Meet Lottie Jones… or should I say Lorena Mae Lansdale? 😏 She may be a bingo-playing, potluck-attending, seemingly harmless septuagenarian now, but back in the day, she had a little habit of making people disappear—especially if they crossed her or her son. And she was very good at it.
Now, she’s retired in Baycliff, Oregon, living in a house funded by the city after her wrongful conviction years back (or was it?). But when an overly ambitious documentarian, Plum Dixon, knocks on her door wanting to feature her story in a new true-crime series, Lottie has to take care of this situation, the last thing she wants is to dredge up her past on TV. ☠️
What follows is a spectacular domino effect of chaos, dark humor, and, murder. And I say spectacular because this book is a mixture of Dexter and Deanna Raybourn’s “Killers of a Certain Age” series, making away with someone and chopping them up was executed so nonchalantly, as if it was just another day at the office. It was horrifying yet hilariously impressive.
You know what she’s doing is wrong, but Samantha Downing works her magic once again, making you root for this dangerously clever anti-heroine. (I mean, if we can cheer for Dexter, we can cheer for Lottie, right? 🤭)
Beyond the dark comedy and thrilling plot, Too Old For This also shines a light on the struggles of aging—the way society underestimates, isolates, and often ignores those getting older. Seeing Lottie navigate modern technology and societal shifts? Relatable. Seeing her wield a hammer when necessary? Even more relatable. 👀
If you love:
✨ Morally gray main characters
✨ Sharp, dark humor
✨ Unhinged, but oddly loveable serial killers
✨ Fast-paced, twisty storytelling
Then Too Old For This needs to be on your 2025 TBR! 📚🔥

Sharing Lottie's invisibility cloak of a certain age but fortunately, not sharing her history, I am mercifully not haunted by the possibility of someone waiting to document a life-history best forgotten.

My junk drawer, filled with tools, has never looked so sinister...and the walk-in shower, so treacherous. And the murders...increasingly outrageous, somehow give rise to an inappropriate smile...but surely not laughter!

Initially a seemingly innocuous tale, the tension quickly rises as the bodies pile up and Lottie is forced into more devious methods to avoid detection.

How could a book about murders be so entertaining...and how could I be nodding in appreciation of this clever septuagenarian? I’m not sure, but I am heading to my library to find more by this clever author.

It’s all in the words….

Too Old For This

I’ve never been interested in the geriatric genre of thrillers but there’s a first time for everything .

I like things that go bump in the night and scare the bajesus out of me but let me tell you, Lottie, she gave me a run for my money .

Lottie, is a total vibe

I aspire to be Lottie in my elder years, store bought spinach dip and all .

What I loved so much was Downings words. I never thought you could really get that true “fusion” between thrillers and humor.

Downing sets my soul on fire and I am totally here for it

Each page fluid, entertaining and exciting… I couldn’t wait to see what this crazy old bird was up to next .

Downing has never failed us and she sure hasn’t now. Grab your own copy August 12, 2025 or better yet, preorder so you don’t forget!

Big thank you to Samantha Downing, Berkley and NetGalley for allowing me the honor to read a sure to be bestseller (early!) in exchange for an honest review! Y’all are the bees knees!

Check out this teaser :

A retired serial killer’s quiet life is upended by an unexpected visitor. To protect her secret, there’s only one option left—what’s another murder? From bestselling author Samantha Downing.

Lottie Jones thought her crimes were behind her.

Decades earlier, she changed her identity and tucked herself away in a small town. Her most exciting nights are the weekly bingo games at the local church and gossiping with her friends.

When investigative journalist Plum Dixon shows up on her doorstep asking questions about Lottie’s past and specifically her involvement with numerous unsolved cases, well, Lottie just can’t have that.

But getting away with murder is hard enough when you’re young. And when Lottie receives another annoying knock on the door, she realizes this crime might just be the death of her…

A unique premise about a 75-year-old named Lottie Jones who is a grandmother and a church-going bingo player. And also a serial killer.
I had high hopes for this as I LOVED Downing's My Lovely Wife. This story was a fun escape with dark humor and a wild ride, but don't expect any big twists. It was entertaining, though.

5 thriller killer stars

Samantha Downing has crafted another winner here with this tale of a retired serial killer. Lottie Jones is a character seared into my memory! My jaw dropped several times throughout this book as we get a glimpse into her mind and activities. My advice--be very careful what you say around Lottie, as you might be her next victim and she leaves no clues behind.

Lottie, now 75, is living under a new identity, with new friends at church, bingo, potlucks, and a lovely house. Why does a pesky podcaster, Plum, turn up wanting to dive into the past? How did Plum even find her and why is she so persistent? That will just never do and Lottie needs to take care of her.

Lottie thought she had put all the suspicions from her past and the dogged detective behind her, but Plum showed up and threw her life into a tailspin. Now Lottie knows that she has to be so much more careful than in the past, with cameras everywhere and electronic footprints, it’s so tiring to keep track of the lies and murders.

This one kept me on the edge of my seat as I waited to see if Lottie had finally met her match several times in the book. Is it bad to root for a serial killer? That’s some skillful writing there that I was considering doing just that!

My thanks to Berkley for the opportunity to read and honestly review this one. Scheduled to publish 8.12.2025. Mark your calendars now!

4.5 stars - I have enjoyed author Samantha Downing's past books, so I had to request her latest, "Too Old for This". And I LOVED it! What a great premise - a sweet little old lady (Lottie) who just also happens to be a retired serial killer!! And what's going to happen when an investigative journalist knocks on her door to upset her quiet life, hmmm?? What fun, and full of snark & dark humor - I couldn't put it down! Really enjoyed & highly recommend! Many, many thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for my advance readers copy - greatly appreciate the opportunity to review it!!

Seventy five year old Lottie Jones is a serial killer living a quiet life under a new name. She was once accused of three murders in Spokane in 1985, but the police could never find enough evidence to charge her. However, she still suffered a very public trial by media, losing her job, her friends and family with her young son Archie having a really hard time being bullied at school. After her name was cleared, she sued the city and the payout allowed her and Archie to move and start afresh in a small town in Oregon. Now she’s just another quiet little old lady, living in a small town, going to church and bingo, where she has a small group of friends.

That is until the past comes back to plague her in the form of a young woman called Plum Dixon, who is planning to record a series of podcasts about people wrongfully accused of crimes. The last thing Lottie wants is for the past to resurface and destroy the lives she and Archie have made for themselves. She decides the only way to make this go away is to make sure that Plum disappears for good.

This is so much fun as Downing has injected a lot of wry humour into this cat and mouse novel. Lottie is a cracker of a character and a real card. Even at her age, she’s a very dangerous person to cross. Smart and a lot sharper than she thinks she is, she is never to be underestimated. Especially when she answers the door smiling and invites you in for tea and cookies.

Lottie might be a loving mother and grandmother, but her inner thoughts of what she would like to do to people who annoy her are scarily dark. The only problem is that she’s getting on and getting away with murder takes a lot out of her. She also worried about how times have changed, with modern forensic techniques and technological advances that weren’t around forty years ago.

Unfortunately, Plum’s disappearance starts a veritable tsunami of people looking for her, including the local police, her boyfriend, her mother and someone who’s been looking for Lottie for a long time. How Lottie deals with all this is hugely entertaining.

You might need to suspend belief and just go with the flow to enjoy this gripping and totally addictive thriller. Especially if you enjoy black humour and a likeable but cold blooded killer who feels no sympathy for her victims.

What happens when a plucky, young documentary film maker shows up on your doorstep to ask about your past (allegedly) life of crime? All Lottie wants to do is be left alone to enjoy her weekly bingo game at the church and to while away her time in her old house. When Plum shows up to ask questions about her past, Lottie has some decisions to make. I thoroughly enjoyed this book! Highly recommended.

I just love Ms Downing's books! She has a fresh style, unique plots, and characters that I've never met before.
Too Old For This was a much anticipated read! And it didn't disappoint! I will leave the synopsis to other reviewers, but I will tell you will want to read this book in one setting. And you'll chuckle, you'll gasp, you'll cringe in horror, and when you're done, you'll be sad because you have to wait for the next book from the author.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this prerelease ebook!

Oh Samantha Downing, you sly devil you. It is no secret that I will read anything that Downing writes and I have still been waiting for another book to live up to her debut My Lovely Wife. Too Old for This did exactly that plus more for me, and when I picked this up on a Sunday morning, I didn’t stop until I was done on Sunday night and it was time for bed! It’s been a long time since I binged a book with my eyes, and this is a novel that you better have time set aside for because it will happen to you! Lottie is one of the most twisted and loveable anti-heroines that I have met in a long time, and her dark humor thanks to Downing gave me life.

I think it would be fun to see this onscreen someday, and I can totally see myself doing a reread with the audiobook once this is out in the world this summer. The uniqueness of Lottie as a character (how many elderly female serial killers have you seen in a book?) and the wildness of the twists will leave you breathless and wishing this was a series. Downing does write some of the best characters I have ever seen, and I loved the laugh-out-loud quality to the storyline as well. This is a really dark read at the same time and the suspense was totally on point from start to finish. I wasn’t sure how things would go, and in the end, I was so oddly happy and satisfied. Such a delicious read that will remain in my memory for a long time to come.

Read this if you are looking for an original thriller full of body parts, cleverness, and a fierce female main character.

Too Old for This
Genre - thriller
Rating - 5⭐️

OBSESSED. This will for sure be the thriller of the summer. I binged this in two sittings and couldn't get enough. I already cannot wait for what’s next from this author.

Despite reading 100+ books consistently every year, I sometimes get a little intimidated starting a new book - am I up to learning a new plot and remembering a new cast of characters? Completely not the case here - the action starts immediately and was unputdownable from Chapter 1.

I love when readers get inside the mind of the villain and then we can't help but root for them. Lottie is bound to be one of my favorite characters of the year. She was sharp, witty, and so nuts that it made for such a fun, wild ride. The supporting cast was memorable, but Lottie stole the show.

A note on my personal preference - I wasn't quite sure the direction the end was going to take. While satisfying, there were a few loose ends I thought might be tied up.

A retired serial killer comes out of retirement when someone shows up on her doorstep trying to make a documentary about her. She wanted to stay hidden.

This was good, but I will admit it did not wow me like I thought it would based on all the reviews. I think the best part of this book is the uniqueness of the story. I don’t think I have ever read a book about someone over 70 being a serial killer.

It did highlight her limitation and aches and pains while trying to commit her crimes. But it also accurately portrayed how people underestimated her, as well. I thought it was really interesting.

The ending was a little wild and extreme for me. I think this book was more a 3.5 rounded up for me. I think this is another case where if I didn’t have such high expectations, I would have enjoyed it more. That is the problem with seeing a book with tons of 5 star reviews and thinking it’s gonna be life-altering. 😂

Thank you to netgalley for this free advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

I loved it so much I am concerned about my mental health.

One might argue that Plum Dixon brought her death upon herself.  As the producer of Reboot Productions, Plum wants to give someone like Lorena Mae  Lansdale who was wrongly accused of murder--so much so that the city paid reparation for the persecution suffered by Lottie and her son--a chance to clear her name.

While Lorena (now going by) Lottie Jones can appreciate the enthusiasm and hard work of this lovely young woman, she also knows that she literally got away with murder and doesn’t want the spotlight shining on her and especially the new anonymous life that she has been living for the last 40 years

It's been years since Lottie has retired.   Murder was just becoming too much work.  Now at the advanced age of 75, Lottie needs to brush off her serial killer skills to get rid of the body of the now deceased young Plum Dixon.

And now her quiet house on her quiet street has a revolving door for Plum’s boyfriend, her mother and of course the police.  While Lottie is certain she covered her trail well, there is always some young cop who is certain they can dig out the truth, just like Detective Burke tried back in the 80's.    He was certain that Lorena was his killer but he just couldn't find the evidence and Lorena was way to smart to confess.  This is why she and Archie had to move from Spokane to the quiet town of Baycliff and assume new names.

Before Plum came knocking on her door Lottie was content at this point in her life to just fantasize about how she would kill Glenda, the annoying bingo coordinator who was always judging Lottie’s pot luck contributions as not good enough, or maybe how she would get rid of the rude telemarketer.

Nowadays, Lottie just wants to sit in her aging recliner or hang with her friends at Thursday bingo so Plum really has no one to blame but herself for dragging Lottie out of her retirement.

THOUGHTS:
I like Lottie so much I was left with a dilemma--do I want her to get away with it and return to her quiet retirement or should she face justice?

Everything that happens really was Plum's fault.  Does she really think, especially tracking someone down who had to move away and changed their name, that that someone would be happy to re-open an old wound such as being accused of murder and having their face splashed on the news once again--especially if it turns out she got away with it?   And everything that happens afterwards is all Plum's fault, well mostly.  You know what I mean.

We don't just have murder and hiding bodies to contend with.  Lottie has bingo nights and what will she be bringing to pot luck and gossiping with her friends.  As an aging serial killer, she needs to contemplate living alone and is it time to find an assisted living facility and her son's upcoming second marriage/late in life baby/midlife crisis.  All while trying to figure out the best disposal of a body.  And speaking of bodies--at 75, her hip is going and all these late nights having to stalk her victims is exhausting for the older crowd.  This is why she retired in the first place.

Lottie also uses her age wisely--pretending to be a lot more feeble than she really is both mentally and physically. She plays the cops off against everyone else looking for Plum. Telling them one thing and then swearing that never happened, they are obviously lying to get some information. I really wasn't sure whether or not she could really pull this off -- or even did I really want them to catch her. Such a dilemma!

I had no idea what to anticipate with this story but I was sucked in.   I just loved Lottie and how well she handles growing older, all while still making sure all the bodies don't lead to her door.

Too Old for This comes out in August so make sure you put it on your list for this year's beach reading.

This book pulled me out of a reading slump, and saying it hooked me from the first page to the last would be an understatement. I finished it in just three days — though, to be fair, I didn’t have much else to do — but I genuinely couldn’t put it down. It felt different from the usual thrillers I’ve read. Instead of the typical storyline where people are out there, well, un-aliving others, here we had a old woman doing all the dirty work. I think Lottie was 75? Either way, she was old — like, very old — but somehow terrifyingly skilled. The way she manipulated and gaslighted people was almost impressive in the most twisted way.

I wouldn’t say the plot itself was groundbreaking, and honestly, the storyline and characters felt pretty predictable and, at times, a little tedious. But despite that, I still loved the book. It was wildly entertaining, and the fact that it helped me get back into reading makes me want to rate it even higher.

I went into this with zero expectations, especially since I wasn’t a fan of Samantha Downing’s last book. But this one? It completely surprised me in the best way. I’m even considering checking out more of her works to see if they catch my attention the same way.

It's Funny!
For some odd reason I like reading serial murder mystery books but I have never read a funny one; until now. It is LOL funny!
Lottie is in her 70's and she just wants to go to church bingo and enjoy her retirement with her friends. Forty years ago Lottie was investigated for suspicion of being a serial murderer in her hometown. She was found not guilty but nevertheless she & her son had to change their names and move far away to begin a new life.
One day, forty years later Plum Dixon shows up at her door wanting to do a show about how she has recovered from being an accused serial killer, but Lottie wants nothing to do with her or her show. The story goes on from there. The humor is refreshing and the writing is superb. I have never read a book by this author before but I certainly will be reading her other books.
Thank you NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for my ARC.

Women of a certain age make for the best demented main characters. It combines the intensity of your typical bad guy and the assumed innocuous nature of the elderly. The dichotomy makes for a world of fun. This was STRESSFUL, which is what I like from my thrillers. Lottie kept digging herself further and further into trouble and I was on the edge of my seat seeing how things would play out. All of the side characters were pretty minimal yet properly developed enough to keep them sorted. I am a big fan of how things turned out, no spoilers of course. I will continue to read any and every book Downing puts out.

Overall this was captivating, dark, unique, and fun.

Too Old For This is one of those books that hooks you from the first chapter. Lottie wastes no time and spares no one (except one particular character I really wanted to see snuffed out, but she never got him...)
This woman is on a rampage, ok? And it's not even intentional. She just wants to be left alone where she can enjoy her quiet life. Why was I cheering for a serial killer? I need to reevaluate myself.

This book is 400 pages, but you'd never know it because of how quickly you'll turn the pages. Samantha Downing writes brilliant thrillers - this one may be my favorite yet.

Who doesn’t love a murderous grandmother? Lottie has lived in her new life for several years when a young woman shows up at her door wanting to make a docuseries about her. Lottie can’t have that so falls back on her old murdering ways to keep her life safe. How does one murder cause so many problems though? Poor Lottie, between her arthritis and having to murder people, her life stays busy. Lottie is a fun character to follow and Downing writes a book that keeps you reading for hours. Another hit from her!

Samantha Downing’s Too Old for This is a delight. Lottie Jones, a seemingly somewhat dotty 75-year old, is actually a serial killer. She’s never been caught, even though Spokane Detective Kenneth Burke has been trying since 1985. When Plum Dixon, a young documentary filmmaker, shows up at her door wanting to make a series about Lottie’s past, hiding her past becomes Lottie’s present, and Plum’s demise. Things only get more complicated from there. First Plum’s boyfriend shows up looking for her, then the police, and eventually Plum’s fairly deranged mother. Lottie has to juggle all of these dangers in addition to keeping up her normal-seeming life at her church. Lottie’s soon-to-be daughter-in-law also shows up and finds one of her victims’ finger in the freezer. How she maneuvers around all of these roadblocks at 75 may stretch one’s incredulity just a bit, but it is a lot of fun to finally encounter a killer who has to deal with arthritis, a possible hip replacement, and general aches and pains-and keep on going. Highly recommended.

I cannot say enough good things about this book. I was hooked from the very start, could not put the book down. The main character is super devious and cunning, you would definitely want her on your side if you were planning to commit murder.. It makes you realize to new judge a book by its cover, any age can accomplish anything they put their mind to.