The Coffee Trader

by David Liss

The Edgar Award–winning novel A Conspiracy of Paper was one of the most acclaimed debuts of 2000. In his richly suspenseful second novel, author David Liss once again travels back in time to a crucial moment in cultural and financial history. His destination: Amsterdam, 1659 — a mysterious world of trade populated by schemers and rogues, where deception rules the day.

On the world’s first commodities exchange, fortunes are won and lost in an instant. Miguel Lienzo, a sharp-witted trader in the city's close-knit community of Portuguese Jews, knows this only too well. Once among the city’s most envied merchants, Miguel has lost everything in a sudden shift in the sugar markets. Now, impoverished and humiliated, living on the charity of his petty younger brother, Miguel must find a way to restore his wealth and reputation.

Miguel enters into a partnership with a seductive Dutchwoman who offers him one last chance at success — a daring plot to corner the market of an astonishing new commodity called "coffee." To succeed, Miguel must risk everything he values and test the limits of his commercial guile, facing not only the chaos of the markets and the greed of his competitors, but also a powerful enemy who will stop at nothing to see him ruined. Miguel will learn that among Amsterdam’s ruthless businessmen, betrayal lurks everywhere, and even friends hide secret agendas.

With humor, imagination, and mystery, David Liss depicts a world of subterfuge, danger, and repressed longing, where religious and cultural traditions clash with the demands of a new and exciting way of doing business. Readers of historical suspense and lovers of coffee (even decaf) will be up all night with this beguiling novel.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Historical, Mystery, Book Club, Jewish, 17th Century

402 pages, Paperback

First published March 4, 2003

About the author

I am the author of thirteen novels, most recently The Peculiarities, a historical fantasy out in September 2021. I've also written numerous novellas and short stories. My previous books include A Conspiracy of Paper which was named a New York Times Notable Book and won the 2001 Barry, MacAvity and Edgar awards for Best First novel. The Coffee Trader was also named a New York Times Notable Book and was selected by the New York Public Library as one of the year’s 25 Books to Remember. Several of these books are currently being developed for television or film. I have also worked on numerous comics projects, including Black Panther and Mystery Men for Marvel, The Spider and Green Hornet for Dynamite, and Angelica Tomorrow.

Reviews

[Abbyofgail · Rating 3 out of 5]

"I guess I'll read this one. It can't possibly be as good as his other two. It's about coffee. Who can write this much about coffee?"

"Ugggggghhhh it's about stocks in coffee. It's not even about coffee coffee?"

"It takes place in Amsterdam? Weed."

"So far this is better than I thought it would be."

"This main character is kind of a douche."

"So is everyone else in this book."

"How the hell does one pronounce Oude Kerk? Is Dutch hard? Think I could learn it? Do I want to learn it? I heard the Netherlands is nice. Should I move there? Would I have to learn Dutch? Is Dutch hard?"

"Dude, this guy has gotten himself in some real trouble with money. I hope he gets out of it."

"Dude, this guy is a tool. He keeps borrowing money he doesn't have. I hope he goes to jail."

"Yikes, I'm glad my name isn't Gertruid."

"I'm going to read this one until I'm done with it. I can't focus on any of the other books."

"Dammit, boyfriend, leave me alone, I'm trying to read."

"Wait, so is Gertruid betraying Miguel? Is Alfonso? Is Parido? Is Miguel going to do it with his brother's wife or not? Is that servant going to get bitchsmacked like she should? So many questions I can hardly stand it..."

"Well I sure hope this ass doesn't win in the end. he is NOT a good guy. But then again neither are these other people. I don't know who to root for, the good guy or the bad guy. But wait, who is the good guy? Is there a good guy? Is anyone truly good or bad? Is Dutch hard?"

[Lyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Surprising depth and very entertaining.

The complexity of the group dynamics and of what was undoubtedly a well researched book was impressive. Liss creates a setting wherein he draws the reader and his sometimes complicated characterizations are spot on and approachable. Set in 17th century Amsterdam, this is also a fascinating historical fiction and the author crafts for the reader a time and place of exceptional detail. We also see the distinctions drawn between various cultures and religions and the often overwhelming rigidity of class and religious boundaries.

This finishes with an unsettled denouement and with some questions left unanswered, but overall a very enjoyable story.

[Carol · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sometimes I'm wrong about a book though I hate to admit it. I was almost 100 pages into The Coffee Trader and moaning that I wasn't enjoying the read but had to finish it as it was a book group choice. I knuckled down finally and was pleasantly surprised when very quickly the story just popped off the pages. When all was said and done I thoroughly relished the book, even going back to re-read parts of the beginning.

I honestly think what threw me is that The Coffee Trader is about commodity trading. This concept muddles my mind. Don't ask me how the stock exchange works cause it blows my mind. The Coffee Trader takes place in an exchange, albeit in mid-1600's in Amsterdam, and its coffee, not cash, but trading none-the-less.

The main character, Miquel is seeking to make his fortune in a scheme to corner the market on this new wondrous product of coffee. He enters into partnership with a mysterious woman, Geertruid and tries to keep the venture secret from his brother, Daniel and the villain of the story, Solomon Parido, a wealthy member of the Amsterdam Jewish community and the Ma Maad, The Portuguese Jewish community plays a large role in the whole and brings about happenings that would otherwise not be if not for the religion and culture. Though there are other vivid characters, none appealed to as much as Joachim Waagenaar, a gentile and Dutchman who loses all, his money, standing, face, in a deal with Miquel.

There are twists and turns in abundance and the outcome tickled me except for one aspect.

I enjoyed reading the author's note that explains his use of coffee vs. tulips or art to set the tone of trading in Dutch commerce of the mid 1600's. Also, I love this quote by character Miquel:

"He loved the money that came with success, but loved the power more".

How true of many powerful persons.

I'm so glad our group chose The Coffee Trader for this month's discussion and I'm really glad I stuck with it. A solid historical read. Now it's time for a cup of coffee.

[Lewis Weinstein · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm going to go against the tide here ... I did not enjoy this book which I found to be an endless series of basically the same conversation over and over again ... who is lying? everyone ... who is actually accomplishing something? no one ... what character could I relate to or root for? none ... it sounded like a vicious junior high school locker room where every student is jealous of and hates all the others ... it's hard to imagine Dutch commercial prowess if this is how they actually behaved

[Allie Riley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This isn't quite on a par with A Conspiracy of Paper (his first book), but it very nearly is. The action focuses on the grandfather of Benjamin Weaver (the central character in the aforementioned novel), Miguel Lienzo, a Portuguese Jew living in Amsterdam. At the opening of the novel (May 1659) he is seemingly on the verge of ruin and survives only because of the charity of his brother Daniel, in whose cellar he lodges. But then he gets wind of a wondrous new drink called coffee and it seems as if his luck may be about to change...


Liss shows that his talent for plotting has not diminished since his debut and, likewise, that he is still able to create a cast of wonderful characters to enjoy. The atmosphere of the time was very well evoked (as far as I could tell - not being wholly conversant with the history of 17th Century Holland) and the suspense never let up. Just who was in league with whom and what the truth was appeared to be in a constant state of flux. Yet Liss brought it to a satisfactory and logical conclusion.

I found this a swift, enjoyable read and recommend it wholeheartedly.

[Susana · Rating 2 out of 5]

(review in english below)

Há já algum tempo que tinha curiosidade em ler alguma coisa do David Liss e quando vi este livro na estante de uma amiga, não desperdicei a oportunidade.

Infelizmente, foi uma decepção. Li, algures, que a partir da página 100 a história ganhava vida, mas comigo isso não aconteceu. Não gostei da escrita, nem dos personagens, nem da história - quero lá saber se o Miguel consegue fazer fortuna com o café, ou se tem um romance com a cunhada!...

Acho que estou a ficar mais exigente - deve ser da idade... - e sem paciência para perder preciosas horas a tentar interessar-me por um livro que não me agarrou, sobretudo quando tenho dezenas de livros seguramente melhores que este à minha espera.

Assim, fico por aqui (pág. 129), sem arrependimentos e entusiasmada por ir começar uma nova aventura literária.

I'd been curious to read something from David Liss for some time now, so when I spotted this book on a friend's bookcase, I took the opportunity.
Unfortunately, it was a letdown. I'd read somewhere that the story picked up after page 100, but it didn't happen for me.
I didn't like the writing, the characters or the story - I couldn't care less if Miguel makes a fortune from coffee trading, or if he gets involved with his sister-in-law...
I think I'm turning more picky as I get older and I don't want to lose precious hours of my time trying to get interested in a book that didn't grab me, specially when I have dozens of books waiting for me, that are undoubtedly better that this one.
So, I'll leave it to that (page 129), with no regrets and excited to begin a new literary adventure.

[Richard · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was fantastic on so many levels. Liss does an excellent job portraying 17th century Amsterdam, providing a view of a culture that has been considered famously tolerant - and shows the limit of that tolerance. This is an issue that has been famously re-examined recently, about how the Dutch really behaved during The War. And in the past decade, that famous tolerance has been stretched to the limit with the wave of Arab/Muslim immigrants. It's an issue that the Dutch have had to deal with for at least 500 years.

Liss also depicts a nascent commodities exchange, which would lead ultimately to the stock markets that are in use today. By choosing the coffee market, a new commodity, he is able to weave the vagaries of trade into the tale. Fortunes rise and stereotypically fall on the hint of a rumour. Liss shows the stress that these prospects bring.

The plight of the Jews, so recently evicted from the Iberian peninsula, is the crux of it all. Looking for a homeland, looking for a place to simply rest their heads, the Jews found tolerant Amsterdam a refuge from Spain and Portugal. Yet the Dutch are not all open-armed, and Amsterdam's Jews needed to tread lightly. Worse still, it's not the Dutch that are the worst enemies.

If you enjoy financial history, Jewish history, Dutch history or just a good story that weaves all that together, this is the book for you.

[Lynne King · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was recommended to me. The cover looked good, there were very good reviews and I loved the blurb, plus I also love coffee with a passion. So it was with great impatience that I started reading this book.

I just didn't like it. I don't know if it was the style of writing, but it was just words to me and I started skim-reading. I thought surely there is something here that I've missed?

I enjoyed the personalities of Miguel and Geertruid but that was all and was more than happy when I had skim-read through to the last page. When I read "And, just as surely, someone wanted me free", I thought that's quite right, I want to be free, free of this book.

I realize that many people love this book and I'm sorry that I couldn't get into it but every day I ask myself, what makes a great book? The answer is, I just don't know.

[Terri · Rating 3 out of 5]

I waited a long time to read this book. It sat on my 'to read' list for a year or so and I took it off, put it back on, never quite sure if I wanted to fit it into my reading schedule.
While I am pleased to have finally conquered the book, finally got it read, I was bitterly disappointed by it.
I don't know if it was the great cover or not (as I have always regarded the cover of this edition as one of my favourites even before meeting the book in the flesh), but I really expected much more poetry in the writing style. A much better prose work offering than what I got.
Perhaps even more passion and animation in the writing too.

And yet, having read this book as a Group Read with others, I discovered that not everyone felt the same as I about the boring nature of the book, so I certainly would not ever discourage anyone from reading it.
I did give it 3 stars of 5 and to me that means 'I liked it and nearly enjoyed it' which I kind of didn't so I should be giving it 2. However, after giving it much thought, I decided that 3 stars because I liked it enough to get through it and not give up on it. I found a story within its pages that was mildly entertaining. So 3 star it is.

The day I started this book I brewed myself a pot of coffee, wanting to make the reading experience broader than just the act of reading words on pages. And it worked for a while as the book gets off early with your protagonist, Miguel, a broke, womanising, sex obsessed (don't expect lots of sex scenes though, just references to women he sees and women he has 'done') trader being introduced to coffee for the first time.

It takes a while to come back to the Coffee as the story moves into character developments and the strange and the unexpected presence of a memoir called The Factual and Revealing Memoirs of Alonzo Alferonda.
I was ambling along, quite liking the story early on. Getting my head into this Amsterdam world, when hold the bus, everything stops and the book completely changes style to include a first person narrative from the memoir mentioned above. I honestly think that if I had known they were coming I would have been better prepared and I would not have lost my connection with the book.

Not everyone has trouble with sudden changes like that. Where there is actually two books in the one. Others I read this book with did not have the issue I had and they admit to finding the Memoir was the best part of the book. Whereas I regarded them as the worst. They got in my way. Shattered the Amsterdam world I had been building in my head.

The book goes on to be full of bitter, twisted plots and back stabbing. Manipulations and ulterior motives. It all got a little much for me and I started craving some pleasantness. Some smiling faces and well meaning interactions. But that is not what this book is about.
Think a book full of Edmund Dantes in Count of Monte Cristo and you might be close to what was going on here. All the characters are plotting and planning and scheming.

But I guess when you have an environment where there is big overnight profit to be made. Where people can be filthy rich in a matter of days on the backs of others, you will always have this kind of atmosphere and they are atmospheres that I am not comfortable with.

I have to tell you not to base your choice to read The Coffee Trader off my opinion. People's opinions on this book are so diverse that I honestly believe that you must ignore others - to a certain degree - and try it for yourself with a mind totally unobstructed by other peoples opinions.
Which is how we should go into every book that we read I suppose, only where would be the fun in that!

[أشرف فقيه · Rating 4 out of 5]

قصة ممتعة جداً ذات حبكة بوليسية. تتعمق في تاريخ الدولة الهولندية وامبراطوريتها التجارية المزدهرة من خلال تتبع مسار حياة يهودي برتغالي هارب من محاكم التفتيش يضارب في القهوة في بورصة أمستردام التي كانت الأولى عالمياً. من ناحية هي تاريخ مختصر لبدايات تجارة القهوة ومن ناحية أخرى تأريخ لأوروبا القرن السابع عشر.
استمعت له ككتاب صوتي والأداء أضاف لروعة الحبكة.

[Elizabeth (Alaska) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this historical fiction. It doubles as a mystery/thriller, though that didn't kick in until the latter half. David Liss does a fine job with the setting of 1659 Amsterdam. The main character, Miguel Lienzo, is a Portuguese Jew. He and the others in his community fled their country and the Inquisition.

The presentation of the story is somewhat unusual. Most fiction is told in the third person, and so is most of this. However, many of the chapters conclude with a section "from The Factual and Revealing Memoirs of Alonzo Alferonda" and, being a purported memoir, is told in the first person. Alonzo knows things that the other characters do not and it is with Alonzo that we are privy to some of the intrigue.

The beginning drew me in immediately, but then seemed a bit flat. Then it picked up, an then again was flat. In other novels, I might call this uneven, but I have decided this was just the nature of this story. Not every person's life can be exciting every moment. Miguel had to take time to think, and it was the thinking that drove the thriller rather than the villain as in most thrillers. He is not the villain of the piece and the story is never told from the perspective of the villain.

I am happy I have purchased another David Liss when it was a sale item for my Kindle. I don't know how soon I'll get to it, but it won't lie languishing for years, I think. This one slips into the 4 star bracket (from 3) because of the last 75 pages. It has neither the superb prose nor characterizations which I want for my 5 star reads.

[Dawn · Rating 2 out of 5]

In the interest of full disclosure, I did listen to an abridged version of this story. In was in no way on purpose, there was nothing on the CD's or box that said it was abridged. Nothing until the end of the last CD actually. Highly annoying, I should have paid more attention.

I think I may have enjoyed the story more if I had the full version but as it was I only thought it okay.
It was a whole lot of boring (which is saying something as I obviously got all the exciting parts) and then the end just left me thinking he was an idiot. Maybe if he'd come across as purposefully successful instead of mean and petty.....

The few items that made this an okay instead of hated it book were the second story, told by Alfonso (I hope that's how it's spelt) and the stock market. Both aspects of the story that I found quite interesting.

[Gretchen · Rating 3 out of 5]

It wasn't great. It wasn't terrible. If you find you want to read this book, I won't stop you but I will warn you there are other books out there. Books that are probably more deserving of your time.

The characters in this book were blah. They were just there because a story requires people. I didn't care what happened to them. They could have all tragically died at the end and I don't think it would have really bothered me.

What did save this book was the obvious knowledge the author has of 17th century Amsterdam. The look at how the "stock market" worked before Wall Street was excellent but it wasn't enough to make a great book.

[Rebecca Huston · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first time that I read this book, I didn't make it past page 20. But when I picked it up last year, I found myself sitting up late at night to find out what would happen next in a tricky world of coffee, dutch merchants, money, and a string of half-truths. Recommended for anyone who wants their historical fiction to be a real challenge -- in a good way.

For a more complete review, please go here:
http://www.bubblews.com/news/4281063-...

[Cheryl · Rating 2 out of 5]

The first third of this book was interesting, but then it got bogged down with the daily life of the main character and his financial debts. I found myself skimming it, then decided to abandon it just past the half-way mark. Perhaps the pace picks up later, but I'm not interested enough to stick around and find out.

[Kirsten · Rating 5 out of 5]

Multiply the business plotting of "Mad Men" by 10, put it into a Vermeer painting, take away the brandy snifters at working lunches and insert a mysteriously alluring brew called "coffee,"--and voila, you have the beginning scenes to a masterpiece stock exchange mystery set in Amsterdam in the 1600s. If you have read the Benjamin Weaver series by David Liss, this book predates those London hijinks--showcasing his father's fortunes as a Portuguese Jewish trader exiled by the Inquisition. Miguel has problems--an evil and disloyal brother, an entirely-too-hot sister-in-law, a cougar-with-brains business partner with an inconveniently brutish henchman at her service, several spies nipping at his heels, and, of course, innumerable business enemies popping up like tulips in April. Everyone is holding their breath, waiting to see whose fortunes will be made and lost when a long-awaited boat load of coffee finally comes to port...

[Natasa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Experiencing life in a different time period is always interesting, but I mostly wanted the story to move along more quickly. There were a lot of build-ups, and then the story was over so fast it was as though the writer’s time ran out. It was abrupt to me, and that spoiled the book.

[Stephen · Rating 4 out of 5]

never intended to return to David Liss so soon. No doubt, A Conspiracy of Paper was phenomenal -- but I have two Bernard Cornwell novels just awaiting to be read! There's something compelling about Liss' genre, though: I've never encountered a thriller set in the business world before, let alone one steeped in the exciting history of Age of Discovery-era Europe. The Coffee Trader is another contribution to that setting, though here Liss moves to Amsterdam, where young Miguel Lienzo -- the uncle of Conspiracy's main character Ben -- is facing bankruptcy. But a spirited, ambitious, and altogether attractive widow has an idea for waking Europe to the wonders of coffee...and if Miguel is fleet-footed enough, he may yet rise from ruins to riches.

Schemes carry the day here. Miguel is only one of five duplicitous characters playing the exchange, and each have their own private desires and hidden plans. Some, like Miguel and the woman, are allies; others, like Solomon Parido, a leader of the Jewish community, count themselves as Miguel's rivals. Their schemes all interact with one another, like wheels within wheels, but no one can truly say in which direction the wheels are spinning..or what ends they may accomplish. Although The Coffee Trader isn't used by Liss to comment on an issue (unlike Conspiracy and Ethical Assassin), the mystery stands on its own. The setting is fascinating Lienzo is a Portuguese exile, a refugee from the Inquisition, and he and many other Jews have taken refuge in Amsterdam. Determined to avoid outside persecution, faithful Jews voluntarily submit to the authority of the Ma'amad, a somewhat heavy-handed council with the power to discipline members. Among many other things, it forbids Jews from doing business with 'Gentiles'. Parido sits on this council, and Miguel secretly defies it by allying himself with the widow. Parido has his own secrets to hide from the council, and the two of them play a kind of chess match throughout, attempting to out-maneuver the other both outwardly (using the threat of the Ma'amad's power) and subtly, through playing with the markets Eventually all comes to head in the Exchange itself, though by this point it's clear there's more going on than either man is aware of.

All in all, The Coffee Trader was quite well done, one to savor. My library doesn't have any more Liss books, other than a fantasy he's written, so I'll be looking for them online in the coming months.

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an interesting thriller/historical fiction novel about Amsterdam's commodities exchange in the late 1600s. The main character Miguel Lienzo took refuge in The Netherlands after living as a Secret Jew in Portugal where the force of the Inquisition had become too great a threat. Although Miguel was initially successful in Amsterdam’s markets, the novel begins with him juggling debts to his self-righteous brother as well as others in the community. Having lost his fortune in the sugar market, Miguel was eager to find a new commodity that would help him repay his debts and regain sufficient financial status to move out of his younger brother’s cellar and find a wife. Through surreptitious dealings with a cunning Dutchwoman, Miguel learned about coffee, a product still only used for medicinal purposes in most of Europe. They developed a plan to use her capital and his business savvy to create a monopoly on coffee in Europe. As Miguel navigates this risky venture, he must avoid the attention of his trading adversaries as well as the watchful eye of the Ma’amad’s spies who would have him excommunicated for doing business with gentiles.

[Lorri · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Coffee Trader, by David Liss, is a book of intrigue and an absorbing historical novel.

I became so wrapped up in the historical aspect that I felt as if I had gone back in time and place. My senses were infused with Liss’ extremely detailed prose. With his strong word-imagery, Liss transports the reader to Seventeenth Century Amsterdam. It is the aftermath of the Spanish Inquisition, and the Dutch city is streaming with Jews who fled Spain. In fact, many others, from all over Europe have come to Amsterdam to try to make some money.

There is a fine line running through the pages…regarding Judaism, morals, mores/ethics, and what is acceptable within business dealings and everyday personal life. Liss defines these situations with clarity.

The story line is intriguing. The historical value is quite worthwhile, in itself. Even though some sections seem a bit slow, I was enthralled with The Coffee Trader, and recommend it to everyone.

[Will · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is one of the best I have read, however I will say it fit my tastes as well if not better than any book I have picked up in a long, long time.
I enjoy the markets, love coffee, and these two interests played out very well in this story.

It's a historical look at the markets, and if you don't understand puts, calls, you may not enjoy as much. If you are a commodities trader I think you will be thrilled by this book.

However there is some anti semitic history in this book based on the period that it is set. If it would rub you the wrong way, I would say you need to stay away from it.

It seems like other readers of this book enjoyed the author's other book, The Conspiracy of Paper, more than this novel and for that reason I will go in search of that one.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bottom line: Too many plump maidservants. Not enough derivatives trading. This book irritates me.

Clarification - I don't mind that Miguel objectifies women. It's historically accurate - jackasses objectify women, especially in the 17th century; and at least this jackass prefers ladies who are smart as well as pretty.

What I can't stand is that 99% of the ladies swoon over this debt-ridden loser. Seriously? How does Miguel manage to melt off their panties in, like, 5 minutes each? Wouldn’t maidservants care about say, getting pregnant and ruining their lives?

The actual coffee trading bits pique my interest. I'll just write off Miguel's romantic prowess as the author's avatar-insertion fantasy.

[Joy H. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Setting: The Netherlands in the 1600s

The story and the well-drawn characters kept me reading but the plot was a bit confusing to follow. Who was tricking whom? Things became convoluted after a while as the many characters wove themselves into the plot. Also, the stock trading manipulations made dull reading, especially because I didn't quite understand them.

The suspenseful atmosphere kept things interesting enough. The idea that coffee was a mysterious new product in the 1600s engaged my interest.

[Bettie · Rating 2 out of 5]

My particular edition is not available here on Goodreads

1841976024
9781841976020
Hardback
Large Print
Publisher WF Howes Ltd

Withdrawn from Oxfordshire Library Service

Opening: Firmer than water or wine, it rippled thickly in its bowl, dark and hot and uninviting. Miguel Lienzo picked it up and pulled it so close he almost dipped his nose into the tarry liquid.

Went from complete distaste to tepid enjoyment, however it never rose above that level. Not recommended.

1.5*

[Sariah · Rating 3 out of 5]

For the most part I really enjoyed reading The Coffee Trader by David Liss. The main protagonist is Miguel, a Portuguese Jew, living in Amsterdam, and working as a broker in the emerging stock exchange. Miguel and a Dutch woman, Geertruid, scheme to corner the coffee market. Hampering there efforts are Solomon Parido, a wealthy member of the Jewish community, who harbors a grudge against Miguel, and Joachim Waagenaar, a Dutchman who lost everything in a financial deal Miguel brokered for him. Joachim holds Miguel responsible for his financial losses and harasses Miguel throughout most of the novel.

One of the interesting things about the story is as Miguel schemes and plots to corner the market in coffee trading, he sees schemes and plots being hatched against him, which causes him to misinterpret the actions of others. Another interesting things about the novel is that most of the characters are either manipulating someone, or being manipulated in turn. This contrasts nicely with all the manipulation going on at the Exchange.

I found the references to the Ma'amad, the Jewish self-governing body controlling all aspects of community life, interesting. Many of the Ma’amad’s rules stem from residual fear of the Inquisition, and the expulsions from other European countries. Amsterdam has only recently become a safe place for Jews to live and the Ma’amad fears having too much contact with the Dutch. So, even though they are free to practice their religion in Amsterdam, the Ma’amad has forbidden the Jewish community from having close contact with the Dutch/gentile community. Keeping this in mind, I found the number of Jews with Dutch servants a bit puzzling. Miguel spends a great deal of time worry that another Jew will seem him talking to his Dutch associates, yet he sleeps with the Dutch maid in his brother’s house. Liss never makes it clear if the Ma’amad has forbidden all contact with gentiles (which would then make the Dutch servants against the rules) or if the injunction is specifically referring to brokering, or doing business with them.

I was a little unhappy with the way the book portrayed women. There are only 3 important women in the novel. Hannah, Miguel’s sister-in-law, while an interesting character, spends most of the novel victimized by her maid and ignored by her husband (she finally stand up for herself at the end of the novel but by then I had come to find her passivity annoying). Geertruid, Miguel’s business partner, is supposed to be “mysteries” but I guessed fairly quickly what the big mystery was (or at least I’d figured out where she got her money for the coffee trade rather quickly). Hannah’s maid, a rather nasty piece of work, lacks any real motive. Time and again I asked myself why is she behaving that way? Only Liss never offers an explanation, so the reader is forced to assume her behavior stems from jealousy or spite. At the end of the novel Geertruid’s actions are not at all believable; she is way to forgiving. These women seem to lack (or have really weak) motivations. I realize that in a novel set in the 1650s you won’t find any “modern” women, but Liss could have done a better job of making the ones he had more three dimensional. Geertruid’s only motivation seems to be money, Hannah has no motivation at all (she is acted upon and then reacts), and the maid is cruel, end of story.

But this is really a small complaint since most of the book concerns Miguel and his attempts to get rich on the Exchange. All together this was a pretty good book and I recommend it to anyone interested in 17th Century history.

[Brielle · Rating 2 out of 5]

A friend lent this book to me. If she hadn't included it in a stack of books, I would never have picked it up. As it was, I almost put it down as abandoned many times during reading. The only thing that kept me going to the end was the thought that I would have to say something about it when I returned the book!
The story takes place in Amsterdam in the 1700s. It's about the "exchange," basically the ancestor of Wall Street. So everyone's lying and conniving and making wagers based on rumors and futures and it's weird and somewhat boring.
It finally became interesting around chapter 30 (of 35) when the grand scheme was to unfold on the floor of the exchange. The build up to that point was excruciating. And then by chapter 32, the story is boring again with the author somehow obliged to wrap up EVERY SINGLE STINKING DETAIL. As if that wasn't bad enough, the conclusion goes on to a point several years down the road and his final point "you can't change nature" seems like a lousy, trite way to wrap up the elaborate story he attempted to tell. Ugh.
The only truly interesting character, in my opinion, was Hannah. She has this great back story of being raised a Catholic in Portugal only to find out the night before her wedding that she's actually Jewish. A move to Amsterdam, a husband who ignores her and refuses to help her adjust, a new religion that closes her out, a manipulative maid who threatens her with exposure daily, and a passionate, burning love for her brother in law. Way more exciting. Yet she only gets a few paragraphs of attention every so often.
Two stars is probably a generous rating.

[D.w. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very strong book to read. By that, this book has depth. As a historical novel, you want some glimpse into the world as it was so that you leave with some factual understanding of that period admidst the fiction. In Coffee Trader you learn a great deal about Amsterdam, the center of finance in the 1600's.

You also learn of the flourishing jewish community free of the inquisition and how that atrocious institution changed the attitudes of the people it persecuted to a degree. This is handled with a deft hand so you are not preached at.

But, there is a but, as good as some reviewers have felt, Liss spends a great deal in the early part of this otherwise well crafted tale, hitting us with a great deal of tell instead of show. Long paragraphs help set the piece, but leave no room to unfold the tale tale early on. It leaves me wanting to catch my breath, take a break.

Liss does a tremendous job describing a world and you feel that you are there, and understand it, and can grasp the complex nature of his characters quest for profit and success in trade. He however needed to bring in something to break up that in the beginning.

Working around that, is a tale carefully plotted, that when all seems well, a disaster looms to cast all in doubt and leave the reader hungry for more of the tale at that precise moment. A well done job, certainly worth the time and investment.

[SJ L · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cool facts.

In 1723 a young officer in the Grench army, Gabriel Mathie de Clieu, carried one precious coffee plant in a glass-framed box as he headed for duty in Martinique. His ship was becalmed for many days in the mid-Atlantic, meeting a water shortage for the entire voyage. For more than a month de Clieu shared his frugal ration of life-giving water with the frail coffee tree. Arriving finally in Martinique, the Frenchman planted his treasure among some protective thorn bushes. By the beginning of the American Revolution, over eighteen million coffee trees flourished in Marinique. From de Clieu's one small plant, coffee was established in the New World.

Coffee seeds germinate in six weeks...plants do not beare fir full crop until they reach an age of five or six years...Coffee is still harvested by hand, and incredibly enough, one tree produces only one or two pounds of coffee. A good coffee picker is able to harvest only twelve to fifteen pounds per day. It is wonder that coffee is an inexpensive as it is.

[Alvin · Rating 3 out of 5]

A diverting historical romp. The prose doesn't sparkle and the characters' financial machinations were too complex for me to follow, but the characters were believable and the period detail was interesting.

[Ari Pérez · Rating 4 out of 5]

a historical novel done right. liss shows us the economic background of 17th century amsterdam, and how business got done at the time. the protagonist is a merchant that takes an interest in a new commodity: coffee. now, that in itself is quite a niche of historical interest. it doesn’t sound too inviting at first glance but what makes this book interesting and worth the read are the characters and where their ambition/vengeance takes them. at first the merchant, miguel, gets the tip of this (not so new, since it’s been around for some decades but not consumed in big numbers) product from a dutchwoman, but he is not quite sure about it, because there is something shady, but his poor economic status doesn’t give him room for anything else so he jumps at it. 

he is a sort of despicable man, though he doesn’t do ‘evil things’ in the real sense, he has no problem bringing ruin to rival merchants to make a profit for himself. yet he is respectful with people and his brother, and leads a ‘proper’ life as a jew in that city. that’s another interesting aspect that liss shows: how jews lived in the only place in europe that offered them certain freedom, and how they carried their tradition and political life not so different than in the holy land. liss puts in front of miguel some people that have, suddenly, interest in coffee and time and again recommend him to leave it alone, advice that miguel declines and soon finds himself in a web of intrigue, lies and betrayal. what i liked the most is that there isn’t really a happy ending, bad things happen to good people, miguel does bad things to save his skin and yet you just can’t hate him for trying to survive. the pace was really good too, i found myself suddenly reading about 80 pages in a sitting non-stop without me realizing it. the characters and the environment of the century and the city are really well described. although i felt the ending a little bit rushed, i quite enjoyed it.