“It is Ian’s regular smoothie. A punnet of raspberries, a fistful of spinach, Icelandic yoghurt (Finnish, if they are out of Icelandic), spirulina, wheatgrass, acerola, cherry powder, chlorella, kelp, acai extract, cocoa nibs, zinc, beetroot essence, chia seeds, mango zest and ginger. It is his own invention, and he calls it Keep It Simple”- (Osman 25)
Welcome to the first of a bi monthly series (occasionally every three months), where I will review each of The Thursday Murder Club books across 2026. I thought it would be nice to start am ongoing series review, so you can follow it through the year and return to it. Richard Osman has created a much-loved cozy crime series and has been awarded an OBE in the 2026 honours list. I was a latecomer to the series and only started reading them in 2025, but quickly loved them and read them fast. I enjoyed the series so much that I wrote my assignment for university on it, and the way the series shows a successful navigation of the publishing cycle. Also, the way Osman has been accepted as a celebrity author, but prides himself on hard work in each book he writes. It is a genuine profession for him.
The first book sets the scene for the series. It is a retirement village where a group of three (Joyce joins at the start of this book to make four), meet to solve old murders. Elizabeth, Ron and Ibrahim make up the gang. I love the way Osman makes a big space for the most mundane moments as well as the thrill of the action when murders happen. The gang quickly prove they are not shy or adverse to getting involved in bending the law. It is with the genuine intention to help solve the case. It is nice how Joyce is our narrator through an epistolary diary format. Every two or three chapters she welcomes us into the world of the novel. You feel both the warmth of her excitement at little things (like joining Instagram), and how she finds herself dealing with the police and murder as if it is a sport widely accepted.
Joyce continues to narrate throughout the series, so if you enjoy the first novel, you will be happy to know this. I thought each of the gang would narrate, but Osman does a clever job of constructing each of their back stories as the series develops. I have chosen the quote about Ian’s smoothie, because it is a great piece of Osman humour to list sixteen ingredients and call it “Keep It Simple”, it made me laugh. Osman takes time in the story to detail things like this and is both precise (we know where the yoghurt is from), but also funny in the way it is described just after a moment of action in the story. Murder may be happening, but we still learn about the parking committee at Coopers Chase and how strict they are. It is worth noting that not all the residents are involved with the gang and most only get a brief mention.
The murders are not described in a graphic way. It is more a focus on how the gang respond to the challenges and what is happening around them. I liked in my research how I learned that one of the contributing factors to the series initial success, was that it provided a warm escapism during 2020 (Covid lockdowns), when it first came out and people needed distractions.
The series is having longevity. It is now on book five which was released in September 2025 and Osman plans to bring out at least two more Thursday Murder Club books in 2027 and 2029 respectively. In April I will look at the second book in the series. If you haven’t read them yet, I recommend starting so you can follow along as my review series progresses.
Work Cited
Amazon. “Amazon”. Amazon. Date accessed: 20th January 2026. URL: amazon.co.uk/thursday-murder-club-richard-osman/dp/0241425441.
Osman, Richard. The Thursday Murder Club. 2nd Edition. Penguin Books. 2021.