Swordfish Research founder and bond market research guru Gary Jenkins promised his regular readers a treat in February. A novel – a romantic comedy to boot – might not be exactly what they had in mind. But that is what he has produced: his first novel, Tom’s Guide Book to Romance, is now available on Amazon.
The subject matter might not be obvious for Jenkins, previously head of fixed income at Evolution Securities, head of fundamental credit strategy and European credit research at Deutsche Bank and global head of credit research at Barclays. It involves the trials and tribulations of a travel guide writer working on a tourist guide for the Australian Tourist Board. As novelists are always advised to write about what they know, maybe Jenkins leads a double life when he is not writing daily commentary on the fixed-income markets. "The challenge was to write a book which had nothing to do with the capital markets," he says. "Indeed the word ‘bond’ in its market meaning was banned." He describes it as "not exactly 50 Shades of Gary" which is probably something of a relief. The book can be found at https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00BBER5FC