Fergus Hume

Madame Midas -- that is what they call Mrs. Villiers, living in the Australian mining town of Ballarat. She once possessed enormous wealth, built up over the years by her loving father -- and then learned the least pleasant of lessons, marrying an Englishman whose true colors were soon unfurled at every nearby gambling and drinking establishment. But having left him behind, and establishing herself in Ballarat, she has found herself possessed of enough acumen to make a success of herself, and to earn to respect of all. Now into her world arrive two strangers -- a pair of Frenchmen who have made a desperate escape from prison on a tiny boat upon the sea, and who hope to find fortune and a new life on this rugged coast. The society of Ballarat may witness budding romance -- perhaps . . . and murder, most certainly. Fergus Hume (1859-1932) was author of novels of mystery and detection including The Mystery of a Hansom Cab, The Secret Passage and The Silent House.

Hume was born in England, the second son of James Hume. When he was three the family emigrated to Dunedin, New Zealand, where he was educated at Otago Boys' High School and studied law at the University of Otago. He was admitted to the New Zealand bar in 1885. Shortly after graduation Hume relocated to Melbourne, Australia, where he obtained a job as a barristers' clerk. He began writing plays, but found it impossible to persuade the managers of Melbourne theatres to accept or even to read them.

In Queer Street by Fergus Hume is a traditionally British murder mystery. Queer street is a colloquial term referring to a person being in some difficulty, most commonly financial. It is often associated with Carey Street, where London's bankruptcy courts were once located.

This novel is a classical murder mystery, written by Fergus Hume, a prolific British author

The Morley family--a husband, his wife and her three children from a former marriage, one young ward, and a governess. Add Giles Ware, a young man who was engaged by a family agreement to the young ward, the fact that he's in love with the governess and you have the start of a mystery. Not long after, the young ward is found dead and the governess has disappeared with a mysterious man. This is a Green Bird Publication of a quality soft cover.

A novel full of thrilling situations and startling surprises. The plot is woven round an amethyst cross, in connection with which a fortune is concerned. Lesbia, the heroine, gives the jewel, which has been entrusted to her by her dying mother, as a love token to her fiance, George Walker. How George is attacked and robbed of the cross is but one of the many dramatic events which hold the reader to the end.

Fergusson Wright Hume (8 July 1859 - 12 July 1932), known as Fergus Hume, was a prolific English novelist. Hume was born in England, the second son of James Hume. When he was three the family emigrated to Dunedin, New Zealand, where he was educated at Otago Boys' High School and studied law at the University of Otago. He was admitted to the New Zealand bar in 1885. Shortly after graduation Hume relocated to Melbourne, Australia, where he obtained a job as a barristers' clerk.

A novel full of thrilling situations and startling surprises. The plot is woven round an amethyst cross, in connection with which a fortune is concerned. Lesbia, the heroine, gives the jewel, which has been entrusted to her by her dying mother, as a love token to her fiance, George Walker. How George is attacked and robbed of the cross is but one of the many dramatic events which hold the reader to the end.

Hume was born in England, the second son of James Hume. When he was three the family emigrated to Dunedin, New Zealand, where he was educated at Otago Boys' High School and studied law at the University of Otago. He was admitted to the New Zealand bar in 1885. Shortly after graduation Hume relocated to Melbourne, Australia, where he obtained a job as a barristers' clerk. He began writing plays, but found it impossible to persuade the managers of Melbourne theatres to accept or even to read them.

The Mystery of a Hansom Cab takes place in Melbourne, Australia and involves an investigation into a homicide, after a corpse is discovered in the evening, in a hansom cab. The city of Melbourne plays a significant role in the plot and, as the author describes: "Over all the great city hung a cloud of smoke like a pall." The killer's identity is not as significant a revelation in the story as are the roles of the influential and secretive Frettlby family, and their secret: they have an illegitimate daughter living on the streets. The class divide between Melbourne's wealthy and less fortunate is addressed throughout the plot. The protagonist in the novel is a policeman named Detective Gorby, who is given the task of solving the murder. As Hume describes the character's investigative skills: "He looked keenly round the room, and his estimate of the dead man's character was formed at once." The author commented in a later introduction, "All of the scenes in the book, especially the slums, are described from personal observation; and I passed a great many nights in Little Bourke Street, gathering material". At this time, the street had gained notoriety as a place frequented by prostitutes and criminals.

Misery Castle - the name of the cottage hardly conjures a cosy existence. Yet Eva Strode lives there happily with her housekeeper Mrs Merry. Now, however, Eva waits anxiously for the arrival of her father, who has sent word of his imminent return from South Africa after five years hunting for diamonds - an arrival that threatens not only the tranquillity of Eva's existence, but also her love affair with the son of a local scholar. When her father fails to arrive, however, Eva receives a vision that he has met a violent end - a vision that is confirmed when a body is found at a spring known as the Red Deeps. But who could have wanted Strode dead? And why would the killer steal the victim's false hand?