A compelling tale of greed - Last Hurrah takes Francis genre to the digital age

Last Hurrah by Robin Dawson
£15.99, published by Robin Dawson

Racinghasalwayshadatendencytolenditselftoscandal. Doping, race-fixing, fraud; thesporthasneverbeenfarfrom controversy but rumoursofwrongdoingoftenamountsimplytoinnuendo, satisfyingnothingmorethanafeverishneedforgossip andfeeding a seeminglyinsatiablepublic interest inracing'sdarkunderbelly.

Sincethemid 20thcentury, novelistshavesuccessfullytappedintothisparticulardramaticfont. DickFrancis, ofcourse, wasthetrailblazerandmanyofuswillonlybetoofamiliarwithhistropesofthe crookedjockeyorthebookiewithstickyfingers.

Francis, whodiedin2010, wroteaboutasimplerworld, oneyettohavebeenrenderedalmostunrecognisableafterarapiddigitalfacelift. RobinDawsonisthelatesttopickupthemantle, andhisdebutnovel LastHurrah bringsthegenreintothemodernage.

Breathlessandfast-pacedfromtheoutset, LastHurrahcarriesthereaderonajourneythroughthebroadlandscapeofinternationalracingwhileinterweavinganexcitingandcontemporarynarrative.

Theleadcharacter TomFraser is alikeableaspiringamateurjockeywhobecomesembroiledinamysterioussagaaftertheapparentmurderofhisfather andtheomnipresenceofdangerousVenezuelanbillionaire HectorDelmonte.

Thestoryisanacknowledgmentoftheglobalenterprisethatismodernhorseracing. PulledfromCheltenham toKentucky, toDubai, toAscotandevenBangalore, thereader, throughFraser, isexposedtothevaryingflavoursofinternationalracing.

Dawson – who plans to donate a substantial portion of the revenue accrued through sales of the book to the Injured Jockeys Fund –writeswiththeauthorityofamanwhohasseenandexperiencedtheseplaceshimself. Timeworking at the stables of NoelMurlessinBritain and AlecHeadinFrance,beforetrainingstintsintheUSandCanada, informhiswritingandhissubtlenodstotheidiosyncrasiesofthesedifferentregionsareadelight.

Yet, foralltheattentionpaidtopaintingtheselocationsinperfectdetail therealengineisDawson'sabilitytomaintain dramaandintriguethroughout445pages.

Tom's loyalty to his family and drive to restore order at the family's farm bringhimfacetofacewithadangerousenemy, whosepower, influenceandshadybusinessinterestsmakehimtheperfectcounterweighttoourhonesthero.

Asis customary inthemodernage, 'spoilers' are bestavoidedwherepossible,butinthecaseofthisgenuinepage-turneritisessentialthereaderarrivesabsentofanypreconceivednotions.

Thestoryisgripping, thewritingfast-pacedandthetwists are unexpectedand gratifying. Whatmorecouldoneask of a bookadvertisingitselfas "acompellingtaleofgreed, control, self-preservationandvindication"?

Fromthisseat, Dawsondeliversoneachindrovesbeforedelightingexhaustedyetexhilaratedreadersatstory'sendbyofferinganamuse-boucheforthesequeltoLastHurrah, SettlingTheScore.

One hopes thenextchapterafter thismostenjoyableofdebutnovels will deliver the same sort of punch, verve and fun as its predecessor. After all, such things have been sorely lacking this year.

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