The first part of this trilogy, 'Caesar's Druid', was an international success. His main work is his monumental 1500-page trilogy about 'money, gods and passion' which tells the history of money. Since then he has published crime novels, radioplays, plays and wrote more than 50 screenplays for film and TV ('Tatort', 'Eurocops', 'Peter Strohm', 'Der Clown', 'Alarm für Cobra 11'), which were broadcast in 46 countries. Ten years without any success as a writer.

Two dozen temporary jobs, which always also served to obtain information for writing: a salesman in a gun shop, assistant to a criminal court, secretary of an Iranian merchant, waiter, baggage porter at a station, archivist at an insurance company, copywriter at GGK. Dropped out of school to become a writer. A good editor could assist with giving this novel the boost it deserves.Claude Cueni was born in Basel in 1956. As a financial professional I was impressed by how elegantly Mr Cueni inserted detailed and complicated economic and mathematical theory in his text, although as an avid reader of historical fiction, I was frustrated by the faux-pas regarding historical accuracy, the somewhat stilted language, and the relatively shallow characterisation – with the exception of John himself. The Great Gambler is a book about an interesting man.

At last, Law was in a position to implement his new ideas, and for a while it seemed they might actually work. John was invited back to France, a country hovering on the precipice of bankruptcy. Instead, he spent his life travelling round Europe, and along the way he amassed a fortune, won at the gambling tables. For decades, his ambition to test his theories was thwarted – in many ways John’s thinking was too modern. John Law is of fundamental importance in the history of Economics – in many ways, a proto-Keynesian, attempting to tackle the rampant poverty that afflicted Europe through a variety of creative measures. However, there is no denying John Law led a most exciting life – and Mr Cueni has clearly explored his hero in depth. As an example, the book portrays William III as an eager participant in hedonistic orgies in which he enjoys both male and female lovers – not, I would argue, an entirely correct representation of this rather staid and serious monarch. In general, Mr Cueni paints a vivid and engaging picture of John Law, although sometimes this is done against a historical background that is incorrect.

In 1665, the first paper money in Europe was issued by the National Bank of Sweden, and in 1695 both the Bank of England and Scotland issued bank notes. The Great Gambler also credits John Law with being the inventor of paper money, but this is actually wrong. This is the story of John Law of Lauriston, a man who made his name and fortune gambling but whose impressive intellectual capacity was directed at reforming the inefficient financial system of Europe in the first few decades of the eighteenth century.

The Great Gambler by Claude Cueni