If there is one trait above all else that a jockey needs in steeplechase racing, it’s nerve. Junior jockey Rob Finn has plenty of it. The rest of his family have made it big in the world of classical music, but Rob never fit into that world, instead being drawn to the active and risky world of horse racing. But just when he had caught his big break and was finally getting rides, wins, and the recognition that goes with it, everything comes tumbling down. After a nasty fall during a race, a string of last place finishes just about does him in. They’re saying he’s lost his nerve. But to Finn’s mind, there is something far more devious at play and he is determined to discover its source and get his revenge.

This is the second published work of fiction (1964) by the esteemed Dick Francis. The author was, himself, a champion steeplechase jockey so the horse racing scenes, the preparation activities for each race, and the overall racing business environment always ring true and full of authenticity. I think what I like best about Dick Francis novels is the way they are structured not just as detective or mystery plots, but as genuine stories. This novel, like most of his fictional work, is narrated by the main character which always brings an added feeling of “connection” with him. While I would not have made the same choices as Finn does, he does make rational choices true to his character. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this novel all the way through.

It’s been a long time since I’ve read a Dick Francis novel, but this one has jump-started my desire to add him into my regular rotation. Looking forward to a long list of must-reads to come.

This mystery/thriller opens with a bang, as a jockey shoots “himself, loudly and messily, in the center of the parade ring at Dunstable races.” Our protagonist, Rob Finn, is a fellow jockey who witnesses this horrific event. Rob is just starting his career and hasn’t had many good mounts, but he begins to win and captures the attention of trainers, owners and a local journalist with a popular television show on racing. But just as he is getting to the top of the field, things begin to go sour. His reputation in tatters, he is on the brink of despair when he thinks on his fellow jockeys and the troubles they’ve endured in the past year or two. Is someone sabotaging jockeys? Who? And Why?

Francis crafts a compelling psychological mystery. Finn is tenacious and determined. He’s also smart in the way he goes about ferreting out information to build the case against an unlikely perpetrator. I do not know much about steeplechase racing, but Francis gives enough detail to educate me without boring me. Some of the race scenes were quite thrilling; I almost felt as if I were jumping those fences right along with Finn and Template (the horse he was riding).

I came late to the Dick Francis fan club, but I’m glad I finally arrived.

For the full review -- including a rundown of the plot that doesn't involve spoilers -- follow the link to That's What She Read.

i really like the story and i think it's super interesting but the incest does make me a bit uncomfortable i cant lie LOL

I was listening to the audibook version and it was difficult to keep involved because the reader was a bit monotone, but he seemed to warm up to the story after a while. The plot was good and kept me interested. I found myself feeling sorry for the 'bad' guy but also felt like he got what he deserved.

A very early Francis, but just as enjoyable as all of his others. This time, our everyman hero is young steeplechase jockey Robb Finn. Robb is working hard to find rides and establish himself in the sport. He's just gaining ground when he get's a chance to substitute for an injured top jockey, and he's finally where he wants to be.

But someone is spreading bad rumors about jockeys, Robb included. And he's not going to stop until he finds out who and exacts his revenge. There is also an odd kissing cousins subplot that I'm not too sure about, but Robb is charming enough that I'll allow it.

As usual, 3 stars.

Dick Francis was well-known and well-loved for his taut, tightly-plotted mysteries, most of them set in or around the world of horse-racing. Nerve has always been one of my favorites.

The book begins with a bang -- literally. "Art Matthews shot himself, loudly and messily, in the center of the parade ring at Dunstable races." And with that, we're off. Something is deeply amiss in the racing world. Jockeys are being ruined by rumor and innuendo; Art's suicide and the later nervous breakdown of jockey Grant Oldham are merely the most obvious signs.

Narrator Rob Finn, a relatively unknown jockey, gets a lucky break when he is taken on as second string jockey by well-known trainer James Axminster. But when Rob takes a bad fall, then finds himself atop a string of slow, unresponsive horses -- several of them favorites to win -- he realizes that he, too, has fallen victim to whoever is trying to ruin jockeys. The difference is, Rob intends to fight back.

And fight back he does, eventually identifying the source of the rumors. But before he has a chance to prove it, the villain strikes harder, and Rob finds himself in a fight for his life.

One of the things that make Francis's books work so well is the liveliness of his descriptions. You aren't reading about the race course, you're there -- feeling the power of the horse beneath you, smelling the horses, hearing the crowds. I once read a review which said something to the effect of, 'only Francis could make a 10-foot fall from a balcony feel as agonizing as being shot.' As a jockey, Francis knew intimately the pain of a sprain, a broken bone, a fall. His descriptions of these are vivid and immediate. Don't get me wrong -- though there may be violence, accidental or deliberate, in a Dick Francis novel, it's graphic but never gratuitous, and rarely gory.

His main characters are equally real, and while they all share several characteristics -- tenacity, an ability to think logically, a certain tendency to take justice into their own hands, and above all courage in the face of their own fear -- I don't find (as some people complain) that they are the same person at all. Rob is an unusual jockey, born into a family of celebrated classical musicians but without musical talent. He's totally committed to racing, and hopelessly in love with his cousin Joanna. He's a real, three-dimensional person whose voice comes alive on the page. The secondary characters, while less developed for obvious reasons, are equally realistic and believable. It's the writing, the tight plot, but above all the characters that keep me returning to Nerve.


Review originally published at The Bookwyrm's Hoard.

FTC disclosure: This book is in my personal collection.