To solve an impossible murder, you need an impossible hero…

Judith Potts is seventy-seven years old and blissfully happy. She lives on her own in a faded mansion just outside Marlow, there’s no man in her life to tell her what to do or how much whisky to drink, and to keep herself busy she sets crosswords for The Times newspaper.

I really enjoyed this book!

From the first chapter ai loved the character of Judith. She’s quirky and independent and doesn’t give two hoots what other people think about her. She lives in her riverside mansion, swimming naked in the Thames and cycling around Marlow wearing her trusty cape.

When she hears a gunshot and discovers the body of her neighbour she is sure that there is more to this than meets the eye and sets out to investigate. Along the way she meets and teams up with the vicar’s wife Becks who is hiding in a cupboard trying to avoid parishioners and dog walker Suzie.

Using their combined skills and contacts they start to unravels some of the clues and actually help the cash straped police task force in their investigations.

This a great read. I love the three protagonists and really enjoyed the dynamics of their developing friendship.

Police officer Tanika Malik is also a great character – juggling motherhood and family with her career she is witty and relatable.

The mystery itself is clever and all the clues as there so the reader feels a part of the investigation.

Loved this and can’t wait to read the future adventures of The Marlow Murder Club.

Thank you HQ Stories and Netgalley for the gifted copy and inviting me to be a part of this blog tour.

An engaging and funny whodunnit - for me, it was a perfect pick me up. Judith Potts is a seventy something woman living on her own in a big house near the river, happy in her solitude, with puzzles and her job writing crosswords. When she is a witness to a murder, and the police do not take her seriously, she decides to investigate herself. Soon, with the help of a local dog-walker Suzie, and Becks, the vicar’s wife, the three women chase the clues and gather gossip, trying to discover who is responsible.

Robert Thorogood is the author of the Death in Paradise series (TV series and books), and I hope this will be the beginning of a new series, because I really enjoyed reading about Judith’s shenanigans. As well as sleuthing, the three women become friends, despite their differences in age and social standing. They come to rely on each other and each of them gains something important from their relationship. I also enjoyed the mystery itself, as it is unveiled bit by bit to the reader, through the clues that Judith collects and puts together just like her charity shop bought puzzles, until it is all uncovered in the grand finale.

And yes, there might be a bit of coincidence here and there, and perhaps the ending is a bit over the top, but I really enjoyed the atmosphere the author created in this book – the three more then capable heroines solving the crimes between evening meetings over the whisky and church choir practice. A bonus point for making the women IT savvy – a trait that many people think the older generation do not possess at all. All together – a very jolly murder indeed, likeable characters that I am waiting to learn more about and a book I will recommend to readers needing a bit of a cosy crime fix.

Judith is not your conventional seventy something lady, she likes to swim naked in the river outside her home at night. One night when she is swimming she hears a gunshot and reports it to the police who say they have checked it out and they have not found anything untoward. Judith is unperturbed and makes a grisly discovery herself.

Her neighbour Stefan is found dead and although the police are not convinced that there are suspicious circumstances Judith is.

Judith is a hilarious character she is like a dog with a bone and she will not let it go and starts to do her own investigation. She definitely reminded me of Miss Marple who I love so this was a real bonus for me. To begin with her relationship with DS Malik is strained and she is not convinced with Judith’s theories about the murder. However, when a second murder happens she has to think again.

The murders seem to be linked but are they, and is it professional killings? You will have to read to find out ! What do an antique dealer and a taxi driver have in common ? Judith enlists the help of Becks the vicar’s wife and Suzie a dog walker, to try to get bottom of the mystery.

This is a great easy read, it drew me in quickly and kept y attention as Judith puts herself in danger to discover the truth. It’s a warm, entertaining and funny story and I really enjoyed getting to know Judith and co.

4 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This the poignant, gripping and highly enjoyable start of a new cozy series.
It's a multilayered novel as you can read it as a mystery but you can also read as the story of women who met and how they evolved and built a relationship that helped them out of their loneliness.
The characters are well thought and likable, you cannot help loving the three women and feel for their loneliness and personal issues.
The mystery is well thought and even if it's not hard to guess the culprit I enjoyed following the clues and the solving the puzzle.
I thoroughly enjoyed it and can't wait for the next installment.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Thanks so much to HQ for a copy of this in exchange for an honest review. This was such an easy read.

77 year old eccentric, Marlow resident Judith is out swimming in the river when she hears a gun shot at her neighbours house. The police are sure it’s suicide. Judith knows he must of been murdered and if the police aren’t going to solve the crime, then she is going to take it into her own hands. Judith is very witty and clever: a real likeable character. She becomes unlikely friends with Becks: a 40 year old house wife married to the Vicar and unrefined dog Walker Suzie. She meets these friends during her sleuthing. Can this team solve the murders and catch the serial killer? And what secrets is Judith hiding?
I really enjoyed the authors writing, some parts made me laugh out loud!

I want to be Judith Potts when I grow up. With a mouth as smart as her mind and a devilish naughtiness you can’t help but take her to your heart. What the blurb doesn’t mention is that Judith was skinny dipping when she heard the ruckus followed by a gunshot.

Informing the police, Judith becomes exasperated when they seem to be inept at the simple task of looking for the victim. Deciding to go and look herself she soon discovers the body of her neighbour Stefan, before long another body is discovered and Judith meets the latest victims dog walker Suzie. Pairing up to swap information Judith then goes to check out an alibi and finds Becks the vicars wife hiding in a cupboard. This trio couldn’t be more different but I have never met a team that I wanted so much to be a part of than this one.

Detective Sergeant Tanika Malik is inexperienced but with her boss being signed off with stress she is thrown in at the deep end. Having three busy bodies interfering with her murder cases is not helping, especially as they seem to be getting further in the cases than her team is.

I did guess the outcome but the enjoyment of this book for me wasn’t really about solving the mystery. It was about never underestimating a woman, whether it’s a pensioner, a housewife, a dog walker or a Detective Sergeant. They are all more than expected.

This is an author that understands women, specifically older women. He acknowledges their weaknesses but in turn he also plays to their strengths. Recognising that women feel they become invisible after a certain age he utilises that and the results left me grinning in glee. Their friendship and the solidarity of women coming together was an utter delight, their combined personalities are a force to be reckoned with.

This story grabs your immediate attention. Judith is a remarkable woman. Eccentric, independent and intelligent she is the perfect advert for the older person, and it's no surprise when she witnesses a murder she wants to find out who committed it and why?

There is a good balance of amateur sleuth and professional policing in this tale, and the reader can imagine how it will develop as the series progresses. The other constituents of the Marlow club are equally enigmatic, although more contemporary than Judith. This story sees a believable team dynamic evolve between unlikely allies and shows positive character development in all of the women. There are insights into these women's lives which are relatable and immerse the reader in the story.

The multilayered plot keeps the reader engaged. It is solvable, which is important in these type of mysteries, rather like the crosswords Judith writes clues for.

This is an enjoyable read, humorous, poignant and satirical with memorable characters. I look forward to more books in this series.

I received a copy of this book from HQ via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

Some of you may have realised by now that I am rather a fan of Agatha Christie and her wonderful murder mystery tales. I am currently binging on David Suchet’s wonderful Poirot courtesy of Britbox and am slowly working my way through Agatha;s book. I also adore the TV series Death in Paradise and very much enjoyed listening to the audiobooks of all four books DIP written by Robert Thorogood. Therefore I jumped at the chance to read and review the first in his new mystery series… and oh what a joy it was.

Judith Potts is, to my mind, a modern day Marple. She is clever, independent, courageous and mostly unflappable. She is also a seventy-seven year old lady who creates crossword puzzles and regularly swims in the river Thames at the bottom of her garden. I warmed to her immediately and for me she was the absolute star of the show. Robert is very good at creating characters, especially ones that are slightly bonkers (in the nicest possible way). I love that he focuses on the strange foibles that inhabit us and makes us so wonderfully unique. It is a great strength in his storytelling.

But then there is also the wonderful plots he creates too. There really is no hanging around as the book kicks of off with Judith witnessing a brutal murder of which at first she is not taken seriously. However its not long before an actual dead body soon turns up. With a stretched, overworked police force struggling to find resources Judith decides to take matters in to her own hands and begins to investigate the murder herself. In the course of her investigation Judith discovers new friends – in the form of Suzie and Becks – and dark secrets and wrongdoings that go back years. It’s not long until the body count begins to rise.

Robert does a brilliant job of drip feeding the clues with a few red herrings thrown in for good measure and the list of suspicious characters grows. The climax brings it all to a thrilling and satisfying conclusion and I must say I romped through this in lightning speed. it was an absolute delight and a very welcome piece of escapism. I imagine the Audiobook will be wonderful too so I might well add that one to my list. If you love a good old cosy crime story with plenty of humour and engaging characters then I think you will be thrilled with this. I can’t wait for the next in the series (and possibly a TV adaptation!?)

This is a book that will appeal to people who love a good cosy mystery, it really reminded me of watching a Murder She Wrote episode.

Judith Potts is 77 years old and lives in a huge house on the river bank in Marlow. she still works but does it more as a hobby creating crosswords for the local newspaper, and she’s a bit of a local celebrity for that.

She’s a very active 77 year old, and loves nothing better than to go for an evening swim in the river Thames that backs onto her house.

It is while she is swimming one evening that she hears the gunshot, after speaking to the police and then finding nothing amiss, Judith knows that she will have to do some investigating herself.

After rummaging around and finding that there was indeed a murder, her and two friends that she meets along the way, do a very good job of not minding their own business, and trying to solve the murder.

But after a second body is found, Judith, and the rest of the Marlow Murder Club, realise that the quaint village of Marlow, could actually harbour a serial killer, and they are just the people to figure out who it is!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it was quick and easy to read, and a lot different to the usual gore filled thrillers that I am used to reading.

If you like books such as Agatha Christie or Miss Marple then I think you will thoroughly enjoy this book, I hope the author turns it into a series, I’d love to see Judith and the girls again.

**Thank you to HQ stories for sending me a digital copy of this book**

I very much like a good old fashioned cozy mystery and this fits the bill very well.
We are introduced to Judith Potts, not your typical elderly lady who lives in Marlow and in her spare time compiles crosswords. We discover she finds that she no longer wants to shun friends and welcomes into her life the vicars wife and a local dog walker and together they look to solve crimes the police are unable to solve.
The three ladies make a fine team, each bringing humour and their own skills when the local DS is left in charge of the murders and unexpectedly allows them to assist in the investigation.
There is much humour in the writing and the characters are well written and likeable. I am sure that we will see more from them in future books.
Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Mrs Judith Potts is seventy seven and lives alone, in a faded mansion, by the Thames. One night, during a heatwave, she is swimming in the river, at the bottom of her garden, when she hears a shot nearby. Calling the police only leads to a desultory search by a constable – shootings, after all, do not happen in Marlow. However, unhappy with this result, Judith goes to investigate herself and finds the body of her neighbour…

So begins a really fun mystery, headed by the eccentric Judith – who spends much of her time creating crosswords or making jigsaws, and who sees the murder as an another puzzle to be solved. Before long, she is joined by dog walker, Suzie and vicars wife, Becks; along with the over-stretched office in charge, DS Tanika Malik. All four of the women involved are interesting characters, who have their own personal issues to deal with and who find hidden strengths as they begin to investigate the crime. Together, they begin to uncover evidence which suggest that Marlow is not the picture perfect place it first appears. Jealousy, greed and resentment can be motives in any murder and, before long, there is more than one death to solve.

This is a really enjoyable novel and I hope it becomes a series, as I would love to meet the members of the Marlow Murder Club again. I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, for review.

I received an advance copy of this via NetGalley.
I was unsure what to expect and was surprised at the laugh out loud moments as Judith, a rather eccentric, hoarding, crossword puzzle creating, whisky drinking pensioner, sets out to solve a murder, because the police do not believe her. On her journey she meets two unlikely ladies, a dog walker and a vicar’s wife, who aid her.
A thoroughly enjoyable read.

There’s something quintessentially British about murder afflicting a small, picturesque town and Robert Thorogood’s “The Marlow Murder Club” is a well crafted and enjoyable example of this. Whilst it definitely possesses the charm and wit of such amateur sleuthing vehicles as Murder, She Wrote, there’s also the intelligence of an Agatha Christie Marple mystery at the heart of the narrative. This is both a fun and intriguing read!

Whilst out for an evening swim in the Thames by her home in Marlow, 77 year old Judith Potts hears a gun shot from the garden of her neighbour’s property. When the police investigate they find no evidence of a crime, so the feisty Judith takes matters into her own hands. As she begins to investigate what might have happened, so unfolds a series of events that will introduce her to new friends, the dark secrets of her idyllic home town, a relationship with the police and amateur sleuthing that may just solve the mystery...

“The Marlow Murder Club” is an enjoyable read that has just the right combination of charm, suspense and humour to be a really satisfying mystery story. Hot off the heels of Richard Osman’s “The Thursday Murder Club”, there is a similarity between the two novels in their wit, craftsmanship and wonderful view on age. Thorogood has created a spirited and spunky character in Judith, who is really enjoyable to read. Despite being somewhat of a solitary character, who is happy with her life alone in her vast riverside mansion, I really enjoyed Judith’s refusal to fade away into obscurity in her old age. She is confident and speaks her mind and her refusal to let the police initially ignore the suspected crime is a perfect example of her tenacity and strength of character. I found it really interesting to discover, over the course of the narrative, that her investigations into the crimes helped prove her relevance in society and the community - something that is not always afforded to older people. I also enjoyed that at the heart of the story it is about friendship. Judith’s introductions to both Becks and Suzie both provide multiple moments of comedy, but ultimately the bond formed between the women as they investigate murder is both heartwarming and humorous. Similarly, the evolving relationship between Judith and Senior Investigating Officer Tanika Malik is interesting to read and crafted adeptly. The initial view from Tanika that Judith is somewhat of a meddling busybody develops into a deep respect, which is a perfect example of the themes on ageing.

Of course, Thorogood is also masterful at creating suspense and there are a number of intensely gripping escapades for the sleuthing buddies. There are plenty of heart-in-throat sequences scattered throughout the narrative, as well as plenty of red-herrings and clever moments of misdirection. As you’d expect, the narrative builds to a climactic crescendo and the final couple of chapters progress at breakneck speed and are both taut and thrilling. The motives for the crimes are also woven together in a neat and clever way. I did not guess how the plot would end and I really enjoyed that when the truth was finally revealed, the conclusion was both logical and one that provided me with an “of course it was” moment. There’s something distinctly Christie about constructing a plot that concludes so simply and logically - Thorogood definitely has the gift that the queen of crime possessed.

“The Marlow Murder Club” is the perfect read for fans of classic style crime fiction!

The Marlow Murder Club are three unlikely women who team up without much persuasion, to solve a pair of local murders. Judith the spritely 77 year old who lives next door to the first victim, finds the police a little dismissive of the bullet hole in the centre of her neighbours head and sets about to solve the mystery of who shot him. When a second body is found with a similar MO Suzie is recruited, the strong willed and outspoken dog walker who rehomes Emma, the second victims dog, helps Judith with her sleuthing. The final member is Beck's the local vicars wife, who at first is most reluctant to get involved in the nasty business but slowly comes round when she knows it's going to be fun.
Very much told in a light-hearted manner, with plenty of reminders to what the ladies are up to this is an easy, enjoyable read, you can see a little of death in paradise in the book, as the murders aren't quite what them seem. The characters are well developed, likable and believable, even the 77 year old swimming in the Thames naked! The suspects on the other hand are perfectly unlikable, middle class trumped up men.
A good all round murder mystery, satisfying conclusion, some action, a few red herrings and great bunch of characters solid 4*.
Thanks to NetGalley and HQ Harper Collins for the ARC.

This was such a fun, entertaining cozy mystery. Judith, a 77 year old cross word maker is swimming naked in the river when she hears a gun shot from her neighbor’s house. The police gives no heed to her complaints, so she sets out to solve the mystery for herself and on the way, meets Suzie the dog Walker and Becks the Vicar’s wife.
All three women have been overlooked for the most part and how they pool together to solve the crime and in that process overcome their personal issues form the rest of the story. I loved loved loved all three crazy, fantastic, badass, feisty ladies. Some of their antics hd in me in splits laughing and I thoroughly enjoyed the book even with the predictable plot line. Would definitely recommend the book for those looking for a fun, cozy mystery to curl upto.

What a quirky bunch of ladies!
This was a fun and easy read with some very interesting characters.
If it's a light-hearted, cosy crime book you are after, then this will fit perfectly!

This is a really fun read! We meet our protagonist, 77-year-old Judith Potts, on one of her regular naked swims along the river Thames, which backs on to the back garden of her mansion in Marlow. While swimming she hears a gunshot and realises that her neighbour has just been murdered. So begins a series of killings that the police seem unable to solve but which Judith can’t let rest. Judith sets out to discover just what has happened to lead to these three seemingly innocent people being killed and, along the way, ends up meeting two other women; the fantastic grandmother and dog-walker Suzie, and the lovely vicar’s wife Becks, who help her with her efforts.

All three women are brilliant characters, and their blossoming friendship is wonderful to read. All three have been overlooked or underestimated in recent times, and the idea of their coming together and using their skills to help solve a crime is very uplifting. There are some genuinely funny moments and the plot is fun (if easy to solve yourself). There will obviously be comparisons with the very similarly titled "The Thursday Murder Club", since both feature underestimated older characters using their abilities to solve crimes where the police can’t, and this story is as warm and enjoyable as that one. The pacing is good, the supporting cast of characters are great fun, and the descriptions of Marlow are wonderful. I hope to visit this trio in Marlow again soon!

My thanks to the author, NetGalley, and the publisher for the arc to review.

Judith Potts is a 77-year-old widow living on the outskirts of Marlow. When she’s out for a late-night swim, she becomes the only witness to a mysterious murder – her neighbour is shot and found with a bronze medallion attached to his jacket. As someone who loves (and compiles) puzzles, Judith is intrigued as to why her kind-hearted neighbour would be the victim of a cold-blooded murder. As more bodies start turning up, she turns to Suzie – a local dog walker – and Becks – the Vicar’s wife – to try and assist the police and work out who has a grudge against the residents of Marlow.

A really good read – expertly paced and fleshed-out characters. An easy 5* book.

Very pleasant read, particularly loved the location (which I know well, including a mention of my son's school). Nice to see middle-aged women in active investigative roles, including a policewoman, and their burgeoning friendship. A little bit full of cliches, an occasionally clunky dialogue and a rather predictable resolution did let it down somewhat. But I would read another instalment.

An addition to the good for her mystery fiction canon. It's not completely spotless, plotting could have been tighter, but I did like all of the investigating women.