"The Marlow Murder Club" by Robert Thorogood

I think it was Mel who first put "The Marlow Murder Club" by Robert Thorogood (who also writes the "Death in Paradise" murder mysteries, adapted for TV and shown in North America on PBS).    

Then I heard that a "Marlow" film adaptation would be airing in four parts on PBS, starting Oct. 27th, and decided I'd try to get it read (or mostly read) before then (between book club obligations...!).  (I didn't quite finish by then, but enough to ward off any spoilers in the first episode!) 

Like the similarly titled "Thursday Murder Club," "The Marlow Murder Club" has older characters -- well, one, anyway -- at its centre. Judith Potts is a somewhat eccentric 77-year-old, living in the faded mansion near Marlow that she inherited from her aunt, sipping whisky and designing crossword puzzles for publication. 

(In the TV version, Judith is played by Samantha Bond -- "Aunt Rosamund" in "Downton Abbey," as well as Moneypenny in several James Bond movies. She's actually the same age as me -- 63!)

One evening while skinny-dipping in the Thames (!), Judith hears a gunshot coming from her neighbour's property -- and when she rushes over to check on him, she finds him dead, with a bullet hole in his forehead.  The local police think it's suicide, but Judith suspects otherwise -- and decides to start investigating for herself.  Along the way, she's assisted by dog-walker Suzie and the vicar's very proper wife, Rebecca (Becks), as well as the exasperated police officer (Tanika) assigned to the case.  

When another body turns up, they realise they have a serial killer on their hands. Can they figure out whodunnit before the murderer strikes again? (Judith is immediately certain she knows who the killer is -- but is she right?)  

Judith can be slightly annoying in her certainty and her refusal to play by the rules -- but that's also what makes her an engaging heroine. As with "The Thursday Murder Club" books, it's nice to see a fearless older woman who defies stereotyping in a lead role (with some great younger women in supporting roles). On the other hand, I found some of the writing kind of basic and not quite satisfying. (**MILD SPOILER HERE**)  Case in point:  at the climax of the story, Judith has a soliloquy -- at gunpoint -- in which she explains whodunnit, how and why. It goes on for pages and PAGES, and I found myself thinking that if I was the person with the gun, I would have done an Indiana Jones and just shot her dead to shut her up!  ;)  lol    

On balance, this was no "Thursday Murder Club" -- but it was still relatively entertaining, with enjoyable female characters. I think I'm actually enjoying the TV version a little more than the book (based on seeing just the first episode) -- but I'm still glad I read the book first! 

There are currently two other Marlow murder mystery books available, and another one on the way -- plus a second TV series planned for 2025.  

I was going to rate this 3.5 stars on StoryGraph, rounded down to 3 stars on Goodreads, but I'm deducting the half-point for that far-too-long climactic reveal. 3 stars all round.  

Point of interest: Watching the first episode of the TV version -- prior to finishing the book -- I thought "what a lovely little town, I wonder where they filmed it?" I did some Googling and -- would you believe, there is actually a town in England called Marlow, and the TV series was filmed there?? AND -- as I discovered when I finished the book and read the author's bio -- Robert Thorogood actually lives there!  

This was Book #31 read to date in 2024 (and Book #4 finished in October), bringing me to 69%  of my 2024 Goodreads Reading Challenge goal of 45 books. I am (for the moment, anyway...!) 6 (!) books behind schedule to meet my goal. :(  You can find reviews of all my books read to date in 2024 tagged as "2024 books."