The Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman – Review

Published: September 19, 2023

Publisher: Pamela Dorman Books

Series: Thursday Murder Club #4

Genre: Mystery

Pages: 368 (Hardcover)

My Rating: 4 Stars

Synopsis:
Shocking news reaches the Thursday Murder Club.

An old friend in the antiques business has been killed, and a dangerous package he was protecting has gone missing.

As the gang springs into action they encounter art forgers, online fraudsters and drug dealers, as well as heartache close to home.

With the body count rising, the package still missing and trouble firmly on their tail, has their luck finally run out? And who will be the last devil to die?

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The Last Devil to Die is the fourth installment in the Thursday Murder Club series, which follows a formidable group of retirees who have been solving murders to pass the time. While each book has dealt with serious topics right alongside the rather unorthodox murder investigations, The Last Devil to Die was the most somber of all. Those who’ve read the other books will know that Stephen, Elizabeth’s husband, has dementia and this installment finally addresses a situation that can no longer be ignored.

The gang once again insert themselves into an investigation, this time because Stephen’s friend Kuldesh Sharma, was found murdered on a country lane right after Christmas. Kuldesh had been the middleman in a cocaine deal, but it appears that he decided to take the cocaine rather than give it up. This begs the questions of what he did with the cocaine and who murdered him for stealing it. This quickly becomes a complex case and they end up not only questioning local dealers and gangs, but also the antiquities community that Kuldesh was so involved in. 

I was somewhat sad to see Elizabeth take more of a backseat in this installment, though it made perfect sense given Stephen’s deteriorating condition. This did mean that Joyce got to step forward and shine rather than playing sidekick, which I did enjoy. She uses her unassuming nature to her advantage! The Last Devil to Die was definitely a much more emotional book than I expected and I did actually have to pause my reading for a bit because it was making *me* emotional! To be blunt, if you read this, prepare yourself to deal with the emotions of Stephen’s decline and Elizabeth’s sadness leading up to and following his death.

Overall, this was a good, solid read much in line with previous books. I do think the charm of the Thursday Murder Club is starting to lessen for me personally, but I still enjoy the characters and the mystery of the week vibe they have going. I think I actually preferred when the victims weren’t quite so near to the main group of characters. I’ll more than likely read the next installment if one is planned.