The Last Devil To Die: The Thursday Murder Club 4

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Of course there are plenty of lighter moments to make you laugh out loud. The criminals are almost loveable rogues, accepting of the adage 'live by the sword, die by the sword, juxtaposed with a conversation about the family or new business ventures. The terrifying Connie, residing in prison, lives a life of luxury whilst running her drug business and being counselled by Ibrahim. The pair form an unlikely bond. I cannot think of another series with a more moving exploration of love after a lifetime together, and The Last Devil To Die reduced me to tears at more than one point.”

Osman follows The Bullet That Missed with a bittersweet mystery about the problems facing many older people: dementia, computer fraud, death. Humor does, however, alleviate the poignancy in this strongest, most emotional book in the best-selling series.” The club makes a triumphant return… The Man Who Died Twice, like its series predecessor, is an unalloyed delight, full of sharp writing, sudden surprises, heart, comedy, sorrow and great banter.” There may be other aged detectives in print and on television, but for wit, intelligence and humanity, the Thursday Murder Club outranks them all.” We know by now that outwitting international drug-dealers would be child’s play to the Club’s omnicompetent leader, retired spy Elizabeth, but she has more pressing concerns. In previous books, her husband Stephen had been able to play some part in the adventures despite being in the early stages of dementia, but he has now reached the stage of being only intermittently able to ­recognise her. This storyline marks the series’s transition from quietly poignant to deeply moving, with Osman giving us some of his best writing yet as Elizabeth’s ­situation prompts the other Club members to reflect on their own griefs and lost loves, with one ­character disclosing some sad secrets. With no spoilers and for those that know the series; Ibrahim's story in Chapter 72 is so beautifully written as is the continuation of Stephen's which has run through the series. As someone living with a partner with a type of dementia it really hit home. Told with such insight I lived this book!Delivers the same kind of clever dialogue, colorful characters and corkscrew plotting that made the other books so much fun… As you reach the last chapters of this book, you’ll think you’ve figured out the mystery. You’ll think so several times. But Osman and the Thursday Murder Club will keep the surprises coming.” Three minutes into a Zoom call with Richard Osman, I receive excellent news. I had prepared myself for a bittersweet task: to speak with Osman about the Thursday Murder Club, my favorite book series, on the eve of the publication of The Last Devil to Die, which I believe to be the final book. But Osman corrects me: while he’ll be moving on from the Thursday Murder Club series to write a new series, it’s a pause, not a stop, with future books to follow. “By the end of this book, hopefully readers would agree that the characters deserve a year off,” he jokes. In many ways, it would actually have been more of a surprise if the books weren’t a hit. As Osman says, readers love crime fiction and they really love warm depictions of England. But what is truly special in the books are the characters, whose age allows for a beautiful kind of interaction. “Everyone in Britain is obsessed with class, of course. In your career it’s very easy to stay in the middle class, to stay in the working class. At school and towards the end of your life, suddenly you’re thrown in with people again,” he says, noting that the book’s core group includes two middle class characters and two that are working class. “My mom lives in a retirement community and honestly, it just reminds me of a university campus, but where no one has to do any essays so they can get up and pretty much do what they want all the time. They take different pills, but they drink just as much.”

The Bullet That Missed hits on every front. Its quandaries stymie, its solutions thrill, its banter is worth reciting and its characters exemplify an admirable camaraderie. One can only hope that the Thursday Murder Club’s next outing appears before long.” Kuldesh thinks about his friend Stephen. How he looks now. How lost, how quiet, how reduced. Is that the future for him too? What fun they used to have, the whole lot of them. The noise they would make.

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An unexpected visitor—an old pal of Elizabeth’s (or perhaps more than just a pal?)—arrives, desperate for her help. He has been accused of stealing diamonds worth millions from the wrong men and he’s seriously on the lam. On December 27 th , at eleven p.m., alone in his car, Kuldesh waits for someone. He’s near eighty; memories flood his mind. Think of the Thursday Murder Club itself as a senior version of 'The A-Team'. . . Funny, moving and suspenseful. . . So delicious, even adorable . . A wildly entertaining book.” It’s an unalloyed pleasure to spend time with Osman’s sparkling, well-observed characters who are also wittily perceptive about our foibles and the quirks of modern life.”

The strands of the plot multiply entertainingly and get tied together in the usual satisfying way… Osman serves up another delightful mystery.” This group are in a wonderful retirement village with plenty going on. Indeed it was whilst visiting one such retirement village that Richard Osman was inspired to write the Thursday Murder Club series. The residents of Coopers Chase have seen a lot, but the impact has rarely been felt so close to home. Drawn into the world of international smugglers and scam artists Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim and Ron are on the case. Policing must have been so much easier in the seventies, when you could just openly take bribes. He remembers an old DI of his from the days on the force who’d got Wimbledon Royal Box seats just for losing a vital piece of evidence. Kuldesh doesn’t have the box with him but he’s sure he can explain that away. He hopes to be “ on his way before the snow turns to ice .” Sadly, that’s not to be.A new Thursday Murder Club book always makes me happy. This the 4th book in this fun series and ai have grown quite attached to this gang of elderly sleuths. When I get old I want to move to Coopers Chase and solve murders too.

I've reviewed all four books. The antics revolve around the escapades of four pensioners at a retirement village: Elizabeth,ex-MI6 agent: Joyce, retired nurse; Ibrahim, retired psychiatrist; and Ron, ex-labor leader and father of a prominent boxer. The four 80-somethings are solving multiple mysteries in each installment, using bold and questionable techniques that would appear to be beyond the capabilities of their ages. That part is what makes the series so unique. Elizabeth's ex-spy experience especially adds daring tactics to the dynamics. My only sadness is that, like Agatha Christie, Richard Osmon has chosen his protagonists as retired. Ms Christie regretted that choice as it limited the number of books she could write. I can only hope that the Thursday murder club will look after themselves. The fourth book in the Thursday Murder Club series will hopefully prove to anyone who has had their doubts that these are not cosy mysteries. Like the members of the club itself it feels like these books are sometimes dismissed as gentle or cosy. But, the emotionally loaded fourth instalment shows that there is so much more to these books. The world is becoming a whisper to Kuldesh now. Wife gone, friends falling. He misses the roar of life.Osman follows The Thursday Murder Club, his supremely entertaining debut, with an even better second installment. . . A clever, funny mystery peopled with captivating characters that enhance the story at every quirky turn.” Richard Osman sure knows how to tug at the heartstrings. This is one emotional book. But it is also funny, and addictive and a joy to read. I am hoping my knee will have healed enough for me to go and see Richard when he comes to Sydney in November. I am a big fan, not only of his books, but I love Game Night and miss him on Pointless. The story romps along with glee, plenty of murders, and a suspension of disbelief, which is a delight. but as with all good writing, it is the characters who bring you on the journey.