The Thursday Murder Club – Richard Osman

THE FIRST BOOK IN THE GRIPPING THURSDAY MURDER CLUB SERIES BY TV PRESENTER RICHARD OSMAN

In a peaceful retirement village, four unlikely friends meet up once a week to investigate unsolved murders.

But when a brutal killing takes place on their very doorstep, the Thursday Murder Club find themselves in the middle of their first live case.

Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim and Ron might be pushing eighty but they still have a few tricks up their sleeves.

Can our unorthodox but brilliant gang catch the killer before it’s too late?

Richard Osman is an author, producer and television presenter. The Thursday Murder Club is his first novel. He is well known for TV shows including Pointless and Richard Osman’s House of Games. As the creative director of Endemol UK, Richard has worked as an executive producer on numerous shows including Deal Or No Deal and 8 Out of 10 Cats. He is also a regular on panel and game shows such as Have I Got News For You, Would I Lie To You and Taskmaster.

My Review:

I am not a fan of “celebrity” books, in fact I would even go as far as to say I actively avoid books written by celebrities… however there is something about Richard Osman. Maybe it’s because he always seems so nice and down-to-earth on TV and having begged him for a quick selfie at Harrogate in 2018 I can confirm that he is as nice and down-to-earth in real life and he is also very, very funny having watched him take part in the Two Crime Writers panel event.

So when I heard he had written a book I was eager to get my hands on a copy and see what all the fuss was about.

Set in a luxury retirement village called Coopers Chase, the 300 residents aren’t interested in spending their twilight years watching TV and staring out a window, instead they enjoy a busy itinerary from Conversational French to Cryptic Crossword, eating in a fine upscale restaurant, using the swimming pool, jacuzzi and sauna, taking a Zumba class or using the gym. Surrounded by twelve acres of woodland and beautiful open hillside, plus a herd of llamas.

Every Thursday a select group of octogenarian’s meet in the Jigsaw Room to try and solve old cases and call themselves The Thursday Murder Club. Initially run by Penny, an ex-police officer, the group have access to old police files and use their combined skills and expertise to crack cold cases. Now run by Elizabeth, when a murder occurs with links to Coopers Chase the group eagerly jump at the chance to get involved and try to catch the killer before the police.

This book has so many wonderful characters, from our “diariest” Joyce, an ex-nurse and widow to Elizabeth, the no-nonsense leader of the group with a very secretive past and connections in all the high places, Donna the new police officer who has moved to the area to escape her past. It was difficult to find a favourite because each and every character brought some humour and depth to the story.

The Thursday Murder Club would be classed as a “cosy murder mystery” – but it is so much more. It’s fun, it’s quirky, it’s enjoyable, it’s clever, it’s amusing and above all it’s a delightful escape from reality and I can’t wait for book 2.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

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