Tag: thursday murder club

The Impossible Fortune by Richard Osman (Literary Mystery)

Read this in a single sitting — impossible to put down. The story has typically good twists and this time delves into bitcoin, trust issues, and a whole new meaning for deep storage, but what I have always liked about Osman’s books are his characters. The core Thursday Murder Club members (Elizabeth, Ibrahim, Joyce, and Ron), the somewhat unwilling police “friends,” and the various colorful criminal elements have all returned along with some new parts — and they are all as intriguing as ever. Osman’s characters have not run out of depth or surprises as often happens in series. Plenty of fun!

Thank you to Pamela Dorman Books and NetGalley for providing an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. The book will be published on September 30th, 2025.

We Solve Murders by Richard Osman (Mystery)

A “humorous” thriller, if there is such a thing. Full of grand scale money laundering, kick-ass private security, and jetting about from Santa Lucia to Dubai to any other place sporting dead bodies somehow linked together. Clearly designed to launch another series, I didn’t fall in love with it the way I immediately did “The Thursday Murder Club.” Mostly because I didn’t fall in love with the characters — yet. The three primary characters are Amy Wheeler — the aforementioned kick-ass private security person, Rosie D’Antonio — the over-the-top flamboyant and very wealthy best selling author, and Amy’s father-in-law Steve — widowed ex-cop who was by far my favorite character (the other two seeming oddly personality-less). The bad guys are cartoonish but kind of funny, and there is a humorous depiction of a nefarious usage of ChatGPT as well as a subtly searing portrayal of the new breed of influencers (who provide some of dead bodies mentioned above). The plot relied on more stupidity than I enjoy, but by the last quarter of the book I was hooked and found the ending pretty satisfying. I’m a big Osman fan, so I’m hoping book two fleshes of the personalities a little more and gets off to a slightly more engaging start.

Thank you to Pamela Dorman Books and NetGalley for providing an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. The book will be published on Sept. 17th, 2024.