Review

by Richard Osman For those who seldom watch television, Richard Osman is a TV Producer who somehow came to co-present the quiz show “Pointless”, and was so good at it that he went on to have a show of his own and now regularly appears on all kinds of panel shows.

His latest venture has been to write this book, which has been vigorously promoted and hyped as an excellent read. I was unsure how good it would be, but being a fan of crime novels and liking the presenter himself, was happy to try it. I have to confess I am now wondering if there is anything Richard Osman can’t do, because what he has written is a complete delight.

The book is a very gentle read – closer to TV’s Midsomer Murders or Death in Paradise than Line of Duty, so not for those who prefer tense, gripping thrillers. No one is put in jeopardy, only thoroughly nasty people are murdered and the writing is witty and fun. The drawing of the main characters is splendid, and their actions and dialogue are entirely believable and entertaining. These are people the reader enjoys spending time with.

The Thursday Murder Club has 4 members, all of them residents in a retirement village. One has a mysterious past but seems to have been a secret agent, another is a retired psychiatrist, the third is an ex-nurse and the fourth is a former Trade Union leader and rabble rouser. One of the original founder members, now too ill to participate, was a retired Detective Chief Inspector.

The group amuse themselves by researching unsolved murders and trying to come up with a solution. Their prior occupations give them relevant skills and some very useful connections, helping to make the concept plausible. (A revelation that the former Trade Union leader’s son was at one time a criminal adds something further to the mix.) Things change when a real murder happens right in front of them, and they set out to help the police solve it.

Like all good novels of this type, the solving of the murder involves numerous red herrings and there are some satisfying twists along the way. There is so much more to it than just a puzzle, however. Life in the retirement community is conjured so well and reading the book so enjoyable that I was in no rush to get to the end and so, for once, was able to resist the temptation to sneak a look at the ending when half way through. The eventual answers, too, are believable giving a very satisfying ending to the book.

Thoroughly recommended, and I am looking forward to the next one in the series. Christine Orchard

by Lionel Blue For this lifelong Radio Four listener, the BBC – although underfunded, undermined, and under attack by our government for many years – remains a deeply respected institution. Even today it is still revered across the world. When founded, the BBC – in concept and practice much like our NHS, which has also been subject to government attack for years – was a beacon in very dark times. Both institutions now struggle valiantly to remain the standard bearers of our finest values, which was the role allocated by their then more enlightened founding governments.

I was reminded of those fast disappearing democratic values of equality, tolerance and justice when, listening to Radio Four recently, I was transported across several decades to the seismic event of 1993. Against all odds, after lengthy tortuous negotiations brokered by many governments and international bodies, all led by US President Bill Clinton, a Middle East peace deal was agreed. Signatories Prime Minister of Israel Yitzhak Rabin, and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, stood on

the White House lawn, shook hands and made peace as the Oslo Peace Accords were signed. They held out the prize of a shared peace bringing benefits for all sides.

This 1993 seismic event was brought to mind by a recent Radio Four broadcast of two related items. Firstly, a news report on the long running trial for corruption of Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the nationalist populist leader of Israel’s Likud Party and four times previously Prime Minister of Israel. Then, quite separately and from the BBC archive, the wonderful recorded voice of the London born and raised Rabbi Lionel Blue. Both items caused me to reflect, but hearing once again that long forgotten voice caused me to reach for this book and read late into the evening.

Rabbi Lionel Blue was for many years a contributor to BBC Radio Four’s ‘Thought for the Day’, broadcast during the early morning news and current affairs programme. He was a gifted writer, speaker and broadcaster who struck a chord with many listeners without regard to age, sex, income level, whether a person was of faith or of no faith, and including even those who held several faiths and beliefs all at the same time. Rabbi Lionel Blue reached into the depths of all who listened and did so over and over again with every broadcast.

It was not surprising that the scripts of his spoken and broadcast work were brought together and published in collections such as this volume. Open at any page today, and if young you will be moved and if, like me, not so young, you will certainly be reminded of cherished basic ideals and principles written and articulated by a respected and still much-loved Rabbi.

Best of Blue comprises 63 monologues spread across 200 plus pages of easily read text. The spread of content is wide and satisfying. The themes chosen and delivered with a unique delivery style are deeply impactful. They raise a wry smile, outright laughter, sadness and much thoughtful reflection on what it means to be human and social – often within a single contribution. The author’s brief Prologue explains the selection and pattern the book follows. If you are of a more recent vintage, think of any David Sedaris collection but each contribution less frivolous, more focussed, more compressed, more tightly written and more goal orientated. That entitled “What the Rabbi gave to the Bishop” is a particular delight.

As a whole the book is insightful and uplifting, not least because the subject matter of the issues involved are at the centre of life itself: family; love; friendship; solidarity; and above all the existence of God and what that means for each of us. The work is clever and playful and the author warm, genuine and likeable, a true ambassador for religion and religious belief.

In great contrast are those nationalist, populist leaders shamelessly using religious beliefs but whose main focus is self-interest and self-promotion in pursuit of political power. One such leader is Israel’s current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, now in power for the fifth consecutive term. Read these brief, wonderfully crafted monologues which present a Jewish view and outlook of tolerance and respect for others and think what might have been had a young and very ambitious Opposition Leader named Benjamin Netanyahu chosen not to inflame several notorious demonstrations against peace. The slogans of one such deliberately whipped up crowd included “Death to Rabin”. In July 1995 Opposition Leader Netanyahu led a mock funeral procession which included a fake black coffin. Asked to desist by Israel’s Head of Internal Security, who warned that Prime Minister Rabin’s life was in danger, Opposition Leader Netanyahu notoriously declined.

On 4 November 1995, having addressed a huge and deeply appreciative peace rally in Tel Aviv, Prime Minister Rabin on leaving the stage was assassinated by a Likud Party activist. As was intended, with Rabin was buried the Peace Deal he had created with long time enemy of Israel Yasser Arafat. Benjamin Netanyahu, however, on behalf of his Likud Party, went on to tramp his way across the landscape and airwaves of Israel preaching hatred and division in the name of Jewishness to secure the highest office in the State – five consecutive times – since his predecessor Yitzhak Rabin’s burial.

Read the words of Rabbi Lionel Blue. Reflect and absorb a very different form of Jewish outlook, views and beliefs – one that promotes tolerance and respect for others thereby defeating anti-Semitism rather than spreading and strengthening that pernicious evil. The archival voice of the much loved Rabbi Lionel Blue rings out in this volume. Read and listen and you will be enriched. Hugh Pollock

Introduction Although a stand-alone story, Don’t Come Looking is a sequel to A J Campbell’s debut novel Leave Well Alone and features the protagonist, Eva Barnes. AJ found she couldn’t leave Eva alone. She needed to know what happened to her next, as did her readers, which inspired AJ to write the sequel. Extract About this book: A missing man. A desperate friend. A circle of deceit. Would you refuse your friend’s desperate plea for help?

When Eva’s close friend Marc disappears, his wife Sasha is distraught, and Eva is baffled. Sasha and Marc were happy, the perfect couple, or so everybody thought.

Sasha begs Eva to help her find Marc. But he has appeared at the police station where Eva works and has made a statement. It’s on record – when his family report him missing, Marc doesn’t want to be found.

Eva is torn. She has a professional duty not to get involved, but Sasha and Marc have gone above and beyond over the years to help Eva and her husband Jim through their own troubled times.

Ultimately, friendship and loyalty override Eva’s professional integrity, and she is compelled to use her skills to delve into Marc’s life, even if it means going against Jim’s advice and breaking the police code of conduct. As each day passes, the mystery deepens. What was Marc up to? What made him do the things he did in the months leading up to his disappearance? Things so out of character, Eva struggles to tell Sasha about them…

And then a disturbing discovery changes everything. From Chapter 1 Breaking into a jog, I follow him, hindered by the swarms of people desperate to get home. There he is, heading towards an escalator. I hop on too, sliding into the lefthand line so I can get to the bottom as fast as the crowds will allow. My shirt is sticking to my back like a second skin, the intense late-afternoon heat rare for this time of year. As I step off, I cough again with the potent smell of rush hour chaos and grinding train brakes. I can no longer see him. Am I too late? Has he taken the Victoria line north or south?

I try the north. Bingo. There he is, waiting to board the next Tube heading to Walthamstow Central. I work my way through the wilting commuters, apologising, ignoring the tuts and scowls directed my way. The train approaches, clattering and screeching as it decelerates. I reach for his arm and gently squeeze it. He spins around.

‘Marc, are you OK?’

His normally friendly tone spits fire at me. ‘You’ve followed me.’

‘I don’t understand. What’s going on?’ My hand brushes his shoulder.

‘Go and speak to your colleagues. Leave me alone.’ He thrusts his hand out towards the exit. ‘Go away.’ The train doors squeak and hiss open. He pushes me out of the way and jumps into the carriage, turning his back as the doors clunk closed.

This is not the Marc I know. Kind and generous Marc, the committed husband and father who possesses the ability to continually roll limericks off his tongue like a professional comedian. The guy who promotes moral excellence in all aspects of his life. He’s the type you see helping old ladies to their cars with their shopping, and crouching down to hand notes to the homeless. Flummoxed, I watch as the packed train picks up speed and disappears into the dark tunnel.

What the hell is going on? Biography AJ Campbell is the debut author of the Amazon bestselling novel Leave Well Alone. An alumna of the Faber Academy, AJ writes in the psychological suspense and mystery genres. Her latest novel Don’t Come Looking, was published in April 2021. She remembers fondly her school days at Melbourn Village College.

AJ writes every day. She lives on the Essex/ Hertfordshire border with her husband, her sons, and her cocker spaniel, Max. AJ enjoys walking Max in the local fields to boost her creativity, and cooking oriental food while sipping a good glass of white wine. Don’t Come Looking is available on Amazon as an ebook or a paperback. www.ajcampbellauthor.com https://www.facebook.com/AJCampbellauthor https://www.instagram.com/ajcampbellauthor/

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