The Retirement Plan, by Sue Hincenbergs

Sue Hincenbergs’s debut novel The Retirement Plan tells the story of three couples in their early sixties who’ve been friends for a long time. Years before the story starts, the husbands – without consulting the wives - bet their combined savings on an investment, planning to retire and go south on the money the investment will make. Only, it’s the investment that goes south and they all lose their savings. Needless to say, the wives aren’t very happy, faced with their reduced circumstances and the reality that they’ll probably never be able to afford to retire.

And then, the wives learn the husbands have taken out seven-figure life insurance policies. They decide to hire a hitman to murder their husbands, so they can get the life insurance payout and retire. Meanwhile, unknown to the wives, the husbands have a plan of their own to make back the money they lost. That is - if they can survive their planned murders.

The stakes couldn’t be higher.

It’s such an original premise. I would call it a page-turner, but that description doesn’t come close. A you-will-keep-reading-until-the-wee-hours-of-the-morning-to-find-out-what-comes-next thriller?  That’s wordy, but more accurate! Her characters leap off the page, and Hincenbergs’s insights about marriage had me laughing out loud in several places.

I won’t spoil the ending for you, except to say hold onto your hats. Nothing is as it seems. Hincenbergs is skilled writer, and a master of the plot twist.

If you haven’t already read The Retirement Plan, here’s your next book!