The Man Who Died Twice: A Thursday Murder Club Mystery

liked better than 1st book, but liked that one so much read this one. think this one is better: more interesting, more intrigue, learn more about characters. they're octogenarians, but we're all going to get there one day, we hope. i'm not there yet but can relate. they're in a retirement community. so what are they going to do w/themselves? solve murders. they all have distinct personalities, can relate. but they're all friends. all different backgrounds, ethnicity. still they recognize each others strengths/weaknesses and respect/utilize them. one has a spouse who has signs of developing dementia & is dealing w/that. some very real aspects. a good version of the modern british mystery and detectives. found the characters appealing, the mystery intriguing. what would alternate james bond have done living in sr assisted living? that's one character - a woman! but she's not a loner. no spoilers. a good read recommended to those who love a good mystery with interesting quirky detectives.

‘Exceeds expectations.’ That’s a phrase that I am now confident applies to Richard Osman’s work on his Thursday Murder Club series. Exceedingly fun; gently creative, whilst coloring (mostly) within the lines of how these sorts of things are expected to be done. A panoply of interesting characters, with so few disappointments, and those few so minor, that one happily ignores the small flaws here and there. The best works all have a maker’s mark that perfection would never allow, don’t they?

Osman’s books are smart, clever (no, those are decidedly NOT the same thing), fun, and oddly uplifting. Don’t believe this last? Read this book, and then ask yourself if you don’t have a greater fondness for men named Ibrahim and Bogdan than you did before. And women named Joyce. I won’t mention Elizabeth, because she doesn’t need the help.

It’s an injustice to Osman to say that his series fits well within the Agatha Christie thriller/mystery genre, for it suggests that Christie outranks him. And that’s only true to the extent that she wrote more than Osman has (so far), and did it first. But with regard to quality of output, Osman more than holds his own. If I were trapped by a blizzard in a remote cabin, with only two books there to read, one by la grande dame herself, the other by Osman, I’d pick up Osman first.

Osman is not a producer of Great Literature, a la Tolstoy, Steinbeck, Pamuk, Helprin, or Stendahl. He produces lighter fare, but doesn’t do so carelessly, and to say Osman’s not part of the Pantheon is really just to say that damned good work doesn’t necessarily qualify as stuff for the Hall of Fame. His work is well crafted, nicely paced; the characters clearly drawn, distinct, memorable; the plot tight, parts well-joined. Meant to be stimulating, pleasant, and humorous without ever being too much to bear. Very highly recommended.

Well, it was a lot of fun catching up with all of our aged friends in this absolute delight of a book. Osman manages to layer on a lot more character to our protagonists, and you’d be hard-hearted if you didn’t have a tear or two when reading some of the parts about loneliness, loss, and love. And, of course, lots of puzzles, misdirection, death, and friendship. A pure joy.

Have read this book and The Thursday Murder Club and loved them both. Will be reading the third in this series and eagerly awaiting the movie coming out later this year based on the first book.

Great characters, more than just one mystery in each book, and the plot twists do keep you guessing.

Hope to see additional books in this series with these characters.

4.5 stars. I enjoyed The Thursday Murder Club so much that I immediately picked up The Man Who Died Twice in order to remain a little longer in the charming realm of Coopers Chase with these delightfully quirky characters. In this novel, we learn more about Elizabeth's intriguing past as the world she left behind takes center stage in the plot. (However, does anyone in Elizabeth's line of work ever really get out of the business? What does retirement for them actually look like?) The action and mystery of the plot are centered on a cache of missing diamonds, followed by murder. The plot has the airiness of a well-done caper/heist film, although at times I felt some elements of the plot stretched my credulity a bit. That said, nothing was out of the realm of what septagenarians in reasonably good health and of sound mind could accomplish. There was plenty of complexity in the plot line to keep Elizabeth and us guessing. As with the first novel, my greatest enjoyment of this novel really came from the additional elements of the relationships of these characters to each other, and their feelings of fear, loneliness, vengeance and regret that underlie the ever-present wry humor. They each feel like real people who are experiencing their own personal emotions and moral ambiguities even as they participate in the world around them. I plan on continuing the series.