Pages: 438
Published: 17th September 2024
Genre: Mystery
Content warnings: Drug references
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?
This is a story where characters put themselves in life or death scenarios, stumbling into the line of fire as they look to uncover the truth behind a web of conspiracy – yet it masquerades as the cosiest murder mystery you can imagine. We are taken on a journey from humdrum English suburbia to Caribbean hijinks in a global operation led by a criminal mastermind, but rarely have such high stakes been so relaxing or amusing.
It might not be the Thursday Murder Club, but Richard Osman’s first foray away from his beloved signature series is not all that much of a departure. While there are of course new characters to get used to, and for the record they are very likeable, the writing style and tone is exactly the same, full of the usual humour and popular culture references. All you might say at a push is that the plot is slightly edgier, a fact offset by the general irreverence of it all.
What Osman particularly excels at is adding emotional heft to scenes in a grounded way without having to weave together artful, descriptive prose. He nails the context of these moments, helping them stand alongside the many lighter aspects, and we see that subtly here in the themes this book explores – namely loneliness and the unorthodox portrayal of online influencers.
It is a thoroughly character-driven escapade, and you are immediately charmed by the partnership of Steve and his daughter in-law Amy. They have different instincts, but they take comfort in each other’s reassuring presence and are united in crime-solving. Steve is a widower and has absolutely no sense of adventure at first, so to see him emerge from that while still recalling the memory of his deceased wife is genuinely satisfying. Meanwhile, Amy is stoic and outwardly emotionless, but it becomes clear that a lot of affection lies beneath all that.
However, there are three main characters in this story and the most memorable, entertaining one of them all is author Rosie D’Antonio, the person Amy is assigned to protect in her role as a security guard. Rosie is kind of outrageous, given her free-spirited nature and often unfiltered choice of words, but that is what makes her so fun to read – and even when their lives are seemingly in danger she just takes it all as a thrill ride.
Together they make a great trio once you get used to them all. And they are just about the only ones you can trust, as it is impossible to tell if Amy’s boss Jeff is involved in the conspiracy or disappeared for a more innocent reason. That is just one of a multitude of plot threads, with the mysterious Joe Blow at the heart of it and Francois Loubet pulling the strings. One particularly enjoyable aspect are his asking ChatGPT to rewrite a series of threats and demands in the voice of a friendly English gentleman.
On a more human level, the story of Bonnie is much more profound. It is a wry, ironic depiction of influencers which takes quite a satirical approach, yet it also touches a nerve as she is character who radiates innocence and optimism. She is gullible and lacking a clear direction in her life, and when you find her so easily misled by Felicity’s obvious smokescreen, you just cannot help but want to steer her towards a sensible path.
It is characters like Jeff and Bonnie that make the mystery more engaging and raise the important questions. As fun as it is to spend time with the criminal masterminds under their various aliases, they are much less interesting, so in their sections of the book I found myself struggling to relate and wanting to get back to the good bits. After all, the main characters are where most of the fun lies.
Overall, just like Osman’s previous work this is something to be simply enjoyed without taking the ins and outs of the mystery all too seriously. You will do well to find any obvious plot holes here, but the characters and laidback writing style run the show, and they are the ideal company for an adventure that takes us across the world, promising much for what awaits us in this series further down the line.
I did not fall in love with the characters quite as much as with the Thursday Murder Club the first time round, but there was still loads to enjoy here thanks to a fun mystery and Richard Osman’s inimitable style.
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Stephen Reads Books 