Friday, February 23, 2018

BACK TO THE CLASSICS 2018: The Man in the Queue by Josephine Tey



My second completed book for the 2018 Back to the Classics Challenge hosted by Karen at Books and Chocolate is The Man in the Queue by Josephine Tey.  It fills the category of “Classic Crime Story”. The book was published in 1929 and was Tey’s first book as well as the first Inspector Grant Mystery.

The mystery/crime is established in the first chapter when a man who had been waiting in a crowded line of people, all pressing and pushing to get their SRO tickets for London’s hottest musical is found stabbed to death.  The other theatergoers of course saw nothing as they were paying more attention to  getting to the front of the line than they were about the people around them. The case is then handed over to Scotland Yard’s rising talent, Inspector Alan Grant.  The man had no identification on him so Inspector Grant has not only to find out who killed him but also who the victim was. 

I quite enjoyed the procedural aspects detection in this book: tracking down tie manufacturers, tracing bank notes and so on.  I equally liked the undercover aspects of the story as Grant sends his sergeants disguised as peddlers or down-on-their-luck soldiers to gather information from gossipy maids and he himself travels to the Scottish highlands posing as a casual angler, but of course he is casting for more than just fish!  I also think that Tey really does excel in her characterization. The supporting cast in this book is really well drawn, in particular Miss Diamont and Mrs. Everett in my opinion. I think either of them could have walked off the pages and on to their own novels!  I think it is a pity that Tey didn’t write many non-genre novels, though she died fairly young (in her early 50s), so who knows what she would have accomplished had she had more time?   

Where the book is weakest, is in its plotting.  And while, as I stated above, there is a lot of interesting detective work in following up clues,  Tey breaks one of the “rules” of detective fiction in allowing her main detective to be ruled by intuition over facts sometimes.  That said, I enjoyed some of the red herrings in the story anyway!


Just as a caveat, as is often with books of this era, there is a fair amount of casual sexism and racism contained within the pages.  Also,  The Man in the Queue  isn’t going to knock The Daughter of Time off its top spot as my favorite of Tey’s books, but I did find it a satisfying read. 

16 comments:

  1. The only one of hers I've read is the Daughter of Time. I should pick up some of her others. This sounds like a good one.

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    1. Thanks for the comment Carol! I hope you like it if you pick up this title! I have all her other books and am making my way (slowly) through them.

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  2. Tey is another author that I've been meaning to read for years, but that I don't ever seem to get around to trying. Maybe someday. :D

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    1. Thanks for the comment Lark! So many books, so little time! This is a chronic problem for serious readers! :D

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  3. I'll have to keep an eye out for Josephine Tey novels. I don't think I've even heard of her before this, and I'm always eager to read more Scottish lit!

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    1. Thanks for the comment Rob! If you are ever looking for a classic "Golden Age" mystery to read, any Tey title will fit the bill!

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  4. A friend of mine recommended Daughter of Time and I've been meaning to read it and must do so. Agree, it's shame that authors don't try to flesh out an interesting supporting character in their next novel

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    1. Thanks for the comment Kathy! I hope you do try Daughter of Time. It is pretty good IMO. :D

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  5. I read Daughter of Time years and years ago for the first time and loved it. I reread it a couple of years ago and found that it was one of those books that held up just as well after all those years. Thanks for this reminder that there are other books by Tey that I should try!

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    1. Thanks for the comment jenclair! I think this one would be a good one to try if you are so inclined. However, a number of readers love Brat Farrar (which is also pretty good).

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  6. I was planning on reading this for Back to the Classics also, but it turns out my online book club is doing an Agatha Christie in April, so I may or may not get to this. It sounds fun, but I know what you mean about the sexism and racism in many of the detective classics that make them off-putting. Congrats on finishing your second book in the challenge--I just posted on my second classic today too!

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    1. Thanks for the comment Jane! Well, Agatha is great too! I look forward to reading about which ever book you end up reading. :D

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  7. I know everybody has great things to say about Daughter of Time, but I want to put in a good word for Tey's Miss Pym Disposes. It not only has a persuasive wartime atmosphere, but the girl's school setting is an excellent environment for the various types of teen female, from giddy to selfish to intense. Great characterization, canny examination of ethics and intellectual missteps.

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    1. Thanks for the comment Major! I have read Miss Pym Disposes as well and it is good. But still, I like the intellectual guesswork of Daughter of Time more!

      However, I agree that the characterization and amateur detective's assumptions which lead her often down the wrong path are very well done in Miss Pym. Again, had Tey lived longer, perhaps she would have continued with other books featuring Miss Pym.

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  8. This sounds like a really fun reading challenge. I have some classics in my to-read-stacks that I hope to read soon. There's something about reading classic novels that just makes me feel calm and peaceful.

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    1. Thanks for the comment Angela! I highly encourage you to join in on Karen's Blog Books & Chocolate. The challenge is broad enough that it is easy to participate with out feeling too stressed or pinned down.

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