I enjoyed The Man Who Died Twice enormously. I’m surprised to find myself giving five stars to a book by a celebrity, but it deserves it.

We meet the remaining members of the Thursday Murder Club again (with their pals from the police and the redoubtable Bogdan), and this time it is Elizabeth’s colourful past in Intelligence which provides a present-day mystery. It’s a convoluted but somehow plausible plot involving international money-laundering, stolen diamonds and some very unpleasant and violent characters.

It is, of course, a load of hooey really, but it’s hugely enjoyable hooey, populated by a group of well-drawn characters and told with wit, clever structuring and an engaging, even gripping, style. We still get Joyce’s delightful journal entries (some of which are laugh-out-loud funny), some truly gruesome moments, some very sweet romance and some genuinely thoughtful reflections on life.

The Thursday Murder Club did very well at least partly because Richard Osman is (rightly, in my view) a very well-loved celebrity, but it was a good book in its own right. I think this is even better; Osman is clearly a talented writer and a witty, humane man. I can recommend this very warmly and I’m looking forward to the next.

(My thanks to Penguin/Viking for an ARC via NetGalley.)

Second outing for the Thursday Murder Club and Richard Osman is getting into his stride. The characters are growing, Elizabeth more outrageous, Joyce - cleverer than you thought. Ibrahim is mugged and hurt badly - the Club are not going to take that lying down. Elizabeth's MI5 ex-husband turns up claiming to have £20 million in stolen diamonds which belong to the mafia, what could go wrong? Its fast, funny, exciting and entertaining. I'm looking forward to the next one already.

This is a great sequel to The Thursday Murder Club. It's a little different to what I usually read, I'm very much a Chick Lit girl, but I really enjoyed this. Although I don't usually read these types of books, I really enjoy Murder Mystery TV shows, so I got really involved in the story with the residents very quickly. It was like visiting old friends.

Elizabeth's past was alluded to in the first book. It was great to understand her background within this book to see how she has got to where she is now. It's good to see a story that shows that a person's life's work can still be seen as useful once retired. I had my theories about who The Man Who Died Twice was but I didn't guess.

Thanks for the opportunity to read this pre-publication proof, I really enjoyed it.

This book was one of my most highly anticipated books of the year so I was delighted when the publishers contacted me to ask if I would like an advanced copy!

I was expecting a story along the same lines as The Thursday Murder Club but this story is a lot more complex, it twists and turns and is action packed!

It all begins with Elizabeth receiving a letter from an old friend asking to meet up. There's something not quite right with this letter and then before we know it, The Thursday Murder Club are involved in a case of £20 million worth of missing diamonds!

As with the previous novel, this is laugh out loud funny but it also has some really heartfelt, sad moments. I absolutely adore Joyce, Elizabeth, Ron and Ibrahim. They make a fantastic team with some cracking one liners.

Absolutely loved it!! Now, we wait for the next installment!

I enjoyed the 'Thursday Murder Club' so much that I was a little wary of this,the second in the series in case it didn't live up to the first and spoilt the memory,I needn't have worried . Our four septuagenarians led by the indomitable Elizabeth are in fine form .
There are two plotlines going on the first of which Ibrahims mugging reminds us how vulnerable and frail they can be and his self imposed agoraphobia is understandable and worrying .The police know the culprit but are unable to prosecute for lack of evidence .Its the clubs determination to have the miscreant punished by hook or by crook that provides the impetus for the first 'case'.
The second and much more dangerous case involves Elizabeth's shadowy past ,an ex husband a spate of murders stolen diamonds gangsters MI5 and enough double dealing and red herrings to satisfy anybody. The solutions are complete and satisfying and in keeping with the members of the group.
Its all told in the authors own inimitable style that has me reading with a broad smile on my face ,not something I'm known for according to my family. These books are sort of a modern day cosy golden age mystery nut with a cast of lovely well drawn and fully defined characters all of an age usually ignored ur at best overlooked in crime novels who if they appear at all are victims.
If you enjoyed the first you'll love the second I loved it.Highly recommended.

I managed to last a few hours after receiving the eARC before I began to read this book. I really enjoyed The Thursday Murder Club, so I had high hopes for this.

I am delighted to say that The Man Who Died Twice exceeded all my expectations. It was such a joy to be back with characters that I had grown to love so much. The humour was spot on, delightfully British with a side of sarcasm, and I found myself chuckling to myself many times, to the bemusement of my two cats. There were also times of genuine sadness, which were written with great sensitivity and care.

I found the crime much easier to follow this time, yet I didn't find it predictable in any way. There were several twists and turns that left me befuddled and flicking back to try and look for clues I'd missed.

All in all, I absolutely loved this and can't wait for the next installment with Elizabeth, Joyce and friends.

Enormous thanks to NetGalley and Viking Books for the eARC.

It took me a wee while to get to know the characters again but I thoroughly enjoyed this sequel. Very entertaining, with some laugh-out-loud moments, I didn’t think it was as good as The Thursday Murder Club and found the ending a bit contrived but still a good read.

The Man Who Died Twice is an enjoyable, delicious sequel to The Thursday Murder Club.
Richard Osman has done it again….what a delight to catch up with Elizabeth, Joyce, Ron and Ibrahim.
This one kept me guessing until the end.

This gets better and better, many sequels I’ve read sadly have not lived up to expectations, this however is on a different level . Superb follow up, intricate story line, along with the characters I’m getting to love. Again lots of twists and turns that keep you guessing, with brutality, murder, compassion, humour and dare I say budding romances thrown in. Plus the best conclusion ever! I’m sure you can surmise I absolutely loved it and totally recommend both the books, readers cannot be disappointed.

Have you ever wondered what Richard Osman is doing with his computer on Pointless? Well, he is obviously writing novels! His second "The Man Who Died Twice" is a cracker. In fact, I would go to say it is better than the first (The Thursday Murder Club)! Great writing, classic Osman dialogue and a touch of the Da Vinci Code thrown in for good measure. The old gang is back with more murders to solve and new characters to enjoy.

His second book (in the series?) involves stolen diamonds, a violent mobster, MI5, a canny ex-husband and a series of murders. Even though the body count piles up, this is a gentle, very British novel.

Elizabeth enlists Joyce, Ibrahim and Ron (members of the Thursday Murder Club) in the hunt for a ruthless murderer. If they secure the diamonds what will they do with them?

They are up against an enemy - or enemies - who are ruthless killers and the Thursday Murder Club are in the firing line! Can The Thursday Murder Club find the killer (and the diamonds) before the killer finds them?

We are briefly introduced to Elizabeth's ex-husband who is a lady's man and has procured the diamonds with a cunning plan! He leaves clues to the whereabouts of the diamonds after his violent(all done in the best possible taste) demise. But is he dead? The clue might be in the title!

The Osman humour is evident from the start:

"I was talking to a woman in Ruskin Court and she said she’s on a diet," says Joyce, finishing her glass of wine. ‘She’s eighty-two!’‘

"Zimmer frames make you look fat," says Ron. ‘It’s the thin legs."

‘Why diet at eighty-two?’ says Joyce. ‘What’s a sausage roll going to do to you? Kill you? Well, join the queue."

The banter continues throughout the book:

"You ever dealt with the mafia?" asks Vic. The mafia? Well this is getting interesting.

Connie shakes her head. "I tried to cancel Sky Sports once, that’s the closest I’ve got."

His main four characters are a delight and their foibles are constantly presented in the best possible taste. You have to love them. Joyce struggles with modern technology just like many septuagenarians! Here is an example: She sent me a message, and the message ended with emojis of a poppy and a daisy, which was very moving. I sent one back, telling her we would still like to see her, and I tried to add a poppy and a daisy to that too, but I pressed the wrong thing and sent a poppy and a Christmas tree instead.

We discover more about the love lives (or lack of in the case of Donna) of the Fairhaven police detectives Chris and Donna. For example, we learn of Donna's encounter with a driving instructor:

Donna having very disappointing sex with a driving instructor. She had also made the mistake of telling her mum and Chris about it, and they had a field day. Mum had made a number of jokes about his gearstick, and Chris had said, ‘Did he look in his mirror before pulling out?’

Unfortunately, the novel has to end even if you try and stretch it out! Richard has a neat ending with the diamonds, and you can feel good! So enjoyable - bring on the next one!

The second instalment of the Thursday Murder club is equally delightful as the first. The prose and style is amazing, the story is brilliant and I cannot recommend this book enough, I can't wait for the third.

Brilliant!

I could leave my review as that, but will expand slightly to give my reasons. Richard Osman has delivered a great follow up to the original "The Thursday Murder Club", and it mainly relies on the characters and the wit that weaves through the storyline.

When I read the first book in the series, I was wondering how a bunch of retirees in a retirement home could engage me into the story, I still don't know fully but I know that I love the characters. The second book, expands on some of the characterisation, but is written in the same format of the format. This means that we get some personal diary entries from Joyce, that have a whimsical feel as they include random comments or observations about everything going on around her, not just some exposition added for the readers sake.

A brilliant book that feels like a modern day Murder She Wrote that doesn't have any excessive violence and no swearing in it.

I was given a free ARC from NetGalley and the publisher in return from my honest review.

A welcome second story from the most exciting retirement village in the world. As before, a clever plot, feisty old folks and clever writing make this a must-read sequel.

I loved this book, much as I loved the first one in the series, carry on Richard.
The characters are written with understanding, insight and most of all caring. They are believabale, we all know all of them. The situations, well sme of them, we all recognise, they are real, very real, too real in fact.
Each of the characters has their strength, each theireweakness just as we, the reader, do. The story is, just about plausible (within artistic licence at least) which adds to the great enjoyment
Fantastic writing, fantastic understanding definitely an "unputdownable" read and one for the occasional reader to gereate more reading hunger.
Loved it from beginning to end!

Where did Richard Osman crime writer come from? Such an assured voice, he creates characters who embed themselves in your head. The Thursday Murder Club was a total surprise, The Man Who Died Twice is a welcome return to a world where no-one is defined by age, they are still demonstrably who they always were but you are aware that time is not on their side.
More please.

Last year against all odds I found myself enjoying Osmans debut novel, The Thursday Murder Club. I’m not a mystery thriller fan, and tend to veer away from celebrity writers.

I was foolish, I loved every page.

And here we are again. It’s instantly more comforting to be back in the company of the unflappable four - Joyce, Elizabeth, Ron and Ibrahim. Following these retirees in their latest adventure is pure fun, but it’s also cleverer than it needs to be. There are clues, red herrings and twists in the central mystery which centres around diamonds, MI5, ex lovers and murder.

One of my favourite characters suffers in this book and I became quite fiercely protective, so it’s clear while utilising the humour and layering the jokes, Osman has the skill to make you care too.

A heady blend of Victoria Wood, Jessica Fletcher and John le Carre by way of Waiting For God, I cannot wait to see what the foursome get up to next.

The sequel to the Thursday Murder Club is as good, if not better, than the original.

Here, we have the gang of four elderly reprobates outwitting British criminals, the New York Mafia and MI5. Much as that sounds far-fetched it really works - Elizabeth is a former MI5 operative and still knows a thing or two about spying and subversion. There's also former nurse Joyce - game for anything and mischievous as ever; Ron - getting in some serious acting (must be where his famous actor son gets it from) and Ibrahim - highly intelligent and a meticulous observer. The mysterious Bogdan makes a very welcome return, as do local police officers Chris and Donna.

In "The Man Who Died Twice" they are contending with stolen diamonds, an important character from Elizabeth's past and an international crime syndicate, while also coping with the problems of aching knees, vulnerability and Stephen's dementia. There are a couple of romances, much humour (watch out for Instagram!), several murders and Elizabeth belatedly learning to recognise true friendship.

Brilliant!
Thank you NetGalley, Viking and Richard Osman

Provided by NetGalley for an honest review.

A very good sequel to The Thursday Murder Club.

The story starts pretty much after the first book ends and we get to see the team being normal for a short while. Until we have an incident with Ibrahim, that then ties in with the local drug ring and then we have stuff happening with Elizabeth and Joyce and it all takes off. We learn more and more about each member of the TMC and it’s a bit like being in a rollercoaster. Ups, downs, highs, lows etc. And there’s some romance…! I loved it. I didn’t think it was as good as the first one, but I still thought it was great. Can’t wait for the next one!

Our favourite group of crime-solving septuagenarians is back with a smashing new adventure. Joyce (former nurse) is making friendship bracelets, thinking of getting a dog and /or Instagram, Ibrahim (former psychiatrist) is regretting not having lived life to the fullest and has decided to live in the moment from now on, Ron (former union leader) is excitedly preparing for his grandson Kendrick’s visit, and Elizabeth (former MI5) is worried about her husband’s declining health.
Donna and Chris (local police) find they are outwitted by the new local drug kingpin.
But the idyllic day to day life at the Cooper’s Chase retirement home complex is interrupted when someone from Elizabeth’s past needs her help to get out of a sticky situation involving diamonds missing from a mobster. In return, Elizabeth wants help locating the thug who badly hurt one of the Thursday Murder club members. Soon, bodies start piling up and the mobsters involved have no qualms going after a group of septuagenarians.

The last case of the Thursday Murder club brought the group closer together and it’s lovely to see their friendships blossom.
The book is well-written and a worthy second instalment in what looks to become a great series. Highly recommended.

You don’t have to read the first book in the series, the plot and characters are introduced again, but I recommend reading the first book nonetheless, because it’s a great book.

Many thanks to the Penguin group, Richard Osman and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was very excited to read this having read the Thursday Murder Club last year and loved the characters in it. This is Richard Osman's second in the series, and it was lovely to "see" all the club members again.

Osman's writing is great - very funny with a lot of warmth towards his characters. The "Thursday Murder Club" is made up of former spy Elizabeth and a group of her friends who live in the same retirement village, Cooper's Chase - Joyce, Ron and Ibrahim.

Part of the charm is this place. Far from the stereotype of "old people's homes" Cooper's Chase sounds like heaven on earth - residents enjoy a lovely picturesque setting, they all have their own homes and seem to spend most lunchtimes guzzling wine.

But Osman isn't creating a completely unbelievable scenario where older people live in some kind of idyllic bubble. He does take care to include issues that will no doubt be familiar to lots of older people, such as increasing ailments, dealing with senility, and vulnerability to violence.

In this installment, the club finds itself embroiled in a surreal tangle involving stolen diamonds and death threats. It's a hilarious plot that brings in many new characters that helps to keep the book feeling fresh and also adds something to the longer-standing characters. We learn a bit more about Elizabeth, for instance, as a blast from her past shows up.

Along with the "main" plot of actual crimes and murders, the book is packed with several sub-plots - including budding romances, battles with mental health problems, strains with family members and more. Ibrahim suffers a particularly nasty incident, that the others quickly rush to resolve, along the way tying it in with the existing, eccentric plot.

I think for the next one, it would be great to give Ron a bit more of a storyline, as he seemed to take a bit of a back seat in this book.

For people who are new to Richard Osman, I would recommend reading The Thursday Murder Club before this one, but it doesn't really matter if you don't. I do think, however, that this is a series that is very easy to get into, and hope there will be many more books to come.