Book Review: The Thursday Murder Club

A charming mystery series about murder, friendship, and retirement

During this time of national strain, one clear coping mechanism for me is to bury myself in a good book. While I’m not averse to stand-alone novels, I have a strong preference for a series. I love spending time with characters, really getting to know them over multiple plot arcs. Over the last couple of months, interspersed with other books, I read The Thursday Murder Club series by Richard Osman (four books so far, with another volume due out in September). They were nothing short of delightful.

The mysteries at the heart of the books are consistently engaging, with crimes that pull readers into worlds ranging from property development and espionage to organized crime and the art scene.

But what makes the series shine is the titular Thursday Murder Club, a group of retirees from Coopers Chase Retirement Village who meet weekly to solve cold cases. When my wife, Kate, recommended the books, the premise didn’t seem particularly compelling. How wrong I was. The four main characters immediately grabbed me. There’s Elizabeth Best, a sharp-witted ex-spy with a shadowy past; Joyce Meadowcroft, a kind but often underestimated former nurse; Ibrahim Arif, a meticulous retired psychiatrist with a methodical mind; and Ron Ritchie, a brash former union leader. The supporting cast is just as richly drawn, adding depth and warmth to the series.

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What I’ve loved most about the books isn’t actually the murder-solving—though that’s certainly entertaining. It’s how Osman explores the inner lives of retirees, delving into their hopes, aspirations, fears, and eccentricities. As someone within about a dozen years of retirement—and almost certainly spending too much time contemplating that phase of life—this aspect of the series felt unexpectedly educational. Living in a retirement community never held much appeal, but if it were as nice as Coopers Chase, with these sorts of characters around, it might be downright magical. Even if Kate and I don’t end up in such a place, the books have been a fascinating way to think about how we might spend our later years. I often wonder how I’ll fill my days (it probably won’t be solving murders), and this portrait of vibrant, purposeful lives has been genuinely inspiring.

In a completely different way, this series joins some of my favorite mysteries, like Inspector Gamache, Maisie Dobbs, and Bruno, Chief of Police. The fact that the books are set in Kent, England, makes them even more appealing to me. I’m a total Anglophile (perhaps ironic for someone who’s been writing a lot lately about throwing off the yoke of British imperialism!), so Joyce’s many witty asides about English life add to the enjoyment. Whether it’s pub culture, the relative merits of Waitrose versus M&S, or the joy of visiting a church fair or National Trust property, the series transports the reader to the English countryside in an utterly charming way.

All this to say, I cannot recommend these books highly enough. They’re a perfect escape from the chaos of our disintegrating politics and a hopeful reminder that a simpler life—where differences don’t divide us but bring us together—is still possible.

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