Recommended for: readers who love unreliable narrators and who can understand investment banking terms and practices

Summary: Arron Matthews grew up in the Mormon Church. He attended Brigham Young University and later went to Japan on a Mormon Mission. After returning from said mission, he attended Yale Law School and eventually became an investment banker. This is the story of his life and journey to becoming prosecuted in a federal court for fraud and other such crimes.

Review: This man was a narcissistic a-hole who convinced himself people were out to get him. I have never read a more unlikable, unreliable character than Arron Matthews! While I wouldn’t say I “enjoyed” this book, I was entertained throughout and was invested in the outcome! It was really well written and had a way of making the reader care while having such a horrible man as the protagonist.
The only downside to this book was the investment banking terms and practices. They were complicated and hard for an average reader to understand. Well, this average reader had a hard time understanding it!

Thank you to Net Galley and Inkshares for a digital ARC.

3.5 rounded up. Aaron Matthews seems to have it all as an investment banker overseas. This is a story told via various timelines throughout Aaron’s life, with each chapter referencing “T -“ x time period. It isn’t until the end that we find out what “T” is.

Aaron was not a likable character in my opinion, and many of his decisions were questionable.

With that said, the book was enjoyable to read.

Not my cup of tea. Wanted to like it. Started out strong - but it lost me towards the middle. Writing was good - but just not for me.

This was a wild ride of a main character who is narcissistic and seems to have a split personality. I detested this man till the very end, but I had to keep reading to know what happens. I love anything by Michael Bennett and was thrilled to receive this book! Thank you for the ARC.

Aaron Matthews appears to have everything: a Yale law degree, a prestigious job at an American investment bank in Tokyo, and a valuable art collection. However, a meltdown on the trading floor triggers a series of events that strip him of his job, savings, and relationship. Refusing to be defeated, Aaron devises a desperate scheme to reclaim his wealth and status. As his plan spirals out of control, he risks everything to climb back to the top. Based loosely on true events, “Bad Banker” is a tragicomedy that chronicles the dramatic downfall of a Wall Street trader.

This was a crazy journey into the life of a man who had extreme narcissistic traits. I detested this man to the very end, but I was curious about what would happen next. The novel develops likable characters that heighten the tension and drama of the story, such as the cunning boss, the unsuspecting intern, the dubious art dealer, and the enigmatic assassin. Despite the strange narrative, I found it to be interesting, well-written, and well-paced. It’s worth reading since the main guy has his split timeline!

Although there may be some strong language and stuff that triggers some people, I thought it was funny and accurate in a genuine sense. Bad Banker humorously and satirically tackled several extremely serious subjects, such as despair, murder, and fraud. Although this is a work of fiction, it vividly depicts the catastrophe that arose when retail banks all over the world began selling derivatives, and how individuals who were doing so were only considering their bonuses and advancements in their careers. This book could be what you’re searching for if you’re seeking something a little different.

Bad Banker Aaron was a man of many traits from genteel and loving to explosive and dangerous. overall an obnoxious character that I thought had a split personality problem.
I don't know how many times I said "are you kidding me" to where I could not take much more and was glad the story ended.
An independent review for NetGalley / Inkshares

interesting with some brilliant ideas and interesting motifs. thanks so much for the arc, would recommend it.

While reading Bad Banker I could see parts of Aaron's character and dealings in people I got to know throughout my career in the HR area. This story might be a work of fiction but it sure pictures the crisis that happened when derivatives were being sold by retail banks worldwide and how those who were selling these financial options were only thinking about their own bonuses and career improvements. Aaron is delusional and cannot see that he is always going down further with every step he takes to get his money, his prestige back. He always was a man out of the pack, subject to scrutiny and prejudice because of his origins and faith and all he wanted was acceptance, family, friends but it took him too long to realize it.
Bad Banker might not be an engaging book for those who do not understand the banking world, but it's entertaining, has a good plot and is an acid reading of our times.
I thank Mr. Bennett, his publisher, and NetGalley for this ARC.

This was a wild ride through the life of a man with incredibly narcissistic tendencies. Right up to the very end I hated this man but I had to know what would happen next. Overall a good read a bit slow in parts.

Aaron has it all. The degree, a job at an investment bank in Tokyo, lots of art and he is about to lose it all in one fell swoop.

A bad day on the trading floor can ruin lives. And it has. He has lost his job, his money, and his relationship.

Now he has come up with a scheme to get it all back. But the harder he tries, the more he falls.

The blurb says this is loosely based on a true story, and I can see that.


Netgalley/ Inkshares September 17, 2024

After Aaron Matthew’s loses it all on the trading floor, he devises a plan to get to the top again. That plan has a lot of risk and begins to fall apart. But Aaron is desperate..

Not my usual type of novel but very interesting and intriguing.

Thank you to Net Galley for giving me the opportunity to review this book...

This is a title that I was invited to review. It is not a topic I would normally be drawn to, and I really should have gone with my gut and not agreed to take it on, is it just wasn't the right book for me. The bad behavior and the redemption story just didn't resonate with me and I found myself annoyed at the overblown behavior and Bro antics from the get-go. This one wasn't for me...

I finished this a few days ago and haven’t thought about it since. Definitely not something I enjoyed. Very simplistic story about the banking crisis and Lehman bank. The narrator was so full of himself and although bankers are often narcissists, he was completely over the top. I can’t believe he was given so much responsibility at a young age. He was almost a sociopath

Well I am not quite sure what to say about this book. In some ways it did not feel quite FINNAIHED for me

Having worked in banking, I was curious about this book and storyline. It delivered and is a quirky, yet fun ride. The main character has his own dual timeline and this is worth reading!
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for access to this e-ARC.

Bad Banker by Michael Bennett is an enjoyable darkly humorous novel that exposes the greed, corruption, and moral bankruptcy of the financial elite.

The protagonist, Aaron Matthews, is a Yale-educated lawyer who works as a trader for Berman Brothers, a prestigious investment bank in Tokyo. He enjoys a lavish lifestyle, a beautiful wife, and a priceless art collection, until he loses everything in a market crash. Desperate to reclaim his status and wealth, he devises a risky scheme that involves fraud, blackmail, and murder. But as his plan spirals out of control, he faces the consequences of his actions and the wrath of his enemies.

Michael Bennett, the author, is a former Lehman Brothers employee, and he draws on his insider knowledge and personal experience to craft a realistic and compelling story that exposes the dark side of the financial industry. He also infuses his novel with satire, irony, and wit, making fun of the absurdity and hypocrisy of the bankers and their culture. He creates memorable characters, such as the ruthless boss, the naive intern, the shady art dealer, and the mysterious assassin, who add to the drama and suspense of the plot. He also explores themes such as ambition, greed, loyalty, betrayal, justice, and redemption, and how they affect the lives of the characters.

Bad Banker is a novel that will appeal to fans of thrillers, crime, and satire. It is a fast-paced, entertaining, and insightful read that offers a glimpse into the world of high finance and its moral hazards. It is also a cautionary tale that warns of the dangers of pursuing money and power at any cost.

Aaron Matthews seems to have it all: a law degree from Yale, a prestigious position with an American investment bank in Tokyo, a seemingly priceless art collection. But a meltdown on the trading floor kicks off a chain of events that leads him to lose his job, his savings, and his relationship.

This is definitely a different kind of book to everything I have read before and it took me a little while to get into it as I was not sure where it was going in the beginning. After about the first 7 chapters I was then getting into the story. The main character Aaron, a wall street trader, is portrayed as a self-absorbed, egotistical and conceited kind of character. In saying this about him, the author has done an excellent job of presenting the reader with a very complex personality, some may feel drawn to him and others may really dislike him. I fell into the latter category and at times found him quite annoying, abnoxious and loathsome but as I have said many times before, a dislikeable character is not always a negative thing and I am sure the author developed him this way to provide the reader with something different.

After what I thought was a slow start, the plot does begin to have more depth and the pace of the book does pick up. You can feel all the emotions that Aaron is experiencing whether you like him or not. There is a quite a bit of humor in the book which for me did lighten the load regarding Aaron's back and forth thought processes as he now tries to undo and fix at least some of the damage which as been done. Did he succeed? you will need to read the book to find out the answer.

If you are looking for something a little different, this may be the book for you. Thank to you to Netgalley, the author and publisher for an advanced copy of the book, all opinions are my own.

I loved this book! It was quirky but lots of serious story line! The main character was someone you love to hate and hate to love. His imagination and narcissism was fabulously written! Aaron seemed to have ADHD too so jumped from thought to thought seamlessly. Brilliant idea to focus only slightly on the other characters of the book and put all the energy into this complicated character. I would definitely recommend this book as a fun read for others. There could be some triggering content and moments of strong language that some may find offensive, but I found it realistic and quirky in a fun way.

Thanks Netgalley and Inkshares for the great book!

This was an okay read if you love business-y, career focused type books. You will read about the main character’s career development and crash and his efforts at getting back on his feet. There were a few good, engaging parts of the story but I struggled into it. It has a past/present storyline that just threw me off. Not a terrible read, just not my cup of tea!