Excellent look at Cold War Russia. A world I was too young to really know for myself. Quite different than the usual Dick Francis book.

I thought I had read all of Francis' books but stumbled onto this at a thrift store. Well written late 70's cold war story.

Written with the thought of the cold war after WW II, this is an interesting story with spying and espionage for the reader's delight. The character development is grasped. Enjoyable reading.

Randall Drew, amateur steeplechase rider, grounded by new safety regulations, is drawn into a rather larger plot than usually engages Dick Francis' heroes. In this case, Randall is asked to looking into whether a minor royal should be allowed to participate in the 1980 Olympics in Moscow. We get international intrigue, people who aren't who they seem to be, and hints about violent terrorism.

I have the impression that Francis modelled Lord Farringford on some of the horsey members of the Windsor clan, such as Princess Anne and Mark Phillips. Farringford may be a great rider, but he's as dense as a block of concrete. Fortunately, the story revolves around Randall Drew, whose bad health is nearly the death of him in wintertime Moscow, but who, in true Francis-hero fashions, persists to the end, come what may.

An old school Cold War/KGB plot, set in 1978. Loved it, and finished it in two days. Must recommend.

I love Francis, and this book happens to have been first published the year I was born (1978) and so it was a natural selection for the reading challenge we did at work (a book bingo) in which one selection was a book published in your birth year.

And while I appreciate the whole Cold War slant, I have to say, this just wasn't a favorite. It was fine, and there's plenty of the "hero in peril" and loveable and annoying characters, but it just never quite clicked with me. But I'm glad I read it, because it's Francis.

Not my favorite perhaps because it takes place in the winter.

It’s been a long time since I’ve read a Dick Francis book. I’d forgotten how fun and well written they can be. This one was particularly interesting because it was written in ‘78 during the Cold War.

3 - 3.5 Stars

Trial Run by Dick Francis is a crime and investigation story that takes us to Russia, with Russian royalty, horse racing, jealousy, sabotage, murder, action, danger, mystery, suspense, agendas, tension, drama, and intrigue- which made for an interesting read.
->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 didn’t love it

The book it probably worth 3 stars for writing but I didn’t enjoy it.

I didn’t even like it until after the hero gets attacked for the second time which is over half way in. Until then the story felt as dreary as it’s communist, Moscow in winter, setting.

Nine times out of ten I love Francis books so it feels extra disappointing when I don’t. This was highlighted by the fact that the revealed villainy is a one of Francis’ most surprising and interesting.

Not a typical Dick Francis thriller, this is heavily influenced by Agatha Christie. It is a sort of a spy novel. The story lacks action and involves a lot of talking and walking around. It's amusing and it's not as boring as I make it sound. Dick Francis gets quite political in this book, and it's not terribly appealing to read. I thought this novel was OK, but it's somewhere near the bottom of this author's heap.

Randall Drew was approached by the Prince to travel to Russia to inquire about Alyosha. The Prince’s brother-in-law wanted very much to be part of the Equestrian team at the Olympics but it seemed that if he went, Alyosha would be waiting to cause trouble. Would Randall please go and interview this individual and get a sense of how things lay. Well, Randall went and found that others had already been asking questions. Can he find answers where others have failed?
Typical Dick Francis in terms of main character fighting to stay alive / ahead in order to figure out what's going on and provide the answers to those who sent him. The paperback copy I read was published in 1978 and it was the 1980 Olympics which were in Moscow. Was Francis trying to stir the pot a bit ahead of the Games? Don't know, but fun to consider.