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jk2600's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
jazzlioness's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Includes a scene of violence against a womanjanlhill's review against another edition
3.0
Good mystery but not great on characters. Hard to care about a lot of them.
curtisrad's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
gwentolios's review against another edition
5.0
I normally don't like mystery books, but I breezed through this book in 2 days and then picked up another by Francis. I love his writing, with how his simple sentences have such a huge impact. And while the mystery wasn't very obvious,the villain was shown early, it was enjoyable reading about how to stop the crimes and how the whole series of events helped Ben to grow. His relationship with his father is wonderful, and Francis describes being on the edge of adulthood from the teenage perspective so well. An enjoyable read, and one I will probably re-read in the future.
gwentolios's review against another edition
5.0
I normally don't like mystery books, but I breezed through this book in 2 days and then picked up another by Francis. I love his writing, with how his simple sentences have such a huge impact. And while the mystery wasn't very obvious,the villain was shown early, it was enjoyable reading about how to stop the crimes and how the whole series of events helped Ben to grow. His relationship with his father is wonderful, and Francis describes being on the edge of adulthood from the teenage perspective so well. An enjoyable read, and one I will probably re-read in the future.
julieputty's review against another edition
4.0
Not a top-notch Francis, but smooth and fast and perfect for an evening when I needed a comfort read.
ibeforem's review against another edition
3.0
Dick Francis mysteries have a quality to them that’s difficult to explain. There’s nothing jarring about them, even when something surprising happens. They’re generally all business, with no pesky romantic subplots to detract from what’s going on. And they always have something to do with horse racing, even tangentially.
In this case, the tie to horse racing is Ben, who would like nothing more than to be a professional jockey. Unfortunately, he’s just a little too large for the professional world, and lacks the support to truly thrive in the amateur one. Instead, he is “convinced” to go to work for his father, a man he’s never really connected with in his childhood.
When I picked up this book, I expected the campaign to span the length of it. But the election happens about halfway through, and then we sort of meander through the next few years of Ben’s life. At that point, the story felt a bit aimless to me. We do get a resolution at the end that ties everything back in, but the urgency was gone. Thankfully, Francis gives us characters that we like to read about, so I didn’t mind the meandering so much.
This probably isn’t the strongest Dick Francis novel, but it was entertaining nonetheless.
In this case, the tie to horse racing is Ben, who would like nothing more than to be a professional jockey. Unfortunately, he’s just a little too large for the professional world, and lacks the support to truly thrive in the amateur one. Instead, he is “convinced” to go to work for his father, a man he’s never really connected with in his childhood.
When I picked up this book, I expected the campaign to span the length of it. But the election happens about halfway through, and then we sort of meander through the next few years of Ben’s life. At that point, the story felt a bit aimless to me. We do get a resolution at the end that ties everything back in, but the urgency was gone. Thankfully, Francis gives us characters that we like to read about, so I didn’t mind the meandering so much.
This probably isn’t the strongest Dick Francis novel, but it was entertaining nonetheless.