Unless you've been hiding under a rock you will have heard about the runaway success of Richard Osman’s The Thursday Murder Club, you might have even read it. And if you haven't, what are you waiting for? It's an escapist dream! 

And of course it's now available on Netflix too. In our opinion, the screen version is never as good as the book, but in this case in comes pretty darn close. And if you listen to my father-in-law, the new film trumps the book!

First published in September 2020, The Thursday Murder Club is a platinum bestseller having sold more than 1 million copies since it was published, and has spent a lot of that at the top of the fiction bestseller lists. The first book was the first debut novel to become a Christmas number one and the series has so far sold over 15 million copies worldwide (across all five books (including the upcoming The Impossible Fortune) according to People magazine.

What is The Thursday Murder Club Book Series and Which Order Should You Read It In?

Four septuagenarians from a retirement village set out to solve a murder in this first book in the series The Thursday Murder Club - a wonderfully entertaining, warm, and amusing mystery. And they've not looked back. They're a little partial to a walk on the wild side - and we absolutely love them for it! 

The sequel, The Man Who Died Twice, which was released in September 2021 became one of the fastest-selling novels since records began, continuing the adventures of Osman’s gang of elderly sleuths, Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim and Ron.

Next up was The Bullet That Missed, which came to our bookshelves in September 2022. Trouble is never far away from the Thursday Murder Club and a decade-old cold case leads them to a local news legend and a murder with no body and no answers. Just as fabulously readable as the first two this third instalment comes as highly recommended by our team.

The Last Devil To Die was the last offering we've had from Osman, released in hardback in September 2023. This time the gang spring into action when an old friend in the antiques business has been killed, and a dangerous package he was protecting has gone missing. It's another heartwarming, banter-filled, tear jerking thrill of a fourth adventure from the team.

And giddy with excitement, the fifth book The Impossible Fortune reaches a bookshelf near you on September 25th, and you can pre-order your copy now with LoveReading.

Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim and Ron return in the fifth book in the series. Who's got time to think about murder when there's a wedding to plan? It’s been a quiet year for the Thursday Murder Club. Joyce is busy with table plans and first dances. Elizabeth is grieving. Ron is dealing with family troubles, and Ibrahim is still providing therapy to his favourite criminal. But when Elizabeth meets a wedding guest who fears for their life, the thrill of the chase is ignited once again. A villain wants access to an uncrackable code and will stop at nothing to get it.

Plunged back into their most explosive investigation yet, can the gang solve the puzzle and a murder in time?

Book 1: The Thursday Murder Club

Book 2: The Man Who Died Twice

Book 3: The Bullet That Missed

Book 4: The Last Devil To Die 

Book 5: The Impossible Fortune

Check out and buy the whole series here.

What Is Cosy Crime?

Cosy crime is a sub-genre of crime and mystery fiction that blends intrigue with comfort. It's a hug in a book, with a side order of murder. Instead of focusing on graphic violence, gritty realism, or psychological thrills, it oozes charm, character, and setting. And let's not forget the quirky, lovable cast of characters. It's the PG version of crime, and we LOVE it. The sleuths are often amateur detectives (just like us),  everyday people and often rely on observation, intuition, and community knowledge rather than forensics. Frequently set in small villages, quiet towns, or close-knit communities, the limited setting creates a contained pool of suspects and a puzzle-like feel where readers are invited toplay along and solve the mystery. If you fancy yourself as a armchair detective, without the guts and gore, then cosy crime is definitely for you.

Cosy crime has boomed in recent years with a need for escapism driving our reading selections. Readers love the opportunity to actively play detective and sift the evidence along with the characters.

Cosy crime is being rediscovered not just as niche entertainment, but as a preferred alternative to darker, more violent thrillers. A form of escapism offering warmth, moral clarity, and comfort. And here at LoveReading we are glad of it.

Famous Examples of Cosy Crime

Miss Marple is one of the most iconic fictional detectives in crime literature, created by Agatha Christie. Widely seen as the blueprint for the genre, Miss Marple appeared in a novel for the first time in The Murder at The Vicarage (1930) and her crime-fighting career spanned over forty years when she solved her final case in 1977 in Sleeping Murder. In Miss Marple and Mystery more than 50 of Agatha Christie's mini masterpieces have been collected together in one volume for the first time.

With every tale flawlessly plotted by the Queen of Crime herself, these short stories provide a feast for hardened Agatha Christie addicts as well as those who have grown to love the detective through her many film and television appearances.

After a lifetime spent in public relations, one-woman dynamo Agatha Raisin struggles to adapt to life in a quiet country village – but she soon finds that there is murder and mayhem aplenty to keep her busy.

M.C. Beaton is consistently the most borrowed adult author in UK public libraries, with the Agatha Raisin books, and those of her other well-loved detective Hamish Macbeth driving her popularity

We are also big fans of Alexander McCall Smith’s No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series set in Botswana, but with all the hallmarks of cosiness.

What To Read After The Thursday Murder Club

After you've caught up with all five adventures, there's plenty of other cosy crime fodder available.

The Marlow Murder Club Series by Robert Thorogood is a great one to dive into. Starting with The Marlow Murder Club, it's a delightful murder mystery series from the creator of the BBC One hit TV series Death in Paradise. Seventy-seven year old Judith Potts is a fabulously unlikely heroine that you can't help but fall in love with. One evening, while out swimming in the Thames, Judith witnesses a brutal murder and alongside her two unlikely friends she decides to investigate this and a follow up murder. The Marlow Murder Club is born, they have a serial killer to uncover, just don't get in their way! It's the beginning of a new series so hold onto your hats and don't underestimate Judith and her pals. It's pure escapism, a riotous cosy crime and you won't be disappointed.

The Appeal by Janice Hallett was one of the UK’s best-selling fiction debuts in 2021 and earned her the prestigious CWA New Blood Dagger award in 2022. Queen of the puzzle-box mystery, each of her books are self-contained mysteries with their own characters and resolution, although some are linked. Her seventh book - The Killer Question - the latest wonderful whodunnit is out this Autumn. 

Meet your new favourite cosy crime detective duo with Red as Any Blood by Sue McCormick. The first in the Holly and Ivy Mystery series a pair of theatrical sleuths solve baffling murders amongst the exitement of 1950s show business with the shadows left behind by the war. 

Whatever the reason, cosy crime is here to stay and so we have put together a few suggestions of what to read next if you loved all of Osman's outings thus far and need some recommendations to keep your cosy crime hunger sated.

As well as our recommended crime fiction list below, you might like to step in a slightly different direction too.

If you adored the charms and idiosyncrasies of The Thursday Murder Club’s older characters, its whimsical style and tone, and weaving plot, you’d do well to dive into The Little Old Lady Who Broke All the Rules, The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared. Both of these witty novels are penned by Swedish writers, and are packed with the hilarious, twisting adventures of fabulous rule-breaking older characters who’ve decided to do things their own way.

Scroll to see the full list of further reading recommendations if you're a cosy crime aficionado. Which books do you think should feature here?

And don't forget that you can purchase them with purpose from LoveReading. Donate 25% of your spend (at no cost to you) to a school close to your heart, and help build the next generation of readers.