The Man Who Died Twice – Richard Osman

Published By: Viking
Pages: 336
Date Published: 16/09/2021

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?

*****

Thanks to Viking for the advanced copy of this title in return for an honest review.

Unlike the rest of the world, it seems, I did not enjoy the first book in this series “The Thursday Murder Club”. I found it too confusing, a bit slow and I just couldn’t get my head round why people were raving about it, but I was clearly in the minority here. So, I wasn’t overly keen to read the sequel, but I was very kindly gifted an advanced copy do I thought I would give it a go, and I’m glad I did. It’s 100% better, in my opinion.

I found the main characters were far more rounded in this book. I found the first book had too many characters and too many subplots to keep track of. This book seems more thought out and more pleasant to read. The characters are more human and I felt they all played their own part in this sequel. There is really only one or two main storylines this time which made it easier to read, and it allowed Osman to get really stuck in and flesh them out which I thoroughly enjoyed.

There’s the right amount of intrigue and red herrings to keep you interested, but also you can keep on top of them without requiring a pad to make notes on. There are twists snd turns like any good murder mystery, and even as I got to the crux of the story, I still wasn’t confident in my ability to prove who did it.

Like I said, initially I had no desire to read this sequel, but now I’m finished, I cannot wait for the third instalment!