Dick Francis Novels

Jeff Hinkley, undercover investigator for the British Horseracing Authority, is looking into the shady activities of a racehorse trainer. But as he's tailing his quarry through the Cheltenham Racing Festival, the last thing he expects to witness is a gruesome murder. Could it have something to do with the reason the trainer was banned in the first place – the administration of illegal drugs to his horses? Days later, many more horses test positive for prohibited stimulants.

Things are hotting up in this latest thriller from best-selling author Felix Francis, in his fifth solo novel Front Runner. Jefferson Hinkley is back. In his role as an undercover investigator for the British Horseracing Authority, Jeff is approached by the multi-time champion jockey, Dave Swinton, to discuss the delicate matter of losing races on purpose. Little does Jeff realise that the call would result in an attempt on his life, locked in a sauna with the temperature well above boiling point.

Jeff Hinkley, a British Horseracing Authority investigator, has been seconded to the US Federal Anti-Corruption in Sports Agency (FACSA), where he has been asked to find a mole in their organisation, an informant who is passing on confidential information to fix races. Jeff goes in search of answers, taking on an undercover role as a groom on the backstretch at Belmont Park racetrack in New York. But he discovers far more than he was bargaining for.

Chris Rankin is a doctor, a specialist in emergency medicine at Cheltenham Hospital, but a doctor who also has health problems. A smartly dressed man has been found unconscious at the local racecourse and is rushed to the hospital, where he subsequently dies. But who is he? Where does he come from? He had no form of identification on him, and no one claims the body.

Harrison Foster is a lawyer by training but works as a crisis manager for a London firm that specialises in such matters. Summoned to Newmarket after a fire in the Chadwick Stables slaughters six very valuable horses, including the short-priced favourite for the Derby, Harry (as he is known) finds there is far more to the ‘simple’ fire than initially meets the eye. For a start, human remains are found amongst the equestrian ones in the burnt-out shell. All the stable staff are accounted for, so who is the mystery victim?

Bill Russell is acting as a volunteer steward at Warwick races when he confronts his worst nightmare - the violent death of his wife. But worse is to come when he is accused of killing her and hounded mercilessly by the media. His life begins to unravel completely as he loses his job and his home. Even his best friends turn against him, believing him guilty of the heinous crime in spite of the lack of compelling evidence. Bill sets out to clear his name but finds that proving one’s innocence is not easy - one has to find the true culprit, and Bill believes he knows who it is....

Finding himself in St Moritz during the same weekend as White Turf, when high-class horse racing takes place on the frozen lake, Miles gets talked into helping out with the horses. It is against his better judgement. Seven years before, he left horseracing behind and swore he would never return. When he discovers something suspicious is going on in the races, something that may have a profound impact on his future life, Miles begins to search for answers. But someone is adamant to stop him—and they’ll go to any lengths to do it.

Sid Halley, a private investigator, has a new left hand, having had a transplant since his last appearance in Refusal. After receiving death threats, an ex-jockey trainer friend calls Sid to ask for his help, but Sid has his own problems to deal with, like recovering from surgery and saving his crumbling marriage. When his friend’s stable yard is torched, horses killed and the friend is found dead, Sid can only blame himself for not helping sooner. The police think it’s suicide, but Sid is not convinced after his friend’s terrified phone calls.

Theo Jennings is a young auctioneer at the Thoroughbred sales ring in Newmarket. The October yearling sales are where the big money exchanges hands in frenzied auctions. It's the greatest gamble in all of horseracing, and one that can end in ruin. Theo has just made the biggest sale of his life when he overhears a secret conversation between the two bidders – can they really have colluded to fix the price of his big sale? When that same horse is found dead the next morning, he has no choice but to investigate.

Chester Newton is a successful racehorse syndicate organiser and his company, Victrix Racing, is having its best year yet. When his prized horse, Potassium, wins the world-famous Epsom Derby, Chester is set to become the next big thing in British horse racing. But one phone call changes everything. Someone hiding behind a voice scrambler and an untraceable phone is demanding he fixes a race – and they’re willing to go after Chester’s family if he fails to comply.

Imogen Duffy is an up-and-coming Irish jump jockey making her mark in steeplechase racing. But not all is well in Imogen's life. Jealous of her success, Imogen's controlling boyfriend Liam is stalking her, and when she tries to break it off with him, he turns violent. Fleeing to England, Imogen hopes to leave Liam behind. But Liam vehemently refuses to let her go – until he's found dead, stabbed with a knife bearing Imogen's fingerprints. Imogen's father, convinced of her innocence, seeks out Sid Halley to ask for his help uncovering the truth, and Sid reluctantly agrees to investigate.