{"product_id":"the-mystery-of-a-hansom-cab-von-fergus-hume-5","title":"The Mystery of a Hansom Cab","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe Mystery of a Hansom Cab, published in 1886, was the first novel by Fergus Hume. It begins with a sensational murder, as the body of a dead man is discovered in a hansom cab by the driver. Set in Melbourne, Australia, it presents an engaging story of crime and detection, with several unexpected twists and turns. It also gives a clear and interesting portrait of the colonial city at the peak of its 19th Century prosperity following a gold rush, a time when it was known as ¿Marvellous Melbourne.¿ The novel contrasts the comfortable lives of the rich and well-connected of the colony with the misery of those living in the noisome slums in the back-streets of the city.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe novel, originally published in serial form in a local newspaper, achieved some initial local success when it was first released in book form, but the author then sold the rights to a British company.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAfter warm initial reviews in England The Mystery of a Hansom Cab became not merely a best-seller but what today we would call a ¿blockbuster¿ in the United Kingdom, its English-speaking colonies and the United States. It was the best-selling mystery novel of the Victorian era, and apparently was part of the inspiration for Conan Doyle to begin writing his Sherlock Holmes stories.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFergus Hume eventually left Australia and returned to England. Though little-known today, after the success of The Mystery of a Hansom Cab Hume went on to write more than a hundred additional novels in the crime genre, as well as several plays.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"aw-variant-hidden-subtitle-div\" id=\"aw-variant-subtitle-9791041805976\"\u003e\u003ch3\u003eA Gripping Tale of Murder and Mystery in Melbourne\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Autorenwelt Shop","offers":[{"title":"Softcover - 9791041805976","offer_id":46900975567173,"sku":"9791041805976","price":24.9,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0940\/0622\/files\/a270c4fb-0fc8-4d4d-8fa3-0474fbc57dad.jpg?v=1772088776","url":"https:\/\/shop.autorenwelt.de\/products\/the-mystery-of-a-hansom-cab-von-fergus-hume-5","provider":"Autorenwelt Shop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}