Customer Reviews
Best from Francis in a long time - By: L. J. Roberts, 06 Nov 2008 
First sentence: "Guilty."
Barrister & amateur jockey Geoffrey Mason, known as `Perry Mason' by his racing friends. He had once successfully defended a violent young man, Julian Trent. Trent, found guilty nonetheless & swearing revenge against Mason, is now being released on appeal.
Mason receives a call from fellow jockey, Steve Mitchell. Steve has been arrested for the murder of another jockey, the hatred between the two of known was well known. Mason first receives a warning & then a beating, instructing him to lose the trial & ensure Mitchell is convicted. Mason realizes his only option is to stand up to Trent, but a at the risk of his life & those he loves.
Even though this was written by Dick & Felix Francis, I'm going to refer to them as singular. Francis has such a wonderful voice. He has a way of drawing you into the story, a way of explaining things that make the information fascinating & an excellent ear for dialogue. I appreciated his including information on English law.
Francis creates great characters. His protagonist isn't particularly brave & strong, but he is stubborn & determined, & his villains are about as villainous as they come. I liked that he made the point about not understanding how hard it is to stand up against violence & intimidation. It was nice to see the hero actually get the girlin this story.
The story was similar to a horse racein that it milled out a bitin the beginning giving you background information, took off with sudden action & builtin pace & suspense up to the end. Even the courtroom scenes, which were so well done, had an element of suspense.
Portents are something I normally hate & the one earlyin the book wasn't necessary. I also don't usually like when authors hold information back from the reader, but here it worked. Thinking back, I probably could have anticipated many of the turnsin the plot, but I was so engrossedin the story, I didn't take the time to analyze as I read. And that's what makes Francis, Francis; you jump on & go to the end. The ending is violent & bothers some people; however, I felt he addressed the age-old question of legality versus justice.
This was definitely the best Francis book I've readin a long time.
rehash?? - By: P. A. Gordon, 16 Oct 2008 
I enjoyed this book (as with almost all Dick Francis books) but this is a rehashed plot --- as a 'horsey' person I recognised what was going on immediately --- just as I did the first time ( TV film about 1978? -- am I the only person to remember this ????) (won't say any more, mustn't spoil it for others) --- come on Felix you 'must try harder' (though I would forgive your lovely Dad anything) I'm very much looking forward to the next book.(and I agree with another reviewer, I would prefer more horses --- though I don't mind the violence --- except to the horses -- I couldn't bear 'Come to Grief' !)
Legal Thriller Amid a Racing Background - By: Donald Mitchell, 15 Oct 2008 
The classic Dick Francis books are filled with heart-pounding steeplechase action, deadly criminals, & arcane insights into horse racing from a jockey's perspective. The least appealing booksin the series are those where the interaction with steeplechases is minimal. Silks is somewhere between the two extremes. The steeplechase setting is present for bits & pieces of the story, but courtroom drama substitutes for much of the potential on-course action. Fortunately, the legal thriller aspects of the story are pretty well done & bring new perspective for American readers into the English legal system.
Geoffrey ("Perry" to his fellow jockeys) Mason is a barrister (a lawyer who tries casesin England) whose hobby is riding his horse, Sandeman,in mostly amateur steeplechases. As the book opens, he is defending an unsavory sort, Julian Trent, who seems to be a psychopath. Losing the case turns out to be a bad turn for Mason when Trent decides he wants revenge against his barrister.
A little time later, Trent has gotten out of jail through an appeal where the witnesses refuse to testify against him, apparently having been intimidated. Rather than immediately kill Mason, Trent instead seems more interestedin controlling Mason's legal work for fellow jockey, Steve Mitchell, who is accused of murdering another jockey. Mason is thoroughly intimidated & unsure what he will do. The stakes are raised when the threats start to include those close to Mason.
The reference to silks is a very clever choice for a title, referring to racing silks as well as the term for Queen's Counsel, the cream of the litigating attorneys. Mason as an owner has racing silks, represents his own racing silks when he rides, & hopes to earn the position of a silk within the legal profession.
To me, the book's main drawback is an exceptional amount of violence. I normally find it hard to deal with the most intense scenein most Dick Francis books. Where that violence permeates a book like this one, it definitely takes some of the shine off my ability to enjoy the story.
There are definitely two writers for this story, as evidenced by many classic Dick Francis sections & many new story-telling sections that must be from his son, Felix. As they write more books together, I'm sure the two styles will blend together more smoothly than they do here. I hope that will involve a lighter hand on the whip.
Legal Thriller Amid a Racing Background - By: Donald Mitchell, 15 Oct 2008 The classic Dick Francis books are filled with heart-pounding steeplechase action, deadly criminals, & arcane insights into horse racing from a jockey's perspective. The least appealing booksin the series are those where the interaction with steeplechases is minimal. Silks is somewhere between the two extremes. The steeplechase setting is present for bits & pieces of the story, but courtroom drama substitutes for much of the potential on-course action. Fortunately, the legal thriller aspects of the story are pretty well done & bring new perspective for American readers into the English legal system.
Geoffrey ("Perry" to his fellow jockeys) Mason is a barrister (a lawyer who tries casesin England) whose hobby is riding his horse, Sandeman,in mostly amateur steeplechases. As the book opens, he is defending an unsavory sort, Julian Trent, who seems to be a psychopath. Losing the case turns out to be a bad turn for Mason when Trent decides he wants revenge against his barrister.
A little time later, Trent has gotten out of jail through an appeal where the witnesses refuse to testify against him, apparently having been intimidated. Rather than immediately kill Mason, Trent instead seems more interestedin controlling Mason's legal work for fellow jockey, Steve Mitchell, who is accused of murdering another jockey. Mason is thoroughly intimidated & unsure what he will do. The stakes are raised when the threats start to include those close to Mason.
The reference to silks is a very clever choice for a title, referring to racing silks as well as the term for Queen's Counsel, the cream of the litigating attorneys. Mason as an owner has racing silks, represents his own racing silks when he rides, & hopes to earn the position of a silk within the legal profession.
To me, the book's main drawback is an exceptional amount of violence. I normally find it hard to deal with the most intense scenein most Dick Francis books. Where that violence permeates a book like this one, it definitely takes some of the shine off my ability to enjoy the story.
There are definitely two writers for this story, as evidenced by many classic Dick Francis sections & many new story-telling sections that must be from his son, Felix. As they write more books together, I'm sure the two styles will blend together more smoothly than they do here. I hope that will involve a lighter hand on the whip.
Silks is well up to the Francis standard - By: Susan J. Ketley, 09 Oct 2008 Silks did not disapoint, well up to the standard of thriller we have come to expect from firstly Dick & now with his son Felix, lets hope there is anotherin the pipeline.
