Red Notice: A True Story of High Finance, Murder and One Man's Fight for Justice

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Red Notice: A True Story of High Finance, Murder and One Man's Fight for Justice Audible Audiobook – Unabridged

Bill Browder (Author), Adam Grupper (Narrator), Recorded Books (Publisher)

4.7 45,450 ratings

Editors' pick Best History

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November 2009. An emaciated young lawyer, Sergei Magnitsky, is led to a freezing isolation cell in a Moscow prison, handcuffed to a bed rail, and beaten to death by eight police officers. His crime? To testify against the Russian Interior Ministry officials who were involved in a conspiracy to steal $230 million of taxes paid to the state by one of the world's most successful hedge funds. Magnitsky's brutal killing has remained uninvestigated and unpunished to this day. His farcical posthumous show-trial brought Putin's regime to a new low in the eyes of the international community.

Red Notice is a searing expose of the wholesale whitewash by Russian authorities of Magnitsky's imprisonment and murder, slicing deep into the shadowy heart of the Kremlin to uncover its sordid truths. Bill Browder - the hedge fund manager who employed Magnitsky - takes us on his explosive journey from the heady world of finance in New York and London in the 1990s, through his battles with ruthless oligarchs in the turbulent landscape of post-Soviet Union Moscow, to his expulsion from Russia on Putin's orders. Browder's graphic portrait of the Russian government as a criminal enterprise wielding all the power of a sovereign state illuminates his personal transformation from financier to human rights activist, campaigning for justice for his late lawyer and friend.

With fraud, bribery, corruption, and torture exposed at every turn, Red Notice is a shocking but true political roller-coaster that plays out in the highest echelons of Western power.

Listening Length

14 hours and 7 minutes
Author

Bill Browder
Narrator

Adam Grupper
Audible release date

February 3, 2015
Language

English
Publisher

Recorded Books
ASIN

B00T567KIA
Version

Unabridged
Program Type

Audiobook
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Product details

Listening Length	14 hours and 7 minutes
Author	Bill Browder
Narrator	Adam Grupper
Whispersync for Voice	Ready
Audible.com Release Date	February 03, 2015
Publisher	Recorded Books
Program Type	Audiobook
Version	Unabridged
Language	English
ASIN	B00T567KIA
Best Sellers Rank	#25,502 in Audible Books & Originals (See Top 100 in Audible Books & Originals) #20 in International Business (Audible Books & Originals) #27 in Historical Russia Biographies #36 in Russian History (Audible Books & Originals)

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4.7 out of 5

45,450 global ratings

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Allison Clausen

Amazing book. So poignant to today's situation in Russia.

Reviewed in the United States on June 3, 2023

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This book was very clear and matter of fact, even when dealing with very dramatic and emotionally charged events. The story is naturally compelling with many twists and turns. That it is a true story with so many parallels and tie-ins to the situations and major personalities in the top headlines makes it still urgently relevant, even these years later. If anyone still doubts the veracity and unwavering dedication of Vladimir Putin's entrenched, megalomaniacal dedication to promoting his own self interests with complete need to win at any and all cost, this is a clear case study showing that this has long been and continues to be Putin's m.o. It makes the terrible situation in Ukraine all the more chilling because it shows Putin's long-established pattern of retribution when challenged or resisted, and his overriding need to win, even at unthinkable cost. Not a big surprise to anyone, really, but I believe people need to understand the terrible dangers of supporting current and future leaders who would either underestimate and disbelieve the horrific lengths Putin would go to to achieve his ends and mete out punisment or who actually admire Putin's vicious governing style and will cozy up to him instead of calling out and standing against his evil maneuvers. Lack of resistance to Vladimir Putin and his totalitarian regime equals support. And anyone supporting Putin, directly or indirectly, is supporting a whole miasma of truly evil actions and policies, examples of the like of which have been thoroughly described in this book. IMHO, I don't believe that anyone who is seeking to lead this country should be admiring or complimenting a person as dangerous and morally bereft as Vladimir Putin. It isn't clever or cute to do so and any leader who is inclined to take these toxic political leadership lessons from Putin, as in 'monkey see, monkey do' should never be allowed the opportunity to try to put them in practice in leading the USA. We and our democracy will all suffer irreparable harm if we support and fall under the power of self-serving politicians who reject truth and justice to increase and entrench their own power and wealth. People need to recognize that the evils this book portrays are agonizingly real and if we do not act to protect our democracy from self serving, Putinesqe leaders here, the US will experience the same harms and continue on a dangerous path away from personal freedom and toward political extremism. So I highly recommend this book, if only to remind oneself that good and evil are not just rhetorical concepts and that our words and actions do have consequences and really do matter.

14 people found this helpful

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C.Stang

Fantastic Book - Must Read

Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2024

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This a fantastic work. Very interesting and attention grabbing to read and try to comprehend the differences in the legal system in the United States compared to other countries. I find that the book did a good job of presenting things in a way that did not make them seem overly flamboyant or inflated with accusations; very much seemed objective despite the difficult and unfortunate outcomes.

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M. Steckbeck

A Well-Written Account of Corruption, As Well As How Rich Is Bill Browder

Reviewed in the United States on April 5, 2022

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Overall, Red Notice is a very good book. Browder’s compelling story and writing style make this book easy to rapidly get through. In a way, it’s almost like a well-written spy novel, though the story is real.

If it’s such a good book, why didn’t I give it five stars? Well, let me tell you.

I got really turned off by Browder’s need to inflate his ego while telling what otherwise is a troubling and important story. It’s already a compelling read; he did not need to embellish it by emphasizing for us lesser-than readers his elite status as a high roller.

For example—and this is one of the least egregious examples of this attitude—Browder discusses the events leading up to the dissolution of his marriage. He tells the reader that his first wife, Sabrina, had scheduled a family vacation in Greece and that, after months of what had been a distant relationship between the two, literally and figuratively, they were having a surprisingly wonderful time together. At the end of the vacation, he tells us, she sprung the surprising news on him that she didn’t want to be married to him any longer. He goes on to say that, as he’s seeing Sabrina and their son off at the airport, he realized the following:

"As I watched them leave, the feeling of loss that I was so familiar with overcame me. Once again, I had that visceral and empty feeling in my stomach, but this time it was was worse. Losing love was a lot harder than losing money."

All right, first, what did this have to do with the corruption and theft going on in Russia? Second, with an attitude like that, I’m not surprised she left him. I can only hope that he has enough life insurance on his second wife to where he’s indifferent to whether she ever comes home or not.

Later on, in a passage about Vadim, his trusted aid, having just provided him information from a source in Moscow, he explains having a dilemma. Oh my, what could it be? Is it a devastating decision he has to make, like in _Sophie’s Choice_. No. He is told that the corrupt Russian authorities were trumping up charges against him and he is now pulled between remaining with Vadim for a few more hours in order to ascertain more information about what seems like a dire and dangerous situation, or attending a prior commitment. Well, I’ll let him tell you his predicament:

"I had a hundred questions I wanted to ask, but it was 7:30 p.m. and, annoyingly, Elena and I were obligated to be at dinner in half an hour that had been planned for months. An old friend from Salomon Brothers and his fiancée had made a big deal securing an impossible-to-get reservation at a new London restaurant called L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon, and I couldn’t cancel on such short notice."

“Annoyingly”?!? “I couldn’t cancel on such short notice"?!? As if 9 million people in London would not have gladly stepped up to the plate to save ol’ Bill Browder from having to partake in such frivolities during such a trying time in order for him to save himself from imprisonment in Russia. Didn't the couple he was to dine with at such a high-status restaurant have other friends they could called on to step in at the last minute? I will go on a limb and say that, not just the average reader, but all readers of this book can only hope to one day enjoy the "annoyance" faced by Bill Browder.

All right, it’s passages like this that make me question the accuracy of the story he’s telling. I do believe him, but I wouldn’t have had any questions at all had he stuck to the story and not wasted the ink inflating his ego. How does the reader know he's not inflating his story? His need to regularly assure the reader that he does not rub elbows with anyone but the top one-percent of the one-percent serves no purpose toward explaining his otherwise interesting story.

There are other examples, such as “cringing” while watching a security specialist cut a tiny slit into the lapel of his cashmere blazer in order to install a microphone needed to surreptitiously record a meeting with someone he feared was trying to undermine him. “Oh no, Lovey, not the cashmere blazer.” (In my worst Thurston Howell, III voice.) But I’ll end my criticisms here.

The book is good overall, and I do recommend reading it. I just hope that Browder realizes for his subsequent books that his story is compelling enough and he doesn’t need to impress anyone with his high-income status. Yes, Bill, we know you are an elite. You’re rich beyond almost anyone’s wild imagination, but that’s not why anyone wants to read this book.

42 people found this helpful

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Great book

Reviewed in the United States on April 22, 2024

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Loved it. Very intense. You can’t put it down. You need to see what’s next all the time

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Becky Wells

Politics and High Finance Exciting? Absolutely!

Reviewed in the United States on October 11, 2023

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I never would have dreamed that a book about global finance and investments would draw me in and hold my interest. I certainly never dreamed that adding government bureaucracy to the story would make it better. But the true story told here by Bill Brower, an American investment broker in Russia, is intriguing, spellbinding, and thrilling. Red Notice tells the story of how a group of people led by the author, battled economic corruption in Russia, exposing the illegal acts of billionaire oligarchs who scoffed at the law. The range of emotions is wide: pride, fear, excitement, joy, sadness, despair, hope. It's one of the best books I've read, certainly the best true crime.

One person found this helpful

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April Strano

Wow! Interesting read.

Reviewed in the United States on April 1, 2024

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A friend recommended this book. Really interesting and puts today’s world I’m prospective. Thank you for be brave and sharing your story. Definitely recommend!

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Wildcat94

Excellent, fast read

Reviewed in the United States on September 6, 2023

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This was a well-written and very interesting book. I don't think of Russia as a place I'd want to visit, and after reading this, I most definitely would not go there! A very fast read. Scary how authoritarian regimes can get away with telling such lies and treating people so horribly, with no repercussions.

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Joanne

And actually true but ongoing story that reads like a novel!

Reviewed in the United States on May 1, 2024

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I was unable to put this book down. It is a very true look at the way Putin's mind works! I would recommend it to everyone.

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Top reviews from other countries

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Muy buen libro, si lo que buscas es distraerte de la rutina y leer un libro de calidad que te cautive desde el primer capítulo. Definitivamente tienes que leer Red Notice

Recomendado

Reviewed in Mexico on September 29, 2023

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Muy buen libro, te cautiva desde los primeros capítulos. 10/10

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Frogman

Russia spiralling into political and social darkness...

Reviewed in Germany on March 19, 2024

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Must read for all Putin followers, detailed research and thrilling read about the Magnitsky murder which (re its prison sequence and its sad outcome) recalls the recent fate of A. Nawalny. Reveals how the Russian head of state in his actions is driven by highly questionable motivations such as greed, paranoia, authoritarianism, personal revenge, and, ultimately, a complete disregard for human life. The result is a Russian political Mafia state within which everything goes as long as ordered and/or sanctiond by the President, including state terrorism, silencing of those in apparent opposition to the Mafia boss as well as extraterritorial killings. Complete lawlessness, deeply rooted corruption and denunciation are the "rules" established by their President and impacting every-day life of Russian citizens, resulting in a constant feeling of fear as one of the witnesses at the A. Nawalny burial said in a moving statement. And for all those who say this is all fake news, here extracts of the Moscow Public Oversight Commission report on S. Magnitsky's death in prison, published in December 2009: in prison he "was subjected to physical and psychological torture", "investigators, prosecutors and judges played a role in his torturous conditions", and "after his death state officials lied and concealed the truth about his torture and circumstances of his death". Despite this damning report anyone held accountable afterwards? No, but perpetrators were promoted and honored publicly instead.
No doubt a crime of this extension must have been committed with the knowledge of if not ordered by the Russian state's Supreme Leader. Russia looks spiralling into an area of complete political and social darkness. Anyone feels reminded of The Gulag Archipelago?

Laurent F.

a lire absolument

Reviewed in France on March 10, 2024

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Ce livre est un recueil incroyable d’informations à l’encontre d’un dictateur qui a encore pignon sur rue aujourd’hui.
Merci Bill Browder

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Tushar Kanti

Hard working Delivery Associate

Reviewed in India on July 12, 2023

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I would really like to mention the dedication of the delivery executive. He worked beyond hours to make sure that the package was delivered to me on the given date. Kudos to him and kudos to Amazon.

For the book, it’s beyond doubt one of the best ever written, and maybe that’s why it’s even being going to be adapted as a series.

alfredo izquierdo

Una historia real para entender un poco mejor la Rusia actual

Reviewed in Spain on July 13, 2022

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Un relato de una historia real que se lee como una novela. Muy recomendable.

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