Editors Reads Verdict
Faulks's attempt at a state-of-England novel — most effective in the financial crisis material (the hedge fund manager is genuinely chilling) and least effective in the radicalisation subplot, which is handled with less subtlety than the economic material.
What We Loved
- The financial crisis material — written just after 2008 — captures the pre-crash atmosphere with uncomfortable accuracy
- The hedge fund manager John Veals is one of the more convincing portraits of financial sector amorality in literary fiction
- The multiple-perspective structure allows Faulks to range across class and culture
Minor Drawbacks
- The radicalisation subplot is the weakest element — handled with less precision than the economic material
- The interconnections between characters can feel contrived
Key Takeaways
- → The 2008 financial crisis was not an accident — it was the predictable consequence of incentive structures that rewarded short-term extraction over long-term stability
- → Radicalisation is not simply ideological — it fills a void created by social disconnection
- → The state-of-England novel must risk being reductive to say anything — Faulks takes that risk with varying success
| Author | Sebastian Faulks |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Doubleday |
| Pages | 392 |
| Published | January 1, 2009 |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Literary Fiction, Contemporary Fiction |
| Difficulty | Beginner |
| Best For | Readers of Faulks's other work and anyone interested in pre-2008 London and its financial culture. |
Pre-Crash London
Sebastian Faulks wrote A Week in December in the immediate aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis. The novel is set in the week before Christmas 2007 — London just before the fall. John Veals, hedge fund manager, is shorting the stock of a British bank he knows will fail. He is right. He will profit. He does not think this is immoral.
The other six characters — footballer’s wife, tube driver, Muslim student being radicalised, book reviewer, a young professional woman — orbit around Veals and around each other. Faulks uses the multi-character structure to give the reader a cross-section of pre-crash London.
The Financial Portrait
The novel’s most effective sections are the financial ones. Veals is not a caricature — he is someone who genuinely believes that markets are amoral mechanisms and that he is simply operating correctly within them. Faulks’s portrait is more troubling than a villain would be because Veals’s logic is internally coherent.
Our rating: 3.8/5 — A state-of-England novel that succeeds in its financial portrait and is less sure in its other threads.
Reading Guides
Frequently Asked Questions
What is "A Week in December" about?
Seven interconnected characters in contemporary London — a hedge fund manager shorting bank stocks before the 2008 financial crisis, a footballer's wife, a Muslim radicalisation plot, a reality TV contestant, a tube driver, a book reviewer. A state-of-England novel of pre-crash London.
Who should read "A Week in December"?
Readers of Faulks's other work and anyone interested in pre-2008 London and its financial culture.
What are the key takeaways from "A Week in December"?
The 2008 financial crisis was not an accident — it was the predictable consequence of incentive structures that rewarded short-term extraction over long-term stability Radicalisation is not simply ideological — it fills a void created by social disconnection The state-of-England novel must risk being reductive to say anything — Faulks takes that risk with varying success
Is "A Week in December" worth reading?
Faulks's attempt at a state-of-England novel — most effective in the financial crisis material (the hedge fund manager is genuinely chilling) and least effective in the radicalisation subplot, which is handled with less subtlety than the economic material.
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