Oh, my word, I enjoyed this book. The writing is witty and the plot is clever and twisty. The characters — every last one of them — are wonderfully accurate and realistic. They all have their own identities and their own personalities that are instantly recognisable.

The premise is of a murder mystery that is centred around a retirement community. None of the residents are murdered, which is something I was glad of. Rather, they come together to solve the murders way before the police can come up with the answers.

The four main characters (and the four key sleuths) are Elizabeth, Joyce, Ron, and Ibrahim. They have e club called the Thursday Murder Club, which is so-called because they meet on Thursdays and try to solve old murder cases. The club was originally formed by a woman called Penny who used to be a police officer, and who took some cold case files when she retired from her job. Now, though, Penny is in a vegetative state following a stroke. So, the mantel is handed to the remaining four.

I love how these people have no fear. They don’t act like they are in their sixties and seventies. They don’t act as though danger is something that bothers them. So, when a local developer is murdered, they set out on a mission to discover his killer. Two further murders follow (although, one of them occurred sixty years ago). We watch as the fearless four find out who is responsible for the deaths.

Richard Osman’s writing is very funny. It makes the narrative an entertaining read. I have to say, though, there were a lot of times when I could hear him telling the story. I guess that’s just because he writes with his voice. Kind of goes without saying. But, there were instances of narrator intrusion. Maybe, it’s just that I watch him on Pointless every day, so I hear his voice a lot.

In terms of the writing, it did have a lot of telling rather than showing. When I first started to read, I found it off-putting. However, I quickly learned not to pay it too much mind. It was easy to fall inside the plot and humour and just enjoy it.

It really is an entertaining read. I recommend it wholeheartedly.

Relaxing. If you want to read something that is easy and quick, while remaining supremely entertaining, check it out.

The humour. The characters, too. In particular, Joyce. She is the only person who narrates her parts from the 1st Person. She fancies just about every male she meets, but she is also a very caring, kind friend.

There was a lot of telling. But, I think this is maybe because it is a cozy-style mystery.

Talk about the book with someone else who has read it.

Happy. Entertained.

Richard Osman is best known for being the host of Richard Osman's House of Games and the co-host of Pointless. This is his first novel, and he has done a fantastic, original, and clever job with it.

It's fun. The plot is clever. The characters will drawn you in quickly.

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Created Jun 25, 2021 at 6:16am • Submit your own review...