What a fabulous book! We follow the story of Joyce, an ex-nurse; Ibrahim, a psychologist; Ron, a former Union Leader; and Elizabeth, whose past is nothing if not mysterious; four friends who live in the retirement village of Coopers Chase, Kent. Far from being ready to slow down in their retirement, the group instead use their considerable skills to look over old police cases, branding themselves as the eponymous “Thursday Murder Club”. Considerable excitement ensues when the murders of two men connected with the retirement village occur within quick succession, leaving our heroes in the position of being able to investigate, and hopefully solve, the case alongside the police.

The characters, from the four friends to the police officers they work with and the supporting cast, are just wonderful. They are all warm and humorous and so alive – I found myself desperately wanting to be their friend and was sad to leave them when the book ended. The plot is clever and unexpected, and the tale, despite being about murder, has numerous genuinely funny moments. A Vegan café called “Anything with a Pulse”?! Amazing! The author is known for his wit in his television appearances, and this has translated perfectly within his novel. I can’t wait to read more of his work, and sincerely hope that it will be set within Coopers Chase!

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

Move over Miss Marple, there are some new crime solving Pensioners in town and they mean business. As I said before, I've been looking forward to reading this book for quite some time. intrigued by the premise and more than a little bit curious to see what kind of book we would be offered by someone who is renowned for a laid back and conversational style of presenting. It is fair to say that when you pick up this book you are getting a lot of Richard Osman with it too, the narrative tone very much a mirror for the way he comes across on the screen. But beyond this you get a story which sits very much in the cosy crime sector of the bookcase, but has brilliantly diverse characters, a twisted plot and a whole lot of mystery to boot. Put simply, I really rather enjoyed this book.

The action, if you can call it action with everything happening at the pace of your typical retirement village, centres around a small group of the village's residents, Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim and Ron, who meet up once a week to try and solve cold murder cases that, thus far, the police have been able to solve. It probably won't surprise you to hear that they only meet on Thursday's, but that is only because it is the only day that the Jigsaw room is free ... These four intrepid Pensioners come from very different backgrounds, are really unique and likeable characters, but all with one thing in common. The desire to work out whodunnit. When murder comes knocking at their own door and they no longer need to worry about solving cold cases, they start on a quest for truth that not everyone will be happy about.

This is a classic murder mystery tale. Multiple murders to be fair, but with many little surprises along the way. This is mostly told from multiple perspectives, following each of the victims, suspects and amateur sleuths in turn as we all examine the evidence and start to solve the murder using the cleverly laid out clues. As in the tradition of all good Christie novels, our team are ably assisted in their investigations by two professional Detectives, PC Donna De Freitas and DCI Chris Hudson, because they need to get their inside knowledge from somewhere obviously. I really loved the way in which the four, especially Elizabeth, played a canny game in terms of getting the police to feed them information, whilst all the time holding back evidence and statements themselves until they had worked out their importance in the investigation. For anyone else it would be classed as some kind of misdemeanor, hindering an investigation and the like, but for his lot it made them all the more endearing.

The story is packed with more twists and turns than the cable sweaters made by the knitting club, with more than the odd surprise along the way. As we are dealing largely with people moving towards the ends of their lives, there are moments of real emotion and poingancy too, just enough to summon the odd tear, but not enough to take you away from what is for the most part a fun, often funny, whodunnit in which the Murder Club play on their apparent 'frailties' to meet their own agenda's and ably show what the benefit of years of experience and wisdom can bring to an investigation. Joyce as the newest and possibly most excitable member of the team has a lot to bring to the club, and with the story interspersed with chapters from her diary, a lot to give to readers too, not just about the investigation but life in the retirement village as a whole. She may be new but in the end it is one of Joyce's memories that proves to be a vital clue, leading to the final, most vital reveal if them all.

I really enjoyed this book and loved the dynamic that Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim and Ron had between them. They are fun characters to get to know and to spend time with and although the action, and suspicion comes a little too close to home for some of them, I did find myself rooting for them from the off. Likewise Donna and DCI Hudson make for a great detective pairing and the banter and camaraderie between them and with the pensioners is a joy to read. If you like a good old cosy crime read with great characters, good humour and plenty of mystery then you are going to love this book and I'd definitely recommend giving it a whirl. I just hope there are plenty more of these to come, after all Elizabeth had a whole stack of cold case files for the club to get their teeth into ... 😉

A lovely, gentle murder mystery! This is beautifully written, as I would expect from Richard Osman. It has his tongue in cheek humour and reminds me of Agatha Christie in parts. The gang of old folks are definitely my growing up goals! They have a great time together and take care of each other too. I hope there will be more to come from this group.

I usually love murder mystery book but I’m sorry, this wasn’t for me. The book is well written and I’m sure will be enjoyed by many. I struggled to the end but I didn’t enjoy it.

3.5 rounder up to 4

Four pensioners who live in a retirement community get together once a week to solve cold cases. Ron, Ibrahim, Elizabeth and Joyce are members of the Thursday Murder Club. When someone linked to the community is murdered, they suddenly have an active case to work on.

Richard Osman is a well known British TV producer and presenter. Our protagonists are all in their eighties and live at Coppers Chase retirement village. They usually try to solve cold cases but now they have a live murder investigation to solve. The story is told from .multiple points of view and snippets from Joyce's diary entries. I loved the four main characters. They were true to life. Thus is a cosy whodunit with some humour thrown into the mix.

I would like to thank #NetGalley, #PenguinBooksUK and the author #RichardOsman for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Richard Osman can write, and The Thursday Murder Club is a jolly good romp of a read. You'll know already that it's set in a posh residential 'home' or clubhouse for the elderly but spritely of mind, and a nicely-controlled, diverse mix of men and women have formed themselves into a little sub-club for solving pretend mysteries when lo! There's a small crop of real murders to investigate.

Using a selection of voices to set the scene, unfurl the mystery (and there's a good mystery and a nicely achieved twist) and demonstrate a pre-Covid moment of relative sanity in a certain kind of middle-class society, Osman creates a compelling narrative that keeps you happily turning the page and enjoying small bursts of revelations about Joyce, Elizabeth, Ron and Ibrahim and the regulation police characters, as well as a nicely-displayed set of possible murderers.

As the author is some way off the ages of his Club-members, it's pleasing to feel the empathy enfolding the elderly and their quirks and foibles about technology, or their still-potent powers of stirring up a demo (Ron, the ex-Miner's TU leader) or reaching into the Deep State to get vital clues (Elizabeth - ex MI5 it would seem). He's dedicated the book to his Mum, and I guess that's the ideal reader-demographic, but I think anyone who enjoys a good Kate Atkinson (and I envy him her resounding endorsement of the book) would take pleasure in this novel.

Thanks net galley for the free read. I really enjoyed this murder mystery - which was so much more than just another mystery novel. The reader is drawn into the world of Elizabeth and fellow members of the Thursday murder club where they investigate cold cases whilst living at an upmarket retirement village. Great twists and turns and good to read about the lives and background of the different characters. It would be great if this was the first of a series of murders solved by the club.

The Thursday Murder Club is a funny and exciting crime thriller. The story takes us to a rather superior retirement community, and we meet the four residents, of differing backgrounds, who make up the Thursday Murder Club. They meet in the Jigsaw room, which happens to be free on Thursdays, hence the name. At first, the quartet concentrate on looking at cold cases but, all too soon, there is a real life murder to draw their interest. Soon, they are involved in the investigation, bribing the police with cake and solving clues left, right and centre.

There are engaging characters, very clever plot twists, and a subtle humour which drives the plot along. I can’t wait to find out what our four friends get up to next!

In the book community we often talk about trying to find books that do something a bit different - sometimes it seems that in order to save the world you have to be between 15-25 years old, usually male, and an uncanny knack of being in the right place at the right time. What about literally everyone else in the world?

And what about people who have a very specific set of skills who are now retired so have all the time in the day to go over cold cases? Especially when a murder happens right on their doorstep and concerns their home, the 7th best retirement village in England, Coopers Case. 

We have four members of the Thursday Murder Club, Elizabeth (who is very much the leader and has a seemingly complex past that has left her with a lifetime of important connections and owed favours), Joyce (who was a nurse and who now keeps a journal, which is an excellent way of delivering certain facts for the reader or revealing scenes that happened that aren't shown in the book itself, without it seeming forced), Ron (who is never afraid of standing up for what needs to be protected and demonstrated for, and still loves a chance to get on his soapbox for a bit) and Ibrahim (a retired psychiatrist and the one with the mathematical mind). Being in a retirement village they are often visited by various spokespeople from society, and one day get a visit from the police to listen to a home safety presentation about not opening front doors to strangers or falling for various scams, and it's through this that they meet PC Donna De Freitas, a police woman who is far better than most of the small police centre she's moved herself out to after a bad breakup and a split second decision. She wants to be out there catching serial killers and taking on the big cases, not working in such a sleepy little back county... and this just so happens to line up with exactly what the Thursday Murder Club want, too.

It's so refreshing to have a set of very intelligent older people who are often overlooked and know how to play to this advantage. There's a tv show called New Tricks which is quite similar, but honestly this book is so much better - the characters are more likeable, the dialogue is a lot more fun, and the general observations about life and such are really quite entertaining.

It also has its sad moments. Some of the main characters have already lost their life partners whilst some are worried about their curernt partners, and they're all a bit worried for their neighbours daily as they slip further away. Another main character is a woman who doesn't say a word yet is still integral to their group. She's in palliative care now, and is someone Elizabeth visits often, another way that we get information about the case without it seeming forced. This woman, Penny, seems like she was a member of the Thursday Murder Club until soon before the novel starts, and there seems to be some guilt of Joyce taking her place, which gives a nice lived-in feeling to this club and the retirement village itself.

As far as murder mysteries go, this one is quite complex with more and more information getting uncovered through various means and their initial suspicions changing as this comes to light or they get a feel for the various suspects (and more people keep dying). It's not obvious who did it at all, and there are surprises right until the end of the book - and not in a way that seems ridiculous.

The author, Richard Osman, is quite well known in England and anywhere else that airs the TV quiz show Pointless. We have so much more to thank him for though, as before he was a debut author or a tv presenter he worked in the behind the scenes of TV on shows like Out of 10 Cats and 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown, all the way back to Total Wipeout, Whose Line is it Anyway, and Deal or No Deal (he knows who the Banker is!)

Somehow, it also seems that he can write. I can't wait for the second book in this series and see what the Thursday Murder Club get up to next.

Set in the Kent countryside, Coopers Chase is an exclusive retirement village. All the residents appear to be well off financially or have wealthy children paying their fees. There are good amenities - swimming pool, gym, talks on security, computers, zumba classes, pilates, bridge, crosswords and a murder club!
Elizabeth and Penny, who was an inspector in the police, started the murder club. When she retired, Penny brought files of "cold cases" so that they could investigate. Penny is now permanently in the hospital wing, unconscious on a ventilator, her life over. Her husband comes to sit with her everyday.
Elizabeth has been in some government department - Mi5 or Mi6? She has many useful contacts. The other members of the club are Ibrahim who was a Psychiatrist, Ron who was an outspoken Union leader and there is Joyce, she was a nurse. It's her diary that provides most of the story.
The murder club target Donna who is in the police and visits the village to give a talk on security. She left the Met. because of a failed love affair, but is now bored. They get her seconded to Chris a detective inspector when there is an actual murder to investigate. It often feels that Chris and Donna are the only ones involved from the police!
This is a very enjoyable cozy mystery. Well written by this well known TV personality, famous for hosting quiz shows. You believe and enjoy the company of the various characters from the retirement village. I understand there is to be a second book and I eagerly look forward to this. Very well recommended.

This was a convoluted, sightly surreal murder mystery thriller set in a retirement village.

The police are competing against the Thursday Murder Club - who normally try to solve cold cases - in solving the murder of a local villain. The Thursday Murder Club is led by Elizabeth, who has a very 'interesting' network of people who all provide her with 'favours' which gets her closer to the murderer than the police.

It's not long before one murder turns into three, spanning five decades and two continents.

There are a plethora of characters - perhaps too many would be my opinion - each with an interesting back story going on which all intermingles to make a complex mystery to solve.

It's a light-hearted yet complex plot, with a couple of tear-jerking moments thrown in. .

Written by TV presenter Richard Osman – and I’m a huge fan – I just had to read it didn’t I. And I wasn’t disappointed.

It’s choc full of of red herrings. Even the red herrings have baby herrings and just when you think you’ve cracked the mystery, something else turns up. Having finished quite late in the evening, I had to concentrate when I woke up to check if I could remember it all. It’s highly entertaining and will keep you guessing right up to the very end. And some of the answers might even be pointless (see what I did there).

There are so many references to the four main protagonists’ previous lives – Elizabeth for instance was a spy – but also to popular culture, some of which made me laugh out loud. As well as a murder mystery, it’s also a sharp observation of life with plenty of humour and often hilarious dialogue. However, I didn’t expect to cry while reading it, but I did. The last part was so touching that I couldn’t help shed a few tears.

I know our gang will be back in a few months time to solve another tale of bludgeoning (it’s a wonderful word), poisoning and derring-do or whatever crime will take place in book two and I have a sneaky feeling that The Thursday Murder Club will become a modern classic and a TV series.

And the moral of the story – never underestimate the combined wisdom of a group of octogenarians when it comes from the pen of one of our cleverest writers. And I almost forgot their partners-in-crime-solving – our two detectives Chris and Donna.

Many thanks to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I’ve been waiting a while to read this one, and it was well worth the wait. Set in a luxury retirement village in Southern England, we meet the members of the Thursday Murder Club, who spend their spare time (between yoga, swimming, and all of the different facilities available - sign me up!) solving cold cases. Until a murder close to home leads to them investigating a very much current case involving betrayal, intrigue and revenge.

The humour from the main characters is what sets this apart, I could have happily kept reading about these characters for much longer after finishing the book, and I’m really looking forward to another instalment.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What a debut from Richard Osman! Celebrity authors can be pretty hit and miss but Richard Osman has played a blinder with this one!
Set in a posh retirement village in Kent, the four main characters try to solve old murder mystery cases...until a property developer gets murdered on their doorstep and they have a live case to try and solve.
Lots of twists and turns, a fast-paced plot and well developed, likeable characters. This is a book that will have broad appeal and now Steve Spielberg has bought the rights to turn it into a film, I have no doubt this book will get a lot of buzz.

One of TV's best-loved personalities turns his hand to crime fiction and we have here a debut that is every bit as good as anything written by Agatha Christie.
The characters are authentic and endearing, the prose is gossipy, warm-hearted and humorous, and the plot only as old-fashioned as you would hope for in a modern day cosy crime novel.
Richard Osman is a worthy successor to those titans of crime fiction whose names are all on the tips of our tongues.

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from this author but I would most certainly read any other books he writes! This was a clever, warm and humourous book with the added bonus of an intriguing mystery. I was very impressed by the writing style, the three dimensional characters and a plot with plenty of twists and turns. Even the narrator comes under suspicion. I really warmed to Elizabeth as a character and hope that Osman develops this book into a serious with her at the helm.
I would wholeheartedly recommend this book to anyone who likes reading mysteries/thrillers or just likes to read a really good book!

I think it is always hard for a debut author to establish a style. It is probably even harder for someone like Richard Osman, who is already a well known television presenter.

However, he has managed to create a very enjoyable and entertaining murder mystery.

His dry wit shows through from the outset. I really liked the setting, a retirement village in Southern England. This provides the perfect backdrop for a whodunit in the vein of Agatha Christie, with the added bonus of Richard Osman's subtle humour interwoven in this cleverly crafted story.

The novel has pace and sufficient twists and turns to keep it interesting to the very end. In my opinion the real merit is the eclectic cast of characters, all of which are beautifully crafted. Each with their own peculiarities.

I found myself drawn in to the community, even though the links between a retirement community and an active set of police investigations, really does go beyond the boundaries of reality.

In all, this is a beautifully written and engaging debut novel. I will look forward to reading future novels by Mr Osman on the strength of this book.

I give my thanks to Netgalley and Penguin, Viking for a copy of this book in exchange for this review.

A group of “elderly” in a retirement village meet every Thursday to look into past murders. Hence the book title. But now they have a local murder to investigate and they bring all their skills together to influence the police and others while their investigation continues.
What a brilliant read, loved every page and all the characters. Looks the ideal place to spend retirement with all these brilliant people. Will not tell you what happens, read it yourself.

Richard Osman is officially my favourite author. After one book. He's done it.

The Thursday Murder Club is absolutely fantastic. At first I was a bit dubious - four OAPs solving a murder in their retirement village? But then, all the classic detectives are the wrong side of 50, and where would the world be without Miss Marple?

From the first chapter I was absolutely hooked. The main four characters, Joyce, Elizabeth, Ibrahim and Ron are spirited and not ready to give up on life just yet. Their ages become almost forgotten the more you get into the story, and the trappings of older age are not dwelled upon. There are moments to remind you though, such as the declining health of loved ones, but again these are dealt with thoughtfully.

That's a big draw about this book. There are a lot of crime thrillers out there these days, many of which feature graphic violence or particularly uncomfortable circumstances. The Thursday Murder Club doesn't follow this mould, it's a good old school whodunnit and it's no mean feat to come up with something new to keep readers engaged.

As I read it, I could well imagine it being a Bank Holiday three part special, with Judi Dench, Miriam Margoyles, Ian McKellan and Patrick Stewart in the main roles (please, please!)

It's not lightweight though, and cleverly deals with some very topical concepts. I loved every minute of it!

What a delightful breath of fresh air this novel is. I've been going through a bit of a detective fiction phase recently and I was worried I would have become very used to the usual tropes of the genre and this would therefore feel a little stale but I could not have been more wrong!

Set in a retirement community where the eponymous club meets weekly to discuss cold cases and try and come up with a solution to them, the characters are thrown into a real life investigation when a murder happens which touches their community. Theories abound as the club races to solve the case before the police can.

The cast of characters are fantastic. Endearing, vivacious, and yet, thanks to a few little touches which remind you these people are the same age as your parents/grandparents (delete as appropriate), startlingly real and relatable. I lost count of the number of times I giggled and guffawed out loud - not something you'd expect from a typical murder mystery - and yet there are also moments of pure, raw emotion which tug on the heart strings and bring some gravity to the tale.

You don't need to be a fan of murder mysteries to find something to enjoy here. I highly recommend it to anyone who likes a book which makes them feel something - joy, heartache, anger, fear: they're all here. This is a fantastic debut from Osman and I can't wait to see what he comes up with next.