Featuring an intriguing bunch of residents from the Sheltered Accomodation of Coopers Chase. Elizabeth and Joyce lead the Thursday Murder Club, a group who get their kicks from going through old unsolved murder cases -they are joined weekly by Bernard, Ibrahim and Ron. Very quickly their lives are interrupted by real live murder and they dedicate their efforts to 'helping' the police along by carrying out their own investigation and pointing the police in the right direction. A light hearted romp of a tale peppered through with trauma and tragedies that unravel as the investigation continues. From tragic lost love to business fraud, this story covers it all. A cleverly written entertaining first novel from Richard Osman, and hopefully not the last!

I was not sure what to expect from Richard Osman. I know him as a witty tv presenter but the book title and subject seem far removed from him. However, I was pleasantly surprised by his writing. It’s warm, funny, intuitive and engaging. He creates characters that are quirky and likeable.
Almost a modern day Agatha Christie feel to the writing, it felt very rural and British, in the nicest way.
I would certainly look for further books by Richard and would recommend this as an excellent autumn read, sitting under a corker tree in the warm September sun.

I love Richard Osman so I so wanted to love this book but truthfully, I struggled! I'm going to chock it up to the fact that I'm just not a mystery reader so that aspect didn't even keep me hooked. I guess this cosy mystery was just too cosy that I ended up drifting off to sleep more than once and if this wasn't an arc I would have seriously considered DNF-ing which I really didn't want to say! It picked up pace a lot by the halfway mark though and I actually found myself actually invested in the story and I did enjoy all the twists and turns that occurred and finding out just why everyone did what they did but I just didn't love it unfortunately!

The Thursday Murder Club is Richard Osman’s debut novel about four elderly people living in a community care home in Kent. Elizabeth, Ron, Ibrahim, and Penny set up a ‘murder club’ every Thursday where they revisit old homicide cases to see if they could shed new light on the events. Quite the hobby for a bunch of 70-year olds. Eventually, Joyce takes over from Penny after her health declines. While initially their club is a hobby to satisfy themselves and relive their past careers, their work turns out to be of immense value to the local police department when a real murder happens to the man who built their care home. Looking for a chase, the gang find themselves entangled in the murder and will do anything to figure out who the culprit is.
This book has clearly had a lot of time, effort and research put into it. From the characters complexity to knowing what will reel the reader in, the story fits perfectly into the murder fiction genre and is definitely going to change the traditional scene up. The post-Brexit, conservative Kent that acts as the setting of the book, as well as the dry British humour the characters possess is quite the odd combination for a murder, but it works perfectly. Nothing drives a murder story further that witty comments from a couple of old guys, and that’s a sentence I thought I’d never say.
While initially I did almost dismiss the book because it took a while for me to get attached to any of the characters, by the time I reached around 40% into the narrative I found myself eager not only to uncover the case but learn more about these characters personalities and their wacky backgrounds. My initial lack of interest was due to the murder being presented to the reader very early on, before the reader has a chance to familiarise themselves with any of the protagonists. Luckily, I continued reading and am extremely thankful that I did – this book is everything that a reader needs in the 21st century; witty, humorous, insightful, complex, and very, very British (all the things I support).
The research that Osman has put into this book is beyond compare, from being able to create a detailed description of the community home and how it’s run, to the sights the protagonists visit across London and Kent, only explains a portion of the knowledge Osman had to acquire before writing this book. Additionally, the intersecting lives of the characters as well as relationships and different timelines reveals a complex story that has the perfect combination of suspense, complexity and logic. By the end of the novel, everything fit perfectly into place, despite the constant flow of characters and their personal stories to the murder. Once again, I can only credit Osman and his incredible mind for being able to piece this book together.
One of the main attractions of this book that kept me wanting more is the four protagonists. These four lovable, interesting characters really drive the story forward and their deep friendship to one another is so raw and tangible that it’s easy to forget they are in their 70s and in a community care home. The lust for life they have as well as their energy, slyness and cheeky characters is what makes them so lovable – even the other residents in the home acknowledge that their spirit is unlike no other, and powerful when the four of them are together. Their ability to make fun of each other whilst also knowing when to make comments, when to not and when to comfort is heart-warming and it only intensifies when you think about some of events they’ve had to experience in their lives, most notably loss. The friendship, to them, is not just a group of elderly people solving mysteries, it’s about acknowledging that their remaining years aren’t plentiful and wanting to spend their days with the people whom they love.
On the murder/mystery side, it is everything I didn’t expect it to be – I find murder mysteries often fall into similar tropes, with the police usually being the culprit or involved with the culprit, the characters often unlikable and the plot being simple. However, this case is anything but simple and the characters throughout are extremely likeable, making the case feel as important to the reader as to the characters. Throughout, the reader is hooked by the characters as well as the on-going murder case.
Overall, I’d wholeheartedly recommend this book, a mystery book lover or not. If you love and crave that British, witty humour and want to fall in love with characters again then this book is for you. From laughing because of one-off comments by Ron to tears because of Joyce’s love for her friends, this book will stay with me for the rest of my life. If you’re interested in reading this book, it will be published September 3rd, 2020 and you can pre-order it here.

This was an unexpected pleasure to read. The set up and characters were well developed and the idea of setting the main plot in an upmarket retirement village worked well. I enjoyed the main characters and the way they interacted together to form a crime solving team. I suspect this won’t be the we hear of them. I definitely recommend this.

This book is an easy read; the residents of a beautiful retirement home in the Kent countryside investigate historical cold cases as well as lending a hand to solve current murder/s. For me the first half of the book was stronger than the second half; the characters are amusing (sometimes funny but sometimes a bit too cliche and cringey) and the ‘setting the scene’ descriptions are enjoyably detailed. I felt it sort of lost it’s way in the second half when the crimes were being solved and I wasn’t sure / didn’t like how some of the characters ‘ended’ (without giving away a spoiler). I’d hoped the plot lines and police characters further developed. A good beach read. I would read what Richard Osman writes next.

Four old codgers, two ladies and two men, decide to amuse themselves by investigating cold cases and set themselves up as the Thursday Murder Club. The lead Lady has contacts to enable them to do this. They all live in an upmarket retirement village owned by an obnoxious property developer who has designs for expansion by acquiring adjacent property and land to which everyone objects. When he arrives one morning complete with diggers to demolish an ancient cemetery everyone rallies to bar the way and protest. In the resulting medley he drops dead, found to be poisoned. How the club gets to weasel information from all and sundry and infiltrate the police investigation and solves murders and other mysteries makes a compelling story with many laughs along the way until it becomes darker as things are revealed

More cosy mystery than fast-paced page turner, this debut from Richard Osman was refreshingly different. He has a unique style of writing that I really enjoyed. The premise is really unusual and worked really well with great characterisation. A group of elderly, often underestimated, people in a luxury fold/retirement community come together to solve mysteries and cold-cases, to the bemusement of the local police. At times both funny and poignant – I'm sure this will be a hit.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this book.
It is a murder mystery reminiscent in style of Alexander McCall Smith's No 1 Ladies' Detective Agency.
A group of pensioners in a retirement village decide that they will investigate old, closed police cases to keep themselves amused, only to find themselves in the middle of a real life crime.
Delightful characters, crimes which, although gruesome, do not seem to be because of Osman's light touch, and a well-woven storyline, which incorporates insights into what it means to grow old make this a charming page-turner.
Great fun!

This was a feelgood relaxing read.

I loved the setting and would like to book my place in a similar retirement home. The posse of senior citizen detectives were all people that I would like to spend time with and I enjoyed the way they manipulated younger people by using their prejudices about old age against them.

The puzzle was engaging and the journey of getting to a solution was satisfying.

I enjoyed the gentle humour and observations of human behaviour, overall my take away from this is the value of listening to your elders and providing them with plenty of cake and wine.

This is set in a very nice retirement village in Kent. There is an abundance of clubs and activities to join in with. The four retirees, Elizabeth, Ron, Abraham and Joyce are all members of The Thursday Murder Club. This was originally set up by Elizabeth (ex-spy) and her friend Penny (ex-DI) to try to solve some of Penny's cold cases. Penny is no longer able to take part in the club so the others have joined Elizabeth.

PC Donna de Freitas has recently transferred from the Met following the end of a relationship and she is not happy with the boredom of her new role in Kent. She yearns to be solving murders rather than giving security talks to the residents of retirement homes. The Murder Club love Donna though and have her pegged for bigger things and wiithout anyone knowing what is happening, the Murder Club manage to get Donna on to the murder team which is run by DCI Chris Hudson.

When Tony Curran is murdered, the retirees are beside themselves with the opportunity to solve a current murder. Due to the fact that they are just seen as "Old Fogies" they are able to find their way in to places that the police wouldn't. Not to mention the questions that they can ask without anyone thinking that they need to watch what they're saying. The club then choose when and how much information they will then share with Donna and Chris ... but not without expecting something in return.

The characters are all complex and interesting and all of them, no matter how small their part in the plot, are needed.

There are plenty of red herrings and I found this easy to read and found myself looking forward to being able to pick the book up each time.

I very much look forward to the next in the series.

I hugely enjoyed this book!

An interesting cast of characters, a really clever story.

And really, really funny.

I hope Richard writes more. I'd certainly buy them

I loved it - clever plotting, funny, well-paced, and with great characters. Richard Osman is that rare celebrity who can also write a good book.

I'm always a little wary of "celebrity" novels so I wasn't sure what to expect of The Thursday Murder Club.
I had absolutely nothing to worry about.
This is a witty, tightly plotted novel with plenty of twists and turns and red herrings. I can absolutely recommend.

Last Christmas, I discovered the amazing game show that is Richard Osman’s House of Games. It’s a clever twist on the classic game show format, is highly entertaining, requires wit and is generally such a delight! So, it’s wonderful to report that this seems to be a signature move from Richard Osman as all these joyous elements can be found in his debut novel: The Thursday Murder Club.

So, just who are the Thursday murder club? Well, they are Elizabeth, Ron, Ibrahim, Joyce and formerly Penny.

Our club members are all in their 70s and live in Coopers Chase retirement village. Every Thursday, they look through old case files (belonging to Penny, a former member of the police) of unsolved murders and try to solve them. Then, a real life murder comes their way when Tony Curran – a local man with links to the retirement home – is murdered.

They immediately get to work at trying to solve the crime. Strong-willed Elizabeth calls the shots and utilise everyone’s specific skill-sets. Former nurse Joyce is the newest member of the club and she was my favourite character: so funny and astute, I got some Miss Marple vibes from her.

We also meet a wonderful cast of other characters who all play their parts in the plot: Ian Ventham, owner of the retirement village, Ron’s son Jason, a retired boxer who now tours the minor celeb scene (think Dancing on Ice), Father Mackie who has his own secrets, charming handyman Bogdan, grieving Bernard and Fairhaven’s local and likeable police: DCI Chris Hudson and PC Donna De Freitas.

I’ve included all these characters here to show you how many sub-plots and people are expertly woven through the narrative. Nothing feels forced, cluttered or excessive and everything comes together and flows in a fiendishly wonderful way.

Along with the character mix there are not one but THREE murders that weave their way into this clever story and become cases for the Thursday murder club to sink their teeth into.

Basically, my takeaway from reading is this: you should never underestimate the power of a group of seemingly innocent septuagenarians.

The Thursday Murder Club felt to me like a little homage to Agatha Christie with its funny quips, dry asides, clever murder mystery and overall gentle tone that’s not afraid to throw in a serious moment. And also like a great Christie novel, no element of the story goes the way you think it will.

This was truly a delight to read. Here’s hoping the Thursday murder club have another outing very soon.

This is a well written interesting read. A group of friends in a retirement village investigate unsolved murders as their hobby and when someone connected to them is murdered, they take on this live investigation. Has a bit of an Agatha Christie feel to it in the way the police give them plenty of leeway in getting involved in the case. The characters are funny and interesting, with Elizabeth being the lead investigator in the group, Will be good to find out more of her back story if this becomes a series,

What a treat this book is. It's a quaint murder mystery set in a retirement village where a group of residents have set themselves up as the Thursday Murder Club of the title. They mull over old cases, but find themselves in the midst of an investigation when the business partner of the complex owner is bludgeoned to death. At the scene of a crime, a photo is left which includes the son of one of the group members and they can't resist getting involved.
The police are also keen to solve the crime. With some stealthy manipulation by the Murder Club's leader, the constable who delivers security lectures as part of the retirement village's entertainment programme is asked to join the refreshingly straightforward detective who leads the team.
Plots thicken when a further crime is committed during a protest aimed at saving a convent's cemetery from the expansion of the village and later when a range of skeletons are discovered in various closets (and other places).
What starts off as an interesting-enough tale soon becomes a compelling mystery rooted in strong traditions. Initial flavours suggesting a cocktail of Agatha Christie and PG Wodehouse soon fade as the realisation hits that Richard Osman has a talent and a style of his very own.
There's a wonderful life-affirming attitude throughout. We are reminded that all people are amazing individuals with unique histories. For that, they are to be respected and all but the most serious of indiscretions can be allowed to fade without close inspection.
Every character in the cast is delightfully constructed and the interplay between them is a joy to behold. Moments of genuine emotion are created by excellent storytelling, keen observation, neat turns of phrase and a range of comedy moments that inspires everything from a warm smile to laughs out loud. Just as importantly, the solving of the crimes unfolds with perfect timing and there are a few twists at the end to allow it to end with a flourish.
Once the glow of finishing the novel eventually faded, I found myself hoping that the delights of the read wouldn't be diluted by turning it into a series. Not long after that, I decided I was probably right about that, but that a sequel would be entirely in order (if you please Mr Osman).
And a final thought. Like a Pixar film where you really should stick around until the end of the credits, you should actually read the acknowledgements at the back. Not only are they entertaining, they include tips for eating out and a warmth of spirit that reflects the loveliness of the novel itself.
They say laughter is the best medicine. When combined with a gripping story, I reckon it becomes even more powerful. The Thursday Murder Club provided the antidote to lockdown that I needed and just in the nick of time, so thanks NetGalley for getting a copy into my hands. . .

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for an ARC in return for an unbiased review.
I really wanted to like this book but it has left me a little nondescript.
I actually felt that the more it went on the more it became completely unrealistic in terms of how the police reacted to the investigative efforts of a group of retirement home residents in their eighties.
The actual story behind the killings was fine, actually it was pretty good.
I appreciate that with an ARC it hasn't been edited properly and normally don't have any real issues with that, but this one jumped from one character to another with no notice and often I found myself having read a paragraph or so before realising we were now on a different character.
All told I find myself a bit middle of the road here, so a solid three stars.

An excellent debut novel. Highly entertaining and amusing. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Hope Richard writes aMother novel. Loved it

This is not my usual kind of story but I thought it was a great idea for a book so thought I would give it a try. The book did take me a while to get into as it was slow going initially, however it does have a clever plot, a fantastic set of characters and the story is funny yet poignant at the same time. I can just imagine it as a tv series! An enjoyable holiday read.

Thank you to Netgalley, Penguin Books and the author for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.