Under Orders (Sid Halley series Book 4)

This is another fine Dick Francis novel. It's amazing how his formulaic plots can each feel fresh and exciting. This story is about a private detective trying to solve a case involving the murder of a jockey and the apparent suicide of a race horse trainer. As Sid Halley, the detective, tries to unravel the mysteries surrounding these deaths, he must try to protect his girlfriend, who has been assaulted as a warning to halt the investigation. His decision to continue investigating places them both in deadly danger. This very satisfying story is filled with violence, romance, cutting edge DNA evidence and excitement. It is highly recommended.

I first encountered this book so many years ago that upon rereading the sample, I couldn't remember it. So I bought it again. Normally rereading an old mystery novel is not much of a pleasure, but even after a few key scenes had reminded me that I had read it before, "Under Orders" remained a pleasure of the first water. Francis' excellent plotting and remarkable characters are standard for his work, but nonetheless the real reason for his readers' pleasure. Can't recommend it enough; you'll be happy if you risk your ten bucks on it. 10 on the nose to win at any odds you like.

I have been reading Dick Francis since high school, and actually read the first the year it was published. I’ve always enjoyed the Sid Halley books especially and was delighted to find this one. How did I manage to miss this? Francis was a master of pacing and knew exactly how to set the hook. I reread so many of his books regularly, and will be rereading all the Sid Halley’s in order, starting tonight! You owe it to yourself to do the same.

I love Dick Francis and buy kindle editions when under $3. I bought this at $6.99 because Amazon said it would give me a $5 credit if I did. I did and they didn’t. Boo hoo. [Later, to make up for the "technical problems" they said they did issue a $5 credit. So, no harm no foul.] So as for the book itself, I love all Francis books, including the newer ones by Felix Francis. But I will have to wait and re-read this particular one some other time.!

Dick Francis made this book intriguing and exciting! There were stories within stories and I had to really think to keep up. Sid Halley is a brilliant, brave character who is not larger than life, but realistic. His words give me a sense of how difficult it would be to function with only one hand. In that sense, he should be a sympathetic character, but he does not demand it. Instead, he demonstrates great strength and resolve in overcoming all impediments to truth and justice. Marina is exactly whom he needs and is a wonderful addition to the story line. I highly recommend this book.

And now I can say it: Dick Francis is back! Having believed that the author had retired after the passing of his wife Mary, who was his main researcher and collaborator, I was happily stunned when I heard about this new book, Under Orders. I was never so happy to get a package from the mailman. I read the book in one sitting, finished it in the wee hours and then fell asleep at work - but it's all good. Let me reiterate: Dick Francis is back. And he seems to have recovered some of his old pizzazz. His last two novels (Second Wind & Shattered) have, quite frankly, disappointed me as they've failed to maintain the author's usual keen sense of narrative drive and incisive portrayal of the priveleged versus the underpriveleged. Not fully present, also, in these prior two books, were his normally absorbing British charm and sensibilities, as well as his ability to ingratiate his characters with the reader. They certainly didn't resonate as deeply as his prior bestsellers. But, never mind. Dick Francis has finally returned. And he's brought with him his most dependable and most intrepid hero, Sid Halley.This is Francis's fourth book starring Halley. The prior three are Odds Against (1965), Whip Hand (1979), and Come to Grief (1995). Those books chronicle Halley's exploits as crippled ex-jockey turned private eye. Sid Halley, with his prosthetic left hand, inner angst, and gritty, steely determination, has proven to be Francis's most popular character. Although almost all of Francis's protagonists tend to be sympathetic in nature and suffer through strife with great resolve, the pathos with which the author surrounds Halley seems to be more intensely felt by the reader and makes him the most endearing. Sid Halley, in my personal book, is right up there with Kit Fielding and Rob Finn as a great Dick Francis character.Under Orders finds Sid Halley as a 38 year old still toiling away in private investigations. He and his mentor and ex-father-in-law Charles Rowland venture out to the races, to the Cheltenham Gold Cup. The plot is very quickly layed down with three separate racetrack deaths: a racegoer suffers a fatal cardiac arrest, a winning jockey is shot, and a beloved champion racehorse collapses and dies. Halley finds himself embroiled in the doings when he is asked to look into why an imperious Lord's horses aren't winning. Then, he is implored by the dead jockey's father to find the killer. Finally, he is commissioned to investigate possible corruption involving the issuance of racehorse betting permits and licenses. Three cases, three possible sources of danger, or are they all somehow related? Things get more confusing when a trainer is found with the back of his head blown off and the gun in his hand. But is it truly suicide? Sid doesn't know yet. All he knows is that his current girlfriend, the beautiful Marina van der Meer, is being threatened with bodily harm if Sid doesn't back off. Threats to his person have never dissuaded Halley, but, this time, someone he loves is at risk. Will he back down? The police doesn't seem to care, as the constabulary find themselves with bigger fish to fry. So, ultimately, it's up to our one-handed sleuth.Like I said, I tore thru this in one sitting. Dick Francis is back in full form, as I found Under Orders a compelling read. Over the years, this author has become like comfort food to me, and, as the first chapters sped by, I relaxed and sank into the story, content that this old master has again come out a with a winner. The story is new but the feel of it is mostly vintage Francis. All the elements are here, which made Dick Francis the preferred mystery author of choice.The mystery itself wasn't the best he's put out, but it was engrossing enough. This time he throws in plotlines involving on-line gambling, DNA science, and that dirt-dishing newsrag The Pump. He also brings back some of Halley's supporting characters, most notably the retired Admiral Charles Rowland and his daughter and Sid's ex-wife, the caustic Jenny. The last book Come to Grief offered somewhat of a resolution to the bitter feud between Sid and Jenny. This book actually puts more of a closure to that relationship.Now, I'm not a betting man, so I did find the passages regarding Internet gambling to be dry reading. And I did find it unbelievable that Sid Halley didn't know what APB stood for. But, those are trifling things. Under Orders is close enough to the top of his best efforts that I truly consider this a triumphant return by Dick Francis. Here's hoping it doesn't take another six years before his next book. Recommended (of course).

This really isn't Dick Francis at his best and at times I found my attention wandering. However it was written just after the death of his wife who had so greatly influenced many of my favourites, and towards the end of the author's own life, so one can make allowances.I wish, though, that Dick Francis hadn't revisited his Sid Halley character. He seemed if anything rather out of character, and I didn't care for his 'fiancee' Marina either. The whole thing felt tired and a little overworked, although at times the plot showed some of the old zest and the final scene was as exciting as ever.Would I read it again? Doubtful. I'd choose one of the others instead...

The reviews of this book are mixed, and rightly so, I have put off reading this since I bought it when it first came out. Well, I'm reading it now and at the moment have reached page 120 with mixed feelings. I have read all his previous books and really enjoyed them, sometimes staying up into the small hours to finish a tale.I have also enjoyed the previous 'Halley' stories. Now, this is the point of my review - I have only got one arm, I've been like that since birth, so I am not sensative about it. I have set of alarms going through security, had my food cut for me in restaurants etc, etc. In this novel, I finally tired of the continued references to the artificial limb and the problems arising from his disability. I thought it cheap page fillers.With reference to the author, I believe he should have remained retired and left us with great memories of a great thriller writer, this is a book too far. He passed away recently and I was sad at his passing. I will remember him for pleasure he gave with his previous gripping, brilliant novels and try to forget this one.RIP Dick Francis.

I used to read a lot of Dick Francis books, but stopped a few years ago. When I needed to read a book about sport for a reading challenge, I decided on this. It's a thoroughly good read, fast-paced and very enjoyable. I will definitely be continuing where I left off with this author!

a very good read by this great British Author like all of Mr. Francis's books themed around the Horse Racing world but a brilliant detective story.you do not need to know anything about racing or how it works, just sit back and enjoy the book as it is.this helped me complete my Dick Francis collection.

This is a good Dick Francis novel written when there were no mobiles but it is still readable for the story. It is a shame he did not write more books in his lifetime. Good on him. jc.