Book Review: The Marlow Murder Club by Robert Thorogood (2021)
Synopsis: Looking for some temporary relief from a heatwave, 77-year-old crossword puzzle setter Judith Potts goes for a late- night swim in the Thames, located behind her mansion in Marlow, and hears shouting, followed by a gunshot, coming from the home of her art dealer neighbor, Stefan Dunwoody. When Stefan's body is found with a bullet in his head, the police want to believe it is a suicide, but Judith insists he was murdered and decides to investigate on her own.
It doesn't take Judith long to settle on a suspect, auction house owner Elliot Howard. However, while Judith is convinced Elliott is responsible, he has an iron-clad alibi. Plus, a second murder committed with the same weapon, an antique handgun, seems to have no connection to him. Fortunately, Judith has reinforcements from Beth, a vicar's wife, and a dog walker, Suzie, because her investigation might put her own life in danger.
Review: I checked out The Marlow Murder Club from my library because I came across a later book in the series and didn't want to make a decision about reading that one until I read the earlier books, including this first one. I finished it last night while waiting for my daughter to get done with work and, while I'm still undecided about continuing the series, did think it was a decent murder mystery.
I thought the book did drag on a bit and am still processing whether that was solely because of the need to introduce the main protagonists or if it will be an expectation for future books. As I've said before, I love murder mysteries but do get bored if there's too much non-murder stuff filling the pages.
That said, while it does give me some pause about other books in the series, I did think the main story/mystery was a solid one. The two victims, an art dealer and a taxi driver, had nothing apparent in common with each other. Plus, while the book leaves no doubt Elliott is the person responsible for at least Stefan's death, he could prove, via video footage, he was in church at the time and had zero connection to victim two. A third body later in the book complicates things further because that person was the only one who could be connected to the first two, making them, at minimum, the second-best suspect.
The three protagonists were also entertaining to read about. Judith, despite her age, was very active and fearless to the point of stupidity, putting her life in danger multiple times. Beth, as a vicar's wife, was a good mix of wanting to behave in the way she was supposed to behave and wanting to be a rebel while Suzie had her moments of indecision and borderline ditziness. While Judith was the clear leader of the bunch, they each brought their own contribution to the team.
I wasn't a huge fan of the ending. Judith's reveal was interesting, but it was also the kind of ending that only happens in books and movies, with the protagonist getting the killer to talk instead of pulling the trigger, as though they needed someone to tell them how they committed the crime and their motivation for doing so. It added some suspense but, since there are future books, it was as though I was ever convinced there was a chance Judith wouldn't survive until the end. It was part of the book that could have been trimmed down by several pages without any impact on the story.
Final Opinion: I'll probably read the second book before making a decision about the overall series but this first book, while lengthier than it probably needed to be, did turn out to be a fun read and admittedly kept me stumped until the end. So, I will say it is worth taking the time to read.
My Grade: B+
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Here are some reviews of other murder mysteries:
Book Review: The Case of the Daring Decoy by Erle Stanley Gardner (1957)
Book Review: Dead Man's Folly by Agatha Christie (1956)
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