The Marlow Murder Club

February 15, 2022
The creator of the Death in Paradise series (Murder in the Caribbean, 2018, etc.) crafts a triple-decker puzzle in a Thames-side English village. When crossword compiler Judith Potts hears a shout and a bang from the yard of neighboring art gallery owner Stefan Dunwoody, she's convinced he's been shot. But DS Tanika Malik, of the Maidenhead Police Station, brushes off her report as a likely car backfire. Next morning, when Judith finds her neighbor shot in the head, Malik naturally says his death was probably an accident or suicide. So Judith, struck by the Faith medallion adorning Stefan's body, decides to investigate on her own--or rather, with the help of Becks Starling, wife of the vicar of All Saints Church, and dogwalker Suzie Harris. Briefly discouraged when the obvious suspect, auction house owner Elliot Howard, with whom Stefan had publicly quarreled, proves to have an ironclad alibi, they redouble their efforts when cabdriver Iqbal Kassam is found shot to death in his home wearing a Hope medallion. Now even Malik is persuaded that the two men have been killed by someone who's presumably targeting a third victim, and over the objections of her own staff, she deputizes the amateur sleuths to work with her. Since Andy Bishop, the solicitor who seems to have robbed Iqbal of a hefty legacy from the late Ezra Harrington, also produces an alibi for his murder, the four women have their work cut out for them. Are the deaths linked by a common school background, a fondness for rowing, or a Mark Rothko painting Elliot sold to Stefan more than 30 years ago? Lightweight but no-nonsense and genuinely brainy, like Anthony Horowitz without all the meta.

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Starred review from March 7, 2022
Judith Potts, the 77-year-old protagonist of this witty series launch from British author Thorogood (A Meditation on Murder), enjoys the occasional nude swim in the Thames, which runs past her mansion on the outskirts of the town of Marlow. One evening while out for a dip, Judith hears a gunshot coming from the vicinity of her neighbor Stefan Dunwoody’s garden. She calls the police, who do a cursory check and conclude there’s no cause for alarm. Incensed at their lackadaisical approach, she decides to investigate and finds Stefan with a bullet hole in his forehead. Other murders with the same m.o. that follow suggest a serial killer is on the loose. Judith is joined in her detecting pursuits by no-nonsense dog walker Suzie Harris; Becks Starling, the vicar’s efficient if insecure wife; and Det. Sgt. Tanika Malik, who, due to budget cuts, leads the police investigation rather than a more experienced officer. How these women of a certain age unite to solve the crime is as entertaining and intriguing as the fair play mystery itself. The way the characters evolve as their relationships grow sets this light mystery above the pack. Agent: Ginger Clark, Ginger Clark Literary.

Starred review from May 1, 2022

At 77, Mrs. Judith Potts is totally satisfied with her life. She lives in a mansion in Marlow, England, and she skinny-dips at night in the Thames. In fact, she's swimming when she hears her neighbor Stefan Dunwoody cry out in protest, and then a gunshot. Detective Sergeant Tanika Malik and her team call Stefan's death a suicide, but with no weapon in sight Judith is convinced it must have been murder. She recruits two other women to her team of amateur sleuths: Becks, the local vicar's wife, who seems unhappy with her life, and could use an outlet; and dog walker Suzie. While the police fail to find any clues to Stefan's death, the women of the Marlow Murder Club search for suspects. However, Judith's plan to identify Stefan's killer to the police doesn't work out as expected. VERDICT Fans of Richard Osman's The Thursday Murder Club will like the amateur sleuths introduced in this puzzle from Thorogood (author of the "Death in Paradise" mysteries, which have been turned into a BBC TV series). While avid mystery readers might recognize the twist, the finale and its grand solution are worthy of Agatha Christie.--Lesa Holstine

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