Published: 2020 Penguin Australia Genre: Cozy Mystery Setting: England

• THE STORY:
  • In the fictional upmarket retirement village of Coopers Chase in the English county of Kent, four septuagenarians share an interest in solving murders. They meet every Thursday to try to crack unsolved murder cases from the illegally-kept files of a former police officer. But then a real murder takes place, and the Thursday Murder Club are onto it.
• QUOTES:
  • “In life you have to learn to count the good days. You have to tuck them in your pocket and carry them around with you. So I’m putting today in my pocket and I’m off to bed.”
  • “The sun is up, the skies are blue, and murder is in the air”
  • “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.”
• BOOK REVIEWS:
  • Guardian: “Osman’s plotting is both deft and daft in equal measure; and the key members of the over-60s murder squad are distinctly drawn. Elizabeth, the prime mover, was “the sort of teacher who terrifies you all year then gets you a grade A and cries when you leave”. Her sidekicks include militant “Red” Ron Ritchie, who has a West Ham tattoo on his neck and vociferous opinions to match; and former nurse Joyce, the quiet one in a lavender blouse and mauve cardigan, who goes unnoticed but notices everything. Only the fastidious Egyptian psychiatrist Ibrahim feels like a bit of a cipher, included to introduce a hint of diversity. And of course there are loose ends left dangling; the Thursday Murder Club is set to run and run.”
  • Sydney Morning Herald: “This is light entertainment with edge.”
  • Kirkus: “A top-class cozy infused with dry wit and charming characters who draw you in and leave you wanting more, please.”
• MY THOUGHTS:
  • This is a very entertaining light read, lots of quips about old age – cliched but funny. The writing is excellent, and the clever plotting is such that in true whodunnit form, there are plenty of red herrings and a resolution that is hard to guess. Towards the end the tying off of loose ends felt a bit convoluted. Highly recommended.