A Deadly Soup Called London Particular

The name of this mystery novel is actually a local Victorian nickname for the city's infamous, thick, yellow pea-soup fog. The dish itself was a dense, pea-based soup that shared the same name.

During the 19th century, London was notorious for its suffocating, pea-soup-colored smog that brought the city to a standstill. Locals jokingly referred to this atmospheric gloom as a London Particular, borrowing the name from a popular thick vegetable stew of the day. Author Christianna Brand expertly used this eerie, blinding backdrop for her classic 1952 crime novel. It serves as a perfect, dark metaphor for the confusion and hidden secrets of a murder mystery.