Ethel Lina White

[my edition Penguin, 1955] [from the Globe-Gazette (Mason City, Iowa), Sept 5, 1936]. Mystery Story on European Express. Ethel Lina White has written a mystery story with a new twist in The Wheel Spins. Most of the action takes place on the night express bound from a vacationing spot in Europe to Trieste and the leading character is Iris Carr. When Iris boards the train she finds as her traveling companion an English governess, Winifred Froy, who is returning to her home in England for a vacation from her duties with a ruling family in Europe. The two are the only English in their compartment. On the other parts of the train are English people whom Iris has known slightly at the resort at which she stayed.

Iris goes to sleep and wakes up to find that Miss Froy has disappeared. No one seems to be able to help her locate the woman. The other people in her compartment will not acknowledge that Miss Froy ever existed. A strange woman dressed in Miss Froy's clothes says that she is the one with whom Iris traveled. Panic-stricken, Iris tries frantically to get someone interested in the missing Miss Froy and finally succeeds in enlisting the help of a young construction engineer, named Hare.

The trio of them begin search for Miss Froy and Iris finds herself running into danger in the interest of the English governess whom she scarcely knows. Most of the people in the train conclude that she is crazy and at times Hare is doubtful about her. The suspense mounts with the action and the reader finds his attention racing along in the search for the vanishing lady.

It is possible that the famous story about the vanishing lady who disappeared from a Paris hotel may have had something to do with the plot of The Wheel Spins. Whether or not, the story is well handled and introduces a number of amusing characters in the fellow travelers on the night express.