Under Orders

Under Orders

Summary

Discover the classic mystery from Dick Francis, one of the greatest thriller writers of all time

'The classic Francis mix of excitement, danger and unexpected twists' 5***** Reader Review
'Keeps you engrossed to the end. A must read for any thriller reader' 5***** Reader Review
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Sadly, death at the races is not uncommon. However, three in a single afternoon was sufficiently unusual to raise more than an eyebrow.

It's the third death on Cheltenham Gold Cup Day that really troubles super-sleuth Sid Halley - when jockey Huw Walker reaches the finish line with three .38 rounds in his chest. The same jockey who, only a few hours earlier, had won the coveted Triumph Hurdle.

Just moments before the gruesome discovery, Halley had been called upon by Lord Enstone to make discrete enquiries into why his horses appeared to be on a permanent losing streak.

Are races being fixed? Are bookies taking a cut? And if so, are trainers and jockeys playing a dangerous game with stakes far higher than they realise?

Halley's quest for answers draws him ever deeper into the darker side of the race game, in a life-or-death power play that will push him to his very limits . . .

Packed with intrigue and hair-raising suspense, Under Orders is just one of the many blockbuster thrillers from legendary crime writer Dick Francis.

Praise for Dick Francis:

'As a jockey, Dick Francis was unbeatable when he got into his stride. The same is true of his crime writing' Daily Mirror

'The narrative is brisk and gripping and the background researched with care . . . the entire story is a pleasure to relish' Scotsman

'Dick Francis's fiction has a secret ingredient - his inimitable knack of grabbing the reader's attention on page one and holding it tight until the very end' Sunday Telegraph

'A regular winner . . . as smooth, swift and lean as ever' Sunday Express

'The master of suspense and intrigue' Country Life

'Francis writing at his best' Evening Standard

'Still the master' Racing Post

About the author

Dick Francis

Dick Francis was one of the most successful post-war National Hunt jockeys. The winner of over 350 races, he was champion jockey in 1953/1954 and rode for HM Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, most famously on Devon Loch in the 1956 Grand National. On his retirement from the saddle, he published his autobiography, The Sport of Queens, before going on to write forty-three bestselling novels, a volume of short stories (Field of 13), and the biography of Lester Piggott.

During his lifetime Dick Francis received many awards, amongst them the prestigious Crime Writers' Association's Cartier Diamond Dagger for his outstanding contribution to the genre, and three 'best novel' Edgar Allan Poe awards from The Mystery Writers of America. In 1996 he was named by them as Grand Master for a lifetime's achievement. In 1998 he was elected a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, and was awarded a CBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours List of 2000.

Dick Francis died in February 2010, at the age of eighty-nine, but he remains one of the greatest thriller writers of all time.
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