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Summary
Summary
The New York Times bestseller. Transporting racehorses is big business for ex-jockey Freddie Croft. But when one of his drivers breaks a cardinal rule--never pick up a hitchhiker--the results are fatal. Now strange nighttime stalkers and unseen conspirators are weaving a web of deceit and danger that Freddie might never escape. Copyright © Libri GmbH. All rights reserved.
Reviews (3)
School Library Journal Review
YA-- From the first paragraph, the action grabs readers and plunges ahead like one of the thoroughbreds that is such valuable secondary characters in every Francis novel. As usual, a particular aspect of the British racing industry is carefully profiled, in this case the job of transporting horses. Former jockey Freddie Croft is the owner of just such a business, and must confront the discovery that his vans have been used for some very unusual smuggling. Freddie discovers two separate plots to victimize race horses through disease; along the way a bit of romance begins to enrich his life, a trusted employee is murdered, computer files are wiped out, and a malicious villain destroys Freddie's home with an ax. Clues abound, with those needed to solve the mystery satisfyingly mixed in with enough red herrings to keep readers happily guessing. Additional plot enrichment is provided by weaving in the latest in computer technology and epidemiology. A dependable writer will satisfy his YA fans once again.-- Carolyn E. Gecan, Thomas Jefferson Sci-Tech, Fairfax County, VA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Francis's first-rate thriller about the British horse-racing scene--a 10-week PW bestseller--portrays a former steeplechase jockey who learns that his horse transportation firm is implicated in a drug smuggling operation. (Feb.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Booklist Review
Dick Francis races to new heights with another retired jump-jockey sleuth, thirtysomething Freddie Croft, owner-operator of a fleet of vans, called Driving Force, that tote thoroughbreds all over Britain to training stables, racing meets, and stud farms. When a hitchhiker dies in one of his vans (strictly against house rules to pick up riders), and when his cockney-speaking mechanic finds small containers concealed under several of the vans, our hero fears drug smuggling. With the help of some well-coordinated action and the usual Francis mix of characters--the whining driver about to be sacked, the supercilious country doctor, various despotic owners and trainers, the tough but refined woman investigator helping to crack the case--the pace accelerates through the clubhouse turn and into the home stretch. One of the best Francis novels in years, Driving Force combines an airtight plot, plenty of racing ambience, and some thoughtful reflections on animal rights, immunology, and the work ethic. Francis fans have a treat in store for them. (Reviewed Sept. 15, 1992)0399137769Robert Seid