Another great read from Dick Francis and wife

If the account in this book is an accurate reflection of how racing inquiries are or were conducted in Great Britain, it is pretty close to unbelievable. It is, I suppose, better than trial by combat, but not much. An excellent lesson as to one of the many reasons we have a constitution in the United States.

A jockey unjustly banned from racing does not meekly roll over. He begins to make inquiries and opens a rather large can of worms.

Typical Dick Francis horse-racing thriller, about a jockey being railroaded at an enquiry into his riding at a race, where he is accused of deliberately losing a race. It's a very melodramatic, including an attempt to kill him in a car accident. For me, it's not one of his best, however. The plot of Enquiry is a bit too contrived, especially the superhuman efforts of the main character during the car accident.

Thrilling race!

Dick Francis was a wonderful writer and this was one of his best books. His themes are carefully researched and thoughtfully executed, and his characters, especially the protagonist, come alive from the beginning. You don't have to be a horse lover to love his books - there's plenty of action, mystery and suspense for everyone. My only complaint is that the suspense never lets up so you can't put the book down!

As always a learning experience

Each time I read one of his stories I learn something more about racing! The way he describes the races I feel as though I am on the horse too! Another good story, on to the next one!

Jockey Kelly Hughes, and the trainer he was riding for, have their licences revoked after they are accused of having fixed the race with Kelly's horse coming second to an outsider from the same stable. Kelly is sure they have been set up, and he becomes determined to find out who and why, especially after he almost dies in an "accident".

Most of Dick Francis's books are standalones, like this one, with different heroes in name, although the men are mostly clones of each other in terms of character and attitudes. The plots involve horse racing to a greater or lesser degree, and there's always an element of romance. This one was no different but a very enjoyable example of the brand.

Dick Francis at his best. A jockey loses his rider's license. He fights to restore his career and ultimately uncovers a sordid conspiracy.

I've been a Dick Francis fan since early teenhood, but this is the first time in well over a decade that I've gone back to re-read. Enquiry has a very appealing hero, but there's too much telling relative to showing in this book. Most of the solution relies on confession, which just isn't as dramatic. Still good, though, and the audio performance from Ralph Cosham is very well done.

Not one of his best books, but still a satisfactory read. I have read a number of Dick Francis books and never tire of them. The main character always sounds the same, but that's okay. I would have rated it higher, except that the guilty person admitted all, in the end told why he had done it. When this happens I always find that corny. Surely the guilty person would deny his guilt always. I did guess the reason why the main character was set up early in the book.

This story was slow to get going and I wasn't very interested. I just made myself keep reading and hoped it wasn't a complete waste of time. At least these books are short. I usually like the other stories by Dick Francis where there is another mystery involved besides the horse racing (like Comeback). It did finally get more interesting and I was able to finish the book but this is definitely my least favorite book by DF so far.

Though I seem to be in the minority in the USA, perhaps even in the UK, I really do enjoy reading Dick Francis' mysteries. They are devoid of the shoot-em-up cowboy stuff in so many American mysteries and emphasizes, instead, events, character perceptions, and British social levels. Fun. You can almost hear the British accent - someday, I'll get one of the author's books on audio.

Enquiry is about a jockey who loses his license to ride and then investigates to find out who was behind the plot and why. It's good reading.

This is the first "adult" mystery I read as a young teenager (as a child, Trixie Belden and Nancy Drew came first), and it began many years of reading mysteries by Dick Francis. But over those years, this remained my favorite, most likely because it was first. I listened to it in audio this time, and enjoyed the narration.

Enquiry was first published in 1969, and it is definitely a product of that time, with attitudes towards sex, women, class, etc. On this reread, rather than treating it as a "contemporary mystery," I read it as a "historical mystery," and that worked better for me.

It's a rather short book, featuring jockey Kelly Hughes. As the book opens, both Hughes and the trainer he was working for in a recent race -- Dexter Cranfield -- have lost their racing licenses. Hughes is accused of deliberately pulling back in a race to let another of Cranfield's horses win, and Cranfield of knowing about the incident. Hughes knows it's not true, and spends most of the book trying to prove their innocence.

Hughes has a lot of layers to peel back, to get to discover who is responsible for them losing their licenses, as many people gave obviously false testimony against them. As Hughes discovers more of the truth, his life is endangered. I liked the mystery, and didn't instantly remember who was responsible (it has been decades since I last read this).

The aspect I had the most trouble with was Hughes slowly budding feelings for Cranfield's daughter Roberta (and hers for him). Roberta is a clear reflection of her class, doesn't really think of people of lower status as people. She does slowly evolve over the course of the book, and any potential romance between the two is more in the future than in the actual book. However, she's 19 and I figure Hughes has to be at least mid- to late-20s so that didn't set too well with me. Obviously it never struck me as a problem decades ago when I read this, and I'm sure it wasn't a problem when this was published in 1969.

Overall, I would now grade this a B-, so rounding to four stars here.

Library audible
Kelly Hughes is a jockey, labelled a cheat by a Steward's enquiry and included was the stable owner of the horses Kelly rode for.
To clear his name he investigates all those who gave evidence, including the Chief Steward who was being blackmailed. Kelly, helped by Roberta, his employer's daughter, finds out who the real villain is and saves the stables.
Rival stable trainer and wife are upset with a new arrangement of horses moving