The Bullet That Missed

The pressure is on for Osman to maintain the high standards he set in the first two installments of the “Thursday Murder Club” series (The Thursday Murder Club; The Man Who Died Twice). Listeners will be delighted to hear that he delivers with aplomb. The four retiree members of the club—Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim, and Ron—are back with a new cold-case investigation. Ten years earlier, an investigative journalist was looking into a tax-avoidance scam. That journalist ended up dead, but the body was not found. The crime is catnip for the pensioner sleuths, offering challenge and excitement, with plenty of fun and quirkiness along the way. Osman’s characters are distinctive and memorable, and the mystery will keep listeners guessing. Unfortunately, Fiona Shaw, a new narrator for the series, does not live up to the standard of the previous narrator, which impacts the listening experience. Listeners may have trouble differentiating between characters and may be disappointed by Shaw’s poorly executed accents and numerous audible breaths.