Although The Glass Hotel is fictional, it is based on Bernie Madoff's Ponzi Scheme. Most of the story is told through the eyes of Vincent, the young girlfriend of "investment broker" Jonathan Alkaitis. Vincent is from a small island in British Columbia and meets Jonathan at a hotel which he owns and where she is working. Parts of the story skip around with various characters/investors commenting and Paul (her half brother) tells part of his version of the story. As in the Bernie Madoff scandal, many people lose their life savings and at various times Jonathan sees visions of them.
