Sue Hincenbergs arrives on the literary scene with The Retirement Plan, her debut novel that masterfully blends suburban satire with murder-for-hire mayhem. After a career in television producing award-winning programs, Hincenbergs proves her storytelling chops translate beautifully to the page, crafting a narrative that’s both hilariously twisted and surprisingly heartwarming.
Living in Toronto with her rescue dog Kramer and the remnants of her three sons’ childhood belongings, Hincenbergs draws from the minutiae of middle-aged life to create characters so authentic they could be your neighbors—if your neighbors happened to be plotting multiple murders while arguing about automatic garage doors.
Plot Perfection Meets Suburban Dysfunction
At its core, The Retirement Plan follows four longtime friends—Pam, Nancy, Shalisa, and Marlene—whose dreams of golden-years bliss evaporate when their husbands lose their life savings in a disastrous investment. When Dave Brand meets his end in a “freak accident” involving a manual garage door, and his widow Marlene hits the insurance jackpot, the remaining wives discover all their husbands carry identical million-dollar life insurance policies.
What ensues is a delightfully convoluted dance of deception where:
- The wives hire hitman Hector to eliminate their spouses
- The husbands, unaware of the murder plot, fake their own deaths to escape a casino theft gone wrong
- Both groups believe they’re outsmarting the other
- Chaos, comedy, and unexpected revelations follow
Hincenbergs excels at weaving multiple plotlines without losing momentum. Each twist feels organic rather than contrived, and the pacing maintains perfect balance between laugh-out-loud moments and genuine suspense.
Characters That Breathe Life Into The Page
The Wives: More Than Murder-Minded Matrons
Hincenbergs avoids the trap of creating one-dimensional characters. Each woman possesses distinct motivations beyond mere greed:
- Pam Montgomery serves as our primary narrator—a woman whose marriage has withered into polite indifference after thirty-five years. Her relationship with Elmer, her rescue dog, provides some of the novel’s most touching moments and demonstrates Hincenbergs’ ability to find humanity in unexpected places.
- Nancy Clooney’s fury stems from her husband Larry’s rejection of their gay son’s relationship. Her journey from grief to rage to eventual understanding adds emotional depth that elevates the novel beyond simple caper comedy.
- Shalisa Murphy carries decades of disappointment over childlessness and Andre’s secret cancer diagnosis. Her character arc—from bitter resignation to renewed possibility—provides the story’s most satisfying transformation.
- Marlene Brand, already a widow when the story begins, serves as both catalyst and comic relief. Her journey from grief to unexpected romance with Manuel offers a counterpoint to the other women’s darker paths.
The Husbands: Surprise Depth in Secondary Characters
The husbands could easily have been cardboard cutouts, but Hincenbergs gives them surprising dimension. Their elaborate casino theft scheme reveals unexpected competence, while their individual struggles with masculinity, fatherhood, and marriage add layers that justify the wives’ eventual forgiveness.
Hector, the mysterious barber-turned-hitman, provides the novel’s most intriguing wildcard. His methodical approach to “whatever needs doin'” and his devotion to his wife Brenda create a moral center in an otherwise chaotic narrative.
Writing Style: Suburban Poetry Meets Crime Fiction
Hincenbergs possesses a gift for capturing the rhythm of everyday conversation while layering in sharp observations about modern American life. Her prose oscillates between laugh-out-loud funny and unexpectedly poignant:
“We know you’re broke. We know you said you were downsizing all those years ago, but face it, Pam. Everybody knows you and Hank had money problems.”
The author’s television background shines through in her ability to craft snappy dialogue and maintain multiple storylines. She particularly excels at the women’s group dynamics, capturing the blend of support, judgment, and occasional pettiness that characterizes long-term friendships.
Her descriptive passages balance detail with momentum. When describing Pam’s final decision to confront Hank, Hincenbergs writes with genuine emotional resonance:
“How lucky she was. She squeezed Hank’s hand and pulled him forward to fall in with the other guests and take a seat.”
Themes That Resonate Beyond The Laughs
Marriage as Both Prison and Possibility
The novel’s greatest strength lies in its nuanced exploration of long-term relationships. Hincenbergs doesn’t present marriage as inherently good or bad, but as something that requires constant nurturing. The wives’ initial murder plans stem not from evil, but from a sense of being trapped in relationships that have calcified over decades.
Female Friendship as Lifeline
The four women’s bond provides the story’s emotional anchor. Their wine-fueled planning sessions, mutual support during crises, and willingness to literally kill for each other (however misguided) celebrate female friendship in all its complicated glory.
Class and Financial Insecurity
Hincenbergs subtly weaves commentary about economic anxiety throughout the narrative. The characters’ desperation stems from very real fears about aging without financial security—a concern that resonates strongly with contemporary readers.
Minor Quibbles in an Otherwise Stellar Debut
While The Retirement Plan succeeds admirably, a few small issues prevent it from achieving absolute perfection:
- Some plot conveniences feel slightly forced, particularly regarding Hector’s multiple roles in the story
- The casino theft subplot, while entertaining, occasionally threatens to overwhelm the marital drama at the heart of the story
- A few comedic beats rely too heavily on physical humor (bathroom jokes, sexual mishaps) that feel slightly outdated
How It Stacks Up
For readers who enjoyed The Thursday Murder Club series by Richard Osman, The Retirement Plan offers similar cozy mystery elements with a decidedly American twist. Unlike Osman’s genteel British setting, Hincenbergs grounds her story in the strip malls and split-level homes of suburban America.
Fans of Liane Moriarty’s blend of domestic drama and dark humor will find much to appreciate here, though Hincenbergs leans harder into the comedic elements than Moriarty typically does.
The Verdict: A Retirement Worth Planning For
The Retirement Plan marks an impressive debut that successfully balances multiple genres while maintaining a consistent tone. Hincenbergs has crafted a story that works on multiple levels—as a crime caper, a relationship drama, and a meditation on friendship and forgiveness.
The novel’s ultimate message—that relationships require attention, honesty, and occasional second chances—provides surprising depth to what could have been merely a surface-level romp. While it may not revolutionize the mystery genre, it offers exactly what good entertainment should: genuine laughs, unexpected twists, and characters you care about.
At 375+ pages, The Retirement Plan never overstays its welcome. Hincenbergs maintains momentum throughout, ending with a satisfying resolution that doesn’t tie up every loose end too neatly. The epilogue, which reveals the true nature of Dave’s death, provides a perfect final chuckle while demonstrating the author’s ability to plant seeds and harvest them perfectly.
This debut is not quite a masterpiece—some plot elements strain credibility, and the humor occasionally veers toward the broad—but it’s an exceptionally entertaining read that announces Hincenbergs as a writer to watch. In a crowded field of domestic thrillers and cozy mysteries, The Retirement Plan carves out its own space with charm, wit, and genuine heart.
For readers seeking an escape from the mundane that still acknowledges life’s real challenges, Hincenbergs has delivered exactly the right prescription. One can only hope her future novels continue to explore the comic potential of ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances.
- Note: As this is Sue Hincenbergs’ debut novel, readers eagerly awaiting her next work should follow her literary journey. For similar reads, consider The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid for complex female characters, or Finlay Donovan Is Killing It by Elle Cosatto for another humorous take on suburban women and murder.
