Like a good wine!!

I have read this book several times now, first time when it was first published, on initial reading I found it quite depressing but subsequent reading have made me realise that there are a lot of people who suffer with depression, I feel for them if they have half the problems Gene has. Hopefully since it was first published there is a lot more help for them.

A real thriller. I found myself holding my breath in spots. Expertly narrated and a joy to listen to.

I liked the mysteriousness of the leading character. I would enjoy more of him. I enjoyed the Kentucky settings as I know that horse country. I always enjoy Dick Francis's books. I enjoyed this one. Not a lot of depth. Not any surprises. What made this book was the main character's inner struggles. Glad I read it.

Most of the Dick Francis books I have read before had a lot of actual horse racing in them. This one was about stolen horses that seemed totally lost in America and a man trying to find them. Very interesting ideas.

Listened. I liked much of this quite a bit, but the tacked-on, half-assed depiction of depression was incompetently done, and the mostly approvingly-portrayed semi-romance between a 38 year-old man and a 17 y/o girl???? Just no. Too many negatives for anything more than OK, and probably generous at that. Early Francis, but not enough of an excuse.

Spoiler: No happy ending here. This story was a little tough to read because the protagonist, while he shared many DF hero traits, he also suffered from depression and often shared his suicidal musings. How Gene Hawkins manages to track down three missing horses and then retrieve them was pretty cool. Lots of suspense involved in both retrievals. This was a reread and despite knowing the outcome I was worried about the time it was taking. Two negatives. I wasn’t happy about Walt. No details. I was disturbed by 39-year-old Gene’s attraction to barely eighteen Linnie. Here’s Gene’s description of her as she’s sleeping; her skin was close-textured like a baby’s and her face was that of a child. The woman inside was still a bud, with a long way to grow. Ick.

I thought this felt different than some of Francis' other books, both because the horse racing element is such a minor factor (it's really more a straight detective novel), and because the main character is such a flawed, tragic figure. Or maybe that it takes place mostly in America. Something

I was ready to give this one 2 or 3 stars as Gene Hawkins (the main character) was really just a drag, and things were really all too easy (which happens in Francis mysteries sometimes).. then they weren't. The last 20 pages really tied the book up nicely... it was both a surpise and an excellent ending.

Gene Hawkins works for the government - he does background check and investigation to ferret out potential spies. He has 3 weeks off and his boss asks him to find a missing horse - one in a string of three that have gone missing. Investigation takes him to America with plenty of danger. Hawkins is very depressed, close to suicidal. Decent plot. Interesting story. No language.

Not one of his better books but it is ok. I'm never fond of the starry eyed teenage girls and significantly older men with deep issues being drawn together. I also just feel the hunting of the bad guys etc is not super compelling or well drawn out. What this book does to well is show what depression can be like for a lot of people. An absolute punch in the gut for those who struggle with their mental health.

A bit plodding, and some of the main character’s decisions seem frustratingly perverse, but this is a solid thriller all the same.

4 Stars

Blood Sport by Dick Francis is an intriguing read full of crime and investigation, mystery, suspense, horse racing, tension, drama, and more.
->2023 Reading Challenge.
->Glennie's Collection
Dick Francis novels were a familiar fixture in our household when I was growing up, as both my parents loved his books. He was amongst the first ‘adult’ reads that I explored at the time, and over the years I have read everything he’s written. I remember every time my mother read one of his books, she'd tell me about him and how he'd gone from being an RAF pilot to being the Queen Mother's favourite jockey, before retiring to become a journalist/writer.
Since my mother passed away over a year ago, I have been making my way through her book collection, finally. 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..... Reading her collection of books has stirred up a lot of memories, mostly of our shared love of reading. I am forever grateful that she passed on her love of reading to me.

I love this one by DF. It's different. It takes place mainly in the American west. The hero, unlike most DF heroes is a man who is used to danger. He is a burnt out spy and somehow through the action of the book learns to appreciate life again. Like all DF's books the fun is in watching the hero cleverly foil the bad guys.