I loved this book - it was a page turner from the start! It was hard to decide whether or not Robbie Case was the bad guy or a victim of a run-away train and I still don't know.
The story is told by alternating between the 3rd & 1st person of Robbie - it took a few tries to get the feel for changes but I think that it added to the attachment that you get for this guy. The plot was well thought out and developed (I'm not a techie, but managed to follow the gist of the business that Robbie was juggling) but the driving force of the novel are the characters. They are all integral to his being able to keep all of his proverbial balls in the air and their dedication to Robbie - more than his company - is interesting and I only wish that I could have learned more about them.
I'm definitely looking forward to Eric's next book!! ( )

Once I started this book, I couldn't stop. It was fast-paced, plausible, and suspenseful. The only thing that bothered me a bit with this one were some slight technical inaccuracies that, while they didn't interfere with the story, will likely be picked up by a computer geeky audience.

I would definitely pick up another book by this author to read his work again! ( )

I must admit that I am still a bit unsure of Shimmer. It seems to be mostly a story about con artists, the details of their scheme and how it went from rags to riches and back to rags again. It's an interesting story but I had a hard time staying with it to the end. I'm glad I did but I am still a bit confused.
The main character, Robbie Case, seems to be a man with good intentions gone bad. (typical, huh?) Shimmer is the story of his fall both career wise and mentally. It's actually an interesting look at a Ponzi scheme and is incentive to stay as far away from one as possible.
I believe this to be quite a good book, well written and interesting. It just wasn't my cup of tea. ( )

Robbie Case is the head of Core, a multi-million dollar company that he unwittingly founds with his cousin Trevor. Dealing in selling blue boxes full of high technology that greatly improves the speed and flow of information, he’s walking around with the secret that none of it works. Each sale and success story brings Core closer to collapse- which could happen at anytime- making Robbie Case a rich man, even as it bankrupts everyone around him who has worked for and believed in Core for the three years since its inception. Robbie only sleeps two hours per night and and spends the rest of his time overseeing Core while trying to save it and the people who work for him from its ultimate demise. Robbie keeps track of the elaborate lie that runs Core with a program that he especially designed called Shimmer, but time is running out and someone is onto Robbie. The race is on to find out who knows his secrets and when that happens there is a big price that he and everyone well have to pay for his lies.

It took me awhile to get into this story. The beginning chapters are a set up of the technology and the company, and I only had the barest grasp of what was going on. As the outline of how it all worked presented itself, and the novel shifted to examine the human element I became more absorbed in Robbie and his cousin Trevor’s distinct personalities, and why each of them would embark on such a risky proposition as the one in which they were involved. Robbie particularly gambles and the only collateral that he has against telling such a monstrous lie is that he has always believed that hard work is the solution to every problem. I’m not really sure that I was ever convinced of Robbie’s theory of hard work motivating him to perpetuate such a lie and a gamble with people’s livelihoods, and even if that were true the reasoning is beyond flawed, but it was enough to move along the story.

The narrative of the novel alternates between Robbie’s own first person perspective and third person mini-chapters outlining the doubts that each member of his senior staff is experiencing about the company. Each of them is highly qualified for their position, intelligent and at the top of their game. Robbie’s staff have different reasons for having committed so much of their lives to Core, usually to the detriment of their personal lives, and each is dangerously close to being able to put their finger on the undefinable thing that is wrong with the bog picture. No one understand how the blue box technology works. Barnes does a terrific job of maintaining the suspense and I was on pins and needles throughout my reading, wondering if the house of cards was going to come tumbling down due to inside forces or to the simultaneous threats coming from outside the company.

Robbie Case is a deeply flawed character- stemming from both his childhood and his strange personality mix of hubris and naivete. Some of the novel started getting a little bit repetitive to me as he goes through the same motions while trying to figure out a solution that will help the company and release him from the burden that he has been carrying. Though I found what Robbie did to be reprehensible I really wanted him to be able to figure things out for the sake of the people that worked at Core.

If you have advanced knowledge of computers and business acumen then it would be very easy to get into this one on the perils of not integrity- or the lack thereof- in big business. The how’s it going to end aspect really keeps the book moving along and it manages to stay interesting even though the entire thing takes place inside the same office building. There are some truly gripping scenes when the blue boxes that Core manufactures come under attack. This was definitely a suspenseful read. ( )

This book really gains a lot from its timeliness--but I'm not sure of what other value it has beyond the nuanced and interesting look it provides at the world of the ponzi scheme. I'll admit the characters are well drawn, the prose very readable (if too typically newspaper like for me...probably a consequence of Eric Barnes' career as a newspaperman), and the plot quickly set up and quickly interesting. If you want a good beach read for dwindling beach season, or are interested in thole ponzi-world, I'd suggest it. You won't be disappointed, at any rate. If you're someone like me who prefers a different sort of fiction--the more philosophical or contemplative, more stylistic--a page turner's not going to suffice. I fall into the latter category, which is not to impinge on the book at all, but rather to say that it's not quite my [insert cliche here]. ( )

Shimmer is a high-tech corporate thriller. I guess the best way to describe it would be to imagine if Google only worked because it was drawing on other computing resources to make it search so fast, and the constant need for expansion to maintain that speed would mean that Google would suddenly crash and completely stop working in a year.

Robbie Case, the CEO and protagonist, is surprisingly likable for being addicted to sex with young prostitutes and a con man who built the company based on a lie. However, he does have a genuine motivation to keep the company afloat until "grace" (the benchmark when senior staff can cash in their stock options), as he doesn't want to let anyone else down. He is a very complex character, similar to one you might see in a Chuck Palahniuk novel, but less disgusting.

Really, this is a character-driven novel. The plot moves fairly slowly, with a few exceptions, and most of the book is spent with Robbie interacting with fellow workers. Overall, it was a nice read, but nothing spectacular. Not being a business person myself, I didn't quite understand exactly how Robbie was protecting his own money in this, but it didn't seem particularly relevant to the story. If you're looking for something with a little more action/drama, I would suggest e by Matt Beaumont or Then We Came to the End by Joshua Ferris, both of which I found significantly more fun to read than Shimmer. 3/5 stars. ( )

As others have said, Shimmer is relevant given the recent Maddoff Ponzi scheme. That will surely generate interest in the book.

What I found most interesting about the book are the dynamics of the senior staff and Robbie's ability to be so close to them while hiding such a huge secret. I guess you get in so deep that you feel like you can't admit you lied and you just hope for a way out.

The atmosphere of CORE was very real to me. Work has consumed everyone's lives...Robbie never leaves the office, the senior staff is trying to make it until grace, Trevor constantly pursues the next sale. As a workaholic, I wonder what makes us this way? In Robbie's case, the fear of being found out. In my case, it's my love of my job. What about Trevor and the other characters? ( )

Shimmer
Author: Eric Barnes
ISBN: 978-1-932961-67-6, Pages: 288, $25.95, Publication Date: June 30, 2009, Hardcover, Fiction, Published by Unbridled Books Denver, Colorado

Eric Barnes has a smash debut novel hitting upon a subject that is clearly newsworthy. Shimmer is based upon one of the oldest money-making plots known as “The Ponzi Scheme.” Barnes was formerly a COO of his own “big business” and he envisioned this devious method as being able to happen again.

Barnes has written a riveting story of the ‘rich and famous’ and a high-tech computer hardware company which has gained twenty-billion dollars in three years. Thirty-five- year-old Robbie Case is CEO of Core Communications in New York City and plans to walk away with millions while willing to let his five thousand employees lose everything. He lives with a dreadful secret based upon lies and fraud. He wonders daily how he will sustain his company. Robbie works night and day! He sleeps in his office to make sure his employees never find out the truth by gaining access to his secret maneuvers. While living on the edge everyday, Robbie and his arrogant cousin Trevor, both recognize the company will collapse one day soon, “All will go dead, they just don’t know when.”
Robbie creates a “shadow network” called Shimmer which no one but him can log onto. No one but him can even touch Shimmer. This machine keeps Core Communications alive. Most interesting is the company has a fascinating SWAT team which is always watching. While Case stays up all night to find ways to dodge them, SWAT relentlessly checks, reviews, and investigates Core, as these members are vested millionaires who share an interest in the corporation.

This novel has a cast of unforgettable characters who keep you engrossed from the beginning with their antics. They are young, bright, hard-working individuals who look to Robbie’s vision and leadership, but cannot understand how the company works.
Confusion abounds in Core when financial wizards begin to question the “numbers”. There is something wrong with the numbers which is always baffling.
Although this may be a fictional book, it is familiar in light of the Bernie Madoff scandal and shows intentional bilking of investors. This should be a warning to all people; be vigilant where you place your money and never take someone else’s word.

Be prepared - you will not leave this corporate thriller idle; it is a shocking look at evil-doing and will keep you intrigued at every page. Shimmer would make a compelling movie. Movie stars may rush to play the roles as depicted by Barnes! This book is highly recommended. ( )

I found the story to be enjoyable. It was easy to read and hard enough interesting turns to keep you interested to the last page. Sort of like a mystery novel in reverse, told from the point of view of the one who knows all, and is just waiting for everyone to catch on.

Synopsis:

The book opens at the top of a Midtown skyscraper in NYC at 6 am on Monday in the middle of the weekly senior staff meeting of one of Wall Street's technology darlings, Core Communications. Through the banter, Barnes shows the relationships between and among most of the book's main characters and CEO Robbie Case. Clearly, Robbie is regarded as a genius among geniuses, with vision and incredible technical skills such that even those who have worked with him every day for the past 3 years and have participated in the company's growth hold Robbie apart. Understandably so since Robbie's guidance, savvy and tech skills transformed Core Communications into a company with the size and culture reminiscent of Google - a $20 billion dollar company offering technology unmatched by any other. Core Communications offers a way to maximize server capacity and data processing through its secret "Blue Boxes". The market appears to put no limit to Core Communication's potential growth and revenues. No one understands exactly how the Blue Boxes work and it turns out that neither does Robbie Case. Instead, Robbie has based Core's technology on a lie and through this combination Ponzi scheme and shell game, Robbie has been able to keep up the charade. Robbie barely sleeps as he works feverishly to come up with a way to create the necessary technology that can save his company. To suppress his tension and fear, Robbie increasingly relies on anonymous sex and alcohol. While the employees keep going, waiting for the time that they can cash in on their stock options, Robbie is anxiously waiting for the company's collapse.

Review:

Other reviewers have mentioned that Shimmer seems particularly relevant for these times with the headlines of corporate fraud by Bernie Madoff. Though headlines of corporate fraud are not new, Shimmer does strike me as an unusual and interesting read because of the degree of business details incorporated in the story.

I enjoyed reading how Core Communications handled stock options in a company so young and successful that its early employees and nearly all employees are multimillionaires. I don't know anyone that worked at Google or Microsoft in the early days but I imagine that the anticipation, anxiety, and fixation with the time that first employees are allowed to exercise and sell their stock options, this period of "grace" would be all consuming and much like Eric Barnes's description.

I'm not particularly technologically savvy, so I had to pause and write out the explanation behind Core's unique service. I'm not sure whether it's service is viable or not - but that lack of knowledge didn't impact my appreciation and enjoyment of the book.

If you're waiting for a mindcandy technothriller in the Michael Crichton style, this book doesn't have the violence and gore of those books. Instead, enjoy the tension that comes with the unravelling of the financial fraud. Don't be fooled by the lack of violence - Shimmer is an absorbing action thriller.

Publisher: Unbridled Books (June 30, 2009), p288.
Courtesy of Unbridled Books. ( )

An easy read once hooked. Although it was hard to relate to the corporate world, not being of that mindset, the author does an astounding job in keeping you in suspense throughout the story. ( )

Through many sleepless months Robbie and his loyal employees have built an empire based on technology that does not work as advertised. Millions disappear each week faster than the sales in order to keep the lie alive. Each character has a distinct personality with a set of quirks and felt very real. The strongest aspect of the book is the intensity of the characters, but in the end I cared more about the employees than the CEO. I guess that is yet another way in which the book was true to life.

I was intrigued by the different perspectives throughout the book and the presentation of the storyline. The first half was not exciting enough to keep me up, but it was good enough that I wanted to get to the ending so I ended up reading late one night to finish it. I was pleasantly surprised by the conclusion, but left wondering if the character had learned his lesson. Strangely, I kept expecting the ending but when it actually happened it felt like deus ex machina.

Overall, the book is a solid quick read techno-thriller. ( )

I received this book as an early reviewer’s selection, but unfortunately did not finish as soon as I had liked. So here, finally, is my review.
I enjoyed the book but I am not sure whether I would read another of his stories. It was very well written grammatically and, due to that, an easy read. However, the character development was somewhat shallow and the reasons for the collapse were not fully explained in the end (this is not a spoiler because the collapse is known at the beginning of the story). The main character had some substance, but the others were only developed on the fringes. Not being in the computer field but understanding enough to know I would have wanted more info, I was disappointed at the end with no explanation for the fix. There was great potential in the story, which is why I did not at any point think I would not finish, and I was entertained, but I usually like more than that from something I read. It became very predictable towards the end. If you want to know the story line, you will have to read it and you will probably enjoy it. ( )

Well. I know that it was supposed to grip my attention, but I found it sadly lacking. I'm afraid that the story just didn't really interest me, and I found the short sentences and lists of actions (which were meant to interest the reader in how busy the main character was) to be more irritating than anything. Clearly, the main character is desperate to save his company, but there seems to be no clear, real motivation. Sorry - this book just didn't do it for me. ( )

I started this book 2 or 3 times before I really got hooked. It begins in the stream of conciousness style, taking the reader inside the mind of tech CEO Robbie Case. It took a few chapters before I began to understand the random thoughts of this main character and the plight all the unknowing employees in the company he created. About two-thirds of the way through the book, as the empire begins to implode, I was finally hooked. ( )

Shimmer is a debut tech business thriller by Eric Barnes. Considering my tastes in books generally runs in adventure and historical fiction, I found this a difficult read, but not from the technical aspects. The endless business meetings and office talk made this an dull and boring read for me. The greed, lies, and almost sterile sexual interactions didn't appeal to me either.

In a nutshell, this is a tech business thriller about an adopted man who finds himself CEO of a company that is operating on borrowed time because they don't really have the technology they claim to have. The main character, Robbie Case, operates a network of shell corporations around the world that keep his secret hidden from the world, and he devotes endless hours to his spreadsheets and secret computer system. He also has an addiction to prostitutes but never really experiences intimacy. ( )

I really enjoyed this book. It is a suspense-filled read that keeps you wondering what is going to happen to these people until the end. I have known people that have been involved in Ponzi schemes (both as the swindled and possibly the swindler), so I found the whole book seemed a bit melancholy. I was constantly wondering how this big secret that the CEO has is going to destroy the lives of the characters in the book. I also felt sympathy for the 'swindler' who doesn't seem to be the arrogant greedy bastard you expect him to be. LOL
I would agree with some of the other reviews that you can either take this book as a great fast read, or dive into the characters deeper.
I will definitely be picking this one up again for a reread at some point! ( )

Shimmer is a better than average read and fairly fast paced. Barnes writes in a style that I can only describe as ‘staccato’; rapid, short, clipped sentences which on one hand lends to the suspense of the story, but on the other hand I found it tedious at times. The character developments are given to us through interludes as Barnes allows us to read into their thoughts. The main character’s demise seems certain, but the creation and timing of it is what keeps the reader in suspense. Reading it I could imagine it being made into a movie with a soundtrack similar to the scene when Tom Cruise was running from the bad guys in ‘The Firm’. It is a thriller without any violence. Suspense with corporate, financial and technological twists and turns that make for an interesting read. ( )

First few pages - I didn't know what to make of it, but by around p.50 I was hooked and could hardly put it down. The book is something of a John Grisham of computer world! The premise is quite incredible and original. The protagonist comes through as rather appealing and human. I didn't care for paid sex interludes, though - they seemed less worthy of the rest of the book. On the whole - a wonderful read. I wish I were more technically savvy: I had to consult my son, a computer specialist, to understand a few things, but it only increased my interest. ( )

This was a very good, almost excellent story and first book from Mr. Barnes. Having recently retired from a large multi-national corporation, I recognized many of the personality characteristics developed for the "senior staff" - greed, self identity wrapped up in their work etc. as charecteristics in common with many execustives I had worked with. The story line is interesting, though not necessarily plausible - but that is beside the point. People may times believe what they want to believe, and I saw much of this as well in the real world. I think he does a good job of developing the characteristics of the main folks in the story and what drives each of them. The ending was rushed, however, and quite frankly was a bit predictable. Certainly a different kind of read that I would recommend to anyone! ( )

An intriguing and enjoyable reading! The story and characters kept my attention from the start, but I must say it's not the book I expected. I expected to be more on the edge of my seat with a very dynamically developed story. What this work does provide though, is a fascinating psychological story of a company (through the eyes of the CEO) on the edge. The company's survival and future are built on market momentum and smoke and mirrors. It is very apropos to our environment today. I found the ending clever and satisfying and I plan to be on the look out for more from Mr. Barnes. ( )

Eric Barnes first novel, Shimmer, is a fast paced, very intriguing read. The tag line reads “A keep-you-up-all-night corporate thriller about a worldwide, hi-tech Ponzi scheme”, and Shimmer delivers on this promise. Although some sections get bogged down, being unnecessarily wordy, in all it was an edge of your seat ride that kept me wanting to read more. I thought I could see the end clearly about 2/3 of the way through, and was worried that it was going to end up predictably, but Barnes throws a twist at the end that is unexpected, at the same time working well with the conclusion that is obvious. While it ties some things up, it doesn’t make it too perfect that things fall the way they do. I have been critical of authors in the past who wrap everything up too neatly, requiring nothing from the reader in terms of figuring out what happened on their own. Barnes does not fit into this category for me.

The main criticism I have with Shimmer is the drawn on scenes, sometimes of the main character just walking through the building, describing everything to death. This is great the first time, it gives you a sense of the environment the novel is built in, but he does it constantly throughout the book, and it seems to just get tedious.

My main praise for this novel is the world created, the elaborate back-story, and the intrigue and tension that the main character’s Ponzi scheme creates. You are waiting, wanting to see if he will be found out as a fraud, wondering if the house of cards will collapse, or if they can keep up the charade. The idea of such a huge company all created on a lie, is great, and puts a neat spin on this technology based story. ( )

An incredible book! Bravo Mr. Barnes! For being an "uncorrected proof," I found nothing, absolutely nothing wrong. The story flowed, the intrigue grabbing hold, I enjoyed it immensely. Mr. Barnes' descriptions of the complexities involved in this story were incredible. He made it really easy to understand the inner workings of a vastly large corporation. I loved it and would recommend it. ( )

"Come sit down by me; I've got a great story to tell you." That's what I imagine Eric Barnes' debut novel, Shimmer, would say if it could talk. The book was just friendly, I don't quite know how else to explain it; it was by turns exciting, thought provoking, and unusual and always enjoyable. The story follows Robbie Case, the CEO of a tech company that has figured out how to maximize server capacity and data processing. The company is wildly successful, with sales and revenues growing by bounds every day. The problem is that the whole company is based on a lie. Case is selling hardware to his customers that doesn't really do anything while he is secretly moving all of the data, which is meant to be processed his hardware, around a series of secret server farmsand satelittes , hidden around the world. He is lying to his customers; he is lying to his employees; but, mostly, he is lying to himself. He is lying to himself about his his capability to maintain the lies, about the true value of the company and the people he works with, and about what will ultimately be fulfilling and rewarding to him.

Barnes has achieved something unusual with his debut novel, a story that works on multiple levels, either as a quick, mindless read or a good thriller or as a more subtle, study of human interaction and connection. I won't pretend that I am computer savy enough to understand the tech pieces of the story but Barnes doesn't hit you over the head with computer jargon so much that you feel like you're reading a Computer for Dummies book. He gives you just enough to make the story seem believable. Barnes' use of language to create a breakneck pace and frentic aura for the tech company and the people who work there is just right. I found myself reading the early chapters more quickly than usual and with an urgency, all because of the deft prose. All of this would serve any good summer read well. But, if you read a little closer and study the characters Barnes creates, you will find a more subtle examination of unconnected and lonely people, all lieing to themselves in various ways to overcome self loathing and doubt. They are all pouring their lives into the company, feeding their greed or hunger for power as a substitute for human connection. One of the most interesting elements of Barnes' new novel is the give and take between his hero, Case, and Case's evil cousin. The two almost seem to create one, whole criminal; they are drawn to one another and, at the same time, repulsed by one another. Barnes has gotten this relationship just right, reflecting real world co-dependent, criminal pairs.

The light criticism I have is for the ending, which felt a little rushed and a little forced, tied up to prettily in a colorful bow. I didn't think nor did I want to see the story end quite so well for Case and his dark half cousin. And, to get there, Barnes seems to work a little too hard and gloss over a few too many details. But the ending didn't ruin the overall reading experience for the book.

Recommended! This was a solid, enjoyable read. You can take it at whatever level you feel like when you pick it up. It was just that friendly.

4 bones!!!! ( )

Core Communications is on top of the world. Their blue boxes are installed on mainframe computers all around the world. Corporations are scrambling to acquire this breakthrough technology. Years of long hours and hard work are beginning to pay off for the senior staff at Core. With their IPO behind them, they are striving to achieve grace so they can cash in on Core's success. There's only one problem. The blue boxes don't really work; the entire company is based on a lie.

CEO Robbie Case struggles to find a way to keep Core from going down. He knows the end is inevitable, but still he hopes for a breakthrough, a miracle. The only other person at Core that knows the dark secret is Trevor Case, sales person extraordinaire. It was Trevor that began the lie, but Robbie who continued it to an astounding level.

This book is scary, in that the premise is not too fantastical. It would surprise none of us to see a similar story on Fox News. This is a shining example of how a lapse in judgement can snowball into a giant avalanche of pain and sleeplessness. Eric Barnes provides a unique insight into the culture of a mega corporation. The challenges, accomplishments, inadequacies, and insecurities are all laid bare.

I truly enjoyed this book. The author gives you just enough to figure things out on your own, there's no spoon feeding here. The characters are rich, they have strengths and faults. A few even have vices such as hookers or adulterous affairs. The ending will provide you with closure and a reassurance that no matter how things change, they remain the same. ( )