Blockbuster!: Fergus Hume and the Mystery of a Hansom Cab
Author: Sussex, Lucy
ISBN: 9781922147943
Publisher: Text Publishing
Year First Published: 2015
Pages: 336
Dimensions: 233mm x 157mm x 20mm
Format: Paperback / softback
Description
Before there was Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes, there was Fergus Hume's The Mystery of a Hansom Cab-the biggest- and fastest-selling detective novel of the 1800s, and Australia's first literary blockbuster.
Fergus Hume was an aspiring playwright when he moved from Dunedin to Melbourne in 1885. He wrote The Mystery of a Hansom Cab with the humble hope of bringing his name to the attention of theatre managers. The book sold out its first run almost instantly and it became a runaway word-of-mouth phenomenon-but its author sold the copyright for a mere fifty pounds, missing out on a potential fortune.
Blockbuster! is the engrossing story of a book that would help define the genre of crime fiction, and a portrait of a great city in full bloom. Rigorously researched and full of arresting detail, this captivating book is a must-read for all fans of true crime, history and crime fiction alike.
Winner, Victorian Community History Awards, History Publication Award, 2015
Longlisted, Davitt Awards, Best Non-Fiction Book, 2016
Shortlisted, Ngaio Marsh Award for Non-fiction, New Zealand, 2017
ISBN: 9781922147943
Publisher: Text Publishing
Year First Published: 2015
Pages: 336
Dimensions: 233mm x 157mm x 20mm
Format: Paperback / softback
Description
Before there was Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes, there was Fergus Hume's The Mystery of a Hansom Cab-the biggest- and fastest-selling detective novel of the 1800s, and Australia's first literary blockbuster.
Fergus Hume was an aspiring playwright when he moved from Dunedin to Melbourne in 1885. He wrote The Mystery of a Hansom Cab with the humble hope of bringing his name to the attention of theatre managers. The book sold out its first run almost instantly and it became a runaway word-of-mouth phenomenon-but its author sold the copyright for a mere fifty pounds, missing out on a potential fortune.
Blockbuster! is the engrossing story of a book that would help define the genre of crime fiction, and a portrait of a great city in full bloom. Rigorously researched and full of arresting detail, this captivating book is a must-read for all fans of true crime, history and crime fiction alike.
Winner, Victorian Community History Awards, History Publication Award, 2015
Longlisted, Davitt Awards, Best Non-Fiction Book, 2016
Shortlisted, Ngaio Marsh Award for Non-fiction, New Zealand, 2017
