Fire Horse - Softcover

Shoemaker, Bill

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0449149749 ISBN 13: 9780449149744

Publisher: Fawcett, 1996

Synopsis

Straight from the Winners Circle, the greatest jockey of all time draws on his vast experiences on and off the track to spin this suspenseful mystery starring jockey-turned-sleuth Coley Killebrew. . . .
It all starts when Johnny Rousseau, Coley's partner in the Horses Neck Bar and Grill, finds himself saddled with a little problem named Paula Dresner. Gorgeous, rich, and spoiled rotten, Paula has Johnny twisted around her manicured little finger--but he's not too love-blind to see that she's gotten herself mixed up in some very suspicious business. Coley follows her trail, and it leads him to some peculiar racetrack photos, cut-rate hoodlums making secret nocturnal shipments of high-priced thoroughbreds
. . .and murder. As Coley begins to put the pieces together, things get hotter and hotter. It's a fire that may consume some of the finest horses in the country. And Coley, too. . .
"Shoemaker continues to show a broader streak of fun than Dick Francis, and a more pronounced taste for intrigue...tossing off plot twists like thrown horseshoes."
--Kirkus Reviews
"There's plenty of action and excitement in his story, and it's a wild ride."
--The Waterbury Republican

About this title

From the Publisher

Ever since I was a little kid, I've loved the horses. Every once in a while my father would take me and my little brother to Belmont, and I remember what a treat it was to see someone like Bill Shoemaker leading his horse around the far post and down the stretch. When I was first hired as managing editor at Ballantine, it was such a thrill to be able to call my brother and tell him that I was going to work on some mysteries by Willie the Shoe. There's a lot more to horse racing than just climbing aboard a horse and racing around the track, and these books, STALKING HORSE, FIRE HORSE, and DARK HORSE, helped take me behind those scenes I thought I'd never know about. My brother went to the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness, and Belmont last year, and he said he brought DARK HORSE with him to all three events; DARK HORSE is set around the Triple Crown, and having the book with him made my brother feel as if he was right in the middle of all the action. I am very proud to a part of these terrific mysteries, told by an insider with special detail, dealing with a subject that has always been special to me and my family.

Mark Rifkin, Managing Editorial

From Publishers Weekly

Former champion jockey Shoemaker follows up his debut outing, Stalking Horse, with another compelling, intricately plotted tale of murder, greed and-of course-the world of thoroughbred racing. Coley Killebrew once again functions as narrator and sleuth; here the ex-jockey is asked by Johnny Rousseau, his Vegas-based co-owner of their L.A. restaurant, to shadow the daughter of Wilton Dresner, a right-wing rant-radio and TV star. Johnny, smitten with Dresner's daughter, is determined to know her reason for delaying their marriage. Coley's discoveries of a blackmail scheme and a murdered photographer lead him to a number of unsavory characters that include members of the mob, right-wing crazies and a somewhat mad scientist, and to an insurance fraud that could kill a number of expensive horses. Further complicating matters is his love for the statuesque Lea, daughter of Raymond Starbuck, a big-time PI who disapproves of the romance-until Coley and Lea come up against the bad guys in a heartpounding climax. Coley remains an appealing character, though,with Starbuck appearing seldom here, readers might wish for more of the latter's high-handedness that enlivened the first book. Once again displaying racetrack expertise to fine advantage, Shoemaker solidifies his position in the winner's circle.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Fawcett
• Publication date: 1996
• ISBN 10: 0449149749
• ISBN 13: 9780449149744
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 292