Gabaldon introduced Grey in the second Outlander novel Dragonfly in Amber (1992) as a sixteen-year-old English soldier who chances upon Jamie and Claire Fraser on the eve of the Battle of Prestonpans.

[1] Meanwhile, the character of Grey appeared in the Outlander novels A Breath of Snow and Ashes (2005) and An Echo in the Bone (2009), as well as in The Fiery Cross (2001) by way of a series of letters to Jamie and his family.

"[6] Comfortable with his sexuality but necessarily "discreet", Grey navigates mystery and intrigue "with characteristic élan, intelligence, and fortitude, assisted by jeweled goblets of wine and meaningful glances from fetching men.

"[4] The novella Lord John and the Hellfire Club was originally published in the 1998 British anthology Past Poisons: An Ellis Peters Memorial Anthology of Historical Crime (edited by Maxim Jakubowski),[3][8] as well as by Bantam Dell as Lord John and the Hell-Fire Club in a "Complimentary Collector's Special Edition" the same year.

[1][3][10] Set in 1756 London, the novella follows the adventures of Lord John as he stumbles upon the secrets of the Hellfire Club, an underground society concerned with the supernatural.

[11] Though Gabaldon had intended it to be a novella, Private Matter came in at 320 pages and secured the author a deal for two additional full Grey novels, Lord John and the Brotherhood of the Blade (2007) and The Scottish Prisoner (2011).

"[5] Set in 1757 England, the novel follows Lord John's attempt to resolve a delicate situation involving his cousin's betrothed, Joseph Trevelyan, while searching for the murderer of a fellow soldier suspected of espionage and recovering missing military intelligence.

Grey meets and is joined in his investigation by the handsome Hanoverian Captain Stephan von Namtzen, Landgrave of Erdberg, and takes young Tom Byrd into his employ as his valet.

[17] In 1759, Lord John finds that someone has reawakened the long-forgotten scandal of his father's death 17 years earlier, and the old controversy threatens to cause trouble for himself and his elder brother Harold, Earl of Melton.

[2] Picking up right after the events of Brotherhood of the Blade in 1759, Grey searches for the culprit behind a suspicious cannon explosion as others seek to blame him or his half-brother for the incident.

[3][23][25] The novella Lord John and the Plague of Zombies was first published in the 2011 Ace Books urban fantasy anthology Down These Strange Streets, edited by George R.R.

[22] In 1761, Lord John is sent to Jamaica in command of a battalion to put down a slave rebellion and soon finds himself investigating a mystery involving snakes, spiders and zombies.

[22] In 1762, Lord John is set to step down as temporary military governor of Jamaica when he learns that his mother is in Havana, Cuba, where the British Navy is headed to lay siege.

[28] Publishers Weekly noted, "Gabaldon brings an effusive joy to her fiction that proves infectious even for readers unfamiliar with her work or the period.

"[5] In 2007, Lord John and the Brotherhood of the Blade debuted at #1,[16] and the Hand of Devils collection reached #24 on The New York Times Hardcover Fiction Best-Seller List.

[28] In a review of Hand of Devils, Publishers Weekly noted, "Gabaldon brings an effusive joy to her fiction that proves infectious even for readers unfamiliar with her work or the period.

[27] Of Scottish Prisoner, Publishers Weekly said, "A complicated plot will likely baffle new readers, but long-time Gabaldon fans will find plenty to love.

"[32] Oscar Kennedy subsequently portrayed a young Grey in the 2016 season two episode "Je Suis Prest", adapting the character's appearance in Dragonfly in Amber.