The Retirement Plan: The Most Entertaining and Deliciously Dark Debut of 2025
“The perfect cocktail of well-plotted, good-hearted, murderous fun." —Nina Simon, bestselling author of Mother-Daughter Murder Night
THEY'D KILL TO BE WIDOWS.
Three best friends turn to murder to collect on their husbands’ life insurance policies… But the husbands have a plan of their own in this darkly funny debut that will delight readers from the first laugh to the final twist.
After thirty years of friendship, Pam dreams of her perfect retirement with Nancy, Shalisa, Marlene, and their husbands—until their husbands pool their funds for an investment that goes terribly wrong. Suddenly, their golden years are looking as dreary as their marriages.
But when the women discover their husbands have seven-figure life insurance policies, a new dream forms. And this time, they need a hitman.
Meanwhile, their husbands are working on their own secret retirement scheme and when things begin to go sideways, they fear it’s backfired. The husbands scramble to stay alive…but soon realize they may not be quick enough to outmaneuver their wives.
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Community Reviews
"I shouldn't be hiring hitmen and dodging threats. I should be scrapbooking and playing pickleball."
I knew I would have to suspend my disbelief and buckle in for a far-fetched ride, but what I didn't anticipate was for the whole plot to hinge on miscommunication, misunderstandings and coincidences. You know... like a sitcom...
The author did absolutely nail portraying the anxieties that come with staring down the barrel of retirement. Questions about identity and self-worth felt genuine: What value will I have once I stop working? Have I saved enough? Will my partner still find me desirable? What will actually make me happy in this next phase of life? I suppose this added some emotional depth to the story.
Really, the only thing that kept me reading was I wanted to find out how Dave really died. The details were not necessarily what I expected, but the gist of it... was.
I gave it 2.7 stars on Goodreads, which should be rounded up to 3. But I rounded down for the Three's Company-ness of it all.
It was fun. Until it wasn't.
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