Firsts by Francis

This year, I decided that one of my more attainable goals would be to read the entire Dick Francis backlist. One, although I couldn’t plot one to save my life, I enjoy reading mysteries. Keeps the brain cells busy. Two, I have never wholly recovered from my girlhood horse obsession. Therefore, Dick Francis books, written by a British ex-steeplechase jockey and usually set either in or tangential to racing, have been a perfect match for years. But I’ve never read all of them. This year, I decided to rectify that fact.

Francis, who was once rode for Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, was champion jockey back in the 50s. When injury ended his career, he became a racing correspondent and in 1962, a novelist. One novel a year followed each year until 2000, the year his wife and chief researcher, Mary, died. Now he’s helped by his son, Felix, and has released three books since. I’ve read all of them except Silks, the current release (I have it on hold at the library).

One thing about Francis, the man is consistent. Although some books are stronger than others, none of them are stinkers. They’re all strongly written in first person. The viewpoint character is often someone involved in racing: a jockey, a correspondent, a trainer. What’s cool about Francis is how he’s able to weave in his research so beautifully. Various books have employed a film director, a wine merchant, a meteorologist, a chef, an architect, an artist, an investment banker, a glassblower, a writer of survival guides (you never know when you’ll be left for dead in the calm English countryside!), a one-handed ex-jockey turned private investigator (I love me some Sid Halley!), and others as the viewpoint character. During the read, you learn amazing details of those worlds, woven in so smoothly that you don’t realize how much you’re learning. Now that’s good writing.

And it’s not just me who thinks so. Francis is the only three-time winner of the Mystery Writers of America’s Edgar Award, and he is also an MWA Grand Master. Not too shabby for someone who used to ride horses for a living. I enjoyed my gallops through the Francis backlist–once I get started on one, it’s a race to the finish–and I learned a lot about solid writing doing so. Create strong characters with unique skills and interests, don’t tell everything you know right away, give them a strong moral core so they can realistically keep outwitting the bad guys (who are often truly bad and ruthless to boot), and you’ll create some unforgettable books. Here are some of my favorite first lines:

Odds Against – I was never particularly keen on my job before the day I got shot and nearly lost it, along with my life.
Risk – Thursday, March 17, I spent the morning in anxiety, the afternoon in ecstasy, and the evening unconscious.
Whip Hand – (Edgar Award winner) I took the battery out of my arm and fed it into the recharger, and only realized I’d done it when ten seconds later the fingers wouldn’t work.
Proof – Agony is socially unacceptable.
Bolt – Bitter February, within and without.
Straight – I inherited my brother’s life.