Born in London, J. R. Thornton graduated from Harvard College in 2014 where he studied history, English, and Chinese. An internationally ranked junior tennis player, he competed for Harvard and on the professional circuit. He was a member of the inaugural class of Schwarzman Scholars, obtaining an M.A. from Tsinghua University in Beijing. He now lives in Italy, working for AC Milan. Lucien is his second novel.
At CrimeReads Thornton tagged five books "on forgers and conmen—on trauma and personality disorders—on imposters and fantasists." One title on the list:
Tom Wright & Bradley Hope, Billion Dollar WhaleRead about the other entries on Thornton's list at CrimeReads.
The story of Jho Low and the looting of Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund, 1MDB, is the con artist story of the Millennial era, and Wright and Hope tell it with the propulsive energy it deserves.
Although Jho Low became adept at navigating the opaque and secretive world of offshore banking, asset laundering and shell companies, his primary toolwas not financial sophistication but social engineering and performance. Rather than attempt to fly under the radar Jho Low did the opposite and hid his crimes in plain sight. He threw parties. He gave extravagant gifts. He befriended Leo DiCaprio, Paris Hilton and Miranda Kerr (and paid them to associate with him). He commissioned a super yacht for $250m. He bankrolled the production of The Wolf of Wall Street. All with stolen funds.
His story is also one of institutional failure—from the failure of financial regulators to the complicity of banks like Goldman Sachs and Rothschild to the involvement of high-ranking political figures including Najib Razak, the sitting Prime Minister of Malaysia (now serving a twenty-year prison sentence for his culpability).
Wright and Hope’s account is meticulously researched and demonstrates a deep understanding of the international shadow-banking system, yet it unfolds with the pace and tension of a thriller.
--Marshal Zeringue
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