Wall St Diva
Women’s Fiction – Rom-Dram – Historical Fiction – Financial Twister – Based on True Events
By Jacalyn S. Burke · Represented by The Rudy Agency
Eat. Trade. Love. The 1990s Wall Street story told from a woman’s perspective.
Based on real events, Wall Street Diva is set in the ‘90’s world of hot stocks and sick greed. The book is a sizzling, fast-paced rom-drama about a woman who stampedes an Eat Trade Love through the stock exchange.
Privileged Katie Delaney earns her stripes in New York, London and Asia training in foreign markets under the tutelage of a ruthless female trader who pursues her romantically. Love comes in the guise of a charming English aristocrat, but Katie repeatedly sabotages this relationship (and others) because of a persistent liaison with a wolf on Wall Street.
After her team comes under investigation for rogue trading, Katie narrowly escapes prosecution. She returns to New York, to a new millennium, in time for Y2k and the dot.com bubble.
It’s a roller-coaster 19-months of taboo love, boom and bust that nose dives into 9-11, when Katie’s world gets torn apart. In a dark twist in fortunes, a family secret exposes her to an old enemy, someone determined to take her down, once and for all.
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19 months that changed the world
- New York · London · Asia — the 1990s Katie Delaney enters the world of foreign markets, training under a ruthless female trader who is as predatory in her personal life as she is on the floor. Katie earns her stripes but not without complications.
- The investigation – Katie’s team comes under investigation for rogue trading. She narrowly escapes prosecution. The exit costs her more than she expected.
- New York · Y2K and the dot-com bubble · 1999–2000 She returns to New York for a new millennium. The markets are euphoric. Nothing lasts. The bubble bursts, and the boom turns to bust in real time.
- September 11, 2001, Katie’s world gets torn apart. In the wreckage, a family secret surfaces and with it, an old enemy who has been waiting for exactly this moment.
The Cast
Katie Delaney, Protagonist — trader, survivor
Privileged background, hard-won skill. Katie is brilliant enough to make it in the most competitive rooms in the world — and self-destructive enough to blow up everything she builds.
The female mentor, Ruthless trader — pursuer
A powerful woman who takes Katie under her wing professionally and pursues her personally. The line between mentorship and manipulation is the question Katie has to answer too late.
The English aristocrat, Love interest — the road less travelled
Charming, stable, and genuinely in love with Katie. Which is exactly why she keeps destroying it. What she runs from says as much as what she runs toward.
The Wolf on Wall Street, Persistent liaison — the danger
The relationship Katie cannot end. His world is hot money and no rules — and the investigation that nearly destroys her career leads back to him in ways she didn’t anticipate.
Themes and questions the novel explores
- What does it cost a woman to win in a world built by and for men?
- The 1990s financial boom as a moral ecosystem: greed, complicity, and the rules everyone broke
- Taboo desire across gender, class, and power — and who pays the price
- Self-sabotage as a survival strategy: why smart women choose dangerous men
- History as backdrop: Y2K, dot-com collapse, 9/11 — how public catastrophe reshapes private lives
- Family secrets and old enemies: the past is never as buried as you need it to be
If you liked these, you’ll want Wall Street Diva
Liar’s Poker, Michael Lewis
The insider account of 1980s Wall Street excess that defined how we talk about financial culture. Wall St Diva is its fictional, female-led 1990s successor.
The Devil Wears Prada, Lauren Weisberger
A young woman navigating a powerful, demanding older woman in a high-stakes industry — with a romantic life that keeps catching fire at the worst moments.
Succession, HBO / Jesse Armstrong
The psychology of money, power, and family damage. Wall St Diva shares the same interest in how wealth distorts love and loyalty.
The Bonfire of the Vanities, Tom Wolfe
New York ambition, class collision, and the spectacular implosion that follows when a financial world built on confidence meets reality. Told from inside the machine.
Frequently asked questions
What genre is Wall St Diva?
Women’s fiction and romantic drama with the pace and texture of a financial thriller. It sits at the intersection of the 1990s Wall Street novel and a fast-paced love story — emotionally complex, and grounded in a world of high stakes. Readers who love Liar’s Poker, The Devil Wears Prada, or 1990s-set historical fiction will find it familiar territory.
Is it really based on true events?
Jacalyn S. Burke spent time talking to traders, researching the late 90’s Wall Street culture and main events. But the settings, the industry dynamics, and key plot events are fictionalized in characters and detail.
What time period does the novel cover?
Nineteen months spanning the late 1990s through September 11, 2001 — taking in the tail end of the Wall Street boom, the Y2K moment, the dot-com bubble and its collapse, and the events of 9/11 as a personal and historical turning point for the protagonist.
Where is the novel set?
New York is the primary home base, but the novel spans three continents — New York, London, and Asia — tracking Katie’s career across the global foreign exchange markets of the 1990s before pulling her back to New York for the millennium and its aftermath.
When is it available?
Wall St Diva is available for pre-order now. To register your interest or enquire about this property, use the contact form above or email directly via the contact page.
Topics and search terms this book speaks to
Wall Street fiction, 1990s Women in finance novel Female trader protagonist Based on true events fiction Rogue trading thriller Dot-com bubble novel Y2K fiction 9/11 literary fiction Taboo romance fiction Wall Street romance drama New York London Asia finance Ambitious woman fiction Female mentor power dynamic Financial thriller women’s fiction, 1990s historical fiction Self-sabotage love story Family secret thriller Liar’s Poker fans Devil Wears Prada readers