Sad News

      Mary Francis, beloved wife of Dick Francis, died suddenly September 30 at the couple's home in the Grand Cayman Islands. Details can be found here, courtesy of The Racing Post website. My sympathies go out to Mr. Francis and his family for their great loss. Condolences can be sent to Mr. Francis at:

      Also, the Dick Francis Reading Group has set up a page for internet users to post messages of condolence. The messages will not be displayed for everyone to read - AZNikkiD, the group leader, will print out the messages and mail them to him. The page is located here.

      I had the great pleasure of meeting Mrs. Francis at several book signings. She was always very gracious and very interested in what I had to say. She once spent at least fifteen minutes talking with a friend of mine about their trip to Russia (my friend was Russian). On another occasion, I gave her printouts from the guestbook on this page, and even though I was very nervous, she was so kind to me and interested in reading what people thought of her husband. I know she will be sorely missed.

      On another note, Bill Thompson from Eye On Books has shared with me the link to his website, eyeonbooks.com. At the site is an audio interview with Mr. Francis, conducted on September 21. I hope you enjoy hearing it. For those of you from the DC area, you may recognize Mr. Thompson from WBIG (Oldies 100) - he does the afternoon news reports.

      Dick Francis' new book, "Shattered," has debuted at number five on the NY Times Bestseller list! A review can be found here (you must log in to read the review, but it is a free service). To read a description and find out how to buy your own copy on-line, go here.

      My review of the book is now up, on the Shattered page.

      Book Signing!

      I attended the Sept 21st signing at the Borders in Baileys Crossroads, VA. To read an account of what happened, go here.