Armchair Fiction presents extra large editions of classic mystery-crime double novels. The first tale in this great double novel is “The Big Fix” by whodunit veteran Mel Colton. It’s a tale about desperate guys and double-crossing dolls. There was a big payoff due—$100,000 for a crooked racing fix that only Blair Savage could collect, because the bet had been made in his name. If he asked for the dough, the gambling syndicate would put him on the spot. If he didn’t ask for it, the race fixers would put the heat on him to collect. It was an uncomfortable situation for Savage with no easy fix in sight. He wanted to keep in the good graces of the syndicate, but among the fixers were his ex-wife (whom he still loved), the curvaceous model agent who’d hired him, and a small-time bookie who’d once helped him out of a jam. But before Savage could decide what to do, murder struck. Then violence hit hard again. And Blair Savage knew he’d have to move fast—but where? The second tale in this double novel is Nelson S. Bond’s thundering thriller, “Death Holds the Stirrups.” Thundering down the racetrack at a breakneck speed, fresh out of apprenticeship, jockey Jerry McGhee thought he was winning his race; but as he booted the horse forward, and with the finish line in sight, his filly suddenly reared up, sending him falling not only to the ground but into a whole heap of trouble. It seemed McGhee’s career was going to be over before it started, as riding a horse for Fargo “The Jinx” Blaine wasn’t just ill-advised, but down right deadly. With one death already and a doping scandal nipping at his heels, was Blaine’s “jinx” the result of bad luck or malicious sabotage? Jerry would have to hope his old Irish luck would win out against the unlucky horse owner if he wanted to clear his name and prove his worth as a jockey. However, it wasn’t going to be easy—with Death itching to be first across the finish line.
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