The 6:20 Man was published by Grand Central Publishing in 2022. Travis Devine is a former Army Ranger working at a prestigious Manhattan financial firm — Cowl and Comely. He commutes daily on the 6:20 train from his rented room in suburban New Jersey, one of thousands of young professionals serving the gods of finance. When a colleague — Sara Ewes — is found hanged in a supply closet at the firm, the death is ruled suicide.
Devine does not believe it. His investigation — conducted while maintaining his cover as an ordinary analyst — reveals that Cowl and Comely is not merely a financial firm but a machine for laundering money, manipulating markets, and destroying anyone who asks questions. The conspiracy reaches from Wall Street to Washington, from legitimate banking to organized crime.
Baldacci uses the financial thriller to examine class in modern America: Devine’s commute (the 6:20 — early enough for the lowest-ranking employees) becomes a metaphor for the disposable labor that serves the wealthy. The young analysts work hundred-hour weeks, live in poverty relative to their output, and can be eliminated without consequence. The thriller mechanics serve a genuine social critique.
Collecting The 6:20 Man
First edition (Grand Central Publishing, New York, 2022): Hardcover with dust jacket.
Market values:
- First edition, fine/fine: $10–$20
- Very good/very good: $5–$10