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Gusher!: A Novel of the Rockefeller Oil Empire
When anyone can strike it rich in an instant and lose it all just as quickly, it takes a titan to stay on top.
In the 1870s, the oil business can make or break a man. No one appreciates that fact more than Matthew Strong, a young man from Oil City, Pennsylvania, with big dreams, not to mention the talent to back them up. The search for a gusher has already cost Matthew dearly; both his father and older brother died in the fields. Their deaths drove a rift between Matthew and his mother, and also tore him apart from the only woman he's ever loved. But despite the risks, the pursuit of oil is a fortune that Matthew has no choice but to chase in an effort to redeem his father's sacrifice.
When a chance meeting in Cleveland with his hero John D. Rockefeller leads to a job with Standard Oil, Matthew quickly rockets up the chain of command as the company takes a stranglehold on the emerging market. But no great achievement comes without a cost. And the price that Matthew has to pay to keep pace with his rivals climbs higher than a barrel of oil. Just when he's reached the pinnacle of his professional and personal life, an unspeakable tragedy threatens to bring everything Matthew has worked so hard to build crashing down. At his lowest point since the death of his father, Matthew can't resist the allure of one last hunt for the biggest gusher yet. Will he be able to outrun the demons of his past and build an empire that rivals his mentor's against all odds?
A sweeping, sumptuous Gilded-Era epic that features cameos from the titans that built the American oil industry, Gusher is an exhaustively researched, compelling trip back in time to the creation of a singular American dream.
In the 1870s, the oil business can make or break a man. No one appreciates that fact more than Matthew Strong, a young man from Oil City, Pennsylvania, with big dreams, not to mention the talent to back them up. The search for a gusher has already cost Matthew dearly; both his father and older brother died in the fields. Their deaths drove a rift between Matthew and his mother, and also tore him apart from the only woman he's ever loved. But despite the risks, the pursuit of oil is a fortune that Matthew has no choice but to chase in an effort to redeem his father's sacrifice.
When a chance meeting in Cleveland with his hero John D. Rockefeller leads to a job with Standard Oil, Matthew quickly rockets up the chain of command as the company takes a stranglehold on the emerging market. But no great achievement comes without a cost. And the price that Matthew has to pay to keep pace with his rivals climbs higher than a barrel of oil. Just when he's reached the pinnacle of his professional and personal life, an unspeakable tragedy threatens to bring everything Matthew has worked so hard to build crashing down. At his lowest point since the death of his father, Matthew can't resist the allure of one last hunt for the biggest gusher yet. Will he be able to outrun the demons of his past and build an empire that rivals his mentor's against all odds?
A sweeping, sumptuous Gilded-Era epic that features cameos from the titans that built the American oil industry, Gusher is an exhaustively researched, compelling trip back in time to the creation of a singular American dream.
360 pages, Paperback
Published April 8, 2019
7 people are currently reading
8 people want to read
About the author
Bob Davis
1 book3 followersPrior to his retirement in 2017, Bob Davis was a senior advisor with Exxon Mobil Corporation, and press spokesman for the global operations of ExxonMobil Gas & Power Marketing Company and ExxonMobil Development Company. During his 28-year career, he was also chief spokesman for the corporation's exploration and oil and gas production activities throughout North America, Russia, the Caspian region and the Middle East.
Davis was editor of The Lamp, ExxonMobil's shareholder magazine, as well as executive speechwriter to Chairman and CEO Rex Tillerson. His speeches have won recognition from Speechwriter's Digest and other publications. He is a recipient of the International Association of Business Communicator's Gold Quill Award, and his fiction writing has been awarded finalist and first-place winner honors at the annual Writers' League of Texas Novel Manuscript Contest.
Davis attended Stetson University in Deland, Florida, and is a cum laude graduate of Western Connecticut State University. He lives in The Woodlands, Texas, with his wife, Linda, and black and tan dachshund, Sunshine.
Davis was editor of The Lamp, ExxonMobil's shareholder magazine, as well as executive speechwriter to Chairman and CEO Rex Tillerson. His speeches have won recognition from Speechwriter's Digest and other publications. He is a recipient of the International Association of Business Communicator's Gold Quill Award, and his fiction writing has been awarded finalist and first-place winner honors at the annual Writers' League of Texas Novel Manuscript Contest.
Davis attended Stetson University in Deland, Florida, and is a cum laude graduate of Western Connecticut State University. He lives in The Woodlands, Texas, with his wife, Linda, and black and tan dachshund, Sunshine.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
June 28, 2019
In his outstanding debut novel, veteran oilman Bob Davis uses his inside knowledge of the oil industry to take us behind the scenes of the Standard Oil empire, and, considering the lack of documentation of what truly happened behind closed doors, this is a notable accomplishment. John D. Rockefeller and his associates were hounded by civil suits and threats of prosecution for much of their professional careers, so the behind-the-scenes machinations of Standard Oil were not occasions for minute taking. Davis uses fictional cover to create dialogue and deal-making scenarios that sound so believable I had to frequently remind myself that this is a novel.
The book mingles a cast of fictional and real life characters to tell the story of the fictional Matthew Strong, a young man from a hard scrabble background who rises through the ranks of Standard Oil to become one of the companies top deal makers. Haunted by the premature death of his father, a troubled relationship with his mother, and a tumultuous marriage; Matthew finds himself increasingly uncomfortable with the moral shortcuts expected of him by his employer.
Character development of fictional characters is difficult enough, but the author of historical fiction who inserts real-life characters into his narrative faces a truly daunting task. Davis handles the challenge admirably and turns icons such as Rockefeller and John D. Archbold, Rockefeller's successor as Standard Oil president, into fully-formed characters who display both their flaws and their brilliance. In an especially memorable scene, Archbold upbraids Strong for his lack of discretion in mentioning a questionable deal to Rockefeller, which gives the reader a true sense for the tactics that were likely used to help Rockefeller avoid culpability.
The characters inhabit a narrative that moves at a brisk pace. The reader experiences and appreciates the intense pressure of working as an executive at Standard Oil in the late 19th century and the highs and lows of the oil business; and the author displays a unique talent for describing the highly technical detail of oil operations in a way that is accessible to the lay reader.
Davis is uniquely qualified to tell this story. As a twenty-eight year veteran of Exxon Mobil, a descendant of Standard Oil of New Jersey, he has experienced first hand the culture of a company that still carries the DNA of its founder. As a senior advisor, press spokesperson and executive speechwriter he knows how an oil company operates at the executive level. His book is an outstanding contribution to the literature of both Standard Oil and the oil industry, and I hope to hear much more from this fine author.
The book mingles a cast of fictional and real life characters to tell the story of the fictional Matthew Strong, a young man from a hard scrabble background who rises through the ranks of Standard Oil to become one of the companies top deal makers. Haunted by the premature death of his father, a troubled relationship with his mother, and a tumultuous marriage; Matthew finds himself increasingly uncomfortable with the moral shortcuts expected of him by his employer.
Character development of fictional characters is difficult enough, but the author of historical fiction who inserts real-life characters into his narrative faces a truly daunting task. Davis handles the challenge admirably and turns icons such as Rockefeller and John D. Archbold, Rockefeller's successor as Standard Oil president, into fully-formed characters who display both their flaws and their brilliance. In an especially memorable scene, Archbold upbraids Strong for his lack of discretion in mentioning a questionable deal to Rockefeller, which gives the reader a true sense for the tactics that were likely used to help Rockefeller avoid culpability.
The characters inhabit a narrative that moves at a brisk pace. The reader experiences and appreciates the intense pressure of working as an executive at Standard Oil in the late 19th century and the highs and lows of the oil business; and the author displays a unique talent for describing the highly technical detail of oil operations in a way that is accessible to the lay reader.
Davis is uniquely qualified to tell this story. As a twenty-eight year veteran of Exxon Mobil, a descendant of Standard Oil of New Jersey, he has experienced first hand the culture of a company that still carries the DNA of its founder. As a senior advisor, press spokesperson and executive speechwriter he knows how an oil company operates at the executive level. His book is an outstanding contribution to the literature of both Standard Oil and the oil industry, and I hope to hear much more from this fine author.
April 16, 2019
Thoroughly enjoyable new novel about the Rockefeller oil empire and Mathew Strong, a complex young man with big ambition and talent. While the compelling story of Mathew is imagined, much of this story is based on real life people and events of the sweeping Gilded Era and the American oil industry. Well researched and an interesting, satisfying and fun read from start to finish.
(I think this would be a great TV series! HBO - are you listening?)
Gusher!: A Novel of the Rockefeller Oil Empire
(I think this would be a great TV series! HBO - are you listening?)
Gusher!: A Novel of the Rockefeller Oil Empire
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews