ICED
is the latest horseracing mystery by Felix Francis, son of the British crime
writer Dick Francis.
Synopsis
Miles Pussett grew up wanting more than anything to be a championship
steeplechase jockey like his father. He loved riding horses and dreamed of
following in his father's footsteps.
When his dad is killed in an automobile accident when Miles is 12, he
devotes himself to learning to ride like his famous father. He is given his
first opportunity while still in his teens to compete in a point-to-point
event, his first horse race, albeit as an amateur. When his mother dies, he
becomes a jockey for a training stable.
Although Miles tries his best, he endures many setbacks as he pursues his
dream. He is treated badly by fellow jockeys as they all think he is only
given rides in horse races because of who is father was. Therefore he has no
friends. He wins a few races, but 'being the best' eludes him as there are
more losses than wins and his confidence level gets lower and lower.
Miles ends up drinking as a way to 'forget' his failures and eventually he
hits rock-bottom. With the help of the trainer's wife, who sees the problem
and wants to help Miles, he ends up seeing a psychiatrist. Turns out that
Miles has been suffering from PTSD going back to his childhood. He always
thought that PTSD was only a veteran's condition. Not so. Anyone can suffer
from it given enough trauma that has gone unrecognized.
Until the psychiatrist explains it to him, Miles had no idea that his dad's
death had affected him so strongly (because 12-year-old Miles was in the car
with his dad the day of the accident). And his mother's death when he was
only 17 was due to suicide and Miles blamed himself. All this trauma before
he ever grew up with no one helping him understand it led to his
PTSD.
Now it is 7 years later and Miles has left the horse racing world and is
doing fine. Instead, he enjoys riding headfirst down the Cresta Run, a
three-quarter-mile Swiss ice chute, reaching speeds of up to eighty miles
per hour.
While at St. Moritz for the Cresta Run, Miles discovers it is the same
weekend as the White Turf – an event featuring high-class horseracing taking
place on a frozen lake. Against his better judgment, he gets talked into
helping out with the horses. But then he discovers something suspicious going
on at the races.
Miles begins to search for answers, because the 'something suspicious' many
have a profound impact on his future. But someone is adamant about stopping
him – and they will go to any lengths to do it.
Summary
The horseracing mystery involved in
ICED
is, as always, an interesting read for fans of the Dick Frances and Felix
Francis stories. But it is also a look into how Post-traumatic Stress
Syndrome (PTSD) can affect not only those who have fought in wars, but
anyone who has had to endure a series of traumas in their
life.
Related Links:
*Iced, a horseracing mystery by Felix Francis reviewed by Wednesday
Elf
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