Friday, the Thirteenth

Thomas W. Lawson knew Wall Street from the inside as a speculator and promoter, and he poured that knowledge into this 1907 financial thriller. The story turns on Bob Brownley, a brilliant and volatile trader who, scarred by personal tragedy and sickened by the manipulations of the money kings, sets out to wreck the stock market on a single Friday the thirteenth. His friend and partner Jim Randolph narrates the rising fever as Brownley’s scheme threatens ruin for the men who rule the exchange. Part romance and part expose, the book channels real anger at the era’s speculative excess and the panics it bred. It reads as both a period drama and a warning about unchecked greed. Free PDF and EPUB editions are available.