The Thursday Murder Club - Richard Osman

Published by Viking Press/Penguin Random House: London, UK, 2020.
Audiobook by Penguin Audio, 2020.
Narrated by Lesley Manville.
Book 1 in the 'Thursday Murder Club' series. Followed by 'The Man Who Died Twice.'

Richard Osman is a TV personality and comedian in England, and this is his debut novel: a murder mystery set in a retirement community. I am happy to report that The Thursday Murder Club is everything I hoped it would be: humorous in patches, moving in patches, mysterious enough for the genre, and surprisingly sweet. 

The four members of 'the club' are Elizabeth (who has a background as a spy, although the book never outright says that), Ron (a quick tempered man who used to be a semi-professional protestor for the trade unions), Ibrahim (a slightly know-it-all ex-psychiatrist), and Joyce (a retired nurse who enjoys the thrill of the case just a little too much, and who also narrates sections of the book in diary form). Basing most of their club meetings off the files of a previous member (retired detective Penny, now with severe dementia), the group are delighted when someone with connections to the retirement village is found murdered, and take it upon themselves to 'help' the professional detectives, represented by PC Donna De Freitas (new to the area and determined to prove herself) and Detective Chief Inspector Chris Hudson (slightly overweight and jaded, but a good detective none-the-less). 

A large amount of the humour comes from the ways in which people underestimate the group due to their age; at one point Ron pretends to be confused and timid in order to manipulate a policeman; at another point the four believe they will get away with serious criminal activity because they are old - this incident almost backfires drastically on them. Osman, as a writer, knows how to manipulate his readers as well - the book sometimes zigs when a zag seems more likely, and a few twists are sprung on the reader in a way that feels natural to the story, rather than something just 'tacked on' for the shock value. 

The mystery is decent, and once again, Osman manages to keep the reader guessing. He even allows us to make false guesses based on the evidence, and at times toys with the fact that the reader will have made an assumption by letting the possibility of a wrong choice play out just long enough to convince the reader of its validity before swerving to reveal the truth of the matter.

And then, at other points, the book takes sweet, melancholic, or even downright sad turns. Again, these fit the moments (and the setting) well, and I found myself tearing up in patches.

A very well crafted story.

And... Lesley Manville as narrator? Wow! She is the perfect voice for this book, inhabiting Joyce in the diary sections, but also giving the appropriate tone for each of the vast number of supporting cast members. 

I will definitely be returning to this series.

Completed 16 January 2025.



(Thursday Murder Club Series)

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