Man in the Queue

By Josephine Tey

Book Overview

A long line had formed for the standing-room-only section of the Woffington Theatre. London's favorite musical comedy of the past two years was finishing its run at the end of the week. Suddenly, the line began to move, forming a wedge before the open doors as hopeful theatergoers nudged their way forward. But one man, his head sunk down upon his chest, slowly sank to his knees and then, still more slowly, keeled over on his face. Thinking he had fainted, a spectator moved to help, but recoiled in horror from what lay before him: the man in the queue had a small silver dagger neatly plunged into his back. With the wit and guile that have made Inspector Grant a favorite of mystery fans, the inspector sets about discovering just how a murder occurred among so many witnesses, none of whom saw a thing.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0684815028
• ISBN13: 9780684815022
• Release Date: November 1995
• Publisher: Touchstone Books
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.58 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.4" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Up with Tey's very best work!

There seem to be various complaints about this one but I have nothing but good things to say about it! I'll confess to being a HUGE Tey fan but there's not a thing wrong in that. This is a British cosy murder with a great plot and plenty of atmosphere. A man is standing in a theater Queue when he is stabbed in the back by an unknown assailant. This seems very odd to Scotland Yard Inspector Grant since the crime scene was such a public place... but little by little, clues and witnesses begin to emerge. Before it's all over, Grant has to consider multiple suspects and ends up in a manhunt that takes him to the wilds of an obscure Scottish hamlet -- and he's STILL not done! For any fan of the genre, this is just a super mystery and a fluid read. Great stuff for rainy Saturday mornings.

My First Tey and the First Book of 2003 for Me.

I read, this my first Tey mystery, because all mystery afficiondos should at least sample her writing. She is famous in the mystery world, and you need to read her in order to determine how we got to where we did with mystery writing. I enjoyed the story. She certainly puts enough twists and turns in her plots. The book is somewhat dated (it was written in 1929) after all, but she has a lot of talent. I liked Inspector Grant even though he really didn't solve this puzzler, but it was fun following him around in his quest for the killer. This is a rather unique format for a "locked room" mystery since the victim was stabbed outside in a theatre queue, but it appeared that no one had the opportunity to do the deed. I want to continue to read the rest of her books. She writes fairly complex stories.