This 1818 novel is considered Scott's best work. It opens in 1736 with a prison riot, out of which a melodramatic but convincing story evolves. Effie Deans, falsely accused of murdering her son, is sentenced to death. Her sister, the memorable Jeanie Deans--one of Scott's most beloved heroines--sets out to secure a pardon from the queen. She accomplishes this, Effie is released, and she and her lover George Staunton discover that their son had not been killed but abducted by the mad Madge Wildfire. On a mission to rescue the boy, Staunton is unwittingly killed by his own son. Scott's novel is solidly based in history, and the story is based on a true account.