The Fear Index

By: Robert Harris

Narrated by: Christian Rodska

At the nexus of high finance and sophisticated computer programming, a terrifying future may be unfolding even now.

Dr. Alex Hoffmann’s 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 human—and it is Robert Harris’s most spellbinding and audacious novel to date.

©2012 Robert Harris (P)2012 Random House

Critic reviews

"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, London)

Good listen but predictible

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Highly recommend audiobooks to anyone - especially for exercise such as running where it is good to have something to pass the time.

Would you recommend The Fear Index to your friends? Why or why not?

Probably not - after about 6/7 chapters in I figured I saw how it was going to turn out. But I hoped it was a distraction, the ending would hardly be that obvious?! Alas - it was...!
However the book has a good pace, interesting premise and naration is good - however some of the voices are not great.

"The Fear Index": Smart Tech Fiction

We are suffering under an acute shortage of technologically literate smart fiction. The Fear Index should be read up by everyone who works in and around computing. Not that the book will have much to teach technology folks, but more that technology folks will be hugely entertained by a book that is simultaneously smart about computers, character and plot.

Why don't we have more technology literate quality fiction? Is it because good writers don't tend to hang out in server rooms or with coders? Or maybe because software engineers seldom become novelists?

Robert Harris is not a technologist, but he is a terrific writer, (and the author of a two of my favorite books, Fatherland and Enigma). In The Fear Index, Harris has something to say about the financialization of the economy, the growth of unregulated and un-checked hedge funds, and the dangers of handing off our economic decisions to computers and algorithms.

The Fear Index reminds me a bit of Daniel Suarez's books Daemon and Freedom (Suarez was a technologist), but I think that Suarez would even admit that his writing is not in the same class as Harris. This is not to denigrate Suarez, or the work of other cyber-thriller authors, only to note how rare it is for a quality novelist to take on technology as a central theme.

I don't usually share and recommend fiction (although the new Elmore Leonard's new book Raylan is cracking good), as I like to review books that are somehow relevant to higher ed. However, when a book as good as The Fear Index comes along it seems prudent to drop everything else and start reading.

What technologically literate quality fiction can you recommend?

Stayed Up All Night; It Was THAT Good!

The scary part is that what happens in this story is quite plausible, and has already made our financial markets unstable and ungovernable. The "smartest guys in the room" since the 1990's became Wall Street "quants" who wrote the algorithms that make scads of money getting in and out of stocks in seconds or less, while hedging their downside. Being right 55% of the time is worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

The mental illness plot twist made the book even more difficult to put down. Christian Rodska's narration was really good, including the accents and pace. The setting in Geneva sounds lovely. Great book, from beginning to end.

Pass on It

Was very sorry I bought this
Hard to get thru the whole thing
Cannot recommend it the narrator does not do it any good either

The Book Dan Brown Wished He Wrote

Have you read "Digital Fortress" Dan Brown's clanky stew of improbabilities? Pity, you should have read, and still should read "The Fear Index". I'm an economist with a specialty in finance. And I wondered throughout this book if Harris sat behind me in class, taking better notes? Or maybe he was off studying the art market? Or maybe he spent those study years in cyber studies… or…

A number of authors have played with the general theme of "The Fear Index"… none better than Harris does here. And Christian Rodska is so superb that he'd surely win some sort of Academy Award for excellence in the audio genre if only one existed (Does it? Why not?).

I'm giving copies of "The Fear Index" to friends this Christmas. When you do that, you're reputation for picking thrillers is on the line. I'll walk that line ho-ho-ho-ing with Harris in my Santa bag.

Treat yourself, listen to this one.

Gripping hi tech thriller

Very good story however it left me somewhat disappointed in the end. But then, how else could it have concluded? Otherwise fast paced and exciting! Pay attention or you'll miss something important.

Greed + ego = fear

The Fear Index is morality tale about two partners, Hugo and Alex, who manage a phenomenally successful hedge fund. The backdrop is Geneva, Switzerland, where money is the primary industry. The book is fast paced and provides insights into hedge fund operations and machine intelligence. One of the most interesting aspects was the author's use of Darwin's Origin of the Species to foreshadow events.

As the previous reviewer said, it's easy to discern the perpetrator of the fear and paranoia that consumes Alex, the protagonist. The author portrays Alex as a genius who lacks some important social skills. I would have given this book an additional star had I felt some sympathy for Alex.

Should be 3 1/2 stars

How can I say that a book was a disappointment when it kept me on the edge of my seat from start to finish?...Well, there you go. I guess I was expecting more from the author of Ghost Writer -- which I thought was almost flawless. The Fear Index, while clever, had holes. One of the worst ones was that I figured out who the villain was way before the characters did -- so then you are just waiting for them to 'catch up.' Still, like I said, it kept me on the edge of my seat -- and the reader was excellent, so I would still recommend it.

Fun and Interesting Book ---

I bought this audiobook after hearing an interview with the author on NPR. The world of finance is not something I am at all familiar with but I found the premise of the book interesting and it did not disappoint. Though I think the 'reveal' was obvious and there were a few lose ends that frustrated me (like the storyline with the Darwin book) I still loved this book. Found the setting, the characters, and the story line different and compelling. The performance was EXCELLENT! Overall just a fun and hard to 'put down' book. I was really sad when it ended!

The Fear Index Review

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Great concept. The story drags on a bit and doesn't end strong. It was good, but didn't live up the potential it had.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

A little faster past and a stronger ending.