Date first published	1983
ISBN Number	0 7181 2340 9
Page Count	272 h/b
h/b= hardback : p/b= paperback

Storyline

Wherever there is money, there are sharks - the human variety.

There is a great deal of money in racing.

Andrew Douglas, working as a partner in the firm of Liberty Market Ltd, is used to sharks - when they come in the shape of kidnappers.

The Danger is his involvement in the seizing of a victim which embroils the racing world from Italy to England to the United States.

Review

Most Dick Francis novels are based around a subject which is real, the jeweller, the off licence owner, film maker etc. - you get the picture. With this I can't quite decide whether such a company as Liberty Market would have existed back then. Now it is quite likely in the form of a security company, of which I have come across a few in my day job.

His books are usually influenced by events of the time, and after a bit of research, I found that 1983 was the year that Shergar was kidnapped and killed by the IRA. However knowing that a lot of research goes into each novel I think it might have been to late to influence the plot of the story.

The initial part of the book centres around the first kidnapping that introduces Andrew Douglas, and also how the issues are resolved. We also get the background on the company that Douglas works for. We also have a brush with the kidnapper, that Douglas is not expecting.

The pace picks up with the next kidnapping, a small boy of a racing family. This time we get to meet a more gung ho member of the company who is not adverse to more proactive action with the kidnappers.

The final action takes place in America, and the kidnapper makes a fundamental mistake which Douglas tries to exploit, that th Jockey Club has no real money of its own. This however has the unexpected result in having Douglas himself kidnapped, however it becomes apparent that Douglas will not be going home.

I have to say that I really enjoyed the book, and I think it could have made a second story especially with the escapades of Tony Vine, ex SAS to help out. It is Vine that brings the action to the story, and the book picks up from it's fairly placid pace for a while.

This story is also unusual for Francis, in that it is set in Italy, UK and US, but all the locations are well described so that you could actually be there.

A very good story, lots of tension, along with the usual twists and turns from the master of mystery.

This book also has a special place in my collection as it is a signed edition!.

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