Since the first of the Thursday Murder Club books by Richard Osman came out in 2020, they've been a literary phenomenon. The first in the series was the first ever debut to be a Christmas number one and the following three books were all best-sellers too.
Now Netflix has brought our favourite quartet of octagenarians sleuths - Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim and Ron - to the screen and audiences are loving the film as much as the books.
If you are looking for a new murder mystery to fill the Thursday Murder Club-shaped hole in your life and love the mix of humour and a page-turning plot, here are some novels to add to your to-read pile...
What to read next
The Marble Hall Murders by Anthony Horowitz
Book three is Horowitz's brilliant Magpie Murders series is just as clever and compelling as its predecessors. Editor Susan Ryeland is back in England and has been persuaded to work on a third novel about the famous detective, Atticus Pünd. Understandably she's reluctant, as both times before she’s come close to being killed. As Susan works on Pünd’s Last Case, a story set in an exotic villa in the South of France, she uncovers more and more parallels between the past and the present – until suddenly she finds that she has become a target herself.
This Is Not A Game by Kelly Mullen
77-year-old Mimi and her grand-daughter are the unlikely sleuths in this fun murder mystery. When the hostess is killed at a fancy cocktail party thrown - quickly followed by one of the guests, the pair race to find the killer before a third murder is committed.
A Clock Stopped Dead by J.M. Hall
A charming trio of retired teachers Pat, Liz and Thelma find themselves embroiled in a puzzling case involving a vanished charity shop in this twisty mystery.
The Death At The Vineyard by Emylia Hall
The Shell House Detectives Mystery series is one of my favourites. Set in a small Cornish town, the detectives are recently widowed Ally and former policeman Jayden who team up to investigate murders in the local area. This fourth book in the series is set at Shoreline Vines where the Harper family are hosting a potential investor, who they desperately need to keep their business afloat. Then a body is found in the vineyard...
Everyone This Christmas Has A Secret by Benjamin Stevenson
I loved this fun, Christmas-themed mystery that’s divided into 24 chapters – with 24 clues – making it a great Advent read. When the ex-wife of detective Ernest Cunningham is accused of murder, it’s his job to find the real killer before it’s too late.
Over My Dead Body by Maz Evans
The hero of this hilarious murder mystery is feisty surgeon Dr Miriam Price, who turns detective in the afterlife to try to work out who killed her. The only person who can see her – and therefore help her – is her neighbour Winnie, who she has been in a feud with for years. A really entertaining read that raced through.
The Marlow Murder Club by Richard Thorogood
This series from the creator of BBC1's Death In Paradise is deftly plotted, with a great heroine in the form of 77-year-old crossword-setter Judith Potts. One evening, while out swimming in the Thames, Judith witnesses a brutal murder. When the local police don’t believe her story, Judith and two unlikely friends decide to investigate for themselves.
D Is For Death by Harriet F Townson
The first in a brilliant new series of historical mysteries from the author better known as Harriet Evans. Set in the 1930s, it follows Dora as she flees her impending nuptials– then gets caught up in a murder case after finding a body in The London Library.
The Twyford Code by Janice Hallett
The author of the word-of-mouth hit The Appeal delivers another original, ingenious whodunnit. At its heart is the disappearance of a teacher during a class trip back in 70s that is in some way connected to the famous children’s author Edith Twyford. Her former pupils, led by ex-convict, Steve, band together to the solve the mystery.
Moonflower Murders by Anthony Horowitz
I absolutely love this series of fiendishly clever literary mysteries, which started with The Word Is Murder, and I wolfed this new one down. The clues to a real-life murder in a fancy hotel lie within the pages of a crime novel and its editor must work out the links to solve it.
We Solve Murders by Richard Osman
While this new series from Osman has a different feel from The Thursday Murder Club books, it does have the same wit and warmth. Our detectives this time are father- and daughter-in-law Steve and Amy, who become embroiled in murder after a dead body turns up on the tropical island where Amy is working.
