HA bond trader's ardent pursuit of the American dream turns sour in this smartly written second novel by Lasser (Battle Creek). Fed up with his ski-bum existence in the mountains of Colorado, Dartmouth graduate Barry Schwartz decides to uproot his wife and children and head for Manhattan to strike it rich. Armed with an MBA, he quickly settles into a frenzied trading job on Wall Street, with the squalid conditions of his former life in Colorado all but a memory. His hotheaded, miserably unmarried boss, Court Harvey, grew up with Barry and promotes him to a prestigious upper management position, then talks him into arranging a date with co-worker Gretchen, a pal from Barry's Dartmouth days. As tumultuous market activity rocks Wall Street, Barry's workdays grow longer, stress levels rise and avarice mounts. Feeling neglected, Barry's wife, Rachel, tires of the constant shuffle and begins yearning for Colorado, and Barry's wayward brother, Ben, calls from Canada begging for money to treat his newly diagnosed lung cancer. Court's forceful courting of Gretchen turns into stalking, and frazzled Barry ends up in an affair with her. By the time Barry's castle crumbles and the "money can't buy happiness" revelation dawns on him, Rachel and the children have moved out and his brother has died. Thankfully, Lasser doesn't diminish his characters' credibility with a cloying, pat conclusion, staying true to the painful consequences of Barry's greed. Himself a family man and former government bond trader, Lasser continues to write with a confident air of experience (though following the financial industry lingo will be a challenge for the inexperienced). This compelling merger of seductive Wall Street wealth and domestic turbulence is a great investment. (Mar. 26)
Forecast:A blurb from Richard Russo, a five-city author tour and an eye-catching jacket should help this strong sophomore effort sell out its 50,000-copy first printing.
