Madame Blanc and the Antiques Affair: Sally Lindsay’s Prequel Novel
By Kerry Gaffney | Last Updated 04/10/2026
This page contains affiliate links. If you buy through them, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Full disclosure & Gozo disclaimer →
Madame Blanc and the Antiques Affair, the first novel from the world of The Madame Blanc Mysteries, is published in the UK on Thursday 19 November 2026. Written by Sally Lindsay with R.W. Green, it goes back to before series 1: to Jean White’s life before Sainte Victoire, and to how she first found the village.
Quick facts
| Title | Madame Blanc and the Antiques Affair |
| Authors | Sally Lindsay and R.W. Green |
| Publisher | Farrago |
| UK publication date | Thursday 19 November 2026 |
| US publication date | Tuesday 17 November 2026 (paperback), Thursday 19 November 2026 (Kindle) |
| Length | 272 pages |
| Formats | Paperback and Kindle |
What is the Antiques Affair about?
Jean White is already doing what she does best: spotting value where other people see junk. A fellow dealer, Dennis, shows her a painting that’s worth nothing, sitting in a French frame that might be worth a great deal, and tells her there are more. Someone else wants them too. When Dennis is murdered, Jean becomes convinced the frames are the reason, and the trail leads her and Rory to the South of France and a village called Sainte Victoire.
That’s as far as the publisher’s description goes, so it’s as far as I’ll go too.
Where it fits in the series
The TV series opens with Jean arriving in Sainte Victoire after Rory’s death and discovering what he had kept from her. The novel comes first. Rory is still alive, and Sainte Victoire is somewhere they are only just discovering.
When she revealed the cover, Sally Lindsay said the book was a chance to show more of Jean’s life before Sainte Victoire, and to tell “a story we couldn’t tell on screen”. Amazon lists it as book one, so it may not be the last.
Top Tip: If you pre-order the Kindle edition, it downloads automatically on publication day, so it will be waiting for you on the morning of the 19th.
Is Sainte Victoire a real place?
Not by that name. Sainte Victoire is fictional, and although the series is set in the South of France, it is filmed in Malta, mostly on Gozo. In series 1 the village square is Sannat. From series 2 the production moved to Għarb, and that’s the square most fans picture today. You can stand in both. Our Madame Blanc filming locations guide has every location, village by village, and the Għarb village guide covers the square itself.
Read the novel, then see the real thing
The Antiques Affair and my own book come out on the same day, which is not a coincidence. The Real Sainte Victoire covers the other half of the story: where the series was filmed, how to find key locations and how to plan a trip around them. It’s written from Gozo by someone who has spent a lot of time standing in those squares.
Read the novel
How Jean first found Sainte Victoire, from Sally Lindsay and R.W. Green.
See the real village
Every Gozo and Malta filming location, village by village, with routes to follow.
What about Series 5?
Series 5 has been filming on Gozo and is expected on Channel 5 in November 2026. Our Madame Blanc Mysteries page has the cast, the series guide and where to watch. If you want to catch up before then, series 1 to 4 are on DVD and streaming on My5 and Netflix in the UK, and on Acorn TV, PBS and Apple TV in the US.
FAQs
Want to see the real Sainte Victoire?
Join #BlancHeads, the Scene on Gozo newsletter, and I’ll send you the starter map of Madame Blanc filming locations across Gozo. Then once a month you’ll get updates on the show, along with the latest news from Gozo.