Golden Handcuffs: The Lowly Life of a High Flyer

by courtney-polly

Everyone's got a child, a friend or a neighbour who works in the City. The six-figure bonuses and golden hellos are no secret, nor are the hundred-hour weeks, the highpressure deals or the regular rounds of redundancies in the Square Mile. It's a cut-throat world...everyone knows that. But do they know what it's like for the thousands of fresh-faced young graduates who pour into the City each year? Do they know what it's like to get woken up at three in the morning by a taxi outside your window, ready to haul you back into the office? What it's like to feel guilty for sloping off to the gym at nine o'clock at night? This cynical but entertaining novel follows two 'high-flyers' through their first year in the City. Based on the writer's experience at an American investment bank, it reveals a world that doesn't quite match up with the fast-paced, exhilarating one that was painted so enticingly on the undergraduate milk-round. "Golden Handcuffs" is about twenty-something graduates in the City. It tells of ambition, hard work and disillusionment. It has been called a 'latter day version of "Liar's Poker" by Michael Lewis', a 'must-read for all young professionals' and strikes a similar chord to "I Don't Know How She Does It" by Allison Pearson, though it is aimed at a younger reader. A witty insight into the City, it is told with a fresh, young style that cannot fail to appeal to this as-yet untapped market.

Paperback

First published November 1, 2006

Reviews

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Light read. Not too fanciful which lent a bit of believability. Enjoyable read.

[Catherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Predictable though tolerable

[Wouter Zwemmer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Weinig inspirerend verhaal waarin alle clichés langskomen:
- Arrogante bankiers die junior medewerkers (analisten) afzeiken
- Analisten die tot diep in de nacht moeten doorwerken
- Falende bankiers die hun fouten afwentelen op analisten die juist wel goed werk doen
- Cocaïnegebruik op kantoor om de lange werkdagen en de stress vol te houden
- Ontslag op staande voet wegens betrapt worden op cocaïnegebruik (het issue is niet het gebruik maar het betrapt worden)
- Mannen zijn ofwel afzichtelijke nerds, ofwel quasi-fotomodellen
- Oudere getrouwde bankiers die junior analisten onder druk zetten om met hen naar bed te gaan; de analisten die dat eerst vreselijk en daarna razend interessant vinden
- Relaties die stranden op de totale overgave die een investment bank van haar medeSexuatischwerkers eist
- Seksistisch gedrag van de mannelijke medewerkers van de bank jegens vrouwelijke collega’s
- Verraad van collega’s onderling
- Mannelijke collega’s die de vrouwelijke bekogelen met borrelhappen in de kroeg
- Functie worden diersoorten: traders, associates, bankers, analists; compleet met territoria en bijpassend gedrag (incl vergelijkingen met bavianen)

Het blijkt dat de gebeurtenissen op en rond zo’n bank helemaal niet zo leuk of interessant zijn. Veel getallen, veel excel, veel kinnesinne, jaloezie en afgunst... Je kunt je eigenlijk maar twee reden bedenken waarom mensen een dergelijk leven accepteren: geld en aanzien. Maar voor ruim 400 pagina’s is dit gewoon niet interessant genoeg.

[Shash Dayal · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting book about life as a junior investment banker. Although fiction it is clearly based on real life experiences. Everyone working in finance will see some parallels between their experiences and those of the author.

[Ka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informative and entertaining read. I downloaded an e-book copy of this after attending two of the author's seminars at writers' events. She came across as someone who's very passionate about what she's doing (she also went to the same university as I did, which also piqued my interest), so I decided to give her debut novel a go, and was definitely not disappointed. I was hooked after reading the first few chapters. It opened my eyes to the strange and not so wonderful world of investment banking, its ugly politics and games.

Both of the protagonists are very likeable, although I must admit that Abby gets on my nerves a bit in the latter half of the book; just a bit too self-righteous and self-pitying. This however does not detract from the book's many strenghts: well constructed plot, engaging storyline, great sense of humour (many laugh-out loud moments, surprisingly!), solid literary skills. The only thing I'd say is that the book can feel a bit preachy at times, which I'm sure is because the author feels very strongly about her real-life experience in the industry.

As a aspiring first time novelist myself (just finishing up my first draft), I'm thoroughly impressed by how well Polly writes especially considering that this is her first book!! From the perspective of a writer, there's a lot to be learnt from this book.

Would definitely recommend this to my friends and I look forward to reading the author's other titles.

[OxoNewbie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book received a lot of media coverage because the author came from the world of investment banking and she was prepared to tell all about life as an investment banker..."it isn't as glamourous as it looks" seems to be message. I found this book dull and the characters not greatly developed. There didn't seem to be much of a plot. It's a first book. Maybe a few more rewrites or allowing the ideas to percolate more before putting pen to paper would have resulted in a much better book.

2 stars.

[Ellie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read the book in 2 days. I chose Golden handcuffs because I wanted to learn a little more about investment banking as a possible career path. I don't know exactly how true is the whole picture in this industry because I haven't worked there and my friends are from other industries, so I can assess only the plot and writing style. Well, I am not disappointed. I can recommend to check this out, especially if you are a fresh graduate, starting to climb the corporate ladder.