- Summary** *The Wench Is Dead* is a historical crime novel by Colin Dexter, the eighth installment in the Inspector Morse series. Published in 1989, it won the British Crime Writers' Association Gold Dagger Award for best crime novel of the year. The story unfolds in two time periods: 1859 and 1989. In 1859, a young woman named Joanna Franks was found dead in the Oxford Canal, leading to a sensational murder trial where two men were hanged for her murder. In 1989, Inspector Morse, recovering from a bleeding ulcer, reads *Murder on the Oxford Canal*, which details the historical case. Morse becomes convinced that the convicted men were innocent. The novel's title originates from Christopher Marlowe's play *The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus*. T.S. Eliot also referenced the phrase in his work. Dexter drew inspiration for the story from the true 1839 murder of Christina Collins, a case involving four crewmen of a canal boat. Two were hanged, while others received lesser sentences or reprieves. The book incorporates themes of justice and injustice, reflecting on the reliability of historical records. Dexter conducted research at the William Salt Library in Staffordshire. *The Wench Is Dead* has been adapted into a BBC TV episode starring John Thaw as Morse and Denys Hawthorne as Lewis, along with a BBC Radio 4 play featuring John Shrapnel as Morse. The novel was published in multiple editions, including hardcover and paperback formats in the UK and US. The book explores moral ambiguity and the complexities of ...