Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim and Ron are back for another thrilling instalment of the Thursday murder club, this time the story focuses more on Elizabeth and her ex husband, in book two we have gangsters, stolen diamonds, and of course murder but most of all the wonderful camaraderie between them all continues.

The Man Who Died Twice picks up where the first book left off.
When Ibrahim is mugged, and injured, the Thursday Murder Club look to bring the criminal to justice. Meanwhile, Elizabeth receives a letter from a man who is technically dead which threatens to cause upheaval in her life.

With stolen diamonds, dealings with drug dealers, and the MI5 there were so many twists and turns which made for an enjoyable read. I especially loved how Chris and Patrice's relationship developed and the introduction of Kendrick.

Thanks to Netgalley and Penguin General UK for the opportunity to read this book.

Well what can I say, I loved this just as much as the first one. It sometimes all seems a bit far fetched but it’s definitely made me want to be a part of the Thursday murder club!

Put simply, if you enjoyed Richard Osman’s ‘The Thursday Murder Club’, you’ll like this sequel just as much. If, like me, you thought it lacked something, you’ll probably think that ‘The Man Who Died Twice’ does too. It has all the strengths and weaknesses of the first book. It’s very funny, kind of sweet and reasonably mysterious. Given the huge success of the first one (millions of sales and film rights sold to Spielberg), it’s probably no surprise that Osman hasn’t changed the formula too much.
‘The Man Who Died Twice’ sees the four ageing amateur sleuths (Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim and Ron) return. They’re joined again by their friendly local police detective Chris Hudson and his sidekick PC Donna De Freitas, and by Polish builder Bogdan who proves again to be a good man to have in a pinch. The mystery this time involves someone from ex-spy Elizabeth’s past, £20 million in stolen diamonds, a ruthless but slightly dull international arms dealer and the mafia.
The plot is fun, if a bit implausible, with at least one of its twists fairly predictable. The denouement is entertaining though, and Osman does a good job of tying multiple strands together in the finale. The comedy is laugh out loud funny in place, but wears a bit thin in others. This is particularly true of the sections from Joyce’s diary, which often feel like they’re slowing the plot down too much.
The characters continue to be the real draw here, and their development from the first book is well handled. Despite the silliness of it all, they’re convincing in their own right and very likeable. While they never really seem to be in any great danger, it is hard not to care what happens to them.
Amazingly, for a book that must have had a lot of focus from the publisher, there are a couple of mistakes that should have been picked up. Infra Red rather than Ultra Violet light is used to find a hidden message and at one point a character forgets someone’s name despite stalking them on Facebook in the previous paragraph. Not big issues, but surprising nevertheless.
Overall this is a fun read. It’s light, amusing and consistently entertaining. It might not be one for die hard crime buffs, but as a palate cleanser between more serious reads it has a lot to recommend it.

This is the second outing for the Thursday Murder Club, and it didn’t disappoint.
All the familiar characters are there, and it’s good to see them develop and, as usual, along the way there is a lot of sly humour, and general good feelings.

When Ibrahim is mugged, and injured, the team swing into action to bring retribution to the criminal. But of course this isn’t straightforward, involving stolen diamonds and drug dealers.
Also, Elizabeth’s former career is very much in evidence, when she receives a letter from someone from her past, so we also have the secret services to contend with.
Needless to say, they are no match for the residents of Coopers Chase and everything comes to a satisfying conclusion……
Ready for the next adventure…..

Thanks to Netgalley and Penguin General UK for the opportunity to read this book.

Brilliant! Such a treat to have Elizabeth, Joyce and the gang back together for the Thursday Murder Club.

I loved the first novel in the series and hoped the second would be the same, I was not disappointed.

Loved, loved, loved it!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

So after reading Richard Osman’s first book, The Thursday Murder Club, I was intrigued to see where the adventures of Elizabeth, Joyce and co went after their debut outing.

The Man Who Died Twice sees us rejoin the octogenarian foursome, Elizabeth, Joyce, Ron and Ibrahim, and their adventures investigating murders helps them pass the mundane routine of old age in their retirement home. When Elizabeth receives a letter from the past, a letter than involves stolen diamonds, a violent monster and a threat of murder, well it is obvious that the services of the Thursday Murder Club are needed again.

Although I was a little disappointed at the first book as felt it was a little too drawn out at times, I found this second offering flows much better, maybe the familiarity with the characters built in the first book has been established so less time was spent building this relationship with the reader. I do really like Richard Osman’s style of writing, specifically so when writing from Joyce’s perspective - I had guessed the outcome from her chosen Instagram handle from the beginning but the comedy value of her character’s elderly naivety was so endearing, these little comedic touches really add to the book. A good sequel and possible more enjoyable than the first, would recommend.

It’s a five star review from me to add to all the others for this book. I can’t really say anything that hasn’t already been said either but it is genuinely another good read with a clever, funny and well thought out story, with plenty of wise observations about life thrown in along the way. It is always good going back to meet favourite characters from books again and these characters are definitely no exception and now I just have to wait for book three.

Thrilling and so funny, I hope I'm half as clever as these golden oldies when I reach that age!
The characters are starting to feel like old friends so I am so looking forward to reading the next book.
Thank you very much NetGalley

I enjoyed The Thursday Murder Club, so appreciated the chance to read an advance copy of the follow-up, The Man Who Died Twice. It was nice to revisit the always entertaining characters: the "Thursday Murder Club" itself (comprising seventy-somethings Joyce, Elizabeth, Ibrahim and Ron), plus the likeable Bogdan and local police officers Donna and Chris.

This time, Elizabeth receives a message from a man who she knows to be officially dead, leading to various shenanigans.

Meanwhile, Ibrahim has been violently assaulted in the street; his assailant looks set to get away with it, which Ibrahim's friends will not allow to happen.

The characters, of course, are great; the plot, some carry-on about drugs and murders and MI5 and stolen diamonds, grabbed me slightly less. It seemed over complicated, but maybe I just didn't pay close enough attention. For me, the characters are certainly the most memorable aspect of the stories, as I find it hard to get *that* worked up about MI5 etc. An enjoyable read and I look forward to further instalments.

My word Richard Osman has only gone and done it again. I didn’t think he would be able to reproduce the same atmosphere and fast paced story present in his debut novel.
The story picks up the lives of Elizabeth, Joyce, Ron and Ibrahim in the week following the conclusion of the first book, when Elizabeth has been contacted by a ghost from the past. Pretty soon the bodies start piling up and the intrepid four together with Chris and Donna from the local police force are on the case.
All in all another very entertaining read.

Fantastic!
Just as good as the first one, if not better. Osman is such an intelligent man, and a brilliant writer.

I absolutely love these 4, especially Joyce. She is such a lovely, funny character. She does say things sometimes were I think 'oh I say that'... I'm 28, she's 70 something! Oh well!

I listened to the audiobook for the first one, so can now hear the narrator when I read it, which is brilliant.

Can't wait for the next one

What a triumph. The Man Who Died Twice is brilliant.

I will admit I was worried that the sequel wouldn't live up to the brilliance of The Thursday Murder Club but Richard Osman has struck gold again. The same cast of brilliant characters along with a few new faces and a brand new case to solve. What more could you want.

With The Man Who Died Twice we delve deeper into our favourite characters backgrounds and we begin to see more and more why they are aging (sometimes disgracefully coughs Joyce coughs). This latest caper involves drugs, diamonds and the mafia among many other things and Ron, Ibrahim, Elizabeth and Joyce use their sleuthing skills yet again.

What is reassuring is that there are so many other characters to explore which leaves the option for Richard Osman to write several more books.

The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman is available now.

For more information regarding Richard Osman (@richardosman) please visit his Twitter page.

For more information regarding Penguin (@PenguinUKBooks) please visit www.penguin.co.uk.

The Thursday Murder Club gang are back!

Elizabeth, Joyce, Ron and Ibrahim are once again defying their age and solving murders and causing mayhem for Chris and Donna. Their progress is not without its problems, a nasty mugging for one of them knocks their confidence but everyone supports the victim back to health.

Along with the inevitable murders, there’s intrigue, duplicity, old loves, drug dealing, new love and lots more, all done in the best possible taste.

This book is so good, and gets the reader totally involved. A real pleasure to read and enjoy. The writing is superb. It all appears so effortless, just the retelling of what a group of friends have been up to. No doubt Richard Osman would beg to differ!

“My palace has many rooms, some dustier than others” has to be the quote of the book, priceless! I shall be using the line in my more senior moments, thank you Richard.

Thank you NetGalley.

Thank you to Netgalley for my ARC.

If you haven’t read the first book -
Then don’t worry, it’s a standalone storyline. One that is very good and will keep you guessing until the very end.
There are four distinct characters in a retirement village. Four who are not ready to sit in front of the tv all day and attend bingo. These people love nothing more than a dead body or a mystery to solve.
They definitely use their age to their advantage and get some answers that you wouldn’t expect a seventy year old to get!
It’s a great paced plot. There are plenty of different characters to get to know and love/ hate as you see fit.

If you’ve read the first book -
Then you won’t be disappointed, as the fearsome foursome are back!
This time I felt like I got to know them a bit more. I enjoyed the tone and approach once again.
I didn’t feel that this one was as funny as the first but that is an observation, not a criticism. I found the mystery easier to follow and I was more that satisfied with the ending this time.
The only thing that perhaps didn’t fit as well was Joyce’s diary. It was still just as funny and enjoyable but as part of a stand-alone I wonder what other readers will take from it?

If you want an easy read, with a great sense of humour and lots of plot twists, then you won’t be disappointed. I’m excited to see that there will be a third, too!

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 help. His story involves stolen diamonds, a violent mobster, and a very real threat to his life.

It looks like Richard Osman has gone and done it again: it’s another corker of a book! The super-sleuths get their heads together once more in an attempt to solve this new mystery. The story is action packed and there are so many priceless, laugh out loud moments along the way. The characters have really grown in this second book and I loved getting a further insight into them and all of their hilarious idiosyncrasies. Their fearless natures promise to guarantee some jaw-dropping moments.

The inclusion of Ron’s grandson was genius and I adored the friendship that developed between him and Ibrahim, who is trying to deal with his own personal trauma in this story.

The best thing about it all? You think you’ve got there and the mystery’s all neatly tied up when suddenly all of your theories are thrown up in the air and off the sleuths go again down another unexpected path.

The end will not disappoint. It is brilliant and I can’t wait for the next instalment!

This second book is every bit as good as the first. The mix of the mundane (Joy's innocent musings) and the farcical (the plot mostly) combined with the myriad talents of the various members of the Thursday Murder Club members combine to produce a wonderful escapist novel. A joy to read, but not to be taken at all seriously.

I had been looking forward to reading the first book in the series, which I was advised to do before reading the second. Having read both now I think this is the correct thing to do.

The characters are well drawn, the loose ends are all tied up and I love the depiction of the retirement village with its clubs and people who are active and those who are not so active. There is an element of what it must be like to see the slow development of dementia and the tricks it plays at close hand.

This book does have a theme about how mindless violence effects the victim and how friendship and support is vital to overcoming those fears.

There is also a need to suspend belief with regard to the main plot, I would say in both books. In this one it is like Miss Marple mixed with Richard Hannay. Different characters taking on different roles throughout the course of the story.

The humour is delightful. I do not like many American detective/mystery novels due to the heavy use of ironical humour. This is lighter and very cleverly done.

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. As bodies start piling up Elizabeth enlists Joyce, Ibrahim and Ron in the hunt for a ruthless murderer. And if they find the missing diamonds too... well wouldn't that be a bonus?

I enjoyed this a lot more than the first one - I found the four members of The Thursday Murder Club to be funnier this time around. I also loved their relationship with each other as well as with other characters such as Chris, Donna and Bogdan. I felt that the mystery and murder in this one was more intriguing and gripping, with a number of twists that kept me guessing right up until the end. An excellent read and I definitely now want more from The Thursday Murder Club.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publishers for my copy of this book in return for a review.

This was a very enjoyable second outing for the Thursday Murder Club. (I definitely want to be in a murder club when I'm older). I don't think you need to have read the first installment necessarily, but it does help give it a bit of contest, and of course it's a good read too!

I love the strange, eclectic 'family' of characters, and I felt all the interplay between them was done very well. The crime was intriguing, with quite a lot going on this time, and I do enjoy that part of the story but really, for me, it's the people I'm interested in. I love Joan. And Bogdan. And the police.

Extremely easy to read and funny too.