Brand New Series by Richard Osman: We Solve Murders
Hi Readers! Here’s a book review after the longest time! I had started reading We Solve Murders by Richard Osman a month ago. But, I wasn’t really feeling it, so I didn’t pick it up again until this week. And, probably because the latter half was left, I finished it pretty quickly. Before the story and plot and characters fade from my mind, I thought I’ll just write the review right away!
~~GOODREADS DESCRIPTION~~
A brand new series. An iconic new detective duo. And a puzzling new murder to solve…
Steve Wheeler is enjoying retired life. He does the odd bit of investigation work, but he prefers his familiar habits and routines: the pub quiz, his favorite bench, his cat waiting for him when he comes home. His days of adventure are over: adrenaline is daughter-in-law Amy’s business now.
Amy Wheeler thinks adrenaline is good for the soul. As a private security officer, she doesn’t stay still long enough for habits or routines. She’s currently on a remote island keeping world-famous author Rosie D’Antonio alive. Which was meant to be an easy job…
Then a dead body, a bag of money, and a killer with their sights on Amy have her sending an SOS to the only person she trusts. A breakneck race around the world begins, but can Amy and Steve stay one step ahead of a lethal enemy?
~~THOUGHTS~~
I have read all four books in The Thursday Murder Club, and no matter how the story unfolded, I loved those books. Being at Coopers Chase with the four septuagenarians somehow became very homey, like going to your grandparents’ home during summer vacations. So, leaving that comfort to hop onto a new series required some getting used to, pretty much like Steve Wheeler. Because the irony is that it’s the same author, same genre so the style of writing is similar to TTMC. It’s just the characters who are new, so it felt like I was cheated. But, as with any other thing in life, it moves on. So, I did too.
The main characters in We Solve Murders are Amy Wheeler, who is a bodyguard working at Maximum Impact Solutions. She solves murders alongside Steve Wheeler, who’s her father-in-law and an ex-cop. This pair seems odd, but comes across as the most natural. There’s also Rosie, for whom Amy works as a body builder. We see this trio throughout the book spit balling ideas at each other, having fun while trying to stay alive. There is also an army of other characters to make it more interesting, but it just made it too unnecessarily overdone to me.
As for the plot, we have Vasily Karpin who wants to kill Rosie, and then we have Francois Loubet who wants to kill Amy. Following the deaths of three influencers across South Carolina, St. Lucia and Ireland, we see the trio move continent to continent in private jets solving the mystery. It sounds like an appealing read, and even one with a lot of intrigue. But, while reading, all the events happen too close to each other that it almost becomes commonplace, and hence, boring.
What I enjoyed the most in this novel was Steve. He’s a man who likes his life small, doing the same things daily and who gets excited about pub quizzes. The only reason he leaves this behind is simply because Amy asks for his help. A lot of his character comes across in just that one act, and stays with the reader throughout the book. I adored Steve, and he was definitely the highlight in this book for me. It could also be because of his age, it becomes very adjacent to TTMC, but anyway, I’m also someone who does the same things daily, so who am I to judge?
~~TO READ OR NOT TO READ~~
If you have read and loved The Thursday Murder Club, you might like this one too. But, I think it’s important to also go in blind and not have similar expectations. On the other hand, even if you have not read The Thursday Murder Club, you might still enjoy this book, given the blank reading slate for the author. If you enjoy mysteries, you should read this book. If you like unpredictable stories, this one might be a good pick. If you want to read something over a long weekend or as a beach read, you can enjoy this one for sure. There isn’t any reason as such to not read it. I have rated We Solve Murders by Richard Osman at 3/5 stars!
If you want to check out my reviews for The Thursday Murder Club, here they are:
Until next time,
About The Author
Aishwarya Shenolikar
Hello! I'm Aishwarya, an Introverted bookworm & writer. I have been reviewing books since 6 years on my blog - Mindscape in Words. My favourite genres are Historical Fiction, Mystery, Thrillers, Magical Realism, Poetry, Fantasy & Memoirs. I like the kind of books which evoke emotions on several levels leaving me wrecked, but also incredibly content. I'm dreaming for the world to paint a landscape full of words, more like Mindscape in Words. Hope you enjoy the view.