High Flyer

by John Francome

If everyone else was fighting dirty, could you rise above it?Ex-jockey and Channel 4 broadcaster John Francome explores blackmail on the racecourse in his shocking racing thriller High Flyer. The perfect read for fans of Felix Francis' Pulse and Triple Crown.'Mr Francome is a natural storyteller' - New York Times Life hasn't been easy for Joey Leatham. As a tiny orphan he had to fight to survive. Then he escaped to a circus, where he was captivated by Nina Korsakov and discovered an affinity with horses, but a trapeze accident forced him to leave to join his brother as an apprentice jockey in Newmarket.Suddenly his lack of size is an advantage and Joey becomes one of the most sought-after jockeys in Europe. Success brings him happiness for the first time in his life. Then, by an ironic twist of fate, he is blackmailed. Despite his innocence, Joey knows that his tormentor could ruin his career as well as his relationship with Nina. When he discovers his only witness has been murdered, he fears he will be paying for the rest of his life. But how can he reveal the identity of his blackmailer? And how long can he hold out?What readers are saying about High 'Could not put it down - great from start to finish''Had me gripped all the way through''Excellent as always'

356 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Ex-National Hunt Champion Jockey John Francome is a broadcaster on racing for Channel 4. He lives in Berkshire.
See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Fra...

Reviews

[Clare O'Beara · Rating 4 out of 5]

More about people than horses, with a look at racing and trick riding in a circus. A team of Cossack riders is involved. At the start we see a stallion returned from stud to race, but he's known to be dangerous and unfortunately harms some people. The author suggests that the horse associated the smell of disinfectant with getting hurt, and behaved aggressively because of that.
A jockey gets a blackmail message in the middle of a good season. He tries to look into who is doing this and why. This is an adult read.

[Jo Grossman · Rating 5 out of 5]

High Flyer

As always,a great plot and great characters. Perfectly paced. So well composed,you can smell the course,hear the voices,and the thud of horses hooves. Thanks again John Francome.

[Kim Campbell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad

I quite enjoyed this, though I did think it was all a little far fetched in places. I guessed most of it, or I suppose I should say, I guessed the main person who was behind it. All in all it wasn't too bad.

[Frank Mcmanus · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s was a great read and could not leave it down .

[Helle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I could probably copy my reviews of the previous two novels by John Francome that I read. High Flyer is again enjoyable, but lacks the depth to make a lasting impression. It is the kind of book that makes me agree with fans of Dick Francis, who believe that John Francome is a pale shadow compared to Francis. Too bad, because I have read other books that show Francome can actually write a really good horse-racing mystery.

[Mike · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very weak plot and highly unbelieveable events and characters. For instance no one could believe that Joey has the inner qualities to be a champion jockey. The book lacks freshness in most aspects. The writing flows well enough but the whole thing is rather too silly. There needs to be more substance behind the technical freedom with words.