Date first published	May 1970
ISBN Number	0-330-02966-5
Page Count	188
h/b= hardback : p/b= paperback

Storyline

Matt Shore was an experienced pilot. He'd done it all. from big jets to flying in supplies ot war zones. So when he gets a job ferrying high class punters around England's race courses he might be forgiven for expecting the quiet life. Then his plane explodes in a massive fireball. He could have been in it. Some quiet life.

Instead he's landed in the middle of a nightmare world where big money is at stake. Very big money. From then on he finds himself hurtling down a tortuous trail where people are not all they appear, and all around him is sudden bloody death...

Review

This is another of what I think of as a Dick Francis oblique novel. I mean by that, that the story is set tentatively in the horse racing world, and that the threat that appears, is not aimed at the lead character, but just gets drawn in by chance, and Francis was very good at this type of story.

The hero is a man on the way down in the world, having lost his job, through being the fall guy for someone else's mistake. At almost the bottom of the barrel, he suddenly finds a glimmer of hope, and starts to head back up again. through the story we also learn a lot about the aviation industry and the rules and regulations that pilots have to obey. Trying to save his girlfriends life, and that of the Champion jockey gets him into all sorts of bother, but he does it anyway.

There are light pointers to what is behind the madness - fraud - large scale, although the numbers might seem small in todays terms, but back in the 70's a million here or there was a great deal of money.

The discovery of the bomb is quite accidental, it was never meant to be found, and never meant to be detonated in mid air, it was just a 'scarer' to persuade more people to join the insurance scam. Once Matt, realises this, and meets the 'dupe' who will take the fall, it is only then that the man behind the scheme takes notice and starts to direct his attention to the hero.

So a typical early Francis novel, the style is refined, the attention to detail clear, and the characters the usual light sketches. It is however an accomplished book, and a quick easy read, as you try to get who and what is going on. It is what makes most of his books a joy to read. It also reminds us of an era gone by.

It seems almost impossible to imagine that this book was written over 40 years ago. Apart from the monetary amounts, it is still relevant today. How many of todays novels will still be around 40 years after publication? The copy I have is the 18th reprint from 1978. I tried to work out from Amazon what the current print is, but it seems to be lost in various box sets. However if you don't have the book in your collection go out and buy it!

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