Longshot — Dick Francis

His agent has always known that John Kendall, writer of travel guides to harsh terrains, is impulsive. But taking an assignment because he needs money hardly seems a rash act, and off to rural England Kendall goes to interview his subject, a successful racehorse trainer.

Soon enough, however, Kendall realizes that he must draw upon all his ingenuity to complete his book. In fact, the perils described in his survival manuals pale next to the dangers in rural England. "Impulse will kill you one of these days;" his agent had warned. Kendall should have listened, but he didn't--not by a longshot....