The Sure Thing

Hardback (27 Feb 2014)

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Publisher's Synopsis

THE BOOKIES ALWAYS WIN.

Yet, for over four decades Barney Curley has proved himself a rare exception. The country's most renowned and fearless gambler, a man who will back his judgement to win £100,000 and more on a single day, has consistently emerged triumphant from bloody skirmishes with the old enemy.

In the summer of 1975 Curley masterminded one of the most spectacular gambles of all time, with a racehorse named Yellow Sam, costing Irish bookmakers around £300,000; the equivalent of some £2m today.

No-one believed anything similar could be staged again this century. Bookmakers now have communications and technology in place to thwart any renewed attempts. But challenges inspire Curley and he was determined to beat the system - again.

Thirty-five years later from his first coup, Curley set about staging an ambitious sequel to his Yellow Sam scheme. Curley has never divulged the full details of what happened. Now, for the first time, The Sure Thing reveals the complete story of the months of planning and preparation, with all the trials and tribulations, that went into the biggest organised gamble in racing history.

Book information

ISBN: 9781780890715
Publisher: Random House
Imprint: Century
Pub date:
DEWEY: 798.401092
DEWEY edition: 23
Language: English
Number of pages: 404
Weight: 674g
Height: 240mm
Width: 160mm
Spine width: 36mm

About the Publisher

Century

Century was founded in 1981 and immediately established itself as an exceptionally dynamic publisher of bestselling authors, a tradition continued to this day. The Century list includes brand-name novelists such as James Patterson, Karin Slaughter, Lisa Jewell and Katie Fforde, and we are also proud to be publishing compelling and powerful debut novels such as Wool by Hugh Howey and Until You're Mine by Samantha Hayes. Century's diverse non-fiction list includes Sunday Times bestseller Ross Kemp and autobiographies from major celebrities such as Rod Stewart, Peter Kay, Dawn French, James Corden, Eric Clapton and David Jason, and a broad range of exceptional non-fiction writing from authors such as Richard Bacon, Duncan Hamilton, and Christopher Sykes.