The Wench is Dead [Hardcover]

Colin Dexter (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 26, 1989

In 1856 the body of Joanna Franks was found at Duke's Cut on the Oxford canal. In 1989 Inspector Morse is taken to Oxford's John Radcliffe Hospital with a perforated ulcer. As Morse begins his recovery he comes across an account of the investigation of Joanna's death and subsequent murder trial.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Fans will not be disappointed in the reappearance of the irascible yet loveable Inspector Morse, the Oxford policeman who investigates the underside of his beautiful city. This time Dexter employs his lucid prose to describe a century-old murder on the meandering Oxford canal, a case chanced upon by Morse in his reading while hospitalized for an ulcer. Inevitably, there will be comparisons with Josephine Tey's The Daughter of Time , in which her sleuth simultaneously convalesces and cogitates upon Richard III, accused of the murder of his two nephews. Dexter's tale is the better of the two. The interior narrative, that of a fetching young woman who meets death during a night-shrouded canal voyage, is placed in a contemporary story in which Morse engages in marvelous repartee with his loyal Sergeant Lewis, with a winsome female librarian and with others who aid him in researching the crime. A surprising and inspired solution concludes a jolly good read that juxtaposes past and present Oxford with imagination and finesse. A new series of Inspector Morse mysteries is airing on PBS. 20,000 first printing; Mystery Guild alternate.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"INSPECTOR MORSE . . . IS A THOROUGHLY CONVINCING DETECTIVE, AND A VERY HUMAN ONE TOO."
--The New York Times Book Review

"Mr. Dexter's books are brilliantly clever concoctions, the prose equivalents of the crosswords his Inspector Morse is hooked on. The author blends elements of the classic puzzle-mystery, the police procedural, and a character saga to create a type of detective novel all his own."
--The Wall Street Journal


From the Paperback edition. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Macmillan; 1st.ed. edition (October 26, 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0333517873
• ISBN-13: 978-0333517871
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.8 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,491,187 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Inspector Morse does it again!, October 28, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: The Wench is Dead (Mass Market Paperback)

An unfortunate title for a book, as I would have never read it, had it not been for another murder mystery by Colin Dexter, to be solved by the infamous Inspector Morse. But after reading the book, the meaning of the title become clear. However, I'm not sure how many readers would buy a book with this title, which conjures images of a bad B-movie. Inspector Morse is true to form, albeit lying in a hospital bed with an ulcer. From his hospital bed, Morse manages to re-solve a murder case that occurred in the late 1800s. This case is brought to his attention through a book a fellow patient in the ward had written. Dexter has chosen a very interesting plot construction for this mystery. The story is more intriguing than gripping, but makes for entertaining reading. Morse's intuitive and investigative abilities are shown at their best, with Sargent Lewis piping in at opportune moments. Basically another solid murder mystery in the Inspector Morse series!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Master craftsman, June 16, 2000

By 

Atheen M. Wilson "Atheen" (Mpls, MN United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Wench is Dead (Mass Market Paperback)

I've enjoy most of the Inspector Morse series since I was first introduced to the character on a PBS mystery series. The author is a master craftsman who can out-Christie Christie when it comes to plot twists that still follow the "rules," and this book was no exception. I particularly enjoyed it because it involves a bit of history--one of my favorite persuits--and embroils the ailing Inspector in a mind game that brings to resolution a crime committed decades before his birth. A consumate juggler of details, Dexter is a master at plausable solutions, always providing at least two. He delightfully misleads his inspector and his readers with a trail of clues and interpretations that seem entirely probable only to delight his followers with a "true" solution which fits the facts with even greater plausibility. My only complaint with respect to the series is that I become impatient with Morse's alchoholism and untreated depression. As a nurse I keep wanting to urge him to get proper treatment! On the whole I find his seargeant a much more balanced and satisfying character.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Couldn't put it down, even though I'd seen the TV version!, February 24, 2004

By 

David Hodgson "Steed" (Santa Rosa, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Wench is Dead (Mass Market Paperback)

I bought and read this book to study Dexter's style, even though I'd seen the TV adaptation of this same story. I'd anticipated that I probably wouldn't read the whole book through, since I already knew the basic plot. However, I was so fascinated by the way in which Dexter weaves his story that I simply couldn't put it down! As someone who aspires to write fiction that spans multiple time periods, I was intrigued by the way in which Dexter contrives to have his present-day protagonist solve a nineteenth century crime. Some of the plot developments are perhaps a little optimistic, but it is fiction, after all! Dexter demonstrated with this novel that he could conjure up not only an authentic England of the late twentieth century, but also that of earlier times (and I say that as an expatriate Englishman). Certain of Dexter's writing preferences might not pass muster in amateur "Creative Writing" circles in the US: so I wonder who knows best?! I agree with the reviewer who complained about the weak title, but nobody should allow that minor issue to deter them from this riveting mystery.