Starred Review for FULL MORTALITY from Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine

Starred Review, Hot off the Press from Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine (EQMM)

*** Sasscer Hill: Full Mortality, Wildside, $13.95.  "Jockey Nikki
Latrelle, compelled to visit her upcoming stakes mount Gilded Cage late one night at Laurel Park, finds the mare dead in her stall. Other equine and human deaths follow.  First-time novelist Hill, herself a Maryland horse breeder, is a genuine find, writing smooth and vivid descriptive prose about racetrack characters and backstretch ambience that reek authenticity. Familiar plot elements are gracefully handled, including that old romantic-suspense conundrum: which of the attractive but mysterious males is the good guy and which the villain?"
-- Jon L. Breen, Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine


EQMM is, “The best mystery magazine in the world, bar none.” – Stephen King


  

BOOK SIGNINGS FOR FULL MORTALITY SOLD OUT IN DECEMBER!

Above, Sasscer Hill signing at the "Equiery" Magazine Twentieth Anniversary Christmas Party on December 10, 2010.  Twenty years ago, I was taking ads in the Equiery soliciting clients who needed me to haul their horses somewhere! Times change.

Pictured next, Sasscer Hill on December 17 with the Outflanker yearling colt Out Smarten.  Can you say cold!

FULL MORTALITY Receives Rave Reviews from HRN (HorseRadioNetwork.com)

Sasscer Hill's horse racing mystery, receives rave reviews on HRN, Lexington, Kentucky's popular online radio station, HorseRadioNetwork.com.

The book is now available not only as a  paperback from both Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com, it is also downloadable as an E-book on both sites. This horse racing mystery is also available from the e-book sellers Mobipocket.com and Fictionwise.com

Enjoy!

TVG Interviews Sasscer Hill live at Keeneland, October 22, 2010

TO SEE VIDEO OF SASSCER & BARRY CLICK ON LINK BELOW

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P85QaleEQGE

BOUCHERCON 2010: Story Forthcoming, For Now Just Pictures and One Lee Child Video

THIS PICTURE OF OF LEE CHILD AND I BECAME PART OF THE  CBS OCTOBER 24 MORNING NEWS SHOW!

SEE LEE CHILD VIDEO HERE!    http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6987175n&tag=related;photovideo

 

Sasscer Hill signing FULL MORTALITY AT 2010 BOUCHERCON!

Authors Avery Ames and Sasscer Hill at the "Offbeat Protagonists" Panel,  Bouchercon 2010.

Sasscer Hill, "Loves Music, Loves To Dance!"

A few years back, I had a terrible three-year ordeal with a  bad man, a stalker type.  I told Lee Child that I used to say, "Where is Jack Reacher when you need him?" Right by my side!

Michael Connelly with Sasscer Hill clutching his latest book!

What a thrill to find my book on sale at Bouchercon!

GEORGE STRAWBRIDGE WINS THE KEENELAND GOLD TRAY

George Strawbridge, Sasscer Hill and hall of famer, Jonathan Sheppard, before Bushwhacked's  race, October 23.

Though Strawbridge was absent October 22, his homebred filly, Fugitive Angel, captured the Grade III Pin Oak Valley View Stakes with a flying finish, eating up ground and destroying the competition in the final yards. In doing so, the bay daughter of Alphabet Soup won the Keeneland gold tray, reportedly solid gold and worth $100,000, for her owner, George Strawbridge.


The tray is presented to owners who have won eight graded stakes at the track. It’s been claimed only 15 times previously, and Strawbridge became the first owner to receive the award since Michael Tabor in 2008.

FUGITIVE ANGEL

The amazing group I call “Team Sheppard” headed by legendary genius and hall of fame trainer Jonathan Sheppard, carefully brought along Strawbridge’s homebred filly, turning her into a powerhouse. 






Maryland’s own Anna Napravnik figures prominently in the victory.
"She is definitely improving. She is a very quality filly," said Napravnik, who was riding the bay filly for the third time. Napravnik also won the day's fifth race aboard another Strawbridge horse, the 3-year-old filly Kitty Love.

Anna "Rosie" Nabravnik

Some might say George Strawbridge needs a $100,00 gold tray like I need a fork in my eye.  Truth be told, the man has done much for the sport of racing. His wealth allows him to own quality horses, and treat them like quality horses.  He is patient, allowing a horse a year or more turn-out time if necessary. Owners like Strawbridge help us fight the negative press racing has been afflicted with in recent years. I’m glad he got a gold tray!

Team Sheppard saddles Fugitive Angel

A jockey change before "Angel's" race had the riders hanging about while waiting on the replacement jockey.

Sasscer Hill and Paula Marie Weglarz celebrate Fugutive Angel's win.
A Matt Wooley photograph.

THE BEST RACE MARE IN HISTORY; Notes from Donny Christmas

As I was admiring the accomplishments of Zenyatta, I was reminded about Gallorette ( trained by my uncle, Edward A. Christmas),and decided to Google "Gallorette", and below are notes from some of the resulting web pages. One has a recent newspaper article comparing their accomplishments. I had forgotten that Gallorette raced 72 times, 55 of which were against males, where she finished in the top three.

Until her retirement at the end of 1948, Gallorette ran most of her races in unrestricted company. Of her seventy-two career races, fifty-five were against males — she had twenty-one wins and finished in the top three fifty-four times. She consistently ran against the best males of her era: Armed, Stymie, Assault, Pavot, and Polynesian, to name a few. Her most significant wins came in the Met Mile and the Brooklyn, Carter, and Whitney Handicaps. She retired as the all-time  female money winner with earnings of $445,535.

In 1955, Gallorette was voted the best filly or mare of all-time in a poll of members from the American Trainers Association. She was inducted into the Racing Hall of Fame in 1962.

While we are lucky to have Rachel Alexandra and Zenyatta to watch in 2010, caution needs to be given before we call either of them the greatest filly or mare of all-time — neither will match Gallorette’s record or the level of competition she faced on a regular basis. In fact, with the overly-cautious campaigns that dominate modern throughbred training, we’ll likely never see another one like Gallorette. If anyone wants to call her to the greatest race mare ever, you won’t get an arguement from me.

 

A note from Sasscer Hill:  Now you know why Gallorette figures so prominently in my Nikki Latrelle mystery, 

FULL MORTALITY!