Flash Crash

Flash Crash is the debut novel of LA-based screenwriter Denison Hatch. If this debut novel is anything to go by, the sooner Hatch writes more in this new Jake Rivett series, the better.

How far would you go to protect your family? That is a question David Belov was faced with when he unintentionally helped to steal over a hundred million dollars in gold bars from the bank, Montgomery Noyes, where he worked as ‘a quant’ (computer programmer).

Flash Crash is a computer algorithm that David was forced to write after his family was kidnapped. The program crashed the global value of gold, sending the stock market into a horrific spiraling crash, which would lead into the biggest gold robbery in known history. Who would you turn to for help in this situation: school friend and the streets hard man Vladimir “Vlad” Zhadanov or the investigating officer in charge of the heist, punk singer and unconventional motorcyclist, detective Jake Rivett?

David Belov is vastly seen as the underdog and spineless computer nerd only there to do the bidding of both Vlad and Montgomery Noyes, but his character is so well written that the reader is kept on the edge of their seat waiting for him to retaliate and stop being the victim. This is a relatively fast-paced book with many intricate characters that seem to intertwine in an exciting and curious fashion.

As for Jake Rivett, the main lead in this new series, I am undecided. I am curious to see how Hatch develops him for the rest of the series, as most of this book was used to develop David Belov, I do hope that we have not seen the end of him! Considerable effort was used in explaining the technical realizations of the stock market crash and the gold heist. Flash Crash is a fun and exciting read, and I look forward to more in this series.