Fergus Hume 
The Mystery of a Hansom Cab 

Australian author Fergus Hume is the author of the mystery fiction book The Mystery of a Hansom Cab. In 1886, Australia released the book for the first time. The plot, which is set in Melbourne, focuses on the investigation of a homicide in which a body was found in a hansom cab and also explores the social class disparity in the city. After that, it was released in both Britain and the United States. It eventually sold more than 500, 000 copies worldwide, outpacing Arthur Conan Doyle's debut Sherlock Holmes book, A Study in Scarlet (1887). The Mystery of a Hansom Cab is set in Melbourne, Australia, and centers on an inquiry into a murder that occurs when a victim is found in a hansom cab early in the morning. The author used Melbourne extensively in the story, saying that "Overall the enormous metropolis hung a cloud of smoke like a pall." The involvement of the influential and secretive Frettlby family, as well as their secret-that they have a daughter living on the streets and that the lady everyone believes to be their daughter is not their daughter-are more important revelations in the plot than the killer's identity.