Category: Victorian Detective Stories

What do you think of when you hear the term “Victorian locked room mystery”? My first thought was of movies I’d seen where a group of people had been invited to a dinner party in a mansion isolated from the outside world … and then – one by one – they start dying off (not… Continue reading The World’s First Victorian Locked Room Mystery Novel

Prior to hearing about The Big Bow Mystery, I had never heard of Israel Zangwill, author of this mystery novel. What I’ve discovered since then is that Zangwill (who was born in London) was a prolific author of books, plays, essays, and poems. The Big Bow Mystery was one of his earliest works, published in… Continue reading Who Was Israel Zangwill, Author of The Big Bow Mystery?

The fact that there’s a Sherlock Holmes anti-Mormon controversy came as a surprise. (It’s probably a surprise to you, too.) As far as I knew, all Sherlock Holmes stories took place in England … or at least Europe! Then I learned that part of the plot in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s A Study in Scarlet… Continue reading Ever Hear of the Sherlock Holmes Anti-Mormon Controversy?

Who was Fergus Hume? And why was his Victorian debut novel, The Mystery of a Hansom Cab, so popular worldwide? If you are a fan of Victorian-era detective novels (and I’m guessing you probably are if you’re reading this blog), you may already know the answer to the question “Who was Fergus Hume?” That’s because… Continue reading Who Was Fergus Hume?

Curiosity is an important part of the intrigue behind any detective novel. But when a story takes place somewhere exotic (and often far away), curiosity often skyrockets. Fergus Hume’s hansom cab mystery – published in 1886 – is a good example. Set in the state of Victoria in southeastern Australia, The Mystery of a Hansom… Continue reading Hansom Cab Mystery ‘Down Under’ – A Victorian Sensation

Ask almost anyone if they’ve read a Victorian detective story, and you’re likely to hear them mention Sherlock Holmes. I know that’s true for me. I still remember watching the 1939 version of The Hound of the Baskervilles on TV when I was young – the movie featuring Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes … in… Continue reading Why the Victorian Detective Story Is So Popular

Charles Dickens’ Bleak House is amazing. We think it’s his best work. And Inspector Bucket is a pretty great detective. C. Auguste Dupin and Inspector Bucket (spoiler alert) Most nineteenth-century illustrations for Bleak House featured Charles Dickens’s tenacious criminal investigator, Inspector Bucket, a detective in London’s Metropolitan Police charged with investigating the murder of Sir Leicester… Continue reading Bleak House Is Amazing

What is the purloined letter, and will Auguste Dupin find it? Check out Edgar Allan Poe’s story and our podcast! Will Auguste Dupin Find The Purloined Letter? Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Purloined Letter” is a short story set in Paris sometime in the first half of the 19th century. In the story, G-, prefect of… Continue reading What Is The Purloined Letter?

Read Edgar Allan Poe’s story “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” and check out the Tea, Tonic, and Toxin podcast! New Mystery and Thriller Book Club and Podcast Introducing Tea, Tonic, and Toxin, a new book club and podcast for people who are (or will soon be) obsessed with mysteries and thrillers. Each month, your… Continue reading The Murders in the Rue Morgue