Published by: HQ
Pages: 338
Date published: 08/07/2021
Date read: 15/07/2021
To solve an impossible murder, you need an impossible hero…
Judith Potts is seventy-seven years old and blissfully happy. She lives on her own in a faded mansion just outside Marlow, there’s no man in her life to tell her what to do or how much whisky to drink, and to keep herself busy she sets crosswords for The Times newspaper.
One evening, while out swimming in the Thames, Judith witnesses a brutal murder. The local police don’t believe her story, so she decides to investigate for herself, and is soon joined in her quest by Suzie, a salt-of-the-earth dog-walker, and Becks, the prim and proper wife of the local Vicar.
Together, they are the Marlow Murder Club.
When another body turns up, they realise they have a real-life serial killer on their hands. And the puzzle they set out to solve has become a trap from which they might never escape…
I devoured this book in a matter of hours, I just couldn’t bear to pull myself away from it (silver linings to being unemployed I suppose, means I have this spare time).
There’s a few similarities with Richard Osman’s “The Thursday Murder Club” (which I admit, I did not enjoy), but apart from it focussing on an old-aged civilian investigator, that’s where the similarities stop.
I adore Death in Paradise (Thorogood is the creator), and you can really tell that Robert has Murder mystery running through his veins. This book is fast paced and thrilling with twists and turns in every chapter. But it’s completely believable, with a loving protagonist, and excellent secondary characters.
It took me all my willpower not to skip to the end to find out the identity of the murderer as I was so desperate to know. Robert had left red herrings left, right snd centre snd I couldn’t pin it down at all. I’m very excited about seeing a sequel is due for release in December 2022 – even if that does mean I have to wait another 17 months for Judith’s next adventure.
Books By Your Bedside 