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Driving Force
| Date first published | 1992 |  |
| ISBN Number | 0-330-32951-0 | |
| Page Count | 298 p/b | |
| h/b= hardback : p/b= paperback | ||
Storyline
Ex jockey Freddie Croft thought he'd left the perils behind him when he retired from the jump racing game. These days he was happy to transport horse from their stables to the races. Until one of his drivers picked up an unlicensed passenger, and brought him back dead.
The corpse on the doorstep was Freddie's unwelcome introduction to the shadowy, big-money conspiracy which muscled into his business and started to threaten his life. But Freddie was a fighter, and winning was in his blood...
First identify the danger, then beat them out of site...
Review
This is a fairly stock in trade Dick Francis novel, although the initial premise of his men picking up a hitchhiker, who then quietly dies of natural causes, doesn't seem to lead anywhere. However it's not long before forces are in motion that need further investigation.Unusually for a Francis novel there are quite a few characters, some of whom are quite important, and sit on the sideline until quite late in the story. if you pay enough attention you might find out who the person behind the trafficking really is, as they're posted as being a bit 'iffy' but seem harmless.
Like other Francis heros, Freddie Croft is well off, he has a Jaguar, and his big sister has part ownership in a helicopter, we all have one of those parked on the drive. his sister also happens to be dating a micro biologist, which helps the story along as well.
When the hidden canisters are found on the bottom of the lorries, the automatic assumption is drugs, so a rye smile appears when it is discovered what is actually being smuggled.
The story rips along a moderate pace, and it takes some time to work out what is actually going on, and that the drivers are not quite as innocent as they appear in the whole matter. As usual the characters are sketched in just enough detail for you to picture them, but learn little of them.
The only weak point from my point of view was Jogger, and his made up rhyming slang. The character Freddie 'has got used to it' but the novel is not long enough for the reader to start guessing at the hidden meanings, which is part of the fun of a who dunnit. This is made more difficult when the said Jogger departs the world.
Minor gripe aside, this is a good standard Francis novel, obviously well researched on the workings of a transport company, and the intricacies of smuggling livestock.
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