The Mystery of a Hansom Cab
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3.5 • 89 Ratings
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Publisher Description
An Apple Books Classic edition.
We’ve all heard of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the creator of Sherlock Holmes. But what about the novel that inspired Doyle—and outsold him? Fergus Hume’s The Mystery of a Hansom Cab made him the bestselling crime writer of the 19th century.
The story opens in the dead of night in Victorian-era Melbourne. A man pulls up to a police station and tells them he’s shuttling the body of a murder victim inside his hansom cab. And although he’s laid eyes on the man he believes to be the murderer, the driver can offer no concrete leads.
Hume’s novel is as famous for its plot as it is for its depiction of Melbourne’s class divides at the time. With its portraits of grimy, impoverished neighborhoods alongside scenes of high-society opulence, The Mystery of a Hansom Cab is an absorbing historical mystery.
Customer Reviews
Loved it
Loved it,was great to listen to and was calm.
Very poor narration
This might be an interesting story and worth listening to, were it not for the appalling narration. A very irritating and tedious voice. I could not stomach more than the first 10 minutes.
Fascinating, given when it was written
An interesting tale with some colourful insights into Melbourne life at the end of the 19th Century.
Slightly spoilt by the writer ending what seems to be a disproportionately large number of sentences, especially those following dialogue, with an adverb, habitually. This would perhaps be less noticeable if the reader had not chosen to pause before each of these words,... irritatingly. Thus drawing attention to them, ... unnecessarily.
Otherwise a reasonable tale, albeit that the style seems perhaps a little naive, although this might be due more to the reader, ... unfortunately.
Still worth a listen, ... ultimately.