Two Dick Francises
Jul. 20th, 2026 07:03 pm![[personal profile]](/%20https://www.npmjs.com/package/ocr-https-www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sholioI've been away for the last week (family wedding followed by some travel around Alaska, mostly without wifi and often without cell service, then had houseguests for a couple of days).
Along the way, I acquired a couple of new-to-me Dick Francises in a used bookstore and read them!
Slayride - Well, this definitely has one of the All Time Titles. A British investigator of horse racing shenanigans (of course) investigates a jockey's mysterious disappearance in Norway, with lots of beautifully described chilly ambiance. I was thinking about 2/3 of the way through that this one might end up ranking in my top-tier Francis, because it had some absolutely lovely twists and character surprises! And then a total flat pancake of a disappointing ending in which
Hot Money - This was solid fun! Ian is the estranged son of a rich serial philanderer with five ex-wives and nine kids. Ian's dad wants Ian to help him figure out which of the many suspects is trying to kill him for his money (while also ostentatiously blowing as much of his money on frivolous things as possible before the greedy family can get their hands on it). It's essentially a country house murder mystery in which the murder victim has so far managed to dodge all the murder attempts, and I had a great time with it. It genuinely did keep me guessing 'til the end, with some fun and interesting twists along the way. Very solid Dick Francis, may end up a favorite.
(I feel as if I may have read this one before; there's something very faintly familiar about it. But if so, I didn't remember a thing.)
Happy to elaborate with spoilers in the comments if anyone wants more details! My brain is still a bit flat from all the travel and visiting.
Along the way, I acquired a couple of new-to-me Dick Francises in a used bookstore and read them!
Slayride - Well, this definitely has one of the All Time Titles. A British investigator of horse racing shenanigans (of course) investigates a jockey's mysterious disappearance in Norway, with lots of beautifully described chilly ambiance. I was thinking about 2/3 of the way through that this one might end up ranking in my top-tier Francis, because it had some absolutely lovely twists and character surprises! And then a total flat pancake of a disappointing ending in which
vague spoilers
the hero sensibly gets the authorities involved and all the interesting and exciting stuff happens off page without him. And most of the promising character relationships start to develop and then just kind of go off a cliff partway through the book and never get any resolution. DICK FRANCIS, WHY.Hot Money - This was solid fun! Ian is the estranged son of a rich serial philanderer with five ex-wives and nine kids. Ian's dad wants Ian to help him figure out which of the many suspects is trying to kill him for his money (while also ostentatiously blowing as much of his money on frivolous things as possible before the greedy family can get their hands on it). It's essentially a country house murder mystery in which the murder victim has so far managed to dodge all the murder attempts, and I had a great time with it. It genuinely did keep me guessing 'til the end, with some fun and interesting twists along the way. Very solid Dick Francis, may end up a favorite.
(I feel as if I may have read this one before; there's something very faintly familiar about it. But if so, I didn't remember a thing.)
Happy to elaborate with spoilers in the comments if anyone wants more details! My brain is still a bit flat from all the travel and visiting.
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