Books Like The Thursday Murder Club
by Richard Osman
The Thursday Murder Club sets its detectives in the last place you would look. At Coopers Chase, a luxury retirement village in Kent, four residents meet in the Jigsaw Room each week to pick over old police files: Elizabeth, whose former career nobody can quite pin down; Joyce, a retired nurse whose chatty diary gives the book its best laughs; Ron, a former union firebrand; and Ibrahim, a meticulous retired psychiatrist. Then a real murder lands nearby, and they are better at this than the police would like. Richard Osman keeps the plotting properly knotted, but the book's surprise is how often a joke gives way to a page about ageing, memory and loss.
There are several ways to have loved this. You may want another older sleuth who is underestimated by everyone. You may want the village setting and teatime manners, or an ensemble you'd happily spend a series with, or simply a funny mystery with a heart. The nine picks below are sorted around those reasons, and the notes point out which ones are not really mysteries at all.
Recommended for fans of The Thursday Murder Club
The Marlow Murder Club
Robert Thorogood
A 77-year-old Englishwoman forms an unlikely trio to solve murders in her town.
Pick this if you want the same English wit and an older heroine who runs rings around the official investigation.
Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers
Jesse Q. Sutanto
A meddling tea-shop owner in her sixties decides to solve a murder herself.
Pick this if you loved a formidable older woman nobody takes seriously, and a found family that forms around the case.
The Murder at the Vicarage
Agatha Christie
Miss Marple's first novel: a sharp old lady reads a village better than the police.
Pick this if you'd like to go back to the classic that Osman's group owes so much to, with a real puzzle at the centre.
The Maid
Nita Prose
An overlooked hotel maid is drawn into a murder, with warmth and an unusual voice.
Pick this if you liked seeing an underestimated person turn out to be far sharper than people assume, in a tender and funny book.
The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency
Alexander McCall Smith
Gentle, humane detection full of wisdom, community and small pleasures.
Pick this if the kindness and community were what you loved, and you're happy with low-stakes cases and an unhurried pace.
The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie
Alan Bradley
A precocious girl with a chemistry lab solves a murder in 1950s England.
Pick this if Joyce's diary was the highlight and you want another distinctive narrator, this time a child in post-war England.
Magpie Murders
Anthony Horowitz
A clever British whodunit that hides a second mystery inside a manuscript.
Pick this if you read mysteries for the plotting and want something more intricate and playful, with less cosy charm.
Still Life
Louise Penny
A thoughtful inspector and a tight-knit village, with grief beneath the comfort.
Pick this if you liked how sadness sits under the comfort, and want a slower, more serious village series with a proper police detective.
A Man Called Ove
Fredrik Backman
A cantankerous widower and his neighbours, with big laughs and bigger tears.
Pick this if it was the humour and tenderness about old age you loved, and you know that this isn't a mystery at all.
At a glance
These picks were chosen for underestimated amateur sleuths, warm British-style comedy, cosy settings and fair puzzles, and one is included purely for its warmth.
| Book | First published | Pages | Closest match on | Match |
|---|---|---|---|---|
The Marlow Murder Club Robert Thorogood | 2021 | 339 | Closest overall match | 94% |
Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers Jesse Q. Sutanto | 2023 | 368 | Meddling older heroine, laughs | 90% |
The Murder at the Vicarage Agatha Christie | 1930 | 256 | The original village sleuth | 88% |
The Maid Nita Prose | 2022 | 336 | Underestimated, warm narrator | 85% |
The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency Alexander McCall Smith | 1998 | 240 | Gentle, humane detection | 84% |
The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie Alan Bradley | 2009 | 373 | Delightful narrating voice | 82% |
Magpie Murders Anthony Horowitz | 2016 | 496 | Clever puzzle plotting | 81% |
Still Life Louise Penny | 2005 | 377 | Community, grief and comfort | 79% |
A Man Called Ove Fredrik Backman | 2012 | 337 | Funny, moving old age | 72% |
About The Thursday Murder Club
The Thursday Murder Club was the first novel by Richard Osman, the British television presenter known for the quiz show Pointless. Published by Viking in 2020, it became a major bestseller and launched a series that continued with The Man Who Died Twice. A film adaptation was released on Netflix in 2025.
Frequently asked questions
What are the closest books to The Thursday Murder Club?+
The Marlow Murder Club is the nearest match: an older woman in an English town forms an unlikely trio to investigate a killing. Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers has the same comic energy, with an older heroine who refuses to be sidelined.
Is The Thursday Murder Club a cosy mystery?+
Broadly, yes. It has a closed community, gentle humour and very little gore. It does take on grief, dementia and old age more directly than most cosy mysteries, which is part of why it stands out.
What should I read next if I liked Joyce's voice?+
The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie has an equally distinctive first-person narrator, although she is an eleven-year-old chemistry obsessive. The Maid is another voice-led mystery with a narrator who sees things others miss.
Should I read The Thursday Murder Club books in order?+
It helps. Each has its own mystery, but the friendships and personal storylines move forward through the series, so it is best to start with this one and go on to The Man Who Died Twice.
Want recommendations based on your own favorites?
BookTwin can match you to books by mood, pacing, themes, and emotional payoff — based on 1 to 5 books you tell it you loved.
Try BookTwin