Tinker, Tailor, Soldier,... Pensioner
Feb. 7th, 2023 08:21 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
qatsiBook Review: The Man Who Died Twice, by Richard Osman
The second in The Thursday Murder Club series is again perhaps rather like Marmite: you love it or you hate it.
This time our heroes are drawn into a case of missing diamonds via a mysterious summons to Elizabeth from a dead man. It takes time to work all this out, but unfortunately the bodies start to pile up. As a former nurse Joyce is unflappable at all the blood and gore, although she is bothered about it staining the carpets. Meanwhile, the local CID (whom we met in the previous book) are on an amateurish stake-out of a small-time local drug dealer, and Ibrahim, cautious about modern life beyond the retirement village, suffers a violent mugging. Ron is a bit of a general factotum, but an essential cog in the wheel.
Osman has spotted the classic problem that the level of violence that can go on in a respectable locality is incompatible with a successful series of detective novels. Elizabeth's past in the intelligence service allows for all sorts of connections with the underworld. Provided you're not expecting to stay too close to reality and can keep up with all the gags, it's fun. In this case I would recommend starting with the first book; if you enjoyed that, then it's worth continuing with the series.
The second in The Thursday Murder Club series is again perhaps rather like Marmite: you love it or you hate it.
This time our heroes are drawn into a case of missing diamonds via a mysterious summons to Elizabeth from a dead man. It takes time to work all this out, but unfortunately the bodies start to pile up. As a former nurse Joyce is unflappable at all the blood and gore, although she is bothered about it staining the carpets. Meanwhile, the local CID (whom we met in the previous book) are on an amateurish stake-out of a small-time local drug dealer, and Ibrahim, cautious about modern life beyond the retirement village, suffers a violent mugging. Ron is a bit of a general factotum, but an essential cog in the wheel.
Osman has spotted the classic problem that the level of violence that can go on in a respectable locality is incompatible with a successful series of detective novels. Elizabeth's past in the intelligence service allows for all sorts of connections with the underworld. Provided you're not expecting to stay too close to reality and can keep up with all the gags, it's fun. In this case I would recommend starting with the first book; if you enjoyed that, then it's worth continuing with the series.