A gruesome death just before an important horse race looks out of place until Inspector Stoddart is called in to look into the matter. Is there an angle of rivalry or something more? Annie Haynes (1865-1929) was a renowned golden age mystery writer and a contemporary of Agatha Christie, another famous crime writer, which often led to her comparison with the latter, and unfavourably so. Haynes's fictions are now lauded for their quick-pace action and sustaining aura of suspense till the end.