Slay Ride

About the Author:

Dick Francis

   Dick Francis wrote over 40 books and short stories, every one on the best sellers list. All of them were set in the world of horse racing and were somewhat autobiographical. He was jockey to Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother from 1953 to 1957. When he was forced to retire from racing after a serious fall, he turned to writing. His first book, The Sport of Queens, was his autobiography. He worked on the London Sunday Express for the next seventeen years. He published his first thriller, Dead Cert, in 1962 and wrote a book a year until his beloved wife’s death in 2000. His last book, Under Orders, was published in 2006.
   An unauthorized biography made the claim that Mary actually wrote the books, but there is no proof of that. Francis credited her for editing and collaborating on many of his later novels. His son Felix is a former private school teacher and is now Francis’ manager. His other son Merrick was a racehorse trainer and ran a horse transport business.  
   Sid Halley, a former steeplechase jockey with a prosthetic arm, is the protagonist in four books: Odds Against, Whip Hand, Come to Grief, and Under Orders. Two books feature Kit Fielding, based loosely on his son Merrick.
   Dick Francis is retired and now lives in the Cayman Islands.
   Dick Francis’ most recent books:
      Longshot (1990)
      Comeback (1991)
      Driving Force (1992)
      Decider (1993)
      Wild Horses (1994)
      To the Hilt (1996)
      10 Lb. Penalty (1997)
      Field of Thirteen (1998)
      Second Wind (1999)
      Shattered (2000)
      Under Orders (2006)

Other Books By Dick Francis: