1. The Man in the Queue Inspector Alan Grant’s debut begins with a crowd waiting outside a London theatre. When the doors open, a man collapses dead, stabbed in the back. With no witnesses and no clear motive, Grant must reconstruct the crime from scattered clues and shifting testimonies. His investigation takes him from the city’s underworld to genteel society, tracing the movements of performers, patrons, and impostors. The case becomes a test of Grant’s patience and intuition: he balances methodical police work with imaginative leaps about human behaviour. The novel already shows Tey’s hallmark—psychological insight rather than sensational gimmicks—and introduces Grant as an intelligent, courteous but persistent detective. 2. A Shilling for Candles A young film star, Christine Clay, is found drowned on an English beach. At first it appears to be an accident, but Grant suspects murder. His inquiry reveals a tangle of jealousies, financial pressures, and hidden identities involving Clay’s entourage and family. Tey contrasts celebrity glamour with ordinary provincial life and shows Grant’s skill at sifting gossip from fact. The investigation leads to a tense pursuit across southern England before the real killer is exposed. This second outing deepens Grant’s character—calm, insightful, and skeptical of easy answers—while sharpening Tey’s mix of mystery and social observation.
