''Farthing'' is an

alternate history Alternate history (also referred to as alternative history, allohistory, althist, or simply A.H.) is a subgenre of speculative fiction in which one or more historical events have occurred but are resolved differently than in actual history. As ...

novel written by Welsh-Canadian writer Jo Walton and published by

Tor Books Tor Books is the primary imprint of Tor Publishing Group (previously Tom Doherty Associates), a publishing company based in New York City. It primarily publishes science fiction and fantasy titles. History Tor was founded by Tom Doherty, ...

. It was first published on 8 August 2006. A sequel, '' Ha'penny'', was released in October 2007 by Tor Books. A third novel in the series, '' Half a Crown'', was released in September 2008, also from Tor, and a short story,
Escape to Other Worlds with Science Fiction
, was published on Tor.com in February 2009.

Background

The novel is an

set in 1949. Though the divergence point from actual history seems to be Rudolf Hess's flight to Scotland in May 1941, '' Ha'penny'' details that the critical difference is actually the failure of the United States to provide aid to Britain in 1940. With Britain lacking American support, Hess's entreaties for peace negotiations were accepted and have led to a peace between the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

and

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

, against

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...

's wishes, and to the British withdrawal from

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, which continues mainly as a stalemate between Germany and the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

. Charles Lindbergh is the president of the United States, a peaceful country that never became involved in the conflict and is seeking closer economic ties with

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

's Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere. The novel was inspired by Walton's analysis of the setting of Josephine Tey's '' Brat Farrar''.

Plot

Introduction

The book begins as a "cozy" or "country house" mystery involving the murder of Sir James Thirkie, a member of the "Farthing Set" and the architect of the "Farthing Peace" between the United Kingdom and Germany. The Farthing Set, so named for their association with the

country house image:Blenheim - Blenheim Palace - 20210417125239.jpg, 300px, Blenheim Palace - Oxfordshire An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a Townhou ...

of that name (and analogous to the real-life

Cliveden set The Cliveden set were an upper-class group of politically influential people active in the 1930s in the United Kingdom, prior to the Second World War. They were in the circle of Nancy Astor, Viscountess Astor, the first female Member of Parliament ...

)Farthing: Heart-rending alternate history about British-Reich peace – Boing Boing
/ref> prominently supported prewar appeasement, a policy vindicated by the war's outcome. The narrative alternates between the first-person account of Lucy Kahn, daughter of the proprietors of the Farthing estate, and a third-person narrative that focuses on Scotland Yard Inspector Peter Carmichael, the lead investigator assigned to the case.

Summary

At a weekend party at Farthing House, a large country house in

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

, Sir James Thirkie, a prominent politician who is considered likely to become a leading minister in an upcoming cabinet shuffle, is found murdered in his room, with a yellow Star of David pinned to his chest. Though suspicion immediately falls upon David Kahn, the only

Jew Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...

invited to the party, the lead investigator, Inspector Peter Carmichael, is unconvinced. Carmichael, who was sent with Sergeant Royston from Scotland Yard to investigate the murder, suspects that the star was placed on the body to divert attention towards David. Equally skeptical is David's wife Lucy, the daughter of estate owner Lord Eversley, who notes the tension between Thirke's newly-pregnant wife, Angela, and Angela's sister, Daphne, who was having an affair with Thirke. As Carmichael begins his investigation, he requests the assembled guests to remain at the house. Chafing at the oppressive atmosphere, Lucy accepts an offer from her father to go riding, but while they are out, they are attacked by a young man, who shoots at them with a rifle before he is killed by Lord Eversley. An inspection of the body uncovers a membership card identifying him as a

communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...

and an identity card for an Alan Brown, which is different from the name on the party identity card. Carmichael is puzzled by the incident, which appears to be unconnected to Thirke's murder. As pressure grows for Carmichael to release the guests, a search of the Kahns' apartment turns up letters that offer evidence of David's involvement with an underground Jewish organization, which sought the murder of Thirke and the other members of the "Farthing Set". Aware that an arrest would mean the effective conviction of David but still not convinced of his guilt, Carmichael convinces him to remain at Farthing House under police supervision. Returning to

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, Carmichael is given until Friday to conclude the case. His ability to act is further hampered by the political situation since Daphne's husband, Mark Normanby, the Foreign Secretary and one of the guests in Farthing House, emerges from the cabinet shuffle as

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

. Exploiting both Thirke's murder and the shooting incident, Normanby announces the introduction of identity cards, the expulsion of foreign nationals, the banning of communists and a delay in the

general election A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from By-election, by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. Gener ...

. Resisting political pressure to arrest David, Carmichael pursues his investigation of Angela and discovers that her baby was likely the result of an affair with the family's chauffeur. Locating Brown's girlfriend, an Agnes Timms, in

Southend-on-Sea Southend-on-Sea (), commonly referred to as Southend (), is a coastal city and unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in south-eastern Essex, England. It lies on the nor ...

, Carmichael travels there with Royston to interview the young woman and discovers that Brown was approached by Angela to stage the attack on Lord Eversley, ostensibly as a joke. Returning to London, Carmichael learns that the yellow star was purchased by someone who claimed to be David. With a warrant now issued to arrest David, Carmichael calls to warn the Kahns and so they have time to escape. With the Kahns now on the run, Carmichael goes to

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

to interview Thirke's mother, who recounts Angela's admission that she helped Lord Eversley and Mark Normanby murder her husband. While he returns to London to arrest Angela and Normanby, however, Carmichael discovers that Agnes has been murdered. Undaunted, Carmichael presents his findings to Penn-Barkis, the head of Scotland Yard, and identifies the involvement of the three suspects in a conspiracy to murder Thirke and place the blame on the Jews for it. After he listens to Carmichael's description, Penn-Barkis orders Carmichael to drop the case and uses Carmichael's

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or Human sexual activity, sexual behavior between people of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexu ...

to blackmail him into acquiescing in the official story.

Reception

Freida Murray's review for

Booklist ''Booklist'' is a publication of the American Library Association that provides critical reviews of books and audiovisual materials for all ages. ''Booklist''s primary audience consists of libraries, educators, and booksellers. The magazine is ...

called "the characters are highly plausible, and in every aspect, from the petty snobbery hampering the inspector to the we-don't-do-that-here conclusion the plot encourages warily reconsidering the daily news." '' Kirkus Reviews'' commented that "despite a rather fumbling approach, Walton's sinister political conspiracies pack a considerable wallop."

Awards and nominations

It was nominated for a Nebula Award, a Quill Award, the John W. Campbell Memorial Award for best science fiction novel, the Locus Award and the Sidewise Award for Alternate History. It won the Romantic Times 2006 Reviewers' Choice Award for Best Science Fiction Novel.

References

External links

''Farthing'' official website
{{Jo Walton 2006 British novels British alternative history novels Crime and thriller fiction set in alternate histories Detective novels Novels by Jo Walton Novels about World War II alternate histories 2006 science fiction novels Fiction set in 1949 Tor Books books Canadian alternative history novels 2006 Canadian novels