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The Last Devil To Die: The Thursday Murder Club 4

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In The Last Devil to Die , Elizabeth’s beloved husband Stephen is slipping away from her with fewer and fewer good days. To say more would be to slip into spoiler territory. Suffice it to say, Elizabeth is not herself so Joyce steps up to take the lead in the new investigation. Granted, that means less time for Joyce to spoil male residents with cake and conversation. Retired nurse Joyce always has an eye for a handsome male, like Mervyn, a newcomer to Coopers Chase. Ibrahim isn’t sure about Mervyn although he’s horrified that he’s being scammed by an online professional posing as a lonely-hearted lady. 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 inthis strongest, most emotional book in the best-selling series.” 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.

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. Osman’s novels are so much more than just brilliantly engineered mysteries... They're also funny, warm, and big-hearted. He can't possibly write them fast enough to suit me. These books are absolute gold.” Riveting. . . The twisty plot, knotty issues of relationships with life partners, and steadfast loyalty among the sleuths provide depth and poignancy. Those who prefer their mysteries with touches of spycraft, humor, and eccentricity will be well pleased.” Elizabeth, Joyce, Ron and Ibrahim—the Thursday Murder Club—are still riding high off their recent real-life murder case and are looking forward to a bit of peace and quiet at Cooper’s Chase, their posh retirement village.

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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. 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. 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.”

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. 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. 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. ButOsmanand the Thursday Murder Club will keep the surprises coming.” The books are a delight, but especially this one. A beautiful, moving description and treatment of such a cruel unforgiving disease had me in tears.

There may be other aged detectives in print and on television, but for wit, intelligence and humanity, the Thursday Murder Club outranks them all.” 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.” Osman concocts a satisfyingly complex whodunit full of neat twists and wrong turns. But unlike most crime novelists, he ensures his book’s strength and momentum stem not from its plot or its thrills but rather its perfectly formed characters. Once again, the quartet of friends makes for delightful company… Heartwarming and enthralling. ‘They carried a kind of magic, the four of them,’ a policeman muses. That magic is still there in abundance.”

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. While author Richard Osman will be moving on to write a second series, he assured me (and the many other readers who are similarly invested) that he’ll return to the funny, sweet stories of my favorite retirement home sleuths. The Last Devil to Die is a beautiful send-off that will get us through the wait." There may be other aged detectives in print and on television,but for wit, intelligence and humanity, the Thursday Murder Club outranks them all.” A new mystery is afoot in the fourth book in the Thursday Murder Club series from million-copy bestselling author Richard Osman. But even the new characters we have not had the chance to build an understanding of manage to be well-rounded. And if not sympathetic then at least interesting and understandable.

Richard Osman

Elizabeth’s absence means that Joyce, Ibrahim and Ron step into new investigative roles, with delightful results. Their humor and lighthearted banter carry the novel through the deadly investigation to its satisfying conclusion. And happily, it seems another Coopers Chase resident is joining the group. Bob Whittaker, aka Computer Bob, doesn’t seem fazed by his new friends’ dangerous interests—a sure sign he’ll fit right in with the brave, meddlesome Thursday Murder Club. 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.”

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