A Shilling for Candles (Inspector Alan Grant #2) vs The Blood Royal: Which Should You Read?

Both live on shelves: Great Britain, Police, Fiction

A Shilling for Candles (Inspector Alan Grant #2) Josephine Tey · 1936 ★★★★☆ 3.9 197 pages · ≈ 3 h 39 m · Challenging Find on Amazon

The Blood Royal

The Blood Royal Barbara Cleverly · 2011 ★★★★☆ 3.9 311 pages · ≈ 5 h 46 m · Moderate Find on Amazon

The verdict

Ratings are close: 3.9 vs 3.9 — either is a safe pick by score.
A Shilling for Candles (Inspector Alan Grant #2) is the quicker read — about 3 hours vs 5 for The Blood Royal.
The Blood Royal is the easier read (Moderate), A Shilling for Candles (Inspector Alan Grant #2) more demanding (Challenging).