I was fortunate enough to come across a teaser of Zero Ri$k a few months ago and it completely grabbed my attention. I couldn’t wait to dive into the entire novel and discover more.
During Christmas week, England is struggling with a cyberattack named “Zero Ri$k” that is causing customers’ bank balances to rise. Before the New Year arrives, a bank executive must quickly take action to safeguard the country’s financial system.
In addition to being a captivating and thrilling book, Simon Hayes’ debut explores the critical issues surrounding our dependence on the financial system. The premise of this novel is disconcerting because it reflects a nightmare scenario that concerns major banks. With Zero Ri$k, you can expect a captivating thriller and an original novel that lives up to its promises - making it a safe bet to grab a copy and experience it firsthand.
Many thanks to Simon Hayes & Literally PR for a review copy.
About the Author
My career spans finance, executive search and consultancy. Investment banking took me from my hometown London to Boston, Tokyo and Hong Kong. Headhunting took me back to Japan, then, as head of a leading Financial Services practice, into the City of London’s most exclusive boardrooms. Mixing with “the great and the good” — Chairmen and CEOs of major public companies, Governors of the Bank of England, senior politicians and the like—my job was to work out what made them tick. Not just “Are they really any good?” but, “Are they trustworthy?” I wrote Zero Ri$k whilst creating the rubriqs people skills system and spent much of 2023 in Zimbabwe on a major fraud case.
I had the fundamental idea for Zero Ri$k a decade or so ago. I was frustrated by the system’s seeming refusal to punish white collar criminals after the Crash. I watched as everyone became more and more dependent on gadgets and big tech. I had a simple idea: what would happen if a hacker added a zero to everyone’s bank account overnight… and then another, and another. Do the maths: in six days, everyone’s a millionaire. What does that mean for the economy, for society? I thought— and hopefully a few others will agree—that it’s a great, original premise.
I was lucky to go to a good university—I’m a Trinity Hall, Cambridge, Law graduate—but, being the first person from my family to go beyond school, I was completely unprepared for the opportunity. Too much sport and partying; not enough studying. Fortunately, the recognition a few years later that I’d missed a golden opportunity has given me a lifelong passion never to stop learning. So, in addition to detective and crime novels, thrillers and other fiction, you’ll always find two other books on my bedside table – a biography or history, and a book for learning new “stuff”. Two years ago, it was evolution, a year ago silent movies. Born and raised in Boston Manor, I now live near Tower Bridge, although you’ll still find me supporting Brentford FC most Saturdays
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