Synopses & Reviews
"Sadly, death at the races is not uncommon. However, three in a single afternoon was sufficiently unusual to raise more than one eyebrow."
It's the third death on Cheltenham Gold Cup Day that really troubles super-sleuth Sid Halley. Last seen in 1995's Come to Grief, former champion jockey Halley knows the perils of racing all too well-but in his day, jockeys didn't usually reach the finishing line with three .38 rounds in the chest. But this is precisely how he finds jockey Huw Walker-who, only a few hours earlier, had won the coveted Triumph Hurdle.
Just moments before the gruesome discovery, Halley had been called upon by Lord Enstone to make discreet inquiries into why his horses appeared to be on a permanent losing streak. Are races being fixed? Are bookies taking a cut? And if so, are trainers and jockeys playing a dangerous game with stakes far higher than they are realistic?
Halley's quest for answers draws him even deeper into the darker side of the race game, in a life-or-death power play that will push him to his very limits-both professionally and personally.
Review
"Under Orders is as cleanly crafted, cleverly twisted and totally satisfying as the racetrack-based tales that he penned in his prime." Los Angeles Times
Review
"Francis once again demonstrates that he is in top form." Orlando Sentinel
Review
"Under Orders doesn't disappoint as it...trots its way to the finish line." South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Review
"Stimulating characters...people this mystery, which, despite violence, death, and greed aplenty, is never depressing." Library Journal
Review
"The plot keeps delivering shocks....Francis once again proves himself a master of detail." Booklist
Synopsis
Sid Halley, former jockey-turned-detective, returns. Death at the races is not uncommon, but three in one day including a winning horse and champion jockey are more than enough to raise Halley's suspicions.
Synopsis
Read by Martin Jarvis
Unabridged CDs - 8 CDs, 10 hours
Sid Halley returns-in a triumphant new novel from the grand master of crime fiction, Dick Francis.
About the Author
Dick Francis is the author of more than forty books, including the volume of short stories Field of 13, most recently, the New York Times bestseller Shattered, and his autobiography, The Sport of Queens. A three-time Edgar Award winner, he has also received the prestigious Crime Writers' Association's Cartier Diamond Dagger for his outstanding contribution to the genre. He was named Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America in 1996, and was awarded the CBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours List in 2000. He divides his time between England and an island in the Caribbean.