After solving not one, not two, but three murders you would think that the Thursday Murder Club would deserve a little break. But there’s no rest for the wicked, and when an old friend of Elizabeth’s shows up needing help, the rest of the club gets drawn right in. Before they know it there’s a double murder and twenty million pounds worth of diamonds floating around somewhere. If they can’t solve the murder and find the diamonds quickly there’s going to be more dead bodies, maybe even our favorite septuagenarians. Find out what the Thursday Murder Club is up to next in The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman.
[Warning: My review of The Man Who Died Twice contains some spoilers!]
The past and present collide in The Man Who Died Twice
In The Thursday Murder Club, Osman hinted at Elizabeth’s exciting past. In The Man Who Died Twice, Osman brings that shadowy past right into Coopers Chase. Elizabeth’s ex-husband, David, shows up. She left the spy game but he’s still an active agent, and his last mission went a little sideways. While infiltrating a subject’s home for surveillance, twenty million pounds worth of diamonds went missing. David is the main suspect for the thief, but he insists he’s innocent. Now he’s in protective custody while the government tries to sort it out and he’s turned to Elizabeth for extra help.
Then David and his handler end up dead. Before he was killed, David admitted to Elizabeth that he did in fact steal the diamonds. After his death, Elizabeth receives a note from David telling her that she already knows where he hid the diamonds. Elizabeth brings in the rest of the Murder Club to try and find both the murderer and the diamonds before the murderer finds them! The stakes are quite high this time, will the Thursday Murder Club be up to the challenge?
Osman manages to make murder funny
Okay, that last sentence sounds wrong. It’s not the murder itself that is funny. It’s actually a pretty brutal murder. Poppy’s, David’s handler, death especially pulls at your heartstrings. But Elizabeth, Joyce, Ron, and Ibrahim play off each other so well that I spent most of my time chuckling, grinning, laughing, and even snorting at their antics as I was reading. I have to admit that Joyce has become my favorite, but she’s at the top of an all-star group. They’re all wonderful. And the way they interact makes the whole group greater than the sum of its parts. Their constant quips are hilarious. Furthermore, they’ve come to the conclusion that they don’t have much to lose at this point in their lives. This means that they’ve lost most of their reservations. If they want to do something they just do it and consequences be damned. They often bet that people will let them get away with things because of their age, and usually they’re right. People don’t seem to know how to deal with them and they steamroll everyone, leading to hilarious situations but also perfect results.
Finding true friendship late in life
Besides appearing to be having a fantastic time no matter what they’re doing, the Murder Club really care about each other. None of them has been acquainted for very long but their friendships are incredibly close anyway. I wonder if that’s because they’re aware that they don’t have much time left, so they didn’t waste time slowly bonding and just jumped right into friendship. Whatever the reason for their friendships, they really do care about each other.
The depth of their friendship is made very obvious at the beginning when Ibrahim is attacked and badly injured.
All of the friends rush to the hospital to support Ibrahim, including Chris and Donna. But it is Ron’s reaction that is the most touching. Being of his generation, obvious shows of affection, especially to another man just aren’t done. But Ron struggles not to cry, and then spends several nights at the hospital to support his friend. The obvious concern and love that Ron feels towards Ibrahim is so sweet that it makes Ron a much more human character.
Of course Ron and Ibrahim’s friendship isn’t the only one growing in The Man Who Died Twice. Joyce, as the newest member, grows ever closer to both Ron, whom she sees as a kind of overgrown boy I think, and Ibrahim, whom she wants to both protect and draw out of his shell. And then there’s Joyce and Elizabeth. Because of her past, Elizabeth has never really had a close friend before. Acquaintances, partners, and enemies she’s had a lot of, but not friends. Meanwhile, Joyce has had many friends but they’ve all left her behind, going where she can’t yet follow. Joyce is coming to see Elizabeth as a friend, but Elizabeth isn’t quite ready to admit to friends yet. Just give Joyce some more time, she’ll crack her.
A great continuation of life at Coopers Chase
The Thursday Murder Club was a beautiful book that contained a complete story. But the characters that Osman created were so vibrant that they demanded more, and Osman delivered in The Man Who Died Twice. Joyce, Ron, Ibrahim, and Elizabeth (not to mention Chris, Donna, and all the others) come alive as you read.
Characters are always the most important part of a book. If they are well written I could read a book about them watching the paint dry and be happy. Plot is secondary to characters. Of course Osman delivers on the plot as well. The Man Who Died Twice has two exciting mysteries at its heart with a great payoff at the end. But something tells me that the Thursday Murder Club could easily make paint drying an enjoyable experience. I highly recommend The Man Who Died Twice, once you’ve read The Thursday Murder Club of course. And I can’t wait to read the next installment, The Bullet That Missed.
Rating: 10/10
The Man Who Died Twice is now available to purchase at your retailer of choice.
Learn more about the book at the publisher’s official website.
You might also like…
Book Review: ‘The Thursday Murder Club’ by Richard Osman
