The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman

 

One of the most interesting activities at the Coopers Chase Retirement Village is the Thursday Murder Club.  Other residents may enjoy their knitting clubs or military history clubs, but this one involves studying and trying to solve various cold cases the police were never able to close.  It was started by a retired police officer, Penny, and her best friend, Elizabeth who had been a spy for the government.  Penny is now in a coma but the club goes on.  In addition to Elizabeth, there is Ibrahim who was a psychiatrist, Ron who was a famous labor leader and Joyce a retired nurse.

But now the stakes have been raised.  The owner of Coopers Chase is planning to expand the village to a new section.  To do so, everyone expects that he will be using the same contractor he used for the original village but the owner cuts him out in favor of cheaper labor.  When the contractor is found murdered later the same day, the police are sure it relates to the falling out and the Murder Club is sure they can solve the case.  As more murders occur, can they safely find the solution before they come into the killer's focus?

This is the first book in a massively successful series.  I hesitated to read it for a while as it was getting so much buzz but I'm so glad I did.  I fell in love with the characters and the tone of the writing in the first chapter and loved them all until the end.  There are lots of twists and turns and many enjoyable characters, both in the police force, other residents, and peripheral characters who become more important as the book progresses.  This novel is a joy to read and I'll definitely be moving on to the next one soon.  This book is recommended for cozy mystery readers.