Proof

London, England: Michael Joseph. Very Good+ in Fine dust jacket. 1984. 1st Edition; 1st Printing. Hardcover. 014087285X . This book is in Very Good+ condition and has a Fine dust jacket. The book and its contents are in clean, bright condition. The text pages are clean, but noticeably toned due to the acid content of the paper. The dust jacket is crisp and clean. "If you mix a liquid with gunpowder and ignite it, and it burns with a steady blue flame, then the liquid must be at least fifty percent alcohol; and that's PROOF... That's the way they proved a liquid when distilled spirits were first taxed, and that's what is meant by proof to this day. Tony Beach, wine merchant, knew his scotch, so to be asked to give his opinion of one particular bottle seemed harmless enough, but the bottle contained firewater of a highly-explosive nature - and Tony without intending it had set out on a one-way route into danger." "In 1962, he published his first thriller, Dead Cert, set in the world of racing. Subsequently he regularly produced a novel a year for the next 38 years, missing only 1998 (during which he published a short-story collection). Although all his books were set against a background of horse racing, his male heroes held a variety of jobs including artist (In the Frame and To the Hilt) , investigator for the Jockey Club (The Edge) , pilot (Rat Race and Flying Finish) , wine merchant (Proof) and many others. All the novels are narrated by the hero, who in the course of the story discovers himself to be more resourceful, brave, tricky, than he had thought, and usually finds a certain salvation for himself as well as bestowing it on others. Details of other people's occupations fascinated Francis, and the reader finds himself or herself immersed in the mechanics of such things as photography, accountancy, the gemstone trade, restaurant service on transcontinental trains—but always in the interests of the plot. Dysfunctional families were a subject which he exploited particularly well (Reflex, a baleful grandmother; Hot Money, a multi-millionaire father and serial ex-husband; Decider, the related co-owners of a racecourse)." .