The Man Who Died Twice, by Richard Osman {Book Review}

The reading slump has been real during the last few months! As I chase my Goodreads goal before 2021 comes to an end, I’ve been feeling like the slump is lifting. I picked up The Man Who Died Twice, quite on a whim a few days ago, and I am so glad that I did!

What is The Man Who Died Twice about?

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

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

But this time they are up against an enemy who wouldn’t bat an eyelid at knocking off four septuagenarians. Can The Thursday Murder Club find the killer (and the diamonds) before the killer finds them?

My Thoughts

The Characters

The Man Who Died Twice is the second book in The Thursday Murder Club series. When I started this book, I didn’t realise that there was a first one, and I regret not reading the first book.

I was surprised to discover that our main characters are all aged 70-80! By the time I realised that Elizabeth was 70 odd years old, I was already so captivated by her wit and sense of humour, so I was genuinely surprised at her age. At that stage though, it really became difficult for me to picture them all at that age, because they all have very youthful spirits…..except when they need to kneel or bend. 😉

We also have Joyce, Ron and Ibrahim who complete the club and they all compliment the team in their own way. I really enjoyed all the characters in this book.

My Review

Rarely do I read a book without rereading the blurb on the back at least 7 times throughout, just so I can try to remember what the book is about. I don’t think I read the blurb once while reading this book. I just found the story so intriguing and delightful (there isn’t another word) from the first page. The writing is really light, and even though it’s written very obviously….I’m not sure how to describe it, but I enjoyed it. In another book, I don’t think the style would have worked for me. I saw a complaint that people didn’t enjoy that some chapters were written from a POV and then other chapters seemed to be a direct narration to the audience or similar to a diary entry? I personally did not mind that at all.

The plot was interesting, there were plot twists galore. I kept thinking I had it figured out, and I really did not! I guessed one thing right…..out of 9 things! This was just a very clever and entertaining read in my opinion.

My Rating

The Man Who Died Twice has a Goodreads rating of 4.53 stars and that definitely feels like an accurate rating to me. I would rate it 4.5 stars, but I really can’t think what else I would have needed to get to 5 stars. There was mystery, romance, humour, and it was really just a pleasure to read. So it has to get 5 stars from me!

If you enjoy light thriller-mysteries, with a cast of characters full of wit and brass balls, you’ll definitely enjoy this.

Disclaimer: The Man Who Died Twice was sent to me by Penguin Random House SA in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.