a gin and tonic in hand. All were international bestsellers. All were page-turners non-pareil. But best, all were frighteningly intelligent. Thrillers that made you think as you maddeningly bit your nails. With The Fear Index , Mr. Harris has turned his gimlet eye on the secret world of billion dollar hedge funds, namely those that seek to earn profits by computer driven program trading. The result is a wholly unique entertainment: a strange, compelling, and utterly propulsive novel. Im not sure who would enjoy it more: George Soros, Arthur C. Clarke or Edgar Allen Poe. The story takes place over a tumultuous twenty-four hour period in the life of Dr. Alexander Hoffmann, computer scientist, mathematical genius, and, of late, hedge fund billionaire. It begins (as a fine thriller should) on a dark and stormy night when Hoffmann is awoken by an intruder inside his sixty million dollar villa on the shores of Lake Geneva. A confrontation occurs, Hoffmann is injured, and in his attempt to solve just how someone was able to gain entry into his well-guarded palace, Hoffmann comes face to face with the greatest danger he can imagine: himself. Or perhaps its more accurate to say: his intellect. To reveal more would ruin the adventure...and adventure it is. There is, however, a backstory. Hoffmann was not always a stock trader. He began his career as a computer scientist at CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research) where his work in artificial intelligence involved modeling sophisticated algorithms that programmed computers to teach themselves. It is this mastery of algorithms, and how they train computers to mimic human behavior, that he has turned to such profitable use at Hoffmann Investment Technologies. And it is this mastery that will come to haunt him. What Harris does so admirably--in my mind, better than any other writing today--is intertwine nifty, page turning plots with important historical, political, or in this case, sociological questions. The late Michael Crichton did this kind of story well. In The Fear Index , Robert Harris does it fantastically. Review Chilling . . . Harris has shown himself a master of the thriller form . . . The principal narrative unfolds at a breakneck pace . . . Readers may find themselves lying awake at night unsettled by the story. *Wall Street Journal In this taut thriller, Harris delivers a superbly entertaining read for our time. Newsweek Addictive . . . Pick this up on an airplane, and you won'twant to land . . . The greatest pleasure is that it gets the finance right . Reuters Harris is a master of pacingthe story moves swiftly while never feeling rushed, and the tension increases subtly chapter by chapter. *Bloomberg News Timely, expertly executed . . . Foreboding runs through the system of the book like an IV drip . . . It doesnt take a super-computer to know The Fear Index *is a worthwhile investment of your time. USA Today * Fleet-footed . . . Harris expertly conjures a paranoid world where everyone seems to be watching everyone else. New York Times Harris has fashioned in The Fear Index a thriller thats part Kafka, part Orwell, part Darwinwith just about all parts exciting and pertinent.. . The tale [comes] to a stunning and disturbing finish. *San Francisco Chronicle * Unputdownable . . . Harris has achieved the impossible, or at least the improbable: an explanation of the extravagantly esoteric nature of hedge funds, which normal people can understand . . . I gorged myself, devouring his dystopian vision of free markets enslaved by a sinister artificial intelligence in one breakneck sitting. The Daily Telegraph Reminiscent of everyone from Michael Crichton to Ian Fleming, Stanley Kubrick and Alfred Hitchcock. Financial Times A virtuoso specimen . . . Inventively exploiting current anxieties about algorithmic trading to update the Frankenstein story, The Fear Index is both cutting edge and keenly conscious of its literary predecessors . . . A tour de force. The Sunday Times A blazingly ambitious novel . . . A fictional nightmare that feels like a wake-up call. The Sunday Telegraph An escapist thriller to rank with the best of them, and as a guide to what hedge funds actually do, it is surprisingly clear and instructive. The Economist Ingenious . . . There arent many writers who can produce genuine page-turners these days but Harris is one and The Fear Index had me gripped from the start . . . The characters are superb . . . Harris is stunningly good at explaining complex financial instruments in laymans terms. *Sunday Express Harriss great skill is to inhabit fully and convincingly the worlds he writes about, showing off his vast research yet never allowing the white-knuckle narrative to lose momentum. *New Statesman As gripping a tale as anything Harris has written . . . It crackles with energy and invention, and the authors obviously extensive research into the arcane world of state-of-the-art computing technology, algorithms, trading and hedge funds is dished up lightly and intelligibly. Irish Independent Another winner . . . What makes Harriss thrillers so much more rewarding than those of his rivals is that they all, whatever their ostensible subject, come out of his deep and expert interest in power. The Evening Standard * Harris is a master of pace and entertainment. The Observer (UK) * His Name Is Carefully Guarded From The General Public But Within The Secretive Inner Circles Of The Ultra-rich Dr Alex Hoffmann Is A Legend - A Visionary Scientist Whose Computer Software Turns Everything It Touches Into Gold. Together With His Partner, An Investment Banker, Hoffmann Has Developed A Revolutionary Form Of Artificial Intelligence That Tracks Human Emotions, Enabling It To Predict Movements In The Financial Markets With Uncanny Accuracy. His Hedge Fund, Based In Geneva, Makes Billions. But Then In The Early Hours Of The Morning, While He Lies Asleep With His Wife, A Sinister Intruder Breaches The Elaborate Security Of Their Lakeside House. So Begins A Waking Nightmare Of Paranoia And Violence As Hoffmann Attempts, With Increasing Desperation, To Discover Who Is Trying To Destroy Him. His Quest Forces Him To Confront The Deepest Questions Of What It Is To Be Human. By The Time Night Falls Over Geneva, The Financial Markets Will Be In Turmoil And Hoffmann's World - And Ours - Transformed Forever. Robert Harris. PRE-ORDER PRECIPICE, THE THRILLING NEW NOVEL FROM ROBERT HARRIS, NOW - PUBLISHING AUGUST 2024 'Harris is a master of pace and entertainment' Observer 'Could scarcely be more of the moment' The Times Nothing spreads like fear . . . In the secretive inner circle of the ultra-rich, Alex Hoffmann is a legend. He has developed an algorithm for playing the financial markets that generates billions of pounds - and feeds on panic. When one day his system is threatened by a terrifying intruder who breaches the elaborate security of his lakeside home, his life becomes a waking nightmare of violence and paranoia. But who is trying to destroy him? And is it already too late? 'There are moments when this book feels so up to date it could have been written next week . . . spookily exciting' Express Meet Alex Hoffmann: Among The Secretive Inner Circle Of The Ultra-rich, He Is Something Of A Legend. Based In Geneva, He Has Developed A Revolutionary System That Has The Power To Manipulate Financial Markets. Generating Billions Of Dollars, It Is A System That Thrives On Panic - And Feeds On Fear. And Then, In The Early Hours Of One Morning, While He Lies Asleep, A Sinister Intruder Breaches The Elaborate Security Of His Lakeside Home. So Begins A Waking Nightmare Of Paranoia And Violence As Hoffmann Attempts - With Increasing Desperation - To Discover Who Is Trying To Destroy Him - Before It's Too Late ... "A visionary scientist creates a revolutionary form of artificial intelligence that predicts movements in the financial markets with uncanny accuracy. His hedge fund, based in Geneva, makes billions. But after an intruder breaks into his home, he has to try to discover who is trying to destroy him"-- Provided by publisher