Dick Francis wrote more than 40 international best-sellers. His first book was his autobiography The Sport of Queens, for which he was offered the aid of a ghostwriter, which he spurned. The book's success led to his becoming the racing correspondent for London's Sunday Express newspaper, and he continued in that job for 16 years. He set his first thriller, Dead Cert, published in 1962, in the world of horse racing, establishing a specialized niche for his work. Subsequently, he regularly produced a novel a year for the next 38 years, missing only 1998. Although all his books were set against a similar background, his male protagonists held a variety of jobs, including artist, investigator for the Jockey Club, pilot, and wine merchant. All the novels are narrated by the hero, who in the course of the story learns that he is more resourceful, brave, tricky than he had thought, and usually finds certain salvation for himself as well as bestowing it on others. In Dead Cert admiral should have won his race at Maidenhead, but an unexpected fall and the death of top jockey Bill Davidson gave jockey Alan York and his mount the win instead. But Alan recognized sabotage when he saw it and was not about to let a murderous act go unpunished, even if it meant risking his own life to bring his friend's killers to justice… Dead Cert is included in the "fiction core list" in Carol Alabaster's book Developing an Outstanding Core Collection: A Guide for Libraries by Carol Alabaster. Listen online to free English audiobook "Dead Cert” on our website to experience Dick Francis's novel.
