Customer Reviews
Francis is back on form - By: Expat, 03 Nov 2008 
Having avidly read everything Dick Francis has ever written, I was saddened although sympathetic when he retired from writing, as he always said he would, on the death of his wife. Then he produced Under Orders, & I was so disappointedin it that I was ready never to buy another of his books again. So when I saw this book on the shelf of my only supplier of English books for many miles I dithered about whether to shell out the euros & give him one more chance. To be honest, it was curiosity about what difference having his son as co-author would make - along with a limited choice of books on the shelf - that persuaded me to give the book a try. And very glad I am too that I did. The book is back to the old Francis formula - innocent narrator plunged into danger when involved unwittingly with nasty bad guys; love interest helps him outwit bad guys; good triumphsin the end. All fast-moving & unput-downable even if an undemanding read. I have to disagree with the critics who say Dick Francis is past his best: with the help of Felix Francis, he is back to exactly what he has done so wellin the past. I look forward to buying the next book written by the pair of them & hope it is up to the standard of this one.
Long live Dick Francis and Son! - By: C M Silver, 14 Aug 2008 
This is the gist of Dick Francis + Son's Dead Heat, about Max Moreton, a Gourmet Chef. The recipe: take a fillet of horseracing, add a poisoning, a bombing, polo, drugs, some nasty Russians, some dodgy Americans, & stir vigorously. Add orchestral music, murder, suspense, throwin some famous equine locations: Newmarket, Smiths Lawn, Tattersalls, fine dining, a good pinch of humour, together with a fluent & cohesive writing style.
I picked it off the shelf based on the horsey cover & the name of the author. Championship storyteller was accurate as I enjoyed the story much more than some of his recent novels, but found the picture misleading, as the horseracing genre is not the main focus.
The story is action packed & more graphic & detailedin ways you wish some of his earlier books had been. It does not compete with Jilly Cooper as a sexy horsey romp, or with the horseracing nitty gritty of John Francome's latest offerings, but will appeal to a broader thriller reading public, if the cover doesn't put them off.
Overall, a very enjoyable page turner.
Very weak - By: Catrin Nack, 13 Aug 2008 
As an avid fan of Dick Francis I couldn't escape to notice that his books did go somehow downhill since his wife has passed away. This book is co-written by Dick Francis'son, & I am afraid it does not get any better,in fact I feel this is the weakest work yet. The racing conncetion gets more & more unimportant (in fact the restaurant could have been anywhere, & just happens to bein Newmarket), there is no suspense whatsoever, even the dramatic scenes are "created" & fail to get youin a grip. Even the inevitable lovestory, that I used to enjoyin all the other books, is broing & forseeable.
Its a real shame, but its not enough to just have the Dick Francis name on the cover.
Very disappointing - By: P & S, 22 Jul 2008 I agree with previous reviewers - this book doesn't read like a Dick Francis. The dialogue is simplistic & bland, plot very thin, racing link extremely tenuous. DF's characters have always been very likeable heroes - but this one was just plain boring! The book had none of the charm of most DF novels. The cover was misleading - I was expecting a racing mystery, not cooking calamity! I kept on reading hoping it would get better, but it didn't.
I will re-read the original DF books & forget about Felix Francis.
Disappointing - By: Louise, 06 Apr 2008 
I have read most of Dick Francis's books, & enjoyed them. This book, however, was a big disappointment. Under the big "Dick Francis" on the cover of the book, there is a smaller "Felix Francis" &in my opinion it should be the other way round. The book does not read like it has been written by Dick Francis, & I really struggled to finish it. Disappointing.
