#BookReview: The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman @richardosman @VikingBooksUK #ThursdayMurderClub #RichardOsman #mustread #5Stars

Book Synopsis:

THE FIRST BOOK IN THE #1 BESTSELLINGTHURSDAY MURDER CLUB SERIES BY TV PRESENTER RICHARD OSMAN

In a peaceful retirement village, four unlikely friends meet up once a week to investigate unsolved murders.

But when a brutal killing takes place on their very doorstep, the Thursday Murder Club find themselves in the middle of their first live case.

Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim and Ron might be pushing eighty but they still have a few tricks up their sleeves.

Can our unorthodox but brilliant gang catch the killer before it’s too late?

The Thursday Murder Club is available in ebook and hardback now. You can purchase your copy using the link below.

My Review:

I absolutely loved this hilarious, entertaining read which quickly pulled me into the madness of the story and the characters lives.

Firstly I loved the wonderful characters in this book who were all easy to get behind and quickly started to feel like old friends. I loved the dynamics of the murder club and how they were all very different to each other. They all managed to bring new skills and ways of thinking to the table which was hugely enjoyable to watch in action. I liked that the author often talks about the character’s lives before they came to the retirement village and puts so much spirit into his characters personality. This made a refreshing change to the normal elderly stereotypes you hear about.

The setting of Coppers Chase was absolutely brilliant, even though I kept accidentally misreading it as coppers chase. I loved the wonderful descriptions of the community they had there, with everyone looking out for each other and checking they were ok. The wide variety of activities on offer made me smile, particularly all the funny incidents that had happened during some of the groups. The descriptions of the beautiful grounds surrounding the village were very vivid and helped me to see the place in my mind. I really hope there is a similar village available for me when I’m older!

The murder mystery part of the story developed at a good pace and kept me guessing as to who the murderer was. I think I had suspected everybody by the end of the story as new evidence kept coming to light which sent the story in a new direction. I really enjoyed watching it all develop and I liked that the different threads to the story were given a great, satisfying ending.

A little warning to any potential readers, this isn’t a serious crime book and there are quite a few bits in the story that have to be taken with a pinch of salt. Elizabeth’s dodgy contacts and ability to get any information she wants or the murder clubs ability to meddle in a crime case without getting into trouble for example. I personally found these hilarious and they helped create some of the best, most memorable bits in the book for me. For example the part when the detectives first meet the murder club and manipulate the DI, although perhaps a bit unrealistic, was utterly hilarious and the thought of it still makes me chuckle now.

The ending was very satisfying though surprisingly emotional. I felt myself getting quite teary at some points but ultimately I liked the way everything was tied up. I was quite sad to finish the book and leave the characters, and Cooper’s Chase,behind. I was very excited to hear that the film rights have been bought by Spielberg and that there is a second book coming out next year!

Huge thanks to Penguin Viking for my copy of this book via Netgalley.

About The Author:

Richard Osman is an author, producer and television presenter. The Thursday Murder Club is his first novel. He is well known for TV shows including Pointless and Richard Osman’s House of Games. As the creative director of Endemol UK, Richard has worked as an executive producer on numerous shows including Deal Or No Deal and 8 Out of 10 Cats. He is also a regular on panel and game shows such as Have I Got News For You, Would I Lie To You and Taskmaster.