The Thursday Murder Club book review

The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
Series: Thursday Murder Club #1
on September 3, 2020
Pages: 382
Format: Hardcover
Goodreads

Four septuagenarians with a few tricks up their sleevesA female cop with her first big caseA brutal murderWelcome to…The Thursday Murder Club
In a peaceful retirement village, four unlikely friends meet weekly in the Jigsaw Room to discuss unsolved crimes; together they call themselves The Thursday Murder Club. Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim and Ron might be pushing eighty but they still have a few tricks up their sleeves.
When a local developer is found dead with a mysterious photograph left next to the body, the Thursday Murder Club suddenly find themselves in the middle of their first live case. As the bodies begin to pile up, can our unorthodox but brilliant gang catch the killer, before it’s too late?

I am SO late on the bandwagon with this one, but I saw The Thursday Murder Club at a local charity shop and had to pick it up. It was definitely worth the read, and I went into the story having no idea what was going to happen and what it was about in all honesty. I have officially found a new favourite book series and I cannot wait to jump into the sequel!

Characters in The Thursday Murder Club

The Thursday Murder Club follows a group of elderly people living in a retirement village as they try and solve cold cases on a Thursday morning. I loved this set up, there was such a great atmosphere between them all and I adored watching the different personalities interact, especially with all the different backgrounds. One thing I wished we would have learnt more about would have been Elizabeth’s history, I thought her story in general was quite well done but there felt to be something missing. I adored the story of her and her husband and how she was coping with his decline, it was brilliantly written and handled.

Not only are the four main characters well rounded and fleshed out but the additional characters, Donna and Chris, the two police officers in charge of the case also have great banter. I enjoyed the fact that they came across as completely normal people, and it was refreshing to read about two people who had normal issues and worked around that. It was great writing and I can’t wait to see whether the things I loved continue into the next books!

The Bad Bits in The Thursday Murder Club

I’m starting with the bad bits so I can gush about all the good bits later on. For me the only bad bit in The Thursday Murder Club was the murder reveal. I struggled with the rationale behind it and although I didn’t see it coming which is usually a good thing, I didn’t quite understand how it all came together. The justification didn’t seem to add up to murder to be honest and I was a little disappointed with the big ending. It wasn’t enough to impact my overall enjoyment of the book but I do wish it had been thought out a little more.

The Good Bits

I think my favourite thing about this book was the whole dynamic and pacing of the storyline. It was brilliantly written, and I loved watching the unravelling of a murder interspersed with the normality of life within a retirement village. The way that old age and dementia is handled in this book is beautifully done, the love that the characters have for one another makes me smile to think about, especially Elizabeth and Penny. Elizabeth in particular is an interesting look at growing older, her fears and the way she deals with them is brilliantly done and one of my favourite parts of the story.

Next move

I already have the sequel downloaded on my Kindle and I will definitely be reading it by the end of the year. I cannot wait to see where the story ends up going and how all the characters react and move forward within the community. Plus if there’s a murder to be solved then it’s hopefully going to be a great read!

Have you read this one? Let me know what you thought and if you have any similar suggestions for me!