Tenant for the Tomb

When an accident begins to look like murder... Classic crime from one of the greats of the Detection Club On a quiet country station, Detective Arthur Crook, waiting for the train to London, witnessed a near-fatal accident. Despite the arm of her companion, Miss Imogen Garland slipped and almost fell under the train. No harm was done, and Arthur Crook may have dismissed the incident all together if not for a newspaper article that captured his attention several weeks later.

The chatty Imogen makes friends wherever she goes. While waiting for the London train, she confides to fellow passengers Dora Chester and Arthur Crook about her dislike for her companion Miss Styles and the number of accidents she has suffered recently. Her point is proven soon enough, as Imogen nearly ends up under the wheels of a train. This incident raises suspicions for Dora and Arthur, who speculate that the "accident" may have been intentional. Arthur believes that someone like Imogen is bound to become a murder victim, emphasizing the potential risks of living life on one's own terms.

A few weeks later, Dora is saddened, yet not overly shocked, to learn that Miss Garland had once again encountered an accident, this time fatal. However, the surprising aspect is the person who actually passed away: It's not Imogen, but Miss Styles, her companion. . . and Imogene has disappeared.

The prestigious hotel is plunged into disarray when Miss Styles' downfall occurs, observed solely by the distressed Mrs. Huth, who is unsure of how she will convey the situation to her husband in Surbiton. In the hotel lobby, she stammers to the onlookers, "It was like some great bird, like a great black bird…No one expects to see a body falling through space from…well, from nowhere! "

Arthur Crook thus acquired one of his strangest clients and an exceptionally puzzling case. Someone wanted Imogen Garland dead but her singular combination of guile and guilelessness proved unexpectedly tough. As usual, Crook digs deep to unearth an ingenious solution, while remaining at the top of his racy form.