I hate to admit that I struggled to engage with this. I felt it went into far too much detail about hedge funds and the intricacies of finance, which didn’t engage me at all (although of course it might be something other readers are interested in). I found myself skim-reading some parts because I couldn’t maintain my interest.

I also found that the narrative jumped around a lot and felt disjointed, which didn’t help with my engagement.

I found some parts interesting - specifically the details about the demands on the author’s life and how she managed them.

All in all, though, I can’t say I enjoyed this book. But I thank the publisher for providing me with access to this ARC in return for an honest review.

I’ve worked alongside PE houses and this book rang horribly true. It’s impossible to understand why people stay working in this kind of environment, and yet they do, and this book gives the closest examination possible as to what is in it for them.

A memoir for all those who have the courage to quit.
“It was the aspiration of all those of us with professional ambition to work our way as close to this hub as we were each us capable” The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
The author loses herself in her job and shows the impossible demands placed on workers at the highest levels of capitalism.
Ultimately the company she worked for replaced her family - “the collective over the individual”
As the author grew up in a Chinese immigrant family she has been taught to subordinate her feelings in pursuit of excellence and that’s exactly what she did at work.
But is working for a private hedging fund costing her, her soul.
It highlights the toxic working environments and the make or break culture.
I’m not familiar with this type of working environment and therefore couldn’t fully understand the cut throat culture, but it was still an interesting read
Thanks for @carriesun @bloomsburypress @netgalley for the interesting, informative read

Ah “Private Equity”. I do not think this book was brilliantly written or addressed any serious issues of the abusing and/or toxic work environment, but it was a very engaging read! I worked for a venture capital wizz persona and my gosh some parts of Carrie Sun’s experience resonated. The long working hours, somewhat impossible demands, private jets and whispers about becoming a limited partner in the fund. While “Private Equity” brushes on interesting topics, it never actually dives into them head on – if one is not familiar with the industry, it might be hard to understand why some things are important and time is of essence.

Ultimately, however, “Private Equity” provides a curious glimpse into the world of make-or-break PI/VC firms and was good fun. If you liked series “Industry” (or even “Damages”), you will enjoy this book.

I am sorry but I did not enjoy this book. Thank you for the opportunity to read it. I thought I would enjoy it but it didn't work out.

Carrie Sun’s memoir changes the names of those involved to the corporate and very rich New York based hedge fund, ‘Carbon’, where she worked for as a personal assistant to the founder, ‘Boone Prescott’, a billionaire.

A remarkably bright problem solver who had previously worked as an analyst for Fidelity, Sun, the daughter of Chinese immigrants, left that role because it wasn’t satisfying who she was and what she wanted from a role.

Breaking off her engagement to a controlling but wealthy boyfriend – a boyfriend of whom her parents approve, she ends up with him stalking her.

Carrie has felt for a while thst she’s been drifting. She wants to do something creative ; in fact she really wants to be a writer, but she needs a day job that can earn her enough to support her writing.

When she’s approached by a head hunter to be the PA to one of the most prestigious private equity firms in the country she does not hesitate. She admires the expressed values of the company and the way in which Boone Prescott describes his flat company structure. She likes the company ethos which includes being kind, showing a clear moral purpose and doing the right thing.

But this is a cut throat private equity fund where money is all that matters and Carrie finds that all the nice words are just code for ‘smile and get on with it’.

Boone’s e-mails have to be responded to whenever they arrive. Carrie works round the clock, never having time to take off and ends up exhausted, binge eating and with no time to deal with even her bodily injuries. She encounters misogyny, even from Prescott who comments whenever she gains weight. But of course she is well recompensed and her boss’s mantra is basically that there’s no problem that can’t be fixed by throwing money at it.

This is the story of American greed and capitalism at its worst, dressed up with fancy words and shrouded in the window dressing of good intentions.

Part of Carrie Sun’s reluctance to leave Carbon even when she was at her lowest comes because she always has in her mind the fact that her Chinese parents went through terrible times during the cultural revolution and then gave up their lives in China in order to give Carrie a better life. They have done well but their aspirations for Carrie have always been high and they simply don’t understand why she won’t marry her rich but controlling boyfriend who seems to them the ultimate in displaying success. Her father writes her letters about her new boyfriend and why he isn’t right for her.

The more Carrie works, the less agency she has. She feels out of control with too much to do and not enough time to do it in. She has fantastic perks, a great salary but she’s losing her life to her job. And when she finally tells her boss about how she is struggling he suggests she takes more breaks!

When she finally quits, she feels she’s had an epiphany; finally realising that there’s nothing inherently different about Carbon – it is just another example of toxic corporate greed writ large.

Verdict: A fascinating insight into the world of hedge funds and the cut-throat, greedy behaviour that goes on where money is the god and everyone involved are mere worshippers. It is quite hard to understand why such a bright and capable woman as Carrie Sun obviously is would put up with such behaviour for almost 2 years. There’s a telling moment at the beginning of her role when she says “I hated those stilettos, but I was determined: I instructed my body to reclassify any pain as a necessary investment in myself, my future.” That is so cringe making that I had trouble getting over it for the rest of the book.

Why would Carrie Sun be taken in to believe in a hedge fund that believed in public good first which seems so obviously a contradiction in terms? We never really find out. But she knows better now and that’s what sets her on the road to recovery. This is the financial equivalent of The Devil Wears Prada beset with the complications of growing up in a Chinese immigrant background. It’s a fascinating read and an insight into another world – one I have no desire ever to be close to.

I couldn't put this memoir down, despite knowing little about the world of hedge funds/private equity. It's a forensic peek behind the curtain that is clear-eyed and comes across as fair to most of the people depicted here, particularly Carrie's boss "Boone Prescott". Carrie's a great writer, bringing this world to life in an accessible way whilst never becoming too dry about the detail - I'm so happy to know she achieved her dream of becoming a professional writer, it's well deserved. Highly recommended and many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This should have been interesting but the writing isn't strong enough to bring it to life. All the characters (they're real people but they still have to live as characters for the reader) feel generic and not quite believable.

Sun's own motivation doesn't seem to ring true. She has supposedly left a successful and lucrative career in finance so she can have a less demanding job and find herself. So she becomes a finance billionaire's executive assistant? Did she really think she'd get off at five every day to walk in the park and write poetry? Even during the interview process he deliberately schedules meetings for her at the one time she asks to keep free.

The arc of the story takes her from loving the job to disillusionment but she doesn't show us what there was to love in the first place. And a lot of what she describes just feels familiar and predictable.

Of course, people do have contradictory motives, they get into toxic relationships, they respond to familial and social pressure, but I feel that Sun doesn't do enough to take us with her.

This was fantastic. I deep dive into the world of finance. Interesting and informative. Would love to read more from Carrie Sun

Thanks ever so much to @bloomsburypublishing for sharing this title with me on @netgalley!

Private Equity by Carrie Sun, published by @bloomsburypublishing.

I'm delighted to see this 'dysfunctional workplace' trend continue, though I will say this bordered on the sadistic at times and would've benefited from tighter editing. The middle section felt relentless and it meant this book took me way longer to finish than similar ones I've read, topic-wise. However, in a rare turn of events, the last third of the book really picked up for me and I raced towards the end once I (and the narrator) saw the light at the end of the tunnel.

We're all familiar with the premise: precocious graduate (though Carrie's already worked elsewhere at this point) gets headhunted to work at enviable, market-leading, creme de la creme company. It starts off promisingly enough, though quickly descends into an ocean of red flags (actually, there were already plenty of red flags before accepting the job, which made it very frustrating to read.) Carrie's boss is a Christian Grey walking stereotype and I kept thinking the story would derail off into a questionable workplace romance at every turn - alas, this never happens (phew) though he does make a handful of blatantly inappropriate comments towards her which once again leaves you thinking: why aren't you quitting? She's not trying to make ends meet and she could easily walk into a job anywhere else with her brilliant background.

Carrie's workload is ever-increasing, the pressure keeps building, and the job ultimately affects every aspect of her life. Eventually, she does quit, but not before we've endured pages upon pages of miserable workplace anecdotes, blissfully unaware bosses, and overly critical parents. And for what? We know she's not being paid millions, so it's truly baffling to see her stick at it for so long when alarm bells should've been ringing from the very beginning.

Whilst the ending is a huge relief, not least to Carrie, I think the journey felt a bit meandering at times. The narrative is peppered with very technical detours into the world of finance and investments which felt out of place. Snippets of her parents' lives back in China are also included and, whilst fascinating from a historical point of view, I'm not sure how much they added to her current story.

Ultimately, however, this provided a great glimpse into the world of high-stakes private equity firms, satiated my craving for batshit workplace politics, and is a testament to how much humans will endure for... very little.

4/5

On a moving memoir of unhealthy workplace culture, burnout and self-discovery. I thank the publisher and NetGalley for letting me read the ARC. It’s a sobering read and I couldn’t put it down. ⁣
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Carrie Sun is a role model daughter that Chinese immigrants are proud to have. She excelled in school, graduated early from MIT and got an analyst job at Fidelity upon graduation. However, when she was 29, she quit her job and was trapped in an unhappy relationship, so when she had the opportunity to work as a sole assistant to a billionaire founder of one of the most prestigious funds in the world, she couldn’t say no. She manages not only his work life and she sees what money and excess can do. ⁣
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I found it particularly moving to see Carrie’s struggles with how her identity is so deeply associated with work, as well as how the lack of boundaries has affected her physical and mental health. I also found it interesting (and relatable) to read about how she brings in the relationships she has with her parents and how they have shaped her. I learnt that burnout is never only about your own individual actions, and sometimes it’s a systemic issue that is pervasive within a sector or an industry. ⁣
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Despite all of that, I’m glad she finally found her peace. ⁣
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“…I realized my fear of wasting my life had nothing to do with the waste itself, not the time or money or any sunk cost, not even the act of apostasy or the wrath of my parents, and everything to do with what would come after: a period of being lost. For the first time in my life I gave myself permission not to know the path.”⁣
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The book is out in the UK on 29 February. I’ll definitely buy my copy.