Douglas Brunt’s debut novel is about Wall Street and what the life entails (and can cost you).

Meet Nick Farmer. 35 years old. Bond trader at Bear Stearns- a job he tells you he got partly because he played lacrosse in college. Nick’s a good looking man-and appears to have a good life. Clearing 7 figures a year, married, a job that requires him to party, close the deal with trades, and a unlimited access to drugs and alcohol. It’s the ultimate lifestyle for a young man. But Nick’s beginning to realize that the lifestyle is costing him- the partying, the drugs, alcohol- it’s not as easy to bounce back as it was in his 20’s. And it’s costing him in his marriage, as well.

Nick still likes the money- even if it doesn’t like the job or the extra-curricular aspects about the job. As the book progresses, the reader sees that Nick is changing- the hypocrisy is getting to him. Then, an analyst for Bear Stearns tries to tell the management that life is going to get ugly- the financial market is changing and awful things will happen if serious changes do not happen at Bear Stearns. Because Wall Street is about excess and being the life of the party- no one wants to listen. But does Nick? Does Nick leave while the party is still happening or does he wait till the party is way over?

Ghosts of Manhattan is a voyeuristic look into the life of Wall Street and the men of Wall Street. It’s a good book, with a solid storyline.

Recommended.

*Thanks to Touchstone Books for providing a copy of Ghosts of Manhattan by Douglas Brunt for review. The thoughts expressed above are my opinions and review of the book.