Reflex by Dick Francis

Read/Heard weekend of Mar 21-22 09, on long drive.
I am a huge fan of Dick Francis. His mysteries have good pace, interesting twists and are always tied in some way to the world of Horse Racing. When I read him, I always enjoy his precision and succinct phrasing. He can create great characters, give them appropriate accents for their status and geography in the UK, and do it all without wasting words. This book is one of the very good ones as he weaves multiple threads of mystery together, while also building a romantic relationship for the protagonist in the process.
The main character has a peculiar upbringing and unusual combination of skills. He is a middling steeplechase jockey, who also learned photographic skills, which are key to unraveling one of the multiple mysteries.
One mystery involves finding a lost sister at the request of his estranged, wealthy grandmother. In the process, he must work back through his own unusual upbringing, and along the way, appreciate the peculiar chapters that made him the person he has become. Another mystery involves looking into the death of a racetrack photographer (using a 'Reflex' camera) and the ensuing burglaries and attacks on the dead photographer's wife and the destruction of their home. Ultimately, he weaves 4-5 complicated stories together, keeps them interesting, and in order.
I listened to the audio version which is always a treat as the British reader does an amazing job of shifting voices for the huge cast of characters. Kept me awake on a very long solitary drive, fortunately finishing the last tape a half hour from home.

Joker One by Donovan Campbell

Donovan Campbell joined the USMC after graduating with honors from Princeton. He wrote this book as a firsthand account of his second tour of duty in Iraq, his first as an Infantry Platoon Leader. His style is detailed, without overdoing the details. Much like Nathan Frick's book "One Bullet Away" from several years earlier, Donovan describes the process of pulling together a team (under some unusual time pressure) and then adapting to an unexpected level of insurgent violence when they were sent to Ramadi. Moreso than Frick's book, which is a tremendously compelling firsthand account of leading the "point of the spear" in the assault on Baghdad, Campbell's book explores the feelings and emotions of one of the toughest war situation our troops have faced. Without being unnecessarily graphic, Campbell describes the emotional tension of bringing peace and order to Ramadi, without support or the slightest recognition from the local populace. The emotional and spiritual details are as gripping as the details of the battle tactics. Not for the lighthearted, but the best insight into going to war in this era.