We Solve Murders

Picture a man who considers a trip to the next village a small tragedy, teamed with a bodyguard who twitches at the concept of sitting down. Now hand them a novelist with a private jet, a bestseller and someone very determined to pin a body on her. The math should not work. Osman spends the whole book proving it does.

What it's about

Steve Wheeler is retired, contentedly so, in a Dorset village where the biggest event is quiz night at the pub. His daughter-in-law Amy is the opposite: a private security agent guarding Rosie D'Antonio, a wildly successful novelist with money, opinions and a growing pile of enemies. When bodies start turning up around Rosie's clients and the evidence keeps pointing back at Amy, the two Wheelers are pulled into the same mess from opposite ends of the world. Steve would rather be home with his cat. He does not get to be. What follows is a chase that hops continents while the family sorts out who is framing whom and why.

Why everyone's talking about it

This is Osman stepping away from the Thursday Murder Club pensioners for a new cast, which is the whole story here. The gamble is whether the charm survives the setting change from a Kentish retirement community to airports and jets. Early on, the answer landed as yes: readers who go to Osman for the banter, the tidy plotting and the sense that everyone is fundamentally decent will find all of it intact. The humor does the heavy lifting, the mystery ticks along cleanly and Rosie D'Antonio is the kind of supporting character who threatens to run off with the book.

Who should skip it: anyone wanting their crime fiction bleak, twisty, or morally uneasy. This is cozy by design. The stakes stay warm, the violence stays offstage and nobody expects you to lose sleep. If you found the Thursday Murder Club too gentle, a globe-trotting version will not change your mind.

The verdict, for now

If you already trust Osman, this is an easy yes and starting a fresh series at book one is a rare gift (no four-volume backlog to binge first). If you are Osman-curious but skeptical of the hype, borrow it before you buy. Either way, the Wheelers are clearly built to return, so getting in early means you can act insufferably ahead of the curve when everyone else catches up.