An outstanding book by Dick Francis. If you love the Arts, mystery, Scotland, Family History or just plain Horse racing you will enjoy this book.
I really enjoyed how Dick Francis wove all of these things together.

Alexander Kinloch, the nephew of a Scottish earl, is a painter living in a remote cottage on his uncle’s large estate. The story begins with four men attacking Alex, they want to know where “something” is. Stubbornly refusing to talk, he thrown down a ravine and left for dead. Battered and bruised Alex soon discovers that the brutes were after the King Alfred Gold Cup and a large quantity of money linked to Alexander’s stepfather brewery business.

I liked the author’s humor, his writing style and the many characters. Alexander is quintessentially British (tea drinking, extremely polite, rather posh, emotionally stunted, possessor of dry humor and extraordinary stiff upper lip) with an interesting past. I wish this novel belong to a series, as I grew attached to him and also to the many other characters in his large family (from the earl “Himself”, to his lady mother, his ex-wife, step-sister etc.) all drawn so well. The plot of the investigations into the money disappearance is well constructed with a number of suspenseful scenes and a couple of twists.

This book was a gamble that turned into a nice surprise. I had the impression that Dick Francis’s books were mainly about horse racing (the covers of his books seemed to be all horse themed), but, although there is a race at the end, in this novel this event is secondary to the main mystery. You don’t need to be a horse racing enthusiast to enjoy this book.

While reading I also listened to the audio version narrated by Tony Britton which I enjoyed very much and would recommend. I will certainly look for another of Francis’ books.

3.5 stars

4.5
while my life wasn’t changed, i found myself glued to the pages as one would a hilt of a sword in stone.

what interesting, fun, engaging characters. i enjoyed the personalities of them and how they interacted with each other and the story, but even more so the reasons for the actions they did. it was simply so intriguing to read the hows and whys of the loyalties of every character.

alexander was a delight, i’m very grateful for his leading of the plot. as with all the good and decent mysteries i’m fond of, i quite liked the fun of flipping back and forth the book just to see if i could have predicted certain revelations, and it’s very very exciting to see how even alexander’s point of view didn’t immediately give everything away to the reader. it felt refreshing to see.

oh, it is truly quite a shame that chris and alexander didn’t have quick, no-strings-attached HOT NASTY GAY SEX.

but i suppose even the most engaging stories can’t have everything.

Honor

One of his best books, it has everything, compelling character, marvelous plot, so interesting. Great psychology too. highly recommended well worth the read.

Alexander Kinloch lives in Scotland on a remote mountain, and paints. He gets attacked one day by 4 "hikers" who want to know where "it" is. Soon after, he finds out his stepfather has had a heart attack, precipitated by financial problems at the brewery he owns. Alex gets pulled in to try and sort things out. I liked this horsey book quite a lot. Interesting plot to unravel.

A 3.5 for me. It's a good read, a yarn that can be read in one longish sitting if you have the time. It is probably not his best and if you are a fan of Francis you know the formula by now. Good looking bloke with stiff upper lip and absolutely stoic disposition, who puts honour before everything else rushes to the rescue and gets the girl at the same time (in this case, sort of). The setting switches from England to Scotland and while racing is in the story it doesn’t take the central position it usually does in Francis’s novels. It is tangential to the plot, not the main focus. I have no idea if Francis was a true polymath or just a very good researcher, but he has beer making, painting in acrylics – and I found the details of that fascinating – wire fraud, a bit of old English, and some Scottish history and probably more. The plot is a bit unbelievable but you just suspend disbelief and go along for the ride (sorry!) For me the real treat was finding an original Francis (rather than a Felix Francis writing as Dick Francis) that I hadn’t read. It was first published 25 years ago and how I missed it I have no idea.

In “To The Hilt,” Dick Francis gives readers a fantastic page-turning intellectual MYSTERY. He provides lyrical verses; uniquely creative, artistic and superlative descriptions of painting techniques; fascinating details of historical relics; lush imagery of dramatically remote Scottish Highland mountains; English riding country; and a thorough appreciation of exquisitely written prose. Immerse yourself and enjoy!

This was a re-read on my Kindle Fire and I still enjoyed it immensely. Really, you can't go wrong reading any Dick Francis out there.

I know I read some Dick Francis mysteries when I was 12 or so; I barely remember them now. This is my first try in my would-be grownup years.

It was OK; unfortch I didn't find it as well done as many readers have.

Some elements were pretty good, like his relationships with his mom, and Ivan, and Emily, and other.

Other elements I wasn't too fond of, like most of the talk about painting, and the family loyalty tough-guy stuff, esp. the insistence that the hero be tortured.

4.5 stars. A near perfect crime story. :)

I've read more novels by Dick Francis than my Goodreads list shows. I read them many years ago before arriving to Goodreads. I like that many of his books concern, in some fashion or another, horses and horse racing. In this one, there is a horse and there is a horse race but the focal point is on a brewery. The main character and first-person narrator of the book is Al, a painter who is the nephew of some guy with a title and the stepson of the owner of the brewery. When his stepfather has heart problems, Al goes home to help his mother. His stepfather insists that he help him by taking charge of the brewery, which does not go over well with the stepfather's daughter. It is quite the story with plenty of action. Al is a most likeable guy.

Another strong showing from Francis, again with his cool prose and strong characters. This time the lead is an eccentric artist dealing with family troubles, of which embezzlement and murder are only two. A tad more brutal than any of his books I've read before, but that is no complaint. Definitely worth a look for fans of suspense novels in general, and of Francis in particular.