I'm always a bit wary of 'celebrity' authors but was intrigued to read this offering from Richard Osman, the first of a new series of mystery books.

The Thursday Murder Club are a group of pensioners who live in a retirement village. Elizabeth is the clear leader with n intriguing past, Joyce is a former nurse, Ibrahim a retired psychiatrist and Ron a former union leader, known as Red Ron. The club usually meets weekly to look at unsolved murders, but when one of the partners of the retirement village is found dead, the Club finds itself with a real life murder to investigate. With the reluctant help of Donna, a former Met officer who has relocated to Kent and finds police life in the country less than exciting, the Club set out to solve the mystery.

As well as being a mystery, this is also a story of friendship and family. There is also a lot of wine and cake involved!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. There are several threads weaving through the story, so you do need to keep a track of which thread you are reading at any one time. However I liked the fact that there was a lot going on and how the different stories intertwined.

I will await further books by Mr Osman with much interest.

With thanks to NetGalley and Penguin UK for this advance copy.

I am not going to beat around the bush - I loved 'The Thursday Murder Club,' by Richard Osman. It tells the story of Elizabeth, Ron, Joyce and Ibrahim who live in a retirement community. Instead of attending the crochet, or jigsaw club, they meet on a Thursday to solve past crimes. When murders occur on their doorstep, they use all their skills and experience to investigate, alongside Donna and Chris from the local police, who become recruited to the group, against their better judgement.

Osman's comic style, and clever use of words, reminded me of Kate Atkinson. As did his ability to pair humour with quite dark material. Although this novel could be described as light, it tackles a number of serious subjects. I really enjoyed the way he was never condescending about his characters and used others perceptions of older people as their secret weapon. The plot was well written, but like Atkinson it wasn't a who dunnit, in that there were not clues along the way that would provide the answer (of if there were I missed it).

If I had to criticise, I would say like many other books, the thing that lets it down slightly is the ending. This wasn't because it wasn't satisfactory, but because it was extremely dark compared to the rest of the novel, and was perhaps too much of a juxtaposition. However, I hope Richard Osman garners the praise he deserves.

I must admit that this was even better than I expected - sometimes when a book receives lots of hype, it can leave you disappointed. But this one deserves the hype.

Thank you to Viking Books and Penguin UK for the chance to read a digital ARC before publication - my thoughts are my own and not influenced by the gift.

As someone who enjoys detective stories (I started with Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys as a teenager), this was an enjoyable read. Great characters, most of them over 70, and so many topical British comments - Pizza Express for an alibi! A book full of secrets and more than one murder.

The story flowed well, lots of red herrings, and lots of different stories inside one book. Personally I'm hoping for a sequel so we can meet the Thursday Murder Club again.

An hilariously funny book, the story of four friends in a retirement village who solve the murders committed within the local community, proving that the old ones (people) are simply the best and their is still a lot of life in them.. I am really looking forward to the next Thursday Murder Club book and hope it isn't long before it appears on the shelves.

Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim & Ron make up ‘The Thursday Murder Club’ - a group of elderly residents in a retirement village who gather (on Thursday’s) to discuss age-old unsolved murders. That is, until a murder or two starts happening on their doorstep and they begin investigating live cases!

This book definitely blew away all of my expectations. I really enjoyed the characters, they were all extremely likeable and each had their own quirks. Joyce’s diary entries scattered throughout were one of my favourite parts of the novel.

Their constant assistance (and occasional hindrance) to the police is equal parts funny as it is astounding. They seem to be able to pull off the impossible thanks to their combined knowledge and connections - it’s easy to forget they’re all elderly residents. Other characters weave in and out of the picture and these only further add to the believable little Kent village in question. I could vividly picture the entire book, thanks to Osman’s fantastic writing and description.

A great, light-hearted read which I think really ticked every box. I’ve been won over by The Thursday Murder Club and am already eagerly anticipating the next book!

The Thursday murder club by Richard Osman is the most funny detective plot I’ve read in a long time.STé in a retirement village full of brilliant characters it’s made me smile so many times. The plot is brilliant and it’s just so much fun. I cannot wait for the next novel. This gets 10/10. Get it for any friends approaching retirement- it’ll show just how much fun retirement can be. Loved it.

The sheltered housing setting is unusual and is well observed. The elderly subjects and their interests are well observed, cleverly drawn and often comical.
I struggled with the idea that the police would involve themselves in the elderly investigation, share their progress and spend the time with their "helpers" though.
Elizabeth's character seems to have the magic touch, persuading everyone to bend to her will. For me, it wasn't surprising that she aimed for this, but that many others conformed with her plans was less believable,
Definitely a different read.

Hmmm… I've long gone past the bit where I just turn my nose up at yet another celebrity novel, for some of them are just too good to belittle them like that – but of course some of them aren't even written by people you'd ever call a celebrity. But there is still a case where you're not completely impressed with the output of the format, and for me this was one of those times. For one thing, the editing certainly needed to be stronger – the book wore my patience so thin on one aspect of the crimes I couldn't care less who did it, and in those sections we were losing what was so enjoyable about the book. For this, to me, is a look at the investigators, and not the crimes – the wonderful inhabitants of the retirement village whose owner's right hand handyman type gets killed off. I'd come for those, if they were allowed to fill all the pages – the spunky one who seems to have worked for every foreign intelligence service in the world, and has a million favours to call in as a result; the much more mundane one whose first person narrative is allowed to cameo so wonderfully, and disguise just how much of a flirt she is. You can imagine Celia Imrie and Imelda Staunton fighting over which plays which in the TV version already.

Aside from the characterisation of the community, we get a very easy, polished talent at social observation and the mindset of the old (people not looking like they'd need three sugars in their drinks, etc) and a sense of humour which certainly comes across on the page but which didn't strike me as exactly difficult for Osman to do. We get lots of authorial tricks (the b-bomb dropped halfway through when it finally deigns it the right time to let us know one of the characters is black, for example). And while it is charmingly light at times, and we enjoy watching all the old folk and wondering if any of them will be allowed to shack up with any of the other ones, the fact remains we should have been allowed to care more about what they were investigating. That went out the window with it being a little boring, and got lost as I say in a lack of concision. Oh, and it's far too easy for people here to look at ages-old CCTV footage, when we all know the truth about how well and how long that's kept. A bit over three stars from me.

In a retirement village where the facilities are seemingly far superior than your average holiday resort, there is plenty to keep you occupied with various clubs, fitness activities, visits and committee meetings. Just a word of warning, do not park where you shouldn't!

One of the clubs is the aforementioned title The Thursday Murder Club - four members, Elizabeth, Joyce, Ron and Ibrahim. All of these four bring something different to the club as they investigate unsolved cases from the past.

Elizabeth has connections with pretty much everyone or anyone, she clearly worked in mysterious ways in her past life. Joyce is a former nurse, useful for some of the medical elements. Ron or 'Red Ron' as known to many is a former union leader and can antagonise with the best. And quiet Ibrahim, former psychiatrist, who works without and question and methodically to find all the answers.

Of course little do they know, that a murder is going to happen in their little world - but so it does.

Now it is time for The Thursday Murder Club to use all their wit and wiles to solve the murder or at least direct the police in the right direction.

Much will be made of this book simply because of who it is written by. Richard Osman has a very acerbic wit which is evident in this book and for me it resembled a Wodehouse novel in parts, very character rich. There are plenty of references to typical British places, products and behaviours and it very much centres the setting as well as the plot in that of a British cosy crime novel.

The book is clearly dominated by the murder story line but it also focuses on the thoughts and feelings of those in the retirement village as well. The Murder Club all have personal histories of their own and how they come to be gathered all together in this village. Osman deals with it gracefully and it adds a richness to the story.

A great fun light-hearted read which everyone will be talking about. I do hope there is more from Osman.

Celebrity writers can be a hit and miss experience, so it was with trepidation that I approached Richard Osman's quintessentially offbeat British character driven crime fiction debut, but I need not have worried, it's a belter, with its understated charm, humour and wit that beguiles. Set in Kent, four sprightly, remarkable agile, and energetic elderly folk exercise their considerable brain power into the solving of cold case murders from police files secretly acquired by the undisputed leader of the group, Elizabeth, a woman to be reckoned with, with her mysterious and shadowy background. The organising Elizabeth has a powerful and wide ranging network that she can call on, one that the police might envy. The quiet, sensible and overlooked Joyce, an ex-nurse, is a recent arrival to the exclusive luxury retirement village, that include many residents formerly at the top of their varied professions. She soon finds herself recruited to the Thursday Murder Club (TMC), and it is through her Journal we learn of the members activities and meetings, oiled by considerable partaking of wine and her delicious baking.

Ibrahim, a retired psychiatrist, a logistics and details man, and Ron, a union man that used to be famously portrayed as Red Ron in the media, are the other members of the club. PC Donna de Freitas, is a recent transplant from the London Met and, to put it mildly, she would rather be solving murders than living the boredom of her current reality as she gives a security talk to the TMC, only to have her agenda overturned by the bunch of wily, manipulative and sly members. When the murder of Tony Curran is discovered, the TMC gear themselves up to solve the murder, willing to use any advantage they can engineer, cross any line, and venture into forbidden territory where the police cannot go. They use their influence to get Donna on the murder team run by the lonely and overweight DCI Chris Hudson, to gain access to police information, willing to trade what the TMC discover with Donna and Chris, although they often only do so at a their discretion and at a time of their choosing.

It is the diverse characters that Osman creates and develops, and his tight plotting with the numerous secrets and their reveals, along with the comic touches, that makes this an entertaining and delightful read. This makes a wonderful break from the dark and grisly fare of much of the crime fiction and mystery genre, and whilst the connection between our intrepid elderly sleuths and the police might require a suspension of disbelief, its works beautifully. Obviously when it comes to the elderly, medical issues, physical decline, loneliness, grief and loss are going to play an integral part of their stories. If you are looking for fun, entertainment, and a thoughtful, intelligent, offbeat and engaging mystery, then this is highly likely to appeal. In the meantime, I look forward to the next in what promises to be a stellar crime series. Many thanks to Penguin UK for an ARC.

Full review can be found at: https://talesfromabsurdia.com/book-reviews/the-thursday-murder-club-review/

I wanted to love The Thursday Murder Club. I really did.

Like most people, I was drawn to it because of the author. I love Richard Osman; he’s smart, witty, and possibly one of the most pleasant people on television.

So I’m sorry to say that I found The Thursday Murder Club to be a very poor novel.

The idea of a group of elderly people coming together to get to the bottom of unsolved crimes is a brilliant idea. It should be funny and perhaps even a little moving. And very occasionally, it is.

However, the plot is plodding and disinteresting and the characters are, on the whole, thinly-veiled stereotypes. We have the fraudulent priest; the supercapitalist property mogul; the socialist rabble-rouser; the hardworking Polish builder; the mid-life crisis policeman… I could go on.

If The Thursday Murder Club was a pastiche of sorts, you could maybe forgive the characterisation as a nod to the genre. But it isn’t, and whilst it’s probably unfair to say that it’s lazy, I think the characters needed to have something more original about them.

This was a pleasant read. Different to the books I normally read and nearly stopped reading about 3 chapters in as it was just too lighthearted for me but I persevered and was pleased that I did. Not full of police procedures or details but the members of The Thursday Murder Club were delightful. They were all friendly and lovable and made the book for me. Felt it would be an excellent holiday read as you could pick it up and put it down easily.
Thanks to Netgalley and Penguin Books for the ARC of this book.

What an excellent book this is! Set in a retirement village, it is written with great sensitivity of the elderly, particularly of professional people, and the worry of losing their faculties. The main group of characters - the Thursday Murder Club- are an interesting collection of individuals, I’d love to have dinner with them. This is a very witty, sharp, novel. I’d love it if there was a second book!

Totally surprised by how much I loved this story and how page turning it was. The cast of characters were compelling, as were the red herrings thrown into the story. I could read the sequel right now. Now, finally, was Elizabeth secretly M in James Bond in a past life?

I really like Richard Osman. This book is written in the style of P.G. Wodehouse or Alexander McCall Smith , a little whimisical with seeminging insignificant details. It took me a little while to get into the story and the writing style and I found myself quickly being distracted in the first part of the book. However it was worth perservering and I did enjoy it on th whole.
Set in the Kent countryside in a senior cpomplex converted from an old convent. The descriptions of the settings and the characters is excellent. I also liked the different writing styles as the story is told from different perspectives. Like above mentioned authors, the plot is based on a series of coincidences, but is nevertheless quite entertaining . The "Murder Club" are quite an amazing bunch, though it is probably stretching the realms of credibility that the police officers involve them so much in the case. This gives the impression that the police are not really up to scratch, relying on a group of OAP's, who no doubt have a wealth of life experience, but are certainly not crime solving experts.
A good read certainly and I hope to catch up with this group again . If you are looking for a crime thriller, this is not for you but if you want an entertaining and sometimes comical read , I hope you will enjoy this.
Thank you to Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

Elizabeth, Joyce Ron and Ibrahim are friends in an up market retirement village. Once a week they meet to apply their minds to unsolved murders. Pretty soon one takes place almost on their doorstep, a builder who worked with the developer to build their village is bludgeoned to death. They would like to beat the police to solving this one. They are entertaining characters and the plot is complex so it will keep you intrigued. Its a good read and I look forward to further stories - they would make a good TV series.

The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman a truly hilarious five-star read. I love a story about older people as they always make me smile so much, I spend the majority of my life in a place similar to the setting of this story, so I knew I would enjoy it, what I didn’t expect was to enjoy it so much. The character descriptions in this story bring everyone to life, they are smart and clever individuals and the plot is well done. There are enough twists and turns that it will hook you and keep you hooked, but they are well done and plotted so you can easily follow and fall for, especially the false leads. If you like a good mystery then don’t miss this one, I would recommend this to everyone especially those who don’t normally pick up ‘celebrity authors’ as this is so much better than that.

The first member of The Thursday Murder Club we encounter is Joyce Meadowcroft. She used to be a nurse and is thus the perfect person for Elizabeth to consult about how long it would take a person who has been stabbed to bleed out. Details of where and how are exchanged and Joyce confirms that it would have taken about forty-five minutes and that the victim could have been saved if she'd received prompt medical help. It didn't put Joyce off her shepherd's pie (which tells us that it was a Monday) but it does get her interested in The Thursday Murder Club. They meet each Thursday (as you might have guessed) in the Jigsaw Room at Coopers Chase Retirement Village.

Elizabeth lives in one of the three-bed flats in Larkin Court with Stephen, her third husband. She prefers not to be too specific about what her job used to be, but you get a sniff of derring-do and the Official Secrets Act. She's the leading light in the Club now that Penny (formerly a detective inspector) is in a coma in the Willows nursing home. Ibrahim Arif is the oldest and used to be a psychiatrist: he's certainly got all his marbles at home (he lives in Wordsworth, by the way) and is a considerable fount of knowledge. The fourth member of the club, now that Joyce has joined, is Ron Ritchie, former trade union leader and father of celebrity boxer, Jason Ritchie. His great skill is bluster and being senile to order.

The club used to look at cold cases to see if anything had been missed. Penny had all the files, but please don't say anything about that as she really shouldn't have them after she left the police. Then there's a murder on their doorstep: Tony Curran, who was delighted with his home (a house built on hard work, on making the right choices, cutting the right corners and backing his own talent) and where he is in life has just been sacked by Ian Ventham, the part-owner of Coopers Chase. He's then bludgeoned to death in his kitchen. And that won't be the last death.

Richard Osman catches old age mercilessly, but with humour. A computer expert was going to come and talk to the residents about tablets, but the message had to be recirculated as most of the residents couldn't understand what computers had to do with their tablets. You'll laugh - and then you'll be on the verge of tears as a widower rests alone on a bench where he and his wife used to sit. All the residents are conscious that they either have lost someone dear to them or could do with little warning, but there's still an extraordinary zest for life that was good to see.

OK - it's cosy crime, but it's cosy crime at its wonderful best. The police would never get involved with a group of pensioners as they do in The Thursday Murder Club (well - I hope they wouldn't!) but get over it. You're reading this for pleasure and PC Donna de Freitas and DCI Chris Hudson are great value for money as they puff (in Chris's case, quite literally) along in Elizabeth's wake. It's a fun read but with one of the best cosy-crime plots I've read. I finished the book all too quickly and was nowhere near guessing who was the villain. I normally try to avoid reading books by television presenters (they're often over-hyped and underwritten) but I had an advantage here: I've never seen Pointless so I didn't swerve away and - thank heavens. This is a book I really wouldn't like to have missed. I'd like to thank the publishers for letting Bookbag have a review copy.

Hoped I would enjoy this as it was written by Richard Osman, but I found it very tedious and not to my liking.
Thanks to Netgalley for A.R.C.

I ADORED this book. As crime dramas go it’s more ‘Grantchester’ than ‘Line of Duty’ – but that was just perfect.

The central character OAPs are a diverse bunch who each bring skills from their younger lives to the team – Elizabeth has some mysterious espionage background, Joyce was a nurse, Ibrahim a psychiatrist, and Ron a union firebrand. Their relationship with Chris and Donna – the police in charge of the investigation – is hilarious, Elizabeth is the Queen of manipulation – and everyone ends up doing what she wants.

There are red herrings aplenty – and coincidences galore – but that all makes for a twisty turny read that I couldn’t put down.

I started highlighting sentences that I loved – but realised I’d end up having most of the book highlighted – so here are just a couple to give you a flavour:

“After a certain age, you can pretty much do whatever takes your fancy. No one tells you off, except for your doctors and your children.” This was very early on in the book and rang incredibly true, particularly following the recent lockdown – where I, and a number of friends, have had to deal with septuagenarian parents who think we are totally unreasonable for discounting ‘popping to get a paper’ as an essential journey and thus telling them off!

“I haven’t been to Ashford International, but I doubt a station would have ‘International’ in its name and not have an M&S.” This is just so British – and I could hear my late Nan saying something exactly like this! In the 1980s – so when there were far less mini M&Ss around – my Grandfather got my Nan to walk to the top of the Long Mynd in Shropshire by promising her there was an M&S at the top!

Whilst there are murders, there is also a lot of humour and laugh out loud moments. There are also some really tender and emotional moments between the characters – and some big stuff is dealt with too – dementia, suicide, euthanasia, family relationships – but all done in a lovely way.

It’s funny, clever, quick witted – and you can almost hear Richard Osman saying some of the lines. I’m not sure I’ve ever read a book where the personality of the writer is so personified in the way it’s written – but as a fan that doesn’t bother me (however if you don’t like Mr Osman, maybe don’t bother reading it!?)

The only slight bug bear is that the formatting is a bit weird – and mid paragraph you could jump scene from, say, the retirement village to the police station. Initially I thought this might have been a clever ploy to keep the reader on their toes and potentially stave off dementia – but suspect that more likely it’s because it was a proof copy and this will be sorted before the book is actually released!

But aside from this – I thoroughly enjoyed this fabulous book – and I’m chuffed that it’s the start of a series. I can not wait to see what the Thursday Murder Club get up to next.

A huge thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my advance review copy – I will be singing The Thursday Murder Club’s praises far and wide!