Fear Stalks the Village is a mystery novel by British writer Ethel Lina White. Series of poison pen letters cause panic in a small, quiet English village and soon after, the murders start happening. As the fear arises, Joan Brooks, who used to live a peaceful life, is forced to act fast in order to save the lives of her loved ones and her own. Ethel Lina White (1876-1944) was a British crime writer, best known for her novel The Wheel Spins, on which the Alfred Hitchcock film, The Lady Vanishes, was based.