In the heart of thoroughbred country - Churchill Downs - a major con was about to be perpetrated. For prominent attorney Dan Morgan, Churchill Downs is a major stepping stone towards running in the famous Kentucky Derby. As a thoroughbred owner, Dan has dreams of running his filly, Aly Dancer, in a Grade One televised stakes race, such as Churchill Downs. He is flying high with excitement, until a sinister phone call tells him: "You can't stop it!"

However, when Dan gets a million dollar offer to sell Aly Dancer right before her showing at Churchill Downs, he begins to get suspicious. Then Aly Dancer's trainer, Jake, is found dead - on the same night he placed a desperate phone call to Dan, warning him not to accept the offer. Jake claims that he has unearthed a scam that involves Aly Dancer, and that he will expose it to racing officials.

Dan is in a quandary. What was the scam? Who was involved? Who could he turn to? Post time was nearing and the man's sinister threat won't leave Dan's thoughts: "You can't stop it!"

I really enjoyed this book! I have never actually read any contemporary mysteries involving horse racing or set in Churchill Downs. I give Dead Money by Steve O'Brien an A! and look forward to reading the next Aly Dancer Mystery sometime soon! ( )

I won a paperback copy of Dead Money by Steve O'Brien for free- from Early Reviewers on Library Thing> Those who like descriptive books will enjoy this one, I loved it- Fast Pace and Great Characters. Sometimes a harsher book is good to through in... It took me some time to get into the book, but once I did I was able to keep a good pace. I would recommend this book- I'm glad I had the chance to read and review the book. Thank You!!
http://reesasbookblog.blogspot.com/2014/03/review-dead-money-by-steve-obrien.htm... ( )

I was never able to get past the first few pages. The graphic depictions of torture were a bit too much for me. Maybe someday I'll be able to go back and get past that issue to finish the book, but a strong stomach will be needed.

Dead Money is a mystery centered around the Kentucky Oaks, the big filly race the day before the Kentucky Derby. Dan Morgan is a lawyer and the owner of Aly Dancer, a filly who has the potential to win it. He receives an offer to buy his filly but the buyer becomes menacing when he refuses to sell. Then his trainer "commits suicide" and Dan has a mystery to solve.

I thought the story was a little choppy in the beginning. One detail that bothered me was when Dan, a man who has owned racehorses for years, asks his friend Lennie to explain the handicapping (betting) system to him. I thought that it was nice of the author to include that information for the reader who doesn't know, but I had a difficult time believing someone who has been around horse racing doesn't understand it. Maybe Mr. O'Brien could have thought of a more creative way to get that information to us.

By the end of the book the story improved and I couldn't wait to see how it ended. A fun book to read around Triple Crown time. ( )

Let me say right out that I did enjoy the plot of Dead Money. I was surprised to read in a different review that this is Steve O'brien's fourth book. To me this was crafted like a first novel that held a lot of promise but needed more work. The characters were not as developed as I would of liked, but then after learning this is the second novel in the series maybe I should of read it first. I enjoyed the descriptions of life behind the grandstands and all that occurs with horse racing. I hope he continues to work on this series and I will try to find the first one in the series Bullet Work. ( )