The Key to Temperance Row

About this book

Philip Marsden is a 47-year-old compliance officer for a mid-tier investment firm who has spent his life avoiding conflict, preferring the quiet cataloging of Roman coins over the messiness of human connection. When he unexpectedly inherits the freehold of No. 14 Temperance Row, a Victorian terrace in contemporary Manchester, he intends to sell quickly and retreat. However, the property sits squarely in the crosshairs of an urban renewal project aimed at bulldozing the neighborhood for luxury apartments. As Philip prepares the house, he discovers a faded 1872 covenant hidden inside a chimney breast, legally binding the land to perpetual worker housing. To complicate matters, his own employer holds a massive stake in the development consortium. Drawn into the lives of the street's enduring residents—including retired union machinist Raymond Okonkwo and Leah Patel, a young mother running an unlicensed coding club—Philip faces professional intimidation and subtle class ostracism. As a high-stakes public planning inquiry looms, Philip must confront the historical debt of his own family's middle-class ascent and decide whether to step out of his carefully constructed shell to defend the very upheaval he has spent a lifetime dodging.

Book details

Genres:

Historical Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Drama

Language:

en

Published:

2026-05-21

Content rating:

PG