the marlow murder club by robert thorogood

For the most part, the plot moved along well enough but there were points, especially before the Great Insight and the Big Reveal where it dragged a bit. As one of the main characters points out, solving the murders is like solving a crossword puzzle filled with clues that sound like nonsense until you solve them and are then so obvious you wonder why you didn’t see them immediately. The plot also pushes the boundaries of the plausible but it does actually work. ‘The Marlow Murder Club’ has the same level of reality with the difference being it’s set in an imaginary Marlow rather than an imaginary Caribbean island. I’ve had lots of practice watching Peter Thorogood’s ‘Death In Paradise’ TV series. To enjoy it, I found that I had to imagine it as taking place in a parallel universe, one where the Police embrace and come to depend on the help of three civilians with no experience who insert themselves into the investigation rather than charging them with obstruction of justice and or investigating them as suspects. Nicolette McKenzie did a great job with the narration.‘The Marlow Murder Club’ is a cosy mystery that requires substantial suspension of disbelief.

I really, really hope this will become a series (maybe even a tv show?) as I'd love to meet Judith again. I couldn't help comparing this with Richard Osman's Thursday Murder Club which I read last year and which also has a cast of elderly sleuths, but I enjoyed this book much more. It's great to see an older character take centre stage, and I can only describe Judith Potts as a modern day Miss Marple. The writing is superb with plenty of humour, the pacing is perfect, and Mr Thorogood has created a fantastic cast of eccentric characters. The book is a delight to listen to, and I listened in a day. Disappointed by the police response she sets out to solve the mystery herself helped by Becks, the vicar's wife and Suzie, a local dog walker. Seventy seven year old crossword creator Judith Potts lives in a mansion overlooking the river and when she hears a gunshot from her neighbours property on the other side of the river whilst out swimming nude, she immediately goes to investigate. I absolutely loved this fun, charming murder mystery.

The marlow murder club by robert thorogood