Hands Down

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Now he's back - decked out with a new but real hand courtesy of a donor that, with the help of anti-rejection drugs, is working better every day. He managed to get one name but it was someone he hadn’t heard of, anyone who was involved was reluctant to talk through fear of what would happen. Consortia of agents have muscled into the selection of jockeys for races, and they demand fees from the jockeys and the trainers at stables. Since my mother passed away over a year ago, I have been making my way through her book collection, finally.

Sid is approached in a parking lot after a race by two thugs but is rescued by several partying soldiers out for the night. Life should be looking good but things start to sour when his wife decides to go home to be with her mother when she finds out that her father is dying. I would have enjoyed this last of the Sid Halley series more if the actual crime involved hadn’t been so similar to that of the previous book—Refusal—which I had just barely finished. That and the bravado of the lead character is no where near as likeable as it was in the last century.There are only a handful of series, however well written, which keep me coming back for more year after year. Sid Halley is asked by an former jockey/now trainer to help him stop a fraud perpetrated by jockeys' agents.

Don't worry if you, like me have forgotten the details of Sid Halley's life and, notably, how he lost his hand because yes, it has been a while and more importantly, Francis does a good job of catching you up, making this both a good addition to the series and a fine standalone. I decided to make reading her entire collection a part of my reading challenge for the next couple of years (she has a HUGE collection), as well as a way to pay tribute to my mum, who was such a voracious reader. In 1996 I left Australia fr the first time, arrived in London and had to stay in accommodation for one night before moving to Sydenham for my course the following afternoon. Someone is finding a way to rig horse races for their own financial gain and are blackmailing both jockeys and trainers to further their plot.His wife and daughter have left for the Netherlands to see her parents leaving him free to dig to the bottom of this mystery. This had a decent plot and a number of interesting characters but unfortunately they failed to gel into a good read, somehow I was completely disengaged and quite honestly it was boring.

Suffice it to say the story held me captive for a few good hours - well written with plenty of action.Started reading the British racehorse mysteries by father Dick Francis as a young adult in the 1980’s. Released 8th Nov 2022 by Crooked Lane Books, it's 304 pages and is available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. With this occupying his thoughts he isn't in a hurry to become involved with any investigation but the person making the plea is an old racing friend and Sid says yes. Spelling and vernacular are UK English, but shouldn't pose any problems in context for readers from North America. Heavy with a guilty heart, Sid starts to investigate and soon finds himself embroiled in a conspiracy that cuts to the very heart of the integrity of British horse racing.