by Richard Osman
SYNOPSIS
The Man Who Died Twice (The Thursday Murder Club Book 2)
It's the following Thursday.
Elizabeth has received a letter from an old colleague, a man with whom she has a long history. He's made a big mistake, and he needs her help. His story involves stolen diamonds, a violent mobster, and a very real threat to his life.
As bodies start piling up, Elizabeth enlists Joyce, Ibrahim and Ron in the hunt for a ruthless murderer. And if they find the diamonds too? Well, wouldn't that be a bonus?
But this time they are up against an enemy who wouldn't bat an eyelid at knocking off four septuagenarians. Can the Thursday Murder Club find the killer (and the diamonds) before the killer finds them?
REVIEW
The Man Who Died Twice follows directly on from the events of The Thursday Murder Club, and we join Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim and Ron as they get caught up in yet another caper! This time, the trouble comes in the form of Elizabeth's ex-husband and some missing diamonds - 2 million pounds worth of diamonds to be exact! I very rarely enjoy the subsequent books in a series more than the first, but in this case I actually preferred it. Even though I loved The Thursday Murder Club when I read it last year, this book is by far my favourite. I think this is mainly because the same characters have returned, and the setting has already been established meaning that the whole focus of the story could be on the mystery which I found really entertaining. Not every crime novel has to be dark and intense with brooding detectives who are battling their inner demons. There is a place for humour and genuinely likeable characters, and this book had both in abundance. It was a crime novel, there was a mystery to solve, a group of amateur sleuths attempting to solve a murder... but it also made me laugh out loud and had truly emotional moments - this might be unusual for a crime novel but it certainly isn't a negative point. The Man Who Died Twice gets a very easy five stars and has gone straight to the top of my favourite reads this year. I usually like quite dark thrillers but there is definitely a place for this type of 'cozy crime' mystery on my shelves. Fingers crossed for a third book featuring Elizabeth and the gang coming soon!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Richard Osman is an author, producer and television presenter. The Thursday Murder Club was his first novel. He is well known for TV shows including Pointless and Richard Osman's House of Games. As the creative director of Endemol UK, Richard has worked as an executive producer on numerous shows including Deal Or No Deal and 8 Out of 10 Cats. He is also a regular on panel and game shows such as Have I Got News For You, Would I Lie To You and Taskmaster.
Thanks to @EllieeHud @VikingBooksUK and @richardosman for the opportunity to read and review.
Fiction: Cosy Crime / Crime Thriller
Format: Hardback
ISBN: 978-0241425428
Pages: 432 pp
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