Dead Cert

For millionaire jockey Alan York, winning is a bonus. For Joe Nantwich, victory means no cushy backhanders; and for Bill Davidson, front running on strongly fancied Admiral, triumph means murder. His own.

©1962 Dick Francis (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

Book, narrator superb; recording quality poor

I find all the Dick Francis novels wonderful to listen to while in my car. Although I've read them all, some twice, Tony Britton's narration improves on the books -- the various accents he manages are a revelation (we don't read in accents, actually). I sympathize with the listener who didn't enjoy hearing Britton cover Joe's drunken whining, but it was as grating as the character was intended to be. The single great flaw is in the recording quality. It is remarkably uneven, both in volume and tone, such that different takes or sessions become extremely obvious. If this were a film, we'd be looking for the continuity director. In this case the engineer should be taken out and hung.

excellent

This reading of Dead Cert is a pleasure. The narrator, Tony Britton, is superb. The individual characters are distinct, and Britton reads with panache.

A great novel

Well performed! (I agree that the drunken guy was quite dramatic, but probably realistic...anyhow it is just a short bit). Still, I could listen to Tony Britton all day. He really brings life to these novels.

Fabulous story. If you like Dick Francis' style, you'll enjoy this one about steeplechasing.

After the book hits the climax, it continues for a while to resolve another plot point. Nice because I wanted more. Kind of like one of those classical symphonies that sounds like it is ending, but then goes on to entertain for a while longer.

Brilliant.

Why a different version?

I've been a member of Audible for years and downloaded this audiobook multiple times. On every other occasion, what I heard was the Simon Prebble rendition. This time it was read by Tony Britton. He is a good narrator, but it's not the book I paid for. I shouldn't have to keep all my books on my device in order to ensure that I don't get a different version of it from one listen to the next. This sort of thing has been happening a lot lately. I listen to the books so often that I almost
know some of them by heart, and when something is different, I notice it immediately.

Regarding the book itself, it's the very first one by Dick Francis, the one that made him a star in the world of detective fiction. His writing improved with subsequent books, but all the great qualities were already present--his ability to depict people's innate character, in particular.

Classic writer

Dick Francis is the gentleman of writers. I always enjoy his stories , the descriptions make you feel like you are there with the hero.