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19th out of 36 books
—
45 voters
The Edge
by
Dick Francis
A high-class, transcontinental horse-racing junket should be an idyllic getaway for the super-rich.
But one passenger on this train is a sociopath, a genius at blackmail and criminal corruption—and he plans to take everyone for everything they've got.
But one passenger on this train is a sociopath, a genius at blackmail and criminal corruption—and he plans to take everyone for everything they've got.
Paperback, 368 pages
Published
August 2nd 2005
by Berkley
(first published 1988)
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THE EDGE - G+
Francis, Dick - 27th book
A Great Transcontinental Mystery Race, a glittering rail junket that not only promises the opportunity to race a thoroughbred on some of the world's great courses, but something more: an intriguing mystery to be enacted on board, which passengers will be invited to solve. But included on the guest list is one Julius Apollo Filmer, justifiably reputed to be the most ruthless operator lurking in the racing underworld, and he's planning a strange plot of his ow...more
Francis, Dick - 27th book
A Great Transcontinental Mystery Race, a glittering rail junket that not only promises the opportunity to race a thoroughbred on some of the world's great courses, but something more: an intriguing mystery to be enacted on board, which passengers will be invited to solve. But included on the guest list is one Julius Apollo Filmer, justifiably reputed to be the most ruthless operator lurking in the racing underworld, and he's planning a strange plot of his ow...more
Reading an old favorite for some escapism! I love Dick Francis and Tony Hillerman for a good mystery.
Unlike most of Francis' works, this one takes place on a train. Like most, this one also revolves around horses.
The Canadians are trying to set themselves up as the next big thing in race-horsing and to advertise their racing season, they've decided to feature special races and also organize for a traveling jaunt across the country for owners and racegoers by a special train. The cross country experience offers splendid meals on wheels, a 'live' mystery put on by special actors and an opportuni...more
The Canadians are trying to set themselves up as the next big thing in race-horsing and to advertise their racing season, they've decided to feature special races and also organize for a traveling jaunt across the country for owners and racegoers by a special train. The cross country experience offers splendid meals on wheels, a 'live' mystery put on by special actors and an opportuni...more
Feb 13, 2013
Kwoomac
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Shelves:
formulaic,
adventure,
brit-lit,
2013,
amateur-sleuth,
repeat-read,
mystery,
road-trip,
unlikely-hero,
reviewed,
suspense,
safe-bet
This was not one of my favorite Dick Francis novels and it tool me awhile to sort out why. It certainly had all the right components in the protagonist, Tor Kelsey. Orphaned (sort of): check. Average guy with above average talents: check. Instalove with slow build up: check. Clever bad guy: check. Even more clever good guy: check.. So what was missing? For me, it was the lack of a relationship between Tor and the bad guy.
Julius Apollo Filmer (bad guy) doesn't even know Tor exists. Tor works for...more
Julius Apollo Filmer (bad guy) doesn't even know Tor exists. Tor works for...more
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What is there to say about Dick Francis? As I think about all of his books (yes, this review covers all of his books, and yes I've read them all) I think about a moral ethical hero, steeped in intelligence and goodness embroiled in evil machinations within British horse racing society - either directly or indirectly. The heroes aren't always horse jockies, they can be film producers, or involve heroes engaged in peripheral professions that somehow always touch the horse racing world.
But more tha...more
But more tha...more
May 15, 2011
Mrsgaskell
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Mrsgaskell by:
Noreen
Shelves:
9-star
I thoroughly enjoyed this mystery! A friend lent it to me since it involves a cross-Canada (well, Toronto to Vancouver) rail trip and Mr. G and I are leaving tomorrow, travelling VIA Rail Winnipeg to Vancouver. This book has really put me in the mood. It's the second Dick Francis I've read and I expect I will read more whenever I want some easy reading. Tor Kelsey is an undercover investigator for the English Jockey Club and Julius Apollo Filmer is a racecourse villain likely responsible for the...more
All of his books are great. The hero is always someone who is modest, intelligent and clever, but human. The bad guy is always clearly bad, but the world he paints (usually to do with steeplechase horse racing) is magical. I'd read any one of his books and often do reread them for comfort.
2 likes · like · see review
As usual, Dick Francis has constructed a plot so engaging that one hates to go do anything else besides read. Lots of new information, description that entwines one in the story and a most satisfying ending where the bad guys get their comeuppence. I do love his fiction books!
1 like · like · see review
This was a somewhat different kind of story as it was neither a typical mystery (one knew whodunit from the opening pages) nor exactly an adventure. I guess it would qualify as a thriller.
It started out fairly slowly but built to a good conclusion. It was a good read but not really a page turner. My biggest problem with it was pace. maybe a bit too much cloak and not enough
dagger. It also did a lot of telling rather than showing, almost as if the original story was too long and reduced by turnin...more
It started out fairly slowly but built to a good conclusion. It was a good read but not really a page turner. My biggest problem with it was pace. maybe a bit too much cloak and not enough
dagger. It also did a lot of telling rather than showing, almost as if the original story was too long and reduced by turnin...more
Tor Kelsey, 29 years old has a job with the British Jockey Security after years of wandering the world. He doesn’t need the job, having inherited a fortune, but he likes the work, traveling anonymously around to the various tracks and looking for problems. He is picked to join a extravaganza of a cross Canada train ride with horse owners and their horses, stopping along the way for several races. He is epically is watching one Julius Appollo Filmer who the Jockey club has been trying to get blac...more
Definitely one of Dick Francis' best mysteries--although in this one the hero is not a jockey or former jockey. He is working at the tracks to get rid of 'evildoers' who would ruin racing. He stays very anonymous, until he has to accompany the Great Transcontinental Race Train (across Canada, stopping to allow the rich owners to race their favorit). This time Tor does not know who might be the bad guy or guys as they too are 'undercover'. There are many unusual characters on the train as well as...more
BEWARE. MANY PEOPLE ARE NOT WHAT THEY SEEM. So starts the Great Transcontinental Mystery Race Train as a means of promoting horse racing in Canada. The trip is sponsored by the Jockey Club and starts in Ottowa traveling west to Vancouver. Tor Kelsey, an investigator for the British Jockey Club is undercover as a waiter in order to watch the movements of Julius Apollo Filmer, known in the racing world to be a Troublemaker. It is thought that Filmer, who was a late addition to the passenger list...more
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I have read most of the Dick Francis novels and enjoyed them all for what they were. But, for some reason this is my all time favorite! Perhaps the train location...the cross Canada trip(something I have wanted to do since reading this book) or the main character reminding me of a loved one I don't know but I absolutely loved this one and it stands out in my mind from all the others by him.
I think that Dick Francis is my favorite suspense writer. Not too predictable. Intelligent prose. Strong characterizations, and always a tight plot.
Plot reminder: Tor Kelsey, an undercover agent, goes along on the Great Transcontinental Mystery Race train as an unassuming waiter, hoping to derail Julius Apollo Filmer's plans for mayhem before they derail the train and Canadian racing.
Plot reminder: Tor Kelsey, an undercover agent, goes along on the Great Transcontinental Mystery Race train as an unassuming waiter, hoping to derail Julius Apollo Filmer's plans for mayhem before they derail the train and Canadian racing.
Since Francis is writing w/ his son, the books are still in the same enjoyable format. You always learn something about horse racing and human nature. Intelligence and patience are always the virtues of the hero. This was a wonderful setting w/ a train ride across Canada. As to the plot, read other reviews. I still look for every new release and am never disappointed.
Pure escapism. Read because the action--in part--took place in Lake Louise (where we were vacationing). A fun but forgettable mystery.
Although they weren't common, the expletives the author throws in are strong.
Incidentally, having stayed at Lake Louise Chateau, it quickly because obvious that the author has never been there. That was disappointing.
Although they weren't common, the expletives the author throws in are strong.
Incidentally, having stayed at Lake Louise Chateau, it quickly because obvious that the author has never been there. That was disappointing.
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
A good enjoyable read that combines a good mystery with horses, a favorite of mine. The main character is a very likeable character who gets up to a lot of interesting adventures.
Unusual for a mystery in that the mystery is not WHOdunnit, but more what is the bad guy going to do next and how is he going to be made to pay for his crimes.
Unusual for a mystery in that the mystery is not WHOdunnit, but more what is the bad guy going to do next and how is he going to be made to pay for his crimes.
This was a very fun book to read. The lion's share of the story takes place on a transcontinental train which goes from Toronto to Vancouver. A very good mystery takes shape as the main character, affectionately known as the "invisible man", tries to foil the villain's attempts to derail the train. I highly recommend it.
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I liked this book, but I have loved other Dick Francis novels more. I mean, don't get me wrong, this book was good. His characters, as usual, were deep and multi-dimensional. They way he describes his characters and the different settings makes this book easy to read for me.
What can I say? Dick Francis is one of my guilty pleasures! A reliable storyteller, a satisfying outcome in which the bad guys get their comupance, and a hero always willing to take his lumps and keep on fighting for right are just the elements I need for a cozy winter read!
Aug 08, 2011
Alexis Neal
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
mystery,
breakfast-club
One of my favorite Francis books. Francis trades the typical setting of the English world for the Canadian countryside, as seen by rail. The hero is, as usual, quietly competent and prone to form sudden and inexplicable romantic connections. The bad guy is nefarious, to be sure, but not quite to psychopathic villain that plagues so many of Francis' other books. The mystery here is rather backwards, as well--the hero and his employers know full well who the bad guy is, and they spend the bulk of...more
I have read this one often, since I was little and I think it is one of the more interesting of his stories because of the shift from the usual strictly racecourse settings of his other books - in some ways he is stronger when he had to research outside of the raceworld he knew so well.
This is one of the best mystery books I have ever read. Dick Francis is an amazing author who not only writes well but gives closure to the ending in a realistic and plausible way. I LOVED it. If you like mysteries and have not ready one of Dick Francis' books...you are missing out!
Mar 22, 2013
Shirley
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Mystery and horse or racing fans
Shelves:
mystery
Enjoyable Dick Francis tale. The nearly invisible Tommy (Tor) stalks the Jockey Club's nemesis on a train through Canada. Much less reliance on the race track as setting, but still within the world of racing owners.
I loved this book! The only murder happens almost incidentally to the story and before the action begins, but the main character is fabulous and what he goes through in catching the villain is quite entertaining.
I have been reading Dick Francis books since I was about 14 and my mum owns them all and I've read all of them several times. They seem dated now and not quite as good anymore, but they've been part of my life for a long time. I particularly enjoyed this one, set on a Canadian transcontinental train journey with a great plot. It was always one of my favourites so despite my reading taste changing, this is a great read and thriller and I will no doubt read it again in time.
I really enjoyed this book. The main character was very likeable and the plot was good. This was not really a mystery as there is never any doubt about the identity of the villain. The hold he had over various other people was an unknown and how he is brought down is interesting.
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| Dick Francis Read...: Questions for a Book Club Discussion | 8 | 18 | Jan 10, 2012 07:49pm |
Dick Francis CBE (born Richard Stanley Francis) was a popular British horse racing crime writer and retired jockey.
Series:
* Sid Halley Mystery
* Kit Fielding Mystery
More about Dick Francis...
Series:
* Sid Halley Mystery
* Kit Fielding Mystery
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“Yet all we had was here and now, and here and now was always where the struggle toward goodness had to be fought. Toward virtue, morality, uprightness, order: call it what one liked. A long ever-recurring battle.”
—
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