Dead Cert

I only discovered Dick Francis a very few years ago. I'd heard of him, of course, but I didn't think that he would appeal to me. Upon reading a collection of his that was among my late mother's books, I realized what I had been missing. I have since read several of his works, all of which were very enjoyable and engaging, and decided to go back to the start. I believe that Dead Cert was his first mystery. He came out with a bang. Francis had the same skills at developing a tightly knit plot with good characters in 1962 as he did in his later works. Much like the steeplechase, the reader is taken over obstacles and around bends slowly at first, but finds him/herself rushing headlong to cross the finish line. Very satisfying read.

The obligatory romance is grating. However, this first novel by Dick Francis evokes the world of racing vividly and has one really excellent and imaginative chase sequence. It's a period piece; the "radio cabs" are remarkable because they communicate with a central dispatcher.

The hero is a little bit too pointlessly stalwart, noble, dense and uncommunicative. These traits are useful to keep the action going, of course.

Dick Francis may not have been trying to earn literary awards, or communicating any life-changing truths with his writing, or pick apart the general public and/or it's attitudes/ideas/lifestyles. But he sure did know how to tell a great mystery story. His heroes are always kind, tough, clever, and very good, in a very basic, old-fashioned way. His plots are always engaging, with plenty of actual knowledge from the sport involved, since he was a jockey in a former life. His romances are very old-fashioned at times, but they are sweet, and with none of the extensive sex scenes that most books these days insist on having. (It sure is nice to get back to a time when that wasn't not only completely necessary to sell a book, but also the show more entire reason for the storyline in the first place!) And I find the world of British horse racing he describes to be a fascinating and exciting one.

I also rather like Francis's writing style. His spare prose never draws attention to itself; he writes in his genre very eloquently, very plainly, and very much like the gentleman I expect he was in his lifetime. After every book I read of his, I wish I could have met him, all over again. I expect there were not many men like Dick Francis around, either here or in England.

Dead Cert happens to be the first of Francis's many mysteries. One thing that Francis got better at over time was romance -- this one could probably be called cheesy, in someone else view. But the basic plot was great and I quite enjoyed this book as well as the others I've read. Also, I found it very refreshing to read a mystery that was written before the age of computers, cell phones, and DNA testing. Crime sleuthing was quite a different game back then. show less

Alan York, who happens to have been trained in the art of detection by a mathematics teacher who was enthralled with Sherlock Holmes, is an amateur steeplechase jockey. When he sees one of his best friends die on the racecourse in suspicious circumstances, he sets out to find out who caused the death, and why.

This is a fast-paced story with an interesting setting, and characters that were not painful to be around. Not even the villain. I have to say, their reactions to life's setbacks weren't all that believable, and the bad guy was easy to sight, but it didn't bother me. I wanted to get on with the story, finish the race to the end, so to speak. I gave it three stars, because it was a good, galloping read.

Amateur jockey Alan York was running second to his best friend Bill Davidson on a steeplechase course when Bill’s horse fell on top of him. Sadly, Bill didn’t survive. As Alan tried to make sense of the accident, he discovered discarded wire near the fatal site, but the wire disappeared before the police arrived to investigate. One of the policemen, Inspector Lodge, finds Alan’s story credible, and he continues to do what he can to help Alan unofficially. Alan becomes a target himself by asking so many questions about his friend’s death.

Francis’s first effort contains the elements he would continue to refine throughout his long and successful career. The main protagonist is a talented man, but not exceptionally so, who finds show more the inner strength and resolve to do something extraordinary. The criminal conspiracy leans toward the cartoonish and his villain is somewhat flat. As Francis develops his writing skills, his villains become more complex characters. show less

The first in the Sid Haley series is a good mystery with professional gamblers and bookies at the heart of the plot. My only complaint is that there is a rather silly romance as well. Even so, Dick Francis readers shouldn't miss this one.

Book on CD read by Simon Prebble

Alan York is a wealthy man and an amateur jockey. He is riding well in this race but still a close second to his good friend Bill Davidson … until Bill’s horse falls and Alan finishes first. The victory is a hollow one because Bill is so seriously injured he dies in hospital. As Alan thinks over the race he is certain that there was something unnatural about the way Admiral took that jump. So, he goes back to the course to look at the jump where Bill’s horse fell. He finds a coil of wire – proof that the course was sabotaged. But by the time he gets a race official to take a look the wire is gone. Trying to figure out why someone would want to hurt his friend, Alan begins investigating and finds a show more network of corruption that involves much more than racing.

I am late to the party when it comes to reading Dick Francis, and I’m sorry I missed his work for all these years. He writes a good thriller. His plot is well-crafted and moves quickly. There are plenty of red herrings as well as legitimate clues. I thought I had it figured out, and was happy when I was proved wrong. A great ride!

Simon Prebble does a fine job on the audio version. He has good diction, great pacing and does a particularly good job on the thrilling chase scene. show less