The Wheel Spins (eBook)

Ethel Lina White (1876 – 1944) was a renowned British author, best recognized for her contributions to the mystery and crime fiction genres. Her work was characterized by its gripping narratives, rich with suspense and often set against the backdrop of the English countryside. Among her notable works, 'The Wheel Spins' (1936) stands out, a novel that would later be adapted by Alfred Hitchcock into the classic film 'The Lady Vanishes'. White was born in Abergavenny, Monmouthshire, in Wales, and began her career writing short stories for magazines. With a prolific output, she authored numerous novels, demonstrating a particular skill in developing strong female protagonists who found themselves embroiled in eerie and perilous situations. Her literary style often involved the use of ordinary settings into which elements of the uncanny or the criminal would intrude, altering the lives of her characters in dramatic fashion. While less known today than some contemporaries, White's work was influential in the crime genre and remains of interest to scholars and enthusiasts of vintage crime literature. She had the ability to evoke palpable tension with a deft hand, a quality that has secured her legacy in the pantheon of early 20th-century British crime writers.