On the HahaFiction shelf
Too Old for This
Audiobook available · 10 hr 50 min
At seventy-five, Lottie Jones has a quiet routine of church bingo and gossip, and a serial-killing past she would prefer to keep private. Then Plum Dixon arrives asking about old murders. Lottie sees another killing as a practical response to an unwanted interruption.
From the publisher’s blurb
“Lottie Jones thought her crimes were behind her.”Read the full description at Berkley / Penguin Random House
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What makes it funny?
Lottie can serve a visitor tea while privately dismantling her manners and intelligence. Her complaints about intrusive young people carry on as the situation turns murderous. Readers single out the sarcasm and wicked humor; listeners also praise the narration for bringing out the comedy.
The comedy at work
Killing has become physically inconvenient for Lottie. Downing gives her aging joints and worries about digital traces the same impatient attention she gives ordinary household problems. Bookreporter also notes her resentment of how readily people overlook older women.
Try this if…
For readers comfortable spending time with a cruel narrator whose everyday irritations can be funny. Some book-group readers treat this as a spoof, which helps explain its distance from a straightforward suspense story.
Good to know
The violence includes brutal killings, blood and bodily disposal. Readers are split: some enjoy Lottie’s audacity, while others stop early, find the repeated remorseless murders unpleasant or think the attempts at cuteness feel forced.
A few distinguishing details
- A retired serial killer interrupted during her quiet old age
- Murder competes with creaking joints and modern technology
More funny crime & thriller
Sources & further reading
- Apple Books lists Too Old for This (Unabridged) by Samantha Downing, narrated by Elizabeth Wiley, with a length of 10:50.
Book information
- Penguin Random House lists Too Old for This by Samantha Downing as a paperback with 400 pages; product details identify Berkley and ISBN 9780593101049.
Publisher
- Berkley: Too Old for This
Publisher
- Berkley: Too Old for This opening excerpt
Publisher
- Reader discussion: Too Old for This
Reader discussion
- Bookreporter review: Too Old for This
Review
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