September was a good and nicely varied reading month. I finished one series and started a new one. I read a fascinating book about the origins of words and customs associated with Christmas, a thriller everybody appears to be raving about, and two Dutch titles. As I said a varied month.

PROBLEM AT POLLENSA BAY AND OTHER STORIES by Agatha Christie (4*)

Two stories each featuring Parker Pine, Hercule Poirot, and Harley Quin as well as two stand-alone stories that aren’t mysteries. A thoroughly enjoyable collection. Having said that, I would advise dog lovers to steer clear of the story titled Next to a Dog.

 WORDS CHRISTMAS GAVE US by Grace Tierney (5*) NF

More than just a Christmas-themed lexicon, Words Christmas Gave Us is also a well-written, easy-to-read, and captivating work of non-fiction. Some words, such as gizzard and the aforementioned salmangundi, were new to me while I also found myself learning more about words and customs I considered myself familiar with. For a longer review please click on the link: https://helenasheat.blogspot.com/2024/09/words-christmas-gave-us-by-grace-tierney.html

 WE SOLVE MURDERS (We Solve Murders #1) by Richard Osman (5+*)

Take one private security officer thriving on danger (Amy Wheeler), a retired cop enjoying a very quiet life (Steve Wheeler), and a best-selling author up for just about anything (Rosie D’Antonio), throw in dead bodies, bags filled with money, and a death-threat or two, and you may well find yourself on a caper taking you from the New Forest to Dubai via South Carolina and Ireland.

Richard Osman has done it again. He’s created another madcap adventure featuring fascinating and captivating MCs and filled it with a lot of heart and some inspiring pearls of wisdom. Now I find myself desperately waiting for both the next Thursday Murder Club book and the sequel to this gem.

 DE COCK IN HET KORT (4 short stories) by A.C. Baantjer (4*)

There are only 46 pages in this bonus publication. What makes them special that they were all written by Baantjer in himself and not by Peter Römer who has taken over de De Cock series twenty titles ago. The four stories are fun and original with the fourth one being extra special since it is a meeting between De Cock and Baantjer, his creator.

 THE COMFORT OF GHOSTS (Maisie Dobbs #18) by Jacqueline Winspear (4+)

The latest and last title in the series set in the immediate aftermath of WW II sees Maisie Dobbs/Scott deal with several of the consequences of that conflict as well as some ghosts from her personal past while also focussing on the future and the way ahead for her and those she loves. Or, to quote the last sentence of the book:

“In that moment, she felt lighter, leaving the past behind, as if Fate had asked her to take one final look across the landscape of years, before turning her head towards the future and the building of a new house.”

 THE ONLY ONE LEFT by Riley Sager (4*)

A severely disabled woman suspected of having murdered her family decades earlier decides to tell her story to her troubled live-in caregiver, one typed letter at a time. As her story and the plot thicken the house where it all happened, Hope’s End, crumbles. A real page-turner but also a reminder of why I’m not a huge fan of thrillers. In order to really enjoy a book, I need to understand the MC(s) and in most thrillers, as in this one, the choices they make and the way in which they behave are too far-fetched for me to become fully invested in the story.

 DE COCK EN DE MOORD OP AFSPRAAK (De Cock #95) by Peter Römer (4*).

The title of this Dutch mystery translates as: De Cock and the Murder By Appointment.

A producer of a popular television programme is murdered in his apartment and a short time later a gossip reporter is strangled in a movie theatre. The two, apparently unconnected, cases bring De Cock face to face with the world of showbiz and for a long time, he’s like a fish out of water. As always a wonderful cozy police procedural set in Amsterdam. What’s not to love?

The Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman

The Thursday Murder Club #4

429 pages

Publisher: Penguin

Own

 

Blurb

 Shocking news reaches the Thursday Murder Club.

An old friend in the antiques business has been killed, and a dangerous package he was protecting has gone missing.

As the gang springs into action they encounter art forgers, online fraudsters and drug dealers, as well as heartache close to home.

With the body count rising, the package still missing and trouble firmly on their tail, has their luck finally run out? And who will be the last devil to die?

 

Review

 “We think time travels forward, marches on in a straight line, so we hurry alongside it to keep up. […] But it doesn’t you see. Time just swirls around us. Everything is always present. The things we’ve done, the people we’ve loved, the people we’ve hurt, they’re all still here.”

I came to this fourth Thursday Murder Club mystery fully expecting another crime caper featuring our unlikely and delightful group of pensioner sleuths. And that’s exactly what I found between the covers, but there is so much more to this story. While it is true that the previous three books were also more than ‘just’ fascinating mysteries, The Last Devil to Die touched me harder and deeper than any of the previous instalments.

The problem with reading a series of books is that there’s a serious danger of falling in love with the main protagonists. And that would be fine if it wasn’t for the fact that sometimes bad things happen to great characters. It had been building over the books so far but in this book Elizabeth and Stephen’s ordeal broke my heart. At the same time, I greatly appreciate how Stephen allowed me to see a very different side to the otherwise cool, brusque, self-sufficient, and apparently unbreakable Elizabeth. I am also grateful for the way Richard Osman handled what is a very sensitive and divisive issue. For spoiler reasons that’s all I’m willing to say about this aspect of the story, but I’m looking forward to the moment when I meet others who have read this book and being able to discuss it.

The mystery in this book is possibly the most outlandish so far. The twists and turns are numerous and follow each other at a furious pace. Nothing and nobody is quite what or who they appear to be and characters you thought you knew through and through suddenly show a different side you never saw before. Laugh-out-loud moments mix with heartbreaking scenes to keep the reader on their toes while never allowing us to wallow for too long.

I’m so very impressed with what Richard Osman has done in these books. He’s managed to make a highly improbable set of sleuths into a plausible and always successful team. I sometimes feel that I should be rolling my eyes, but for reasons probably only known to the author, I never do. Because everything works. The mystery while somewhat unlikely, is well plotted and the characters are charming and lifelike. These books have taken crime capers and turned them into stories that also contain life lessons through storylines that will stay with you.

 “We call people “dead” because we need a word for it, but “dead” just means that time has stopped moving forward for that person? You understand? No one dies, not really.”

I could have filled several pages with quotable sentences and paragraphs from this book. I limited myself to the three you find here because they stood out for me but on a different day, I might have picked three other ones.

My copy of the book came with bonus content in the form of the original but eventually discarded first chapter of this book. While there is nothing wrong with the book as it was published, I have to admit I’m now very curious about what happened next to Garry Grant.

I’m not sure what else to say about The Last Devil to Die and the series it is part of except that if you like books that you will lose yourself in, inspired mysteries, and stories that touch every emotion known to man, these are the books you want to read.

 “Waiting for the last devil to die? What a joke. New devils will always spring up, like daffodils in springtime.”

The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman

 

Thursday Murder Club Mystery #2

423 pages

Publisher: Penguin Random House

 

Blurb

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

WOW

As soon as I finished The Thursday Murder Club—a book I didn’t write a detailed review for, for some unknown reason— I wanted to pick up this sequel. Unfortunately for me I had to wait about nine months but, now that I’ve finished The Man Who Died Twice I can say it was well worth the wait.

Here is the little I did write about The Thursday Murder Club:

This book was a revelation. I'm not sure what I expected, besides a mystery, but it wasn't this complex, charming, funny, touching, and enthralling story.

To be honest, I could simply repeat those two sentences and leave it there. The first book was indeed a revelation and I have to admit I was concerned that maybe the sequel wouldn’t live up to expectations. Fortunately, I worried about nothing. The Man Who Died Twice is at least as complex, charming, funny, touching, and enthralling as The Thursday Murder Club was.

Of course, at first glance, neither of these stories should work. For starters, it is impossible to classify these books precisely. Part cosy mystery, part crime caper, part suspense, and featuring spies, it is remarkable that not only do these stories work, they do so exceptionally well.

Of course, there are far more explanations as to why they do work so brilliantly, such as the fantastic cast of characters. It would be hard to find four people as unlike each other as Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim, and Ron but it is exactly the differences between them that make them so good together. The host of secondary characters, both those who return and those only present in one of the stories, are as distinctive, original, and yet very recognisable as the four protagonists. The mysteries, while very well and cleverly plotted, lean toward being over the top but somehow manage to stay both believable and fascinating.

Away from the mystery and all the mayhem resulting from it, there is this deep and warm humanity to these stories. As much as they are mysteries, they are also stories about friendship and tolerance. Without ever getting sentimental, they show the fragility that comes with getting older. Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim, and Ron are all matter of fact about where they are in their lives. They're getting on with it. But between the lines and without ever getting sloppy you can read the fear, the insecurities, the loneliness, and the frustration.

I can’t help feeling that Richard Osman must like people and not only observes those around him but also really sees and understands them.

I can’t imagine anybody reading these books and not getting drawn in. As much as I want to avoid ever having to live in a retirement home or village, these stories almost managed to convince me it might be fun. And, if my accommodation came with the promise of mysteries and a group of friends like the foursome in these books to help me solve them, I might yet be persuaded. 😊

Finally, I want to say something about the title. But I can’t. So I’ll restrict myself to two words: utter genius.