Set in the backdrop of the historic 'Tichborne Trial' of 1873, 'The Fraud: A Novel' weaves a rich tapestry of truth and deception through the eyes of Mrs. Eliza Touchet, a widowed Scottish housekeeper, and Andrew Bogle, a man with a harrowing past of enslavement in Jamaica. Both characters navigate a Victorian England riddled with facades, each seeking to unravel the truth amidst a nation captivated by the trial of an alleged impostor claiming a substantial inheritance. Zadie Smith's enthralling narrative uncovers the deeply embedded societal hypocrisies and the personal quest for identity in a time where one's story could be the difference between a future of fame or obscurity.