Another classic (maybe this is actually the one that started it all).

Investigating rum goings on in and around racing, from the saddle so-to-peak, an amateur jockey becomes embroiled in the seamy side of horse-racing and fights himself ranked at almost unbeatable odds to solve the crimes.

Cracking stuff - Dick Francis always delivers.

I always enjoy reading a good Dick Francis novel. They are pretty clean, the language isn't too bad, and not a lot of sex.... Sometimes I even reread the books, because it's like being with a friend you haven't seen in several years. I really enjoy the characters he uses, and also enjoy the series he writes about too. I'm not a gambler, but I really enjoy watching them live, as well as on screen. There is a certain excitement that I don't find in many other places.

UNPUTDOWNABLE !!

It IS a dead cert ! I love these old Dick Francis books because I know for sure after the first paragraph i am hooked, the content is brilliant, the thrill is similar to riding the horse yourself !! A great clean result all loose ends nearly tied with a satisfying sigh !

I was torn between giving this book 3 stars or 4 but settled on 4 cause the cliffhanger ending was actually pretty mint.
I was a tad disappointed in Francis writing at first. Overall, the book moves slow for such a small novel. However, halfway through, it picks up, and theirs some really good horse racing and dirty gambling tricks that I love.
I also really enjoyed the look into Britsh betting and handicapping. Very interesting, little dirty, and a tad intriguing.
Would have liked a little more of life on the British back side instead of so much of the love story with Alan and Kate. I wasn't really a fan of her character. More of the lives of jockeys and racetrackera would have made the book a real 5/5.
I'm not sure if I will read any more of his books yet or not.

Dick Francis may not be trying to earn literary awards, or communicate any life-changing truths with his writing, but he does know how to tell a great mystery story. His heroes are always kind, tough, clever, and good. His plots are always engaging. His romances (there is almost always a romance) do border on overly-cheesy at times, but they are sweet. And I find the world of British horse racing he describes (all of his characters are jockeys or involved in racing in some way or another) 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 competently and never annoyingly.

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 was really cheesy. But the basic plot was great and I quite enjoyed the book. Also, I actually found it very fascinating and a bit 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.

Decided to reread the Dick Francis series after some years. Starting off in order of publication. Dick Francis was a genius in a genre he basically invented: the horse-racing mystery. You can see right from the start the way his mind works, his ability to create an interesting puzzle, and his gift for writing characters you care about. Enjoyed this very much.

Rainy weather and hailstorms knocked out the power more than once and interrupted our over the phone reading of this book, but Marco and I finally have finished this Dick Francis mystery from 1962.

Alan York is an amateur steeplechase rider. We first meet him during a race, one in which a good friend of his is the only rider ahead of him. But in one awful moment, Bill Davidson and his horse fell while going over a jump. The horse was all right afterwards, but Bill died in hospital a few hours later.

Was it a freak accident caused by the foggy conditions on the course?

Or was there something more sinister behind the fall?

I will give you three guesses and two do not count!

Here is what the back cover of my edition has to say:
"In this chilling novel of vice and vengeance, a man suspects that his best friend was murdered ~~ and joins a manhunt in which he himself is the quarry."

I read this book many many years ago (like so many others in my bookcases) but I could not remember who was who or how it all turned out, so I was just as surprised as Marco was when we learned the identity of not only the main bad guy but a secondary figure neither of us had suspected at all.

We still have about six or seven books in our current Zapata Reading Club pile, but when it is time to create another one, I think I will include a second Dick Francis title. I have tons of them, I made an effort to find as many as possible back during my El Paso library book sale years. I did like the earlier ones the best, though. I will have to remember that when the time comes!

Dick Francis creates new characters with each new book, not an easy feat. One of the marvelous secrets of his story telling is revealing to the reader that his main character has figured out some key part of the puzzle but without revealing to us the answer ... leaving us feeling dumb in comparison because we aren’t able to do the same.

Anyway, Dead Cert was a fun read, even though it brought me back to the days of typewriters before personal computers, which made me feel quite old.

When amateur jockey Alan York sees his friend and colleague go down in a racing 'accident', he vows to uncover the truth. In the process, he finds love, violence, and betrayal.
Until I finished this, I didn't know it was Francis's first novel (he had written a memoir, previously); it sure doesn't read like a debut. It has all the hallmarks of his eventual formula, but it reads quite well and is a lot of fun. If you've read several of his other books, you won't find many surprises, but I would still suggest it if only to see where it all started. You don't have to like horse-racing to like this (or almost any) Francis novel, as I couldn't describe a steeplechase if you put a gun to my head.

Dead Cert, the title of this Dick Francis novel, refers to a sure thing in the racing world as much as that can be possible when enormous horses and the men riding them, are dashing around a steeplechase course consisting of a variety of jumps, different terrains and water barriers to cross. When a highly respected jockey dies from a fall that occurs while riding Admiral, in a ride which had been touted as a dead cert by those in the know, fellow amateur jockey Alan York realizes that foul play was involved. He finds a wire coiled beside one end of the jump where the terrible fall occurred, and knows that someone meant for his friend to fall. He decides to investigate, and the tightly woven plot begins to unravel, doled out by Francis, a bit at a time. Alan is a likeable main character, and not many pages pass before you begin to root for him to win his races, win the heart of the young lady he desires, and come safely through the ever growing dangers posed by a mysterious man who is pulling criminal strings from the shadows. I know nothing about horses, steeplechase, or racing. This is not a problem, since Francis adroitly spins all of the necessary information needed into the plot as required, in an interesting and dexterous manner. No heavy handed dumping of facts here! There is plenty of skulduggery, a little romance, some humour, and the actions of a dedicated, principled young man, who is determined to do right by his deceased friend and his family. A pleasure to read, and a great way to enjoy all things equine without triggering an allergic reaction. Like Archie Bunker, I have always wanted to ride a pony or a horse. It will not happen, due to allergies and asthma, but reading a Dick Francis gem satisfies the need quite nicely. Only thirty some odd books left to go-what a pleasant thought, and it is a dead cert that I will enjoy them as much as I did this one.

I've only read one other book by Dick Francis, and although I enjoyed the story, I wasn't sure if I'd really be that anxious to read another. I'm not sure if it was the violence, the horse racing and gambling, or what, but it just didn't pull me in as other series have done.

But then I came across this book - the first by Dick Francis and I figured I'd give it another try. All of my previous grievances still hold true, but I will admit that he is adept at writing an exciting, suspenseful story. I liked it and may read more by this author, but he's still not my favorite.

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 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.