Police Constable Donna De Freitas really wants to be a real cop. By which is meant, you know, the usual stuff: investigating serious crimes, questioning witnesses, collecting forensic evidence, observing autopsies (well, maybe not so much that one) and strapping on a sidearm all in the name of protecting good people from the evil in the world. While Donna dreams of chasing down serial killers, her actual police work involves things like delivering her well-rehearsed “Practical Tips for Home Security” lecture to whichever small group of interest parties is interested on that particular day. And on this particular day, that group includes some of the seniors who now call the upscale retirement community of Coopers Chase Retirement Village home. What she expects is going to be just another in a seemingly endless series of lectures on the significance of things like making sure your windows are equipped with locks turns out to be just the big break she’s been hoping for.
The titular Thursday Murder Club is comprised of some of those seniors, namely Elizabeth, Ron, Joyce and Ibraham who get together every Monday—just kidding—to put their amateur investigative skills to the test by revisiting cold cases. And then, without warning, suddenly the pensioners have a host of hot cases on their hands and the story becomes a competition between amateur and professional sleuths to see who can solve the murders first. And, yes, that is murders plural. As the bodies pile up, ironically the pool of suspects grows more expansive.
Victim Number 1
The first murder that kicks everything into gear is that of Tony Curran, the man responsible for building the retirement village. He is found bludgeoned to death in his kitchen and as the two teams start digging into his past, it becomes apparent he was cooking up more than food. In fact, Tony’s previous occupations include trafficking drugs, so there’s a whole host of possible suspects. Add to that list, one Ian Ventham, Tony’s partner in the making the dream of Coopers Chase come true. Just before Tony winds up dead, guess which partner kicked the other to the curb by announcing the forthcoming dissolution of the partnership. While you’re at it, consider that Tony’s untimely demise could not have been more convenient for Ian in terms of money saved now the partner has died instead of being fired.
Victim Number 2
The second murder victim turns out to be none other than Ian Ventham, so if you were jumping ahead to make assumptions, perhaps think again. Ian had just announced plans for a new development on the property to be called The Woodlands. This turns out to be quite controversial since the plans target the Garden of Eternal Rest cemetery which is filled with not just any dead people, but dead nuns who had served in the Sisters of the Holy Church convent which has already given way to the construction of Coopers Chase. Turns out that upsetting sacred ground for the sake of new construction is not limited to upsetting Native Americans. Even the Catholics who stole the land in the first place from the Native Americans can still find reason to be upset. One of the other residents, Bernard, seems to be a prime suspect, but then he takes himself right out of contention. There is that priest who doesn’t act much like a priest, however.
Victim Number 3
The third murder victim just also happens to have the most interesting name in the book: Turkish Gianni. Not that one thing has anything to do with the other…or does it? Turk’s—a nickname which by he is never actually referred to in the book—murder unfortunately introduces a little too much of the worst aspects of Agatha Christie into the story as he is not assumed to have crossed to the other side for some time for reasons having only to do with building up suspense. Of course, the cops do have a reason—if not a good reason—make assumptions since they are convinced for awhile that Turkish was responsible for Tony’s murder due to a lack of sufficient information about a group seen posing together in a photograph that, notably, did not include Mr. Gianni…or did it?
While these murders for the meat of the plot, they are really just MacGuffins of a certain variety. The pleasure of the novel lies not so much in the discovery of the identity of who killed who so much as it is to be found in the interaction between the two opposing groups of investigators trying to figure that admittedly important information out. A year after reading the book, most probably won’t be able to easily recall who the murderer(s)? is or are, but it will likely be easy recalling your favorite line of dialogue or the scene which made you laugh out loud the longest. Sit back and enjoy the ride. Don’t worry too much about who will be fingered for the murders and just have a good time watching those in charge of that take care of things for you.
