Customer Reviews

Even Money

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"The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not bear the guilt of the father, nor the father bear the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself." -- Ezekiel 18:20 (NKJV)

If you are a long-time fan of Dick Francis novels, you are looking for a story about steeplechases, jockeys, and danger for doing the right thing. Hold that thought . . . because it doesn't apply to this book. Yes, there are steeplechases in the background, a perhaps a mention of a jockey or two, and definitely some danger. But for the objective reader, this is a suspense novel that happens to take place part of the time near steeplechases. As a suspense novel, it's pretty good. If that's not what you're looking for, go back and re-read an early Dick Francis novel.

If you are still with me, this is a story about being a legal bookie in England who has a complicated family life. The story begins to take unexpected twists and turns when Ned Talbot, proprietor of TRUST TEDDY TALBOT bookmakers, meets a man who may be the father Ned thought had died decades earlier. Matters are quickly confused when the man is murdered in the parking lot of Royal Ascot. Ned doesn't trust the police and begins to look into the matter on his own, quickly finding that he's only a few steps ahead of dangerous enemies who will stop at nothing.

Ned already has a complicated life due to his wife being hospitalized for a recurring mental disorder. It becomes quite a balancing act to keep her life tranquil while he fends off threats and violence.

If that weren't enough of a problem, his business is facing a crisis that means he has to find a way to compete in new ways.

As the story unfolds, the twists and turns just keep coming . . . quickly after one another. Your pulse will definitely be racing before you are done . . . even if not from cheering on a winner on which you have placed a bet.

To me the most interesting part of the story involved various ways that betting can be illegally manipulated while avoiding the attention of the authorities. If you enjoy stories about stings, you'll have some fun with this book.

Alas, Dick Francis left us recently. I'll miss him. We had a lovely chat once at the Mysterious Bookshop in Manhattan where he exceeded my expectation of what he would be like in person. He was a delightful man and a wonderful source of stories about the steeplechase world that he loved so much.

On my scale from 1 to 10 of Francis books, this is 5-6. Not bad, mind you, but not the superb Up to the Hilt or other great former novels... Just a bit too didactical or technical (concerning the complicated - true - betting practice & stuff). True to the formula too but, well, not Francis in his prime...I suppose it's only natural... Maybe (hope so) Felix will be as good as daddy was some day Even Money(I am not mean, I really hope he will...) I am - remain - a Francis fan...