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.