Former Champion Jockey Sid Halley knows the perils of racing all too well – but in his day, jockeys didn’t usually cross the finishing line with three .38 rounds in the chest. And this is precisely how he finds jockey Huw Walker – who had won the coveted Triumph Hurdle only a few hours earlier.
Just moments before the gruesome discovery, Halley had been called upon by Lord Enstone to make discrete enquiries into why his horses appeared to be on a permanent losing streak. Are races being fixed? Are bookies taking a cut? And if so, are trainers and jockeys playing a dangerous game with stakes far higher than they realize? Halley’s quest for answers draws him ever deeper into the darker side of the race game, in a life-or-death power play that will push him to his very limits . . .
Packed with intrigue and hair-raising suspense, Under Orders is just one of the many blockbuster thrillers from legendary crime writer Dick Francis.