Mistress Branican (French: Mistress Branican) is an 1891 adventure novel written by Jules Verne. It is based on Colonel Peter Egerton-Warburton's and Ernest Giles' accounts of their journeys across the deserts of Western Australia, and was also inspired by the search launched by Lady Franklin when her husband Sir John Franklin was reported lost in the Northwest Passage.

Mistress Branican
AuthorJules Verne
Original titleMistress Branican
TranslatorA. Estoclet
IllustratorLéon Benett
LanguageFrench
SeriesThe Extraordinary Voyages #36
GenreAdventure novel
PublisherPierre-Jules Hetzel
Publication date
1891
Publication placeFrance
Published in English
1891
Media typePrint (Hardback)
OCLC8333020
Preceded byCésar Cascabel 
Followed byCarpathian Castle 

Plot

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The story begins in the United States, where the heroine, Mistress Branican, suffers a mental breakdown after the death by drowning of her young son. On recovering, she learns that her husband, Captain Branican, has been reported lost at sea. Having acquired a fortune, she is able to launch an expedition to search for her husband, who she is convinced is still alive. She leads the expedition herself and trail leads her into the Australian hinterland.

Publication history

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  • 1895, United States, New York: Cassell Pub. Co. 377 pp., First US edition
  • 1903, United States, New York: Street & Smith, 377 pp., published under title The Wreck of the Franklin
  • 1970, Australia, Melbourne: Sun Books, 282 pp. Paperback edition
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