At Risk...

[fajrdrako]

I just finished reading At Risk by Kit Ehrman. Recommended to me by my friend Lisa, also a mystery lover and a fan of Dick Francis.

This is very like Dick Francis, except American. For reasons I couldn't quite understand, the hero, Steve Cline, didn't have that extra but of heartbreaking appeal that Dick Francis heroes usually have for me, though the women were similarly two-dimensional, and the horses, if anything, more convincing than the humans.

Still: a good read. Great action. The situation (without spoilers): Steve Cline, the disowned son of a wealthy surgeon, manages a successful horse barn with two hundred horses, and spends his his time dealing with demanding horse owners, annoying trainers, beautiful riders, and casual employees of varying competence. When he stumbles upon a horse-stealing racket, he determines to find the thieves, and discovers crimes far more wide-reaching, including murder.

There's a nice sense of tension to the story, and though I was guessing along the right lines, there was enough in the plot to keep me guessing as to where it was going and who the real villain or villains were.

I plan to read more - there seem to be several in this series.

Comments

[sartorias.livejournal.com]

Noting down. I do like Dick Francis a lot.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Yes, Dick Francis is one of my very favourites and though Kit Ehrman doesn't quite have that extra that makes Dick Francis so wonderful, he comes very close.

[threeringedmoon.livejournal.com]

I suppose I will have to give Ehrman a try, even though I have a very hard time with books involving horse murders.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I had to think to see if there's actually a horse murder in the novel - most of the murders are of humans. And yes, there is one horse death, unfortunately.

I don't know horses well but I thought the horses depicted really had personality.

[threeringedmoon.livejournal.com]

Thanks. I'm the woman who had to be reassured about the fates of the horses involved before I could finish Smiley's Horse Heaven.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

There's a scary bit where the hero is afraid the villains are going to set fire to the horse barn - something he really has no way of preventing. This is a spoiler, but I'm happy to tell you that it doesn't happen.

[threeringedmoon.livejournal.com]

I've put four books by Ehrman on reserve at the library. Thanks!

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I'm putting in a request for #2. If you get to it before I do, I look forward to hearing what you think.