Downhill gallop and trot

Press, 2 July 1983, Page 18

Downhill gallop and trot

Twice Shy. By Dick Francis. Pan, 1983. 269 pp. $4.95 (paperback).

(Reviewed by

Ken Strongman)

In the recent annals of crime fiction there is a little known book by Jeremy Potter entitled “Hazard Chase.” It is not a marvellous example of what those who are nostalgic about fourth form French call “the genre,” but it works. The reason it works is because it enmeshes the reader in the net of a hitherto unknown world. The plot depends on the complex game of real tennis about which one can claim some expertise at the end of the book. So it is with Dick Francis. One of the reasons he has been so successful is that he introduces the reader to the even more intricate world of horseracing. And for the reader with a misspent youth, to whom this world is already familiar, there are the intriguing crimes. “Twice Shy” is completely typical of the books which have fled annually from the Francis pen. Its pace is a mixture of gallop and trot, the heroes (two brothers) occasionally take a tumble, but also spend some of their time out to stud. The plot is slightly updated by having it centred loosely on a “system,” but one that has been computerised. So the action is

interspersed with talk of computer languages and codes. No, let’s be honest, computer double-talk gets in the way of the action. “Twice Shy” is probably not as good as the previous yearlings from the Francis stable. The same could be said of each in turn as it has appeared. Like so many others in the crime/adventure tradition, Francis has become steadily worse since the heady days of “Nerve” and “Dead Cert.” I can think of no exception to this generalisation. Whey should it be? Possibly, it is very difficult to keep up the same standard year after year. They could write, say, every three years instead, but perhaps there are good Inland Revenue reasons not to. The other possibility is that after the first best seller, they are guaranteed future best sellers, so it may not seem to be worth repeating the original effort. And fools like me go on buying them (except when I am sent them for review) in the hope that this one will be as good as they used to be. It never is, and it probably never will be. Still, “Twice Shy” is cheap enough and is probably worth buying just to make certain of the set.