The Last Devil To Die: The Thursday Murder Club 4

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While previous books in the Thursday Murder Club series have been full of action and crowded with characters, it becomes noticeably apparent early on that this book feels different with its quieter, softer tone, fewer characters, and an unexpected emotional punch. With that said, it's a topic that's handled in a most thoughtful and compassionate way by the author. Elizabeth’s husband Stephen’s dementia is progressing – something Osman, whose grandparents both had the condition, portrays heartbreakingly. He feels a responsibility. “I’m not going to write something that represents everyone’s experience of it. I’m trying to write one man’s experience of it and I’m trying to write a man who has dignity and wit and warmth.” Osman got married last year to the actor Ingrid Oliver, whom he met when she was a contestant on House of Games (Photo: David M Benett/Getty Images) EXCERPT: Mervyn is an unconventional guest, but Elizaeth is learning to float on the tides of life these days. I'm always sad when I get to the end of another book in the Thursday Murder Club series but I know there's more to come from these septuagenarians. It may be a bit longer wait this time around for Book #5 but I'll be here for it when it's published. I have started writing it now and it’s a load of fun,” he says. “It’s a completely different cast of characters, which is great for me. We’ll see how people react.”

Richard Osman’s books are a slyly sophisticated bunch, boasting emotional development equal to the memorable mysteries. . .Thursday Murder Club mystery stands up well on its own, but given the richness of character and relationships, as a set, they’re bloody brilliant.” Harry Bosch and the Lincoln Lawyer team up to exonerate a woman who’s already served five years for killing her ex-husband.There’s also a subplot about a romance scam. As someone who dealt with a mother taken in by one, I loved how the team dealt with it. As we have come to expect from Osman's writing, there is more than one tightly plotted mystery to unravel. OMG! I want to get on the waitlist for an Apartment at Cooper’s Chase and join the Thursday Murder Club! The Thursday Murder Club comprises a rebellious quartet of pensioners, each with a past that makes them pretty good at solving the high volume of crimes that cross their path (their luxury Kent retirement village has a similar concentration of baddies as Midsomer). Our hero Elizabeth is an ex-spy, Joyce is a former nurse, Ron has fond memories of rabble rousing as a trade union activist and Ibrahim still dabbles in psychiatry.

The mysteries are complex, the characters vivid, and the whole thing is laced with warm humor and—remarkably, considering the body count—good feeling. Your next must-read mystery series.” The justification for the group getting involved in solving crimes is always sketchy, but that’s fair enough. Why waste time explaining it? Elizabeth, Joyce, Ron and Ibrahim will be better than the police – even than their chums in the force, Chris and Donna. 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.” The 4th edition of the Thursday Murder Club series is filled with crimes, philosophy and a short goodbye. But of course he has monetised that, to great success – and has made a livelihood out of the mild-mannered TV persona that made him the toast of Britain’s mums.If there is one phrase guaranteed to make Richard Osman squirm, it is “cosy crime”. When we talk on the phone, the Pointless presenter turned crime writer is the model of owlish geniality we see on TV. But mention that his mega-selling The Thursday Murder Club books have got him branded “the king of cosy crime” and his cheeriness slightly falters.

This series keeps getting BETTER and BETTER, and this time Richard Osman has combined a cozy mystery with some thoughtfully written sub plots which include the themes of “romance fraud” and “end of life decisions”. Because of course, there is always more than one mystery to solve in these, and the little reveals at the end are usually even more fun than the BIG REVEAL. The most richly accomplished of the brothers’ pairings to date—and given Connelly’s high standards, that’s saying a lot. I highly recommend The Last Devil to Die to those readers who enjoy a Cozy Mystery with a solid group of main characters! No matter how good he was at coming up with hit TV formats, Osman insists he approached his books without cynicism. “You cannot second guess the public. You instantly see it when people try to,” he says, though admits he is “blessed with quite a mainstream sensibility”. He laughs. “I don’t have a particularly dark, obscurist side.”

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From the very first chapter, Osman's storytelling prowess drew me in, weaving a narrative that is both gripping and thought-provoking. The plot is a rollercoaster of suspense, mystery, and emotion, keeping me on the edge of my seat. 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 is not a new phenomenon. Agatha Christie had been publishing mysteries for over two decades when the Second World War made her a household name, and she began her career in 1920, two years removed from the end of the WWI and the influenza pandemic. Osman’s greatest strength is fusing the puzzle-mastery of Christie and her Golden Age peers with emotional earnestness and wry humor. Mortality is a subject simply too great to be avoided entirely, but it can be done without sinking into despair. Osman has said on multiple occasions (and reiterated it to me) that Joyce, Elizabeth, Ron, and Ibrahim “are going to live in perpetuity.” But next year's book will be something different: the start of a new series featuring a globetrotting young woman and her stay-at-home father-in-law, both of whom are drafted into solving international crimes. It's the sensibility and humor of the Thursday Murder Club books crossed with The Da Vinci Code. Osman began writing the book just last month. The format continues to work well, combining “real time” events with Joyce’s journal recapping other scenes.

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.” There may be other aged detectives in print and on television,but for wit, intelligence and humanity, the Thursday Murder Club outranks them all.” I am a little bummed that Richard Osman is taking a break from this series to start another one (though I'm excited to see what he comes up with). Visiting these septuagenarians has become a highlight of my fall every year. But don't worry, for whenever the next book comes out, I'll be right here waiting to be reunited with my old friends. Osman has created very engaging characters. He also has a sense of humour that shines through the work. I think he's pretty good at plotting too. The mystery is complex but not at all confusing. I loved that the bad guy who got away was a Canadian. Garth may be ruthless, but he was always polite about it. The gang are investigating the death of an old friend of Stephen’s, an antique dealer. He had gotten mixed up in a drug import scheme through no fault of his own. As the story progresses, more folks end up dead. This, the title. As with the previous books, the plot is well thought out and I was caught flat footed trying to figure out who was behind the murders.Game show host turned bestselling novelist, Richard Osman, is the author behind the mystery club phenomenon known as the Thursday Murder Club. A series of novels which feature Elizabeth (former MI6 spymaster), retired nurse Joyce, Ron, an opinionated ex-union activist, and mild-mannered psychiatrist Ibrahim - a septuagenarian quartet of retirement village dwelling residents who work together to solve murders. What is truly special in the books are the characters, whose age allows for a beautiful kind of interaction… For all the fizz of jokes and romance, the books carry with them a sense of grief and sadness which becomes much stronger in The Last Devil to Die…The kindness is his books comes out of something greater for Osman. It’s how he wants the world to be and it’s how he thinks the world is, if only we could realize it.” Fiona Shaw is FABULOUS! I got quite attached to Leslie Manville with the first two books, but Fiona is an obvious transition as narrator! She's incredible and continues to pull you in every step of the way. I really love reading along with the audiobook. It helps you stay engaged and feels like you're IN the world of these character. That's a testament not only to Richard Osman, but certainly Fiona too. All in all, this book is fantastic and I highly recommend it to YOU and YOU and YOU and YOU!