Date first published	11 September 2014
ISBN Number	978 0718 17882 6
Page Count	448 h/b
h/b= hardback : p/b= paperback

Storyline

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 Chetenham 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 palce - the administration of illegal drugs to his horses?

Days later, it's discovered that many more horses test positive for prohibited stimulants, a scandal that could throw horse-racing into disrepute. It's no surprise when the BHA receives a demand - pay up or face the consequences. In order to limit the damage to the sport, it's critical that Jeff finds the perpetrator.. but he'll soon learn he's up against someone who will stop at nothing to prevail. Jeff's mental and physical well-being is tested to the very limit, as his life is put on the line.

Review

I think that I would sum up this book as being good solid novel, rather than a brilliant novel. The story has a nice pace the lead character develops nicely as the story goes along, and there are some good sub plot lines just to keep things ticking over, and to also give the impression that the Jeff has a life rather than everything being focussed on the main plot line.

Where I feel the story is slightly let down is with the main villain, we get to know very little about him, and what we do know is literally described in about a paragraph and a half. The perons behind the threat is only revealed in the last chapter, and we get very little chance to consider the rights and wrongs of his case, before his sudden demise.

The whole book builds nicely, but I did feel that the end was rather abrupt, and we didn't get a full explanation for all of the reasons for the ransom demands. It is hinted that money is the reason for the demands, but this seems to be dismissed at the final instance, purely down to the fact that the ransomer, wanted revenge for the Jockey Club/BHA destroying his family rights. Jeff and the blackmailer perhaps spend as little as 3 pages together. There is no real sense of two parties vying for superiority, because they have so little interaction.

Although I feel this a weakness of the book it certainly doesn't detract from the greater part of the book. We have a lead character that doesn't turn to Google for all of the answers, and actually struggles with what is going on and why. This much more an old style gut feeling type of investigator, rather than the high tech style of solving crimes that are now quite prevalent (and boring), if we could simply solve crimes with the internet life would be much more easy going, and we would all be amateur sleuths!

As I read the book (real paper) the thought was going through my mind of the new Sid Halley, although I'm not sure that Jeff has the charisma of Halley. He will however be back I'm sure as a second outing could build up the character, and give him a meatier adversary to fight off.

If you like Dick Francis style novels, then this will fill the gap, it is a good book, just slightly let down by the ending. It is well worth buying for a quality who dunnit, of which Dick and now Felix are so good at producing.

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