Prepare yourself for the one of the most exciting rides of your life.
Volume Two of The King Trilogy, The Tainted Trust is, in addition to a moving and action packed thriller, a brilliant depiction of what perfectly normal people will do for love and money. It is the continuing story of an inconvenient fortune and its catastrophic impact on a loving family.
No one wept when Jim Servito died. He left an estate amounting to $325,000,000 when his wife, Karen killed him in Caracas. He had accumulated the fortune the old fashioned way: he stole it from the U.S. and Canadian Governments using a brilliant gasoline tax evasion scam. The money is hot, deposited in a Cayman Island bank, and its cursed. It has a profound affect on everyone who touched it. It is managed by Alfred Schnieder, an aging and unscrupulous Caracas banker.
Mike King, the love of Karen’s life, and nearly ruined by the Feds’ scorched earth efforts to recover Servito’s fortune, convinces her to keep the money, instead of returning it to its rightful owners. With the assistance of Schnieder, they form The King Trust, a near fatal mistake. Desperate to recover the money, the Feds continue to spare no expense and effort to do so. Phillip, the only child of Karen and Jim Servito, assumes he is the natural heir to his father’s fortune, and has his own greedy plans for the money. Aging Alfred Schnieder relinquishes the trust’s management to Louis Visconti, a thirty-two year old Wall Street whiz kid and brilliant financial engineer. Dubbed ‘The Crown Prince of Wall Street’, and substantially more unscrupulous than Schnieder, Visconti takes The King Trust to bewildering heights, then fails, miserably.
Kerri Pyper, Mike King’s twenty-three year old estranged daughter, has not seen or communicated with her father since she was nine. She discovers the existence of The King Trust and is shocked to learn that her natural father is its Trustee. Visconti, desperate and assuming he is still the smartest man in the room, embezzles the fortune and flees to Monaco. He made only two mistakes: he deceived both Mike King and Alfred Schnieder and fell in love with Kerri.
Steve spent the first half of his working career with the two largest oil companies in the world: Exxon and Royal Dutch Shell. The second half was with one of the smallest oil companies in the world: his own. Now retired, he spends his summers in Niagara Falls, Canada, and his winters in Port St. Lucie, Florida. When he's not reading, writing, or travelling, he's playing bad golf. He plans to continue writing until the day he dies, probably longer. He recently published the results of 22 years of work: THE KING TRILOGY:
"The Tainted Trust" by Stephen Douglass is a perfect follow on from "The Bridge to Caracas". It is a fast paced and action packed thriller about greed, corruption and honour. Money is moved, hidden and fought for by Inland Revenue, trust managers and the King family. Douglass writes with amazing insight into financial transactions and the stock market.
Cleverly plotted and featuring some amazing characters this is an excellent take on family legacies and the money trading industry. The story is convincingly set in the 1980s and 1990s which adds extra colour to the story.
With many great turns and twists this story is a great read.
The Tainted Trust is the sequel to The Bridge to Caracas—and it is equally as good. In the first book, Joe Sevito had defrauded the American and Canadian government with a complex gasoline tax evasion scheme. When he realized that his wife, Karen, had reconnected with Mike King, who was her first love, Joe set up an elaborate scheme to frame them both for his crimes. Then he kidnapped his son and took him to Caracas with him, believing that Mike and Karen would spend the rest of their lives in jail. He introduced the boy to Alfred Schnieder, a bank manager in Caracas, and instructed Schnieder to make Phillip his beneficiary.
When Joe met his untimely death in Caracas, he left an estate valued at $325,000,000.00 in an account in a bank in the Cayman Islands. Phillip led Mike and Karen to Schneider, and eventually the money. The money should have been returned to the Feds, but Mike was so angry about the way they had treated him and Karen, that he refused to do the right thing. The money was hot and represented too great a risk to move. Karen and Mike convinced Schnieder to set up the King’s Trust and manage it.
In The Tainted Trust, the aging Schnieder contacts Louis Visconti at Mara, Griesdorf, and Visconti. He is a thirty-two-year-old who is known as ‘The Crown Prince of Wall Street’ because of his phenomenal success as a Trader. Schnieder has a plan, and Visconti is an opportunist. He quickly agrees to the terms and waits for Schneider to prompt King to come his way.
Under Visconti’s management, King’s Trust grows phenomenally over the next seven years. Then, on the one weekend that he decides he needs to get away from the phones and take a break, the stock market crashes. No one can get a hold of him so he can do damage control, and when he comes back to town, he finds out that the company has taken a big hit. On October 19, 1987, King’s Trust has lost half a billion dollars on paper. Visconti is desperate to recoup the money quickly, and save his reputation. And his pride.
He turns to Miles Dennis at Iacardi & Sons. Miles Dennis has made fortunes for people in commodities, and Visconti wants him to go short and buy contracts in the volatile crude oil market for him. On his first visit, Miles Dennis discourages this plan, advising him to wait for a few months.
Visconti is desperate but listens to him. To save face, he falsifies his annual report and doesn’t reveal to Mike King the true position of the trust. Visconti has started down a treacherous road of desperation and deceit. In 1988 he continued to confer with Miles Dennis, who consistently advised him against his plan.
In October 1988, Kerri Pyper takes a course in commodities at Long Island Community College. Miles Dennis is the instructor, and he is impressed by her keenness and aptitude. At the end of the 40-hour course, he hires her as his assistant.
On February 23, 1989, Visconti is determined to jump into the crude oil market. He shows up at Miles Dennis’s office again. There he meets Kerri Pyper and becomes besotted with her. She is married to Brian Pyper, the famous New York Jet’s star quarterback. As her marriage hits trouble times, Visconti befriends her and does his best to make the marriage fail. He will be there to pick up the pieces.
Eventually, Kerri turns to him. Visconti is confident that his crude oil contracts will restore his wealth and he will have the love of the beautiful Kerrie Pryor.
The best-laid plans of man can fall apart. Kerri Pryor is no fool, and she is honest and loyal to those that she loves. When she discovers that Visconti is not who he portrays himself to be, she vows to take him down.
THERE ARE NO SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW. Stephan Douglass once again has created a complex, captivating plot. I read this book long into the night for two evenings. I loved his portrayal of the characters. Visconti, so proud and driven to make more money. Kerri so intelligent and loyal, but strong and determined when she realizes how corrupt her lover really is.
Corruption, suspense, betrayal, love, loyalty, rage and murder. Don’t miss this great read. I immediately downloaded the third book, Kerri’s War. I am a Douglass fan!!
This is another magnetic novel written by Author Stephen Douglass. It kicks off in New York City, 1980, with Louis Visconti, 33 years old, multimillionaire, living the lavish high life. His passion is possession and power, never interested in crossing the bridge into marriage. He is an investment broker for the Wall Street firm of Mara, Griesdorf and Visconti. In the previous novel, Jim Servito's death left more than 300 million dollars that was from unpaid petroleum taxes money laundered from Canada and the United States. Mike King maneuvers that money back from the Cayman Islands into the United States as a trust fund managed by Louis Visconti. Karen Servito, Jim's widow, and Mike King are now married and Mike has legally adopted Phillip, Jim's son at 10 years of age. Though Phillip is the sole beneficiary of his father's estate, Mike and Karen are overseeing the management of the trust fund. Move on to 1987 and the situation in the middle-east is threatening to explode like a drum of oil. They've produced more oil than there are buyers. OPEC's control has weakened because of greed and the oil prices rise. Suddenly, almost without any warning or symptoms, on October 19, 1987, the great fall of Wall Street occurs, known as Black Monday. Visconti has been in the Bahamas in isolation from news and phones. When he returns, King's trust which had climbed in value to over 800 million has now been reduced to the original 300 million. But he does not divulge this loss to King ... Visconti has mismanaged the trust all along, and he also knows of the secrets of how the money was laundered. Soon, Jim Servito's daughter, Kerri Pyper, 21 years old, married to Brian, a profession football player, arrives in New York City and is looking for a job. Disaster strikes her husband on the football field, the marriage fails, and before long she becomes romantically involved with ... Louis Visconti. This novel reveals the highs and lows of Wall Street, and how it impacts so many lives which seem to rise and fall just like Wall Street. From cover to cover, this story is extraordinary, finely honed, suspenseful, romantic, and a total thrill ride. I'm looking forward to reading the last of The King Trilogy. Highly recommend this powerful story.
I am happy to be the first to review this wonderful novel. This is the second book of the King trilogy. In this one we meet the daughter, Kerri, who turns out to be as smart as her father. She meets her father, Mike, whom she has not seen since she was a little girl. I cannot begin to give any kind of synopsis, it's just too involved. The author did a great job at keeping me turning pages. This book takes place during the eighties and involves the oil industry, Wall Street, and high finance. I was a geophysicist during this period and worked for BP. So it is especially interesting to me.
The novel has many twists and turns and surprises, which I love in a book. The development of the characters and their relationship to each other is handled beautifully by this author. I love Mike, Karen, and Kerri and can't wait to read the last one.
Volume 2 of The King Trilogy, ‘The Tainted Trust’ is a fast-paced thriller with the high-powered world of the oil market at its core. Following an audacious fraud, the IRS is in hot pursuit of the stolen money – a sum in excess of 300 million dollars – but they are not the only ones anxious to get their hands on it. It is quite a while since I read the first book in the series and, though it’s better to read them in sequence, ‘The Tainted Trust’ can be read as a stand-alone novel without any difficulty in picking up the threads. Louis Visconti, multi-millionaire and one of the most important figures in Wall Street, is a powerful man who takes centre stage amongst a set of greedy, unscrupulous characters. His obsession with money has cost him his marriage and a succession of failed relationships – until he meets and falls in love with Mike King’s daughter. It is then that we question whether he’ll be able to curb his greed and redeem himself. The author had me guessing, but no spoilers from me Douglass’s extensive knowledge is no doubt gained from working within the oil industry and makes for a fascinating read. I found the scale of corruption breath-taking, but believable when one considers the huge sums involved and the willingness of off-shore bankers to keep tight-lipped about the billions hidden away in the vaults of their tax havens. The author has an easy flowing style and builds the tension well. I have just one note of criticism. I’m not a fan of opening chapters that bombard the reader with a lot of back story and feel that this could have been handled better. Having said that, we are left in no doubt as to the nature of Louis Visconti and, after the initial narrative, the story picks up pace. The dialogue is convincing and the storyline is strengthened when the author shows rather than tells. I applaud him on a well-crafted plot that maintains its suspense throughout and look forward to reading the last in the trilogy.
This story is set during the 1980's and partly centers around Kerri Servito.
Karen put all of Jim's "dirty money" into of a trust and allowed Louis Visconti to manage the trust, that is until its found out that Louis has mismanaged the trust all along, and he also knows of the secrets of how the money was obtained.
Fate or something else brings Kerri and Louis together.
This book covers the up and down sides to life on Wall Street.
I don't want to give too much away, so if the book sounds interesting so far, you will just have to read or listen to it for yourself.
The author did a great job with the sequel to "The Bridge to Caracas" and overall the book was an engaging read just like the first book.
Mathias Lenssen did really well with the narration.
Note: "This audio book was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review."
You definitely should read the 1st book in this series The Bridge to Caracas before reading this one. A lot takes place that you won't quite get unless you do. I have already purchased the 3rd in this series. Stephen Douglas really knows how to captivate his readers. The political intrigue intertwined with the Wall Street collapse is vividly portrayed--as are the greedy commodity traders. I can't recommend this series enough!!!! The Tainted Trust
They say that the second book of a series is never as good as the first. This book was just as exciting as the first if not more so. There were no loose ends in the plot, everything was logical. One night I read until 3am because I could not put it down. great book !!
What a soup! DNF at 50% with no trace whatsoever of a plot, just a load of marital and extra marital relationships, love affairs, cheesy romance underpinned by idiotic dialogues and wooden characters. If the first book of the series was just about good for a beach read, this is good for a beach nap.
Have you ever read a book that is so silly that you just have to keep reading to find out if the author can best his last idiotic plot development? Such a book is The Tainted Trust! Am I being hyperbolic? Picture a famous New York Jets quarterback, married, who spends his evenings hanging out at a very public strip club, drunk out of his mind, who goes home with one of the strippers regularly, but...nobody knows about it for weeks until one day some bright spark actually tips off the newspapers...sure, right! That is just one example. The author knows the oil industry and wrote a very good first novel in The Bridge To Caracas. Unfortunately, he knows very little about Wall Street, commodities trading, basic accounting practice and character development. He should have quit while he was ahead. The 4-star and 5-star reviews here in Goodreads are surely his relatives and friends trying to lend a hand.
This is the second book in the King Trilogy, and I enjoyed this one as much as the first. Though I read them in order, I think each book stands alone enough if you wanted to wanted to start in the middle of the series, but I am one who likes to read from the beginning to the end of the series, in order. I thought it was fun making connections between characters and situations in the two books. I listened to the Audible audio version and enjoyed the narrator, Matthias Lenssen, and all the unique voices he gives to the characters. This book is filled with interesting characters and interesting subjects. It keeps you on the edge of your seat. I'm definitely looking forward to the next book.
“This audiobook was given by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review via Audiobook Boom.”
I did not read the first book in the trilogy, thus being said some of these characters were already established. The author kept the characters moving throughout the story. Some of the plot was weird, some silly, and the rest was ok.
The narration was well done, as far as word pronunciation and accent.The characters were well portrayed. My one complaint is that I had to quit trying to listen on my ipod and use my Kindle so I could double the speed. I was almost put to sleep while trying to listen at the normal rate of speed.
This story drags with all the financial terms and details. This is at the expense of plot and character development. The plot is weak and predictable. The characters are flat and stereotypical. The story is suspenseful, but blatantly contrived. It needs less fabricated action and more character development. And the end seems very rushed and abrupt.
Mathias Lenssen's performance is satisfactory, albeit overly dramatic.
NOTE: I received a free copy of this audiobook in exchange for this unbiased review.