Introduction by Clare Wright
Charming, intelligent and forthright, the remarkable Madame Midas makes her fortune on the goldfields of Ballarat—and becomes the target of the villainous ex-convict Gaston Vandeloup, a charismatic Frenchman who soon makes himself indispensable to her mining operations. A companion piece to The Mystery of a Hansom Cab, Fergus Hume’s second novel is both a tightly plotted murder mystery and an insight into the heady days of the Golden City and Marvellous Melbourne.
‘Villains, fallen women and the enigmatic Madame Midas herself—who could resist Hume’s brilliant characters?’
‘Hume’s book offers a glimpse of another age of thriller writing, enriched by a study of a jarring, vibrant, deadly Melbourne.’
‘A rare treasure…Madame Midas herself is one of the most memorable Victorian heroines.’
A very accessible, entertaining and enlightening story…Historically significant and highly readable, Hume provides us with fascinating glimpses of the early days of white settlement.’