The Mystery of a Hansom Cab

When Oliver Whyte is found dead in a Hansom Cab, everyone suspects his rival, Brian Fitzgerald, who had sworn in front of witnesses that he would kill Whyte. The evidence mounts against Fitzgerald and his lawyer, Mr Calton, is puzzled by an alibi his defendant won’t use to prove his innocence. Calton is forced to investigate the clues and solve the murder himself to stop Fitzgerald from being hanged. This clever whodunnit will keep you guessing until the very end.This book was the best-selling novel of the Victorian era but it was almost unpublished as Fergus Hume received several rejections of the manuscript. He got enough money together to self-publish and it became a huge success in Australia. Hume sold the American and English rights for only £50 missing out on a vast income for his popular book. Arthur Conan Doyle is said to have been inspired by The Mystery of a Hansom Cab to write A Study in Scarlet which introduced Sherlock Holmes.