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Whip Hand [Mass Market Paperback]

Dick Francis (Author)
4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)

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Mass Market Paperback, Dec 12 2012 --   -- --
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Book Description

Release Date: Dec 12 2012
This "convincing and memorable"mystery is "among Dick Francis's best," says the Cincinnati Post. And we're sure readers will agree.

Ex-jockey and private investigator Sid Halley is approached by the wife of an elite racehorse trainer, begging his help in figuring out why her husband's most promising horses have been performing so poorly. At first Halley thinks she's overreacting and the losing streak is just dumb luck. But now he's beginning to think it's something far more dangerous...

* A New York Times bestselling author whose reputation is virtually unmatched among modern mystery writers

Another "first class"* thriller from the New York Times bestselling author of Field Of Thirteen.--Baltimore Sun

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From the Back Cover

There are two worlds in racing. Winning and losing. Private detective Sid Halley has gone from one to the other - fast. First his career as a jockey ended when he lost his hand in a fall. Then his wife said a cold good-bye. Now he’s on the trail of thugs who crush losers. With vicious pleasure.

These are people who aim to win - at any price. There’s a syndicate of owners with a sideline in violent kidnapping. And Trevor Deansgate, a bookmaker whose hatred of favourites goes one deathly step too far...

For the sake of his health, Halley had better return to winning ways. Because to lose is to die...

‘Superb... this is Mr Francis’s best book. And that’s high praise’ Sunday Mirror

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author

Dick Francis has written more than forty international bestsellers and is widely acclaimed as one of the world’s finest thriller writers. His awards include the Crime Writers’ Association’s Cartier Diamond Dagger for his outstanding contribution to the genre, and an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Tufts University of Boston. In 1996 Dick Francis was made a Mystery Writers of America Grand Master for a lifetime’s achievement and in 2000 he was awarded the CBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list. Sadly he died in 2010.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.
Inside This Book (Learn More)
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I TOOK THE battery out of my arm and fed it into the recharger, and only realized I'd done it when ten seconds later the fingers wouldn't work. Read the first page
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4.8 out of 5 stars
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Most helpful customer reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best of Francis' efforts Jan 21 2004
By Jared Garrett
Format:Mass Market Paperback
Whip Hand takes us down another mystery road with Sid Halley again. You can actually read this before you read Odds Against, as I did, and still keep up with the goings on.
The reason that this is one of the best books by Dick Francis is that he keeps to his nice formula of the underrated guy kicking the bad-guys' trash because he is just tough and sharp as nails; but in addition to his formula, Francis takes us deep into Sid's character and shows us a guy we love. We root for him more than any other Francis character because we know him better and can see some of ourselves in him. The plot as always is clean with some neat twists. This is another entertaining and relatively satisfying title from an author who has mastered his art.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Francis redeems himself... Aug 28 2003
By Cynthia K. Robertson
Format:Mass Market Paperback
Last year, someone gave me my first Dick Francis to read, 10 LB. Penalty, which can best be described as horrid. I couldn't believe that someone as prolific as Dick Francis could sell so many books if they were of this caliber. This summer, my same friend gave me a big bag of mysteries to read, and I planned to skip Whip Hand. But as luck would have it, I ran out of books before I ran out of summer and Whip Hand was the only one left. Was I pleasantly surprised! In fact, this turned out to be the best mystery I have read all summer. The main character is Sid Halley, an ex-jockey turned PI whose small stature belies all the hidden baggage beneath. He also brings the same passion to win that he had as a jockey to his investigations. Halley has three separate mysteries dumped on him: a mail fraud, a syndicate fixing and racehorse tampering. The racehorse tampering was especially timely after spending some time in Versailles Kentucky this summer, site of the tragic and still unsolved horse tampering case. Not to give the story away, but this book is filled with action, drama, suspense, believable characters, just a little romance, and a plot that will have you guessing until the very end. Next time I receive a Dick Francis book, I will be a little more anxious to begin reading!
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1 of 2 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars What is it about Francis? Dec 3 2001
By Annette C. Nelson
Format:Mass Market Paperback
As a general rule, I am a Sci-Fi person first, Fantasy second, Political Thrillers third, and the rest rarely makes my reading list. But someone handed me a Dick Francis mystery a year ago and I couldn't put it down. Since then I've read (or listened to) more than a dozen, and they're all fabulous. As was mentioned by another reviewer, these are definately formula books: he writes essentially the same character every time, and all the plots involve horse racing at least peripherally. And of course our hero (a blindlingly inteligent, 30-something, self-assured, and intensely private male) nearly always starts lonely and ends with the prospect of happy permanent female companionship. Nevertheless, they're still very much worth reading, probably for the same reason Tom Clancy is worth reading: the effort and research Francis puts into the details. In Whip Hand one gets to learn not only about the mechanics of false hands but also some nuts and bolts about vaccination and horse disease, some high points of hot-air balloon racing, and how a horse ownership syndicate works.

Even more importantly for Whip Hand, Francis really threw his heart and soul into Sid Haley, who is hands down (no pun intended) his best character ever. There's a depth to him - his strengths, weaknesses, the double-edged sword of his pride, and his vulnerability that is thought provoking and ultimately endearing - I ended the book more than 1/2 in love with him. :)

To sum up, Whip Hand is Well worth the read, whatever your typical genre and whatever your feelings about horses.
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