Come to Grief [Unabridged] [Paperback]

Dick Francis (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1996

'This is Francis writing at his very best' Evening Standard Sid Halley, the ex-champion jockey turned investigator who appears in Odds Against and Whip Hand, is back. In Come to Grief he faces new dangers, new deeply demanding decisions. Sid has uncovered an obnoxious crime committed by a friend whom he - and everyone else - has held in deep affection. On the morning set for the opening of the friend's trial, at which sid is due to be called as a witness, other people's miseries explode and send him spinning into days of hard rational detection and heart-searching torment. Troubled, courageous and unwilling to admit defeat, for Sid Halley it is business as usual.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Dick Francis brings back Sid Halley, champion jockey-turned-PI of his earlier novels Whip Hand and Odds Against, in this troubling story. Ellis Quint has everything he could want: fame, youth, money, good looks, and talent. What Sid has to figure out is why his friend Ellis also has a streak of sadism that leads him to cut off horses' hooves in the dead of night. Sid's search for the truth leads him into the lowest depths of human nature. Winner of the Edgar Award for best mystery novel. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

Francis fans will welcome the return of narrator Sid Halley (Odds Against; Whip Hand) as the one-handed PI and ex-jockey takes on a case of multiple mutilations of thoroughbreds; unnervingly, the amputation of the animals' front left hooves mirrors Sid's own injury. The investigator soon realizes that the man behind the crimes is his old friend Ellis Quint, ex-gentleman jockey and now a beloved TV host. Sick at heart, Sid builds a strong case; but, when Quint is charged, British law bars any public discussion of the case, rendering Sid mute at the huge public backlash against him. Particularly vicious and unrelenting is The Pump, a garish tabloid. When another mutilation occurs and Ellis has a seemingly unbreakable alibi, Sid finds some odd connections between a business tycoon, The Pump's noble owner and Ellis. Finally, the honorable, brave and thoroughly decent Sid faces his worst nightmare?the loss of his good hand?while doing what he must. A subplot about a little girl with leukemia offers some touching sentiment, and there are flashes of dry wit throughout as Francis, who turns 75 later this year, proves himself still at the top of his game. BOMC featured alternate; Reader's Digest Condensed Book; simultaneous Simon & Schuster audio; author tour.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Pan Books (December 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0330347772
• ISBN-13: 978-0330347778
• Product Dimensions: 1.2 x 4.5 x 7.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,696,272 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ex-jockey turned PI Sid Halley bravely faces demons & ghosts, October 13, 1997

By 

JB LeBout "ding dong lady" (Central Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Come to Grief (Paperback)

Francis addicts will cheer on "friend" Sid Halley as he faces old ghosts (first wife), old demons (as in WHIP HAND), and new demons (his friend & that of a little girl's fatal disease). The best part of any Dick Francis book are his characters. You always LIKE them. The action keeps you turning the pages, but the characters have you on their side cheering for them. COME TO GRIEF is no different. There are mixed feelings at the end of every Dick Francis book: good, the character is OK; and nuts, now the character is gone away because the book is finished. It has been nice to welcome back Sid Halley for the third time.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Sophisticated Thriller, August 24, 2009

By 

Miz Ellen "all the letters of my real name" (Bovine Universe) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Come to Grief (Paperback)

Dick Francis wrote only three books about Sid Halley, a former jockey turned investigator, and in each book, Sid and his views about his crippling injury change just a little.

In COME TO GRIEF, Francis tells us right up front who the villain is, a "least likely" suspect indeed. Ellis Quint is a former champion amateur jockey, a friend and rival to Sid in his halcyon days, and a man who has gone on to outstanding success as a TV commentator and talk show host. So why would such a man stoop to crippling ponies and racehorses by chopping off their feet?

It's a mesmerizing picture: Sid reluctantly investigating and Ellis going to the brink, both men sharing a nature that loves and craves risk. Francis points this up in the character of Jonathan, a bored almost-delinquent, who got into trouble with his friends for stealing a car. Jonathan at this point could go either way: full fledged criminal or hot-shot investigator.

As in all Dick Francis, there's such forward momentum to the plot that the book is hard to put down. Even though we know "who done it" it's not apparent that the criminal will ever be found guilty. I peg this as one of Francis's best.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Puzzling Book, September 4, 2001

By 

Martha E. Nelson (Watertown, Wisconsin) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Come to Grief (Paperback)

I will admit going into this that I am more than halfway in love with Sid Halley. However, we would not be a good match, since I, like his ex-wife, would be aggravated because he wouldn't be reliable and be home on time for dinner.

Levity aside, I am predisposed to like and of Francis' books about Halley, and there are things I like here. I like Sid having a chance to develop relationships with some people and having a chance to genuinely love, as he does with the little girl with leukemia here. I also really want him to have a satisfying relationship, and he seems to be interested in that, although I don't think the love interest in this one is as pleansant or as good a prospect as in Whiphand.

However, as some other reviewers have noted, this seems to be a rather mean-spirited book. I don't understand why the handsome man who appears to have everything stoops to mutilating horses, and I don't understand what the fundamental message about human nature is here. I think Francis was really trying to say something profound here, but I can't get to it. I was left feeling like I missed something important, and it made me frustrated and sad.