Fast-paced & sparely-plotted, this is a very entertaining thriller. Mainly set in South Africa, one can tell that the author enjoyed his time there despite the prevailing political scene. As a happily married man, Edward Lincoln is an unusual protagonist in one of Francis' yarns, but he is an intelligent fellow & uses his nous to good purpose. A great comfort read to me.

I repeat myself when I review Dick Francis's books. Yes, they are all books related to horse racing and all have adorable Heroes. But, these books are anything but repetitive. I am amazed by how he comes up with such unique plots.
In this book the Hero, Edward Lincoln is an actor who works in action thrillers. Though he has a huge fan following, he considers himself boring and a regular family man. His connection to horse racing? His father was a horse trainer and Edward wanted to become a jockey, but could not because of his big build.
When his friend/ godmother Nerissa requests him to look into the reason for her horses (in South Africa) not doing well, he just can't refuse.

As with all Dick Francis's books, the narration is flawless. The setting is in South Africa. There is not much of suspense as we can easily guess who the villain is, but the adventure is lively. Apart from the usual horse racing scenes, there is a visit to the gold mine and Kruger national park. We learn a bit about mining and film making too! The action in the last 3 chapters was mind blowing/

Most of Dick francis's books are stand-alone (except maybe a few books with Sid Halley and Kit Fielding). So, I can just select anyone as my next read and they turn out to be guaranteed winners!

Edward Lincoln is a British actor who stars in action films. While home between movies, he goes to visit Nerissa "a cross between aunt, godmother, and guardian, none of which I'd actually had." Nerissa is dying from Hodgekin's and persuades Link, as he's known, to travel to Johannesburg to try to investigate why her horses are showing so poorly at the races. Link agrees and goes, under the guise of attending one of his movie premiers. He spends some time around the stables and then attends some races, and gradually puts a theory together. Someone doesn't want him snooping though and tries repeatedly to take him out. Will Link live long enough to give the report to Nerissa?
Re-read in 2012. Action packed mystery. All the threads are tied together in the end for a satisfying read.

South Africa. Horse racing. Gold mines. Dick Francis, you never disappoint me.

We get a great everyman hero in Edward Lincoln. Super movie star, but he is also a super nice guy. Very grounded for all of his fame. He is asked to go to South Africa to look into some horses, so he does, and gets himself into perilous situations, nearly dies, and saves the day in the end.

Love the setting for this one, the interesting facts about mining, and the movie set slice of life. Dick Francis, you were a master of mystery and I am sad I will never get to meet you.

Читання на один раз.

Мене дивує як автори, розвинувши сюжет вміють його обірвати одразу. Типу "жила б людина, потім з ним трапилося щось погане і ще раз, потім він став детективом, його врятували. злочинця покарали, кінець" Сам собі на умі, трохи не вистачило персонажів, а зав'язка на одному в цій історії не сильно зачепила.

Можливо, це лише сприйняття старої літератури. Неоднозначне знайомство з автором вийшло. І на тому дякую

Not my favourite Dick Francis novel, but a good read all the same.

The book seemed to go on for a long time before the story really got started. First person narrator, actor Edward Link, has just finished acting in a film called "Man in a Car" and, as he is between projects, he agrees to travel out to South Africa to find out who is nobbling his friend's horses to prevent them from living up to their potential. Despite an "accident" that to the reader is pretty obviously an attempt on his life, he seems to drift along, not really putting any effort into investigating the stables and unaware that someone is trying to kill him.

It is slightly disconcerting to realise that stories set in the early 70s, a period I can remember clearly, are now starting to read like period novels! I must be getting old. :)

One of the highlights was a very good description of a commercial working gold mine and the ending was good.

Brilliant details.

I read this book decades ago and never forgot the significant details of the "hero's" struggles and deductive reasoning. When re-read it recently , I enjoyed the amazing details of the characters and African culture. Francis provides insight and intelligence AS characters are introduced and sometimes dissected with skill.

4.5✨

This book was breezy, charming, slight. It's an easy read with a mystery that was well-thought-out, but also resolved with cookie-cutter efficiency. This was my first Francis book, and, if I'm ever in the mood for a safe, comfortable story, I'd probably pick one up again. But it shows its age in how simple and shallow the threat really is. There's a tense seen in a car, but ultimately the story possesses the soft teeth of an eighties sitcom like Magnum P.I. or Hart to Hart.

Loved it!

This is a fast-paced, well-written story and the first time I've read anything by this author. I really liked the characters, the information at the race track and gold mine and the animal sanctuary. One criticism was the story ended too abruptly for me. We're there any issues with Link's recovery? Did he get to the movie benefit? Was Aunt Nerissa still alive? What happened to attempted murderer? This is such a good book and I highly recommend.

Different

Another good book from Dick Francis. Kindle are certainly getting value for money from his books. Now quite his usual twist but still kept calling me back to carry on reading it

Having recently experienced a loss in my family this book kind of hit home. Money does strange things to a person! Makes the good turn bad sometimes. Was a fascinating read, kept me on the edge of my seat throughout.