WHIP HAND

After a dull departure into spy/terrorism (Trial Run), Francis clearly wants to get back on the track—and he does it by reviving lame ex-jockey/private-eye Sid Halley (Odds Against, 1966), whose sleuthing led to his losing a hand (he now has a nifty motorized one). Despite such disabilities, narrator Sid takes on three simultaneous cases here: one for friendship (figuring out why a trainer's most promising horses have all been losing, then dying); one for love (tracking down the con-man who has made an unwitting criminal out of Sid's bitter ex-wife Jenny); and one for profit (checking up on a crooked racing official). Francis fans will not be surprised to learn that Sid's snooping brings him physical ordeals—locked in a horse trailer, beaten with chains. But there's also a delightfully surprising balloon race (Sid needs to interview the balloonist), Francis sentiment at its best (Sid's relationship with his beloved ex-father-in-law), and a nice enough final twist. True, some will find Sid's heroism a bit much ("Isn't there anything . . . that you're afraid of?" the villain asks Sid in the book's last line); and the triple-focus—perhaps designed for the TV version to be seen here in the spring—never equals the impact of the best, relentless Francis adventures. But, even if not quite topnotch, this is the steeplechaser in his old, tough, vivid manner, a solid winner in just about any mystery/adventure race around.