Market Forces - By Richard Morgan
Throw Mad Max, Wall Street, and Evolutionary Market Theory into a blender, and what you get? Morgan’s third novel, Market Forces. This one’s set-up was the hardest to swallow of the three, but amazingly, by mid-book he’s got you believing everything and feeling for the tragic main character. I suppose that’s the mark of a truly gifted writer.
Ok, the premise is this:
40 years into the future, most nation-state governments are simply puppets of multinational investment houses. There are two distinct and completely separated parts of society the wealthy elite who work for, or own, the investment firms; and the “unwashed masses” living in abject poverty and rampant crime. These firms, who’s bottom line is the accumulation of capital and wealth for their partners, deal in “Conflict Investment”. Conflict investment is the financial backing of dictators, rebels, and governments in exchange for goods, favors, or usually a percentage of the country’s GDP. Here’s an example: They invest in a particular rebel uprising by giving money and guns in exchange for the booty when the current government is overthrown. Or conversely, they can play the other side, backing a dictator against threatening rebels in exchange for a cut of the GDP.
40 years into the future, most nation-state governments are simply puppets of multinational investment houses. There are two distinct and completely separated parts of society the wealthy elite who work for, or own, the investment firms; and the “unwashed masses” living in abject poverty and rampant crime. These firms, who’s bottom line is the accumulation of capital and wealth for their partners, deal in “Conflict Investment”. Conflict investment is the financial backing of dictators, rebels, and governments in exchange for goods, favors, or usually a percentage of the country’s GDP. Here’s an example: They invest in a particular rebel uprising by giving money and guns in exchange for the booty when the current government is overthrown. Or conversely, they can play the other side, backing a dictator against threatening rebels in exchange for a cut of the GDP.
Far fetched, yes, but not altogether crazy when you understand “investing” at an international level. What IS far-fetched is how the various houses compete for investment contracts. Teams of drivers battle it out, “Mad Max” style on the abandoned interstates to see who gets the contract. These battles have evolved into the spectator sport of choice for the rest of society, and are almost always fatal for the losing drivers.
Like I said, I was skeptical that I could finish this one since I’ll put down any book that doesn’t pass a believability “smell test”. However, Morgan’s writing had me feeling pretty deeply for the main character (ironic that his name is Chris too), and the market evolution angle is well thought out. Give it a chance and you won’t be disappointed.
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