The Franchise Affair: Their country house will soon play host to a nightmare

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A classic mystery from the Golden Age of detective fiction ________________________________ 'An ingenious book' Sarah Waters, Guardian The Franchise is a beautiful country home. It's about to play host to a nightmare. Marion Sharpe and her mother seem an unlikely duo to be found on the wrong side of the law. Quiet and ordinary, they have led a peaceful and unremarkable life at their country home, The Franchise. Unremarkable that is, until the police turn up with a demure young woman on their doorstep. Not only does Betty Kane accuse them of kidnap and abuse, she can back up her claim with a detailed description of the attic room in which she was kept, right down to the crack in its round window. But there's something about Betty Kane's story that doesn't quite add up. Inspector Alan Grant of Scotland Yard is stumped. And it takes Robert Blair, local solicitor turned amateur detective, to solve the mystery that lies at the heart of The Franchise Affair...

Reviews

The Franchise Affair is an ingenious book ... The essential mystery is wonderfully established; the claustrophobic building-up of the apparently seamless case against the Sharpes is impeccably done -- Sarah Waters
Permanent classics in the detective field . . . no superlatives are adequate * The New York Times *
A detective story with a very considerable difference. Ingenious, stimulating and very enjoyable * Sunday Times *
As interesting and enjoyable a book as they will meet in a month of Sundays * Observer *
Suspense is achieved by unexpected twists and extremely competent storytelling . . . credible and convincing * Spectator *
Really first class . . . a continual delight * Times Literary Supplement *
Tey's style and her knack for creating bizarre characters are among the best in the field * New Yorker *

Author Bio

Josephine Tey is one of the best-known and best-loved of all crime writers. She began to write full-time after the successful publication of her first novel, The Man in the Queue (1929), which introduced Inspector Grant of Scotland Yard. In 1937 she returned to crime writing with A Shilling for Candles, but it wasn't until after the Second World War that the majority of her crime novels were published. Josephine Tey died in 1952, leaving her entire estate to the National Trust.