The Wench is Dead

Winner of the CWA Gold Dagger award, "The Wench is Dead" is the eighth installment in Colin Dexter's detective series set in Oxford. It features the character famously played by John Thaw in the ITV series, Inspector Morse. That particular night, Morse experienced a vivid, colorful dream.In his dream, there appeared a captivating woman with ochre skin, wearing distinctive black, arrow-patterned stockings. In the intricate workings of Morse's mind, this siren was associated with the name Joanna Franks.On the early morning of June 22, 1859, Joanna Franks was discovered dead, her body floating in the Oxford Canal at Duke’s Cut—an incident leading to the conviction and execution of two alleged murderers. Fast forward 130 years, Chief Inspector Morse finds himself bedridden, recuperating from a perforated ulcer at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford. During his recovery, he comes across an aged book detailing the trial related to the murder aboard the canal boat, Barbara Bray—which involved Joanna Franks.Delving into the trial's account, Morse becomes skeptical about the guilt of the two condemned men and sets out to investigate his doubts, all while remaining confined to his hospital bed.Following "The Wench is Dead," the series continues with the ninth Inspector Morse novel, "The Jewel That Was Ours."