Red Notice

Gutsy, chilling and important.

Browder paints a portrait of modern Russia through his own very personal story.

The first half of his book is interesting but drags ever so slightly. It recounts Browder's rise, at Solomon Brother and then as a fund manager focusing on the country in the aftermath of the fall of the USSR. It describes his dealing with the Oligarchs of that era, and ascension to become as the country's largest foreign portfolio investor by the late 1990s/early 2000s.

In its second half, the book pivots from international business biography to political and criminal intrigue. Here, in riveting terms, Browder recounts how in the late 2000s a cabal of shadowy apparatchiks from the Russian FSB and interior ministry, acting with the backing up the State, stole hundreds of millions by falsifying tax refunds fraudulently procured on behalf of one of his companies. It explains the methods employed and names to people responsible, and describes how he was blamed, intimidated, exiled him from the country, and ultimately shows how and why one of his attorneys, Sergei Magnitsky, was murdered. By the end of the book, it is 2015 and Browder is living in Britain in very real fear for his life.

Taken at face value, Browder's story affirms the very worst fears about what the Russian state has become two decades after the collapse of communism. Taken at face value, in my opinion, Mr. Browder has every reason to be fearful for his life.

The best thing about the book is that Mr. Browder does not flinch in telling his story. He does not pull any punches. By directly addressing the Putin regime - by naming names, connecting the dots, detailing the tactics employed by the Russian state to obfuscate the truth and discredit its opponents, and showing the astonishing and cynical depth of the regime's contempt for the rule of law and international norms - Mr. Browder places himself alongside the likes of a very small group of gutsy writers (Anna Politkovskaya comes to mind) who have sought to pull back the curtain on the ugly truth of the New Russia.

The main reason I give the book 4-stars instead of 5-stars is that it is (through no fault of the author's) highly specific and personal, focused almost entirely around Mr. Browder and his experiences in Russia. It does not offer many new, concrete insights beyond those that Browder experienced personally. The result is many of the most intriguing and seemingly consequential mysteries from the New Russia - the 1999 Moscow apartment bombings; the 2003 jailing of Mikhail Khodorkovsky; the poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko and the assasination of journalist Anna Politivsaya - are dealt with superficially if at all.

Nonetheless, Mr. Browder's story is by itself sufficiently remarkable to render this book a valuable contribution to the (conspicuously small) body of literature offering real insight into the modern Russian kleptocracy. Kudos to him for having the courage to tell his story, and the story of Sergei Magnitsky. Well worth the credit.

63 of 67 people found this review helpful

This is an absolute "YES" as your next read/listen

What made the experience of listening to Red Notice the most enjoyable?

I average an audio book per week but stayed up all night listening to this wonderful true story (I'm very glad it was a Friday night!). This story is an absolute must to anyone interested in great story telling, finance and the intrigue/corruption of the Russian government. The ending of the book is especially powerful and truly shows why human rights must come before money.

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

In my case, I was fascinated by the honest reporting of an attempt by an American citizen to undertake a mission of change with our own Washington bureaucracy, and surprisingly, how well some of our politician’s did in addressing a serious human rights violation.

Even more so, this book explains in clear prose the importance of doing what is right regardless of personal cost. There is a profound human rights example, which this book will bring to light, showing why sanctions and in some case, extreme measures must be taken against some governments to protect their citizen's rights.

What does Adam Grupper bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Great Narration with excellent foreign dialog characterizations - very immersive.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Strong emotional components told with an honesty you don't find in many stories.

Any additional comments?

Well done

78 of 85 people found this review helpful

Putin is a Monster

First of all - they were so smart to choose this reader. He is very perfect for this book. The story is completely hair raising in every particular. There is much we never hear about and I consider myself a true news junky. I encourage everyone to listen to this book all the way to the end and consider yourself a chink in the wall against Russian corruption. It sheds a whole new light on the situation in the Ukraine when you apply the same evil Putin/Russian logic to that disaster!

43 of 47 people found this review helpful

This Is Motion Picture Material

This book read like a great spy novel- except all of it is a true story and not fiction (as others have pointed out in their reviews). The story was riveting and I thought that Adam Grupper did an incredible job with the narration- especially with his English, French and Russian accent for all of the characters. Well worth the listen. I really believe that this should be made into a motion picture and hopefully some producer will purchase the rights to the book and proceed with the project. I would recommend that as you listen to the book think of who should be cast in the various roles in the story.

20 of 22 people found this review helpful

Evil meets humanity at it's best.

This true story will keep emotions up and down. Every time you hear a glimpse of hope and a good news only to have your hopes dashed by a Russian oligarch. This book is amazingly well written and speaks true of Russia then and now. Bill Browder is a true champion for justice. What he accomplished for Sergei Magnitsky's family and justice loving people around the globe is by far nothing short of miracle. To Sergei Magnitsky's family, your son, father and husband did not die in vain thanks to Sergei himself and his friend Bill Browder. To Sergei, may you rest in peace.



This book met way above my expectation.

The narrator is very good and I love the Russian accent.

27 of 30 people found this review helpful

True 5 star book

This book completed exceeded my expectation. The detail in which the author describes Sergei's story moved me to tears many times. His story deserves to be told by this book to everyone who has conscience. Thank you for sharing your story with me. I have learned a lot about human rights in Russia, and the system that is so corrupt criminals can roam free without consequences. A true 5 star.

25 of 28 people found this review helpful

Money, corruption, power, politics and murder

This is the story about the investment banker Bill Browder whose grandfather was a famous communist in the United States. Bill decided that he wanted to become the most famous capitalist in Russia. He succeeded. We get to follow Bill from his childhood until the time when the book was written. In contrast to many other self biographies, this one rarely got boring.

Throughout the book I asked myself: Why does an investment banker, for whom a hundred million dollars is no big deal, write a book? The answer it turns out, at least in part, is that he, til this day, fears for his life. Browder must have assumed that Russia and Mr. Putin cares about justice and that the judicial system in Russia would protect him when he was wronged. A naive assumption it turned out. The book takes a radical turn when Bill, because he puts up a fight, has to escape from Russia. Several of his associates fares very badly and one even dies. Since then Browder has devoted himself to getting justice for his associates and he has been at least partly successful.

This is a nonfiction book that has it all. It is biographical. It uncovers the lifestyle of the world’s elite and how investment bankers make and spend money, as well as how they work with and against the world’s political leaders. It is also a crime novel, describing in detail a serious crime and the following detective work. The multifaceted nature of the book is both its strength and its weakness. It rarely gets boring but it can also lack focus.

16 of 18 people found this review helpful

An Investment Banker with a moral compass

I wasn't expecting all that much from this book but I'm reading whatever I can find about Putin's Russia so I bought this.

I was blown away.

I think I was like most Americans since 9/11, I had put Russia on the back burner of my mind. Putin seemed weird but not any weirder than any of the Cold War leaders. After reading this book, and Flashpoints by George Friedman, I'm paying more attention to Russia, as, it seems, we all should.

The sociopathic Russian regime of Vladimir Putin should make us afraid. Very afraid.... and I'm not sure the current crop of Presidential candidates, from the right or the left, are ready to deal with what lies ahead. Let's hope our leaders are vigilant.

29 of 34 people found this review helpful

Powerful, inspiring and transformative

Excellent narrator, moving story, so well written. A remarkable book that is not one to miss. Thank you. Highly recommend.

16 of 19 people found this review helpful

A peek behind the curtain into "new" Russia

This is the story of the largest foreign investor in post-Soviet Russia and covers his journey from a young student with “behavior problems” to the founder of what became the most profitable investment fund in the world. The book is interesting on a lot of levels, as it shows the dysfunctional nature of the large investment banks, how insiders work to shut out a guy with ideas, and how perseverance backed up by research can ultimately prevail.

However, it also shows the lengths to which the criminals and oligarchs in Russia will go to shut down all dissent and how Putin’s interests have become aligned with them. When Browder fought back against the corruption to protect the assets in his fund, he found himself in the cross hairs of the Putin regime and he outlines, in chilling detail, the lengths to which the official institutions of the Russian state were used to attack him. This book provided a lot of insight into the inner workings of the Russian government, and how their response to “incentives” does not necessarily track in an easily predictable way.

I found this very informative…but ultimately discouraging for the prospects of meaningful reform in Russia and any hope at improved relations. I consider this one a must read based on current events and Putin’s rise as the prized symbol of autocratic, military lead governments around the world (such as Egypt where he was recently welcomed like a returning hero). Buckle up, I don't think this is going to end well for anyone involved, and this provides a bit of a preview.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful