Unless you’re well-versed in the investment business, The Lies We Trade may read like a foreign language. Kristine Delano brings twenty years of Wall Street experience to bear with her debut novel. 

Meredith Hansel, an investment portfolio manager for Garman Straub, is on the cusp of a career triumph when an apparent betrayal by one of her team members casts doubts upon Meredith’s integrity. Whiffs of a scandal emerge so quickly that she doesn’t know whether she’s about to be promoted or fired.

The remarkable thing is that the author kept me reading page after page of jargon that made no sense to me. Ignorant as I am about mutual funds, portfolio management, leveraging, and ETFs, I could sense a tantalizing mystery unfolding. Meredith’s predicament involves more than her career. Her marriage is crumbling, and her teenage daughter Erika is embroiled in an equally confusing mess involving a substitute teacher and a tutoring service the girl has launched.

Delano’s brisk narration led me to conclude that she didn’t expect me to understand all the peaks and valleys of the investment world. The important thing is that Meredith is forced into difficult decisions that involve her family’s safety, as well as her professional future. The way she rises to these challenges makes the novel worth reading.

I sensed some weaknesses in the author’s portrayal of Meredith's husband. At times Clint’s volatility was as baffling as the markets themselves. A subplot involving Clint’s brother and his wife arose so late in the story that it seemed tacked onto the plot, rather than intricate to it. Otherwise, The Lies We Trade is a promising start to what I hope will be a brilliant second career for this Wall Street veteran.

Chevron Ross's novels include Weapons of Remorse, The Seven-Day Resurrection, and The Samaritan's Patient. Click here for more information.