What do you think?
Rate this book
Jack Irish #2
Black Tide
Recently made into an ABC tele-movie starring Guy Pearce, Black Tide is the second of Peter Temple's Jack Irish thrillers.
Jack has no shortage of friends. Jockeys and journos, lawyers and standover men, people in nameless occupations who aren't in the phone book. These days, though, the only family he sees are Irish men in faded football team photographs on the pub wall.
So when Des Connors, the last link to his father, calls to ask for help in the matter of a missing son (and a sum of money Des has lent him), Jack is happy to lend a hand. But sometimes prodigal sons go missing for a reason. As Jack begins to dig, he discovers that Gary Connors is a man with something to hide ...
Jack has no shortage of friends. Jockeys and journos, lawyers and standover men, people in nameless occupations who aren't in the phone book. These days, though, the only family he sees are Irish men in faded football team photographs on the pub wall.
So when Des Connors, the last link to his father, calls to ask for help in the matter of a missing son (and a sum of money Des has lent him), Jack is happy to lend a hand. But sometimes prodigal sons go missing for a reason. As Jack begins to dig, he discovers that Gary Connors is a man with something to hide ...
356 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1999
101 people are currently reading
706 people want to read
About the author
Peter Temple
29 books344 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Peter Temple is an Australian crime fiction writer.
Formerly a journalist and journalism lecturer, Temple turned to fiction writing in the 1990s. His Jack Irish novels (Bad Debts, Black Tide, Dead Point, and White Dog) are set in Melbourne, Australia, and feature an unusual lawyer-gambler protagonist. He has also written three stand-alone novels: An Iron Rose, Shooting Star, In the Evil Day (Identity Theory in the US), as well as The Broken Shore and its sequel, Truth. He has won five Ned Kelly Awards for crime fiction, the most recent in 2006 for The Broken Shore, which also won the Colin Roderick Award for best Australian book and the Australian Book Publishers' Award for best general fiction. The Broken Shore also won the Crime Writers' Association Duncan Lawrie Dagger in 2007. Temple is the first Australian to win a Gold Dagger.
Peter Temple is an Australian crime fiction writer.
Formerly a journalist and journalism lecturer, Temple turned to fiction writing in the 1990s. His Jack Irish novels (Bad Debts, Black Tide, Dead Point, and White Dog) are set in Melbourne, Australia, and feature an unusual lawyer-gambler protagonist. He has also written three stand-alone novels: An Iron Rose, Shooting Star, In the Evil Day (Identity Theory in the US), as well as The Broken Shore and its sequel, Truth. He has won five Ned Kelly Awards for crime fiction, the most recent in 2006 for The Broken Shore, which also won the Colin Roderick Award for best Australian book and the Australian Book Publishers' Award for best general fiction. The Broken Shore also won the Crime Writers' Association Duncan Lawrie Dagger in 2007. Temple is the first Australian to win a Gold Dagger.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 143 reviews
December 20, 2019
”Charlie once said, elevation of chin, narrowing of eyes revealing that he was about to deliver a message, ‘Jack, make something, you look at it, you’re happy. The work it took, that’s not work.’”
When Jack Irish was drowning himself in whiskey, self pity, and a healthy dose of soul crushing depression, he wandered into Charlie Taub’s workshop and asked for an apprenticeship. Charlie threw him a plank to keep him from drowning, and now, whenever life gets too real, which is a frequent occurrence for Jack, he can always escape to the mingled scents of wood chips and well oiled precision equipment to add some buoyancy to his mental ship.
Jack has enough problems of his own to deal with, but he can’t help getting involved in the plights of others. He used to be a decent lawyer, and he acquires the type of acquaintances who have need of his services. They don’t always pay well, but then money tends to take a back seat to Jack’s natural tenaciousness in finding the truth. Give him a Gordian Knot and he won’t cut it with his sword (Alexander the Great was very impatient), but will unravel the twisty knots until he finds the beginning and the end.
In this case, an old friend of his father shows up and asks him for help in finding his son and the money he loaned him. Jack’s father was a legendary footie player, and there is simply no possible way for Jack to ever live up to his father’s legacy. His father may have given The Fitzroy faithful a lot of pleasure on the field, but Jack gives people hope who have no other avenue to find help. So you might not be surprised to discover that Jack has father issues, unresolvable because his father is dead and nearly sainted by his fans.
What is supposed to be a missing person’s enquiry soon turns into a grand conspiracy that involves one of the richest men in Australia (seriously no one gets this rich without bending, breaking, and obliterating rules) and a series of subsidiary companies that lead Jack on a merry chase to not only find Gary but also find out why Gary is hiding or even if Gary is still alive. It soon becomes apparent that one unarmed lawyer is hardly the proper investigator for what becomes a battle between contending forces that involve bullets instead of legal paperwork.
On top of all this, his love life is a shambles. His girlfriend runs off to Sydney to take a new job and finds a new lover as well. Things are not going well with his friend and frequent employer Harry Strang at the horse racing track. Cam, the enforcer and legman for Harry, proves invaluable as always in showing up just when Jack needs him most. His talents are immeasurable. And all of this is taking too much time because he still has those tables he needs to finish for Charlie.
Whew!
This is a complicated book, but less so if you read the first book Bad Debts and, in my case, have watched most of the Tv series. What I appreciate about this book is that Peter Temple expects his readers to not only pay attention but also to be smart enough to be able to handle juggling several plot elements at once. If you do become momentarily confused, grab a sizzling shrimp off the barbie and pop the top of a Victoria Bitter. Read on; it will all become clear.
The cast of characters are fantastic. Jack is a fully formed character whom I feel I know as well as people I’ve known for twenty years. The Australian colloquialisms come fast and furious, and by the end of the book, you might even risk having acquired the downunder accent. After two Jack Irish books, I feel like I can find my way around Melbourne like a native. Temple takes us down to street level, into the pubs, restaurants, and more than a few dank alleys.
Jack Irish, without a doubt, has been my favorite find of the year.
If you wish to see more of my most recent book and movie reviews, visit http://www.jeffreykeeten.com
I also have a Facebook blogger page at:https://www.facebook.com/JeffreyKeeten
When Jack Irish was drowning himself in whiskey, self pity, and a healthy dose of soul crushing depression, he wandered into Charlie Taub’s workshop and asked for an apprenticeship. Charlie threw him a plank to keep him from drowning, and now, whenever life gets too real, which is a frequent occurrence for Jack, he can always escape to the mingled scents of wood chips and well oiled precision equipment to add some buoyancy to his mental ship.
Jack has enough problems of his own to deal with, but he can’t help getting involved in the plights of others. He used to be a decent lawyer, and he acquires the type of acquaintances who have need of his services. They don’t always pay well, but then money tends to take a back seat to Jack’s natural tenaciousness in finding the truth. Give him a Gordian Knot and he won’t cut it with his sword (Alexander the Great was very impatient), but will unravel the twisty knots until he finds the beginning and the end.
In this case, an old friend of his father shows up and asks him for help in finding his son and the money he loaned him. Jack’s father was a legendary footie player, and there is simply no possible way for Jack to ever live up to his father’s legacy. His father may have given The Fitzroy faithful a lot of pleasure on the field, but Jack gives people hope who have no other avenue to find help. So you might not be surprised to discover that Jack has father issues, unresolvable because his father is dead and nearly sainted by his fans.
What is supposed to be a missing person’s enquiry soon turns into a grand conspiracy that involves one of the richest men in Australia (seriously no one gets this rich without bending, breaking, and obliterating rules) and a series of subsidiary companies that lead Jack on a merry chase to not only find Gary but also find out why Gary is hiding or even if Gary is still alive. It soon becomes apparent that one unarmed lawyer is hardly the proper investigator for what becomes a battle between contending forces that involve bullets instead of legal paperwork.
On top of all this, his love life is a shambles. His girlfriend runs off to Sydney to take a new job and finds a new lover as well. Things are not going well with his friend and frequent employer Harry Strang at the horse racing track. Cam, the enforcer and legman for Harry, proves invaluable as always in showing up just when Jack needs him most. His talents are immeasurable. And all of this is taking too much time because he still has those tables he needs to finish for Charlie.
Whew!
This is a complicated book, but less so if you read the first book Bad Debts and, in my case, have watched most of the Tv series. What I appreciate about this book is that Peter Temple expects his readers to not only pay attention but also to be smart enough to be able to handle juggling several plot elements at once. If you do become momentarily confused, grab a sizzling shrimp off the barbie and pop the top of a Victoria Bitter. Read on; it will all become clear.
The cast of characters are fantastic. Jack is a fully formed character whom I feel I know as well as people I’ve known for twenty years. The Australian colloquialisms come fast and furious, and by the end of the book, you might even risk having acquired the downunder accent. After two Jack Irish books, I feel like I can find my way around Melbourne like a native. Temple takes us down to street level, into the pubs, restaurants, and more than a few dank alleys.
Jack Irish, without a doubt, has been my favorite find of the year.
If you wish to see more of my most recent book and movie reviews, visit http://www.jeffreykeeten.com
I also have a Facebook blogger page at:https://www.facebook.com/JeffreyKeeten
March 30, 2013
Excellent Australian conspiracy-theory thriller with well-written characters and a genuine sense of place. This is the second Peter Temple novel to star slightly shady lawyer Jack Irish, and I think it's an improvement over the original, Bad Debts. The book is slightly overstuffed with an A-plot involving a disappeared ne'er-do-well son, a B-plot involving Irish's gangsterish racetrack buddies, a C-plot involving his longtime pub group picking a new team to follow after their old one moved and even a D-plot with Irish finding love again after his reporter girlfriend from the first book moves away (much like the football team). Still, Temple finds a way to let them all play out and occasionally interweave together. I was apprehensive he wouldn't be able to pull off an ending after he created such a complex A-plot, but in the end there's a credible MacGuffin to be found and a way for him to use it to foil the bad guys that actually makes sense. How often do you get that in a conspiracy thriller? It's almost like there's a conspiracy to discredit this genre of books. Hmmm...
December 21, 2019
Who needs an understandable plot when you can ride along with Jack Irish in his vintage Studebaker, wait with him for Linda to come back into his life, and hope that Cam bails him out of yet another sticky and life-threatening fix? Black Tide is thoroughly enjoyable: the characters, the cameos, the brief cinematic takes, the wonderful take-down of Canberra. Not the strongest of Peter Temple's novels, but a wonderful read anyway.
December 27, 2012
In this second installment of Temple's wonderful series, Jack Irish returns to do a favor for Des Connor, an old friend of his father. Des shows Jack pictures of his father and mother and regales him with stories about his father, the dad Jack grew up not knowing. Des also has a son, Gary, and loaned him some sixty grand which Des now needs back to repay the bank for a mortgage Gary took out on the home where Des now lives. If he's not able to pay the bank, Des will be homeless; Gary defaulted leaving it up to Des to clean up the mess. But Gary seems to have disappeared, and bighearted Jack decides to go find him to get the money for Des. As was the case in the previous novel, Jack's search for the missing Gary leads him into a very messy and complex situation -- this time involving money laundering, other missing people, hush-hush organizations and once again, finding someone to trust is becoming harder and harder. While Jack tries to get to the bottom of Gary's disappearance -- no easy task -- his lady love Linda has moved on to Sydney, where she has not only a new job, but apparently a new man, leaving Jack wondering about any kind of future with her.
As with its predecessor, Black Tide not only takes on a complicated tangle of shady operations that keep you guessing as to who's trustworthy and who's not, while the author manages to keep his well-crafted plot under a great deal of control. Temple holds the reins tightly as the disappearance of one man slowly begins to branch out into even more nefarious dealings, so that everything that Jack uncovers fits into the main plotline without going off into tangents. The author also weaves in different facets of Melbourne's population, from the very wealthy who prefer that the tradesmen use the back entrance to the aging Aussie rules football club fans who've lost their local team, to people who buy sandwiches on plain white bread, no focaccia sold here. The problem with this book is that in terms of the basic setup, it's much like Bad Debts, but sadly I can't disclose why without giving away important details. Let's just say that there seems to be a pattern that follows from book one to book two that made it easy to figure out something important; I'm hoping that with book three the author will fall out of that trap and move on to something slightly different. All the same, even with this most annoying matter of personal contention, Black Tide managed to hold my interest to the last action-packed minute and beyond. Considering that I tend not to like this sort of fast-paced rockem-sockem type thing, I'm drawn to the main character and his immediate circle enough to where I can't help but want more.
I can definitely recommend both novels -- the plots appeal to the mystery solver in me, and the writing makes these books intelligent reads that don't fail to engage.
As with its predecessor, Black Tide not only takes on a complicated tangle of shady operations that keep you guessing as to who's trustworthy and who's not, while the author manages to keep his well-crafted plot under a great deal of control. Temple holds the reins tightly as the disappearance of one man slowly begins to branch out into even more nefarious dealings, so that everything that Jack uncovers fits into the main plotline without going off into tangents. The author also weaves in different facets of Melbourne's population, from the very wealthy who prefer that the tradesmen use the back entrance to the aging Aussie rules football club fans who've lost their local team, to people who buy sandwiches on plain white bread, no focaccia sold here. The problem with this book is that in terms of the basic setup, it's much like Bad Debts, but sadly I can't disclose why without giving away important details. Let's just say that there seems to be a pattern that follows from book one to book two that made it easy to figure out something important; I'm hoping that with book three the author will fall out of that trap and move on to something slightly different. All the same, even with this most annoying matter of personal contention, Black Tide managed to hold my interest to the last action-packed minute and beyond. Considering that I tend not to like this sort of fast-paced rockem-sockem type thing, I'm drawn to the main character and his immediate circle enough to where I can't help but want more.
I can definitely recommend both novels -- the plots appeal to the mystery solver in me, and the writing makes these books intelligent reads that don't fail to engage.
May 2, 2023
Black Tide - the second of the Jack Irish series by Peter Temple - is a great read that captures the argot and atmosphere of Melbourne, its crooks and dirty dealings from the bottom to the top end of town. As a non-gambler with an extreme distaste for horseracing, I particularly enjoy the fascinating detours into the seamy underbelly of the turf and its nefarious denizens.
As with all of Temple's books, the characters are richly drawn, and the plot the right side of intricate and well-crafted, with plenty of twists and turns to keep one guessing. I loved it.
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 1/2
As with all of Temple's books, the characters are richly drawn, and the plot the right side of intricate and well-crafted, with plenty of twists and turns to keep one guessing. I loved it.
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 1/2
February 20, 2024
3.5/5, rounded up for good measure. Spent the first half not knowing what was going on, and the second half thinking how lucky Irish is.
October 24, 2013
I can't really seem to get enough books lately. I finished this one pretty quickly, though it is shorter than the Maisie Dobbs novels.
Again this is a pretty detailed and involved story of corruption at high levels in Australia. The whole scheme is explained pretty well unlike the previous book where there should have been more explanation at the end of Bad Debts or at the beginning of this book.
I enjoyed this story. I still like Jack as a character; he still seems real to me. Glad Cam is back in his calm 'cleaner' type role. I am also glad he doesn't get beaten up this time. Again, there are a couple of loose ends, like the woman playing a Federal agent, that I would have liked to have seen tidied up. Lyle (sp?) is a new character and I hope she sticks around. I liked her, though Peter Temple doesn't seem to go in for much depth with his female characters. I was disappointed that Jack didn't call Linda back, but perhaps she is down and not out of the series yet.
The narrator does a good job, although there was something weird about the audio production. There were points where the sound changed in such a way that it sounded like the audio completely stopped.
Again this is a pretty detailed and involved story of corruption at high levels in Australia. The whole scheme is explained pretty well unlike the previous book where there should have been more explanation at the end of Bad Debts or at the beginning of this book.
I enjoyed this story. I still like Jack as a character; he still seems real to me. Glad Cam is back in his calm 'cleaner' type role. I am also glad he doesn't get beaten up this time. Again, there are a couple of loose ends, like the woman playing a Federal agent, that I would have liked to have seen tidied up. Lyle (sp?) is a new character and I hope she sticks around. I liked her, though Peter Temple doesn't seem to go in for much depth with his female characters. I was disappointed that Jack didn't call Linda back, but perhaps she is down and not out of the series yet.
The narrator does a good job, although there was something weird about the audio production. There were points where the sound changed in such a way that it sounded like the audio completely stopped.
September 5, 2013
This was my first Peter Temple, and won't be my last. His main character, Jack Irish, calls himself a suburban lawyer, but his clients take him much further than the average round of probate, wills and conveyancing. He also works part time as an assistant to an old European cabinetmaker, a craftsman of the old school, and their conversations are delightful. Jack has a soft spot for old Aussie blokes, especially the denizens of his local pub, die-hard Fitzroy (football club) supporters who regard their team's transformation into the Brisbane Lions as a treacherous but temporary measure.
Doing a favour for an old mate of his father's takes him into a dark, dangerous place. The business intrigue was a bit too complex for me to be completely across, but it didn't affect my enjoyment of the story as a whole. The characters are quirky and interesting, and Jack Irish is a multi-faceted rough gem.
Peter Temple has an ear for old-fashioned Australian vernacular. Sometimes it was a bit hard to get, but if I read it aloud with an old bloke in mind, it made sense. Reminds me of many old blokes I knew as a kid.
Doing a favour for an old mate of his father's takes him into a dark, dangerous place. The business intrigue was a bit too complex for me to be completely across, but it didn't affect my enjoyment of the story as a whole. The characters are quirky and interesting, and Jack Irish is a multi-faceted rough gem.
Peter Temple has an ear for old-fashioned Australian vernacular. Sometimes it was a bit hard to get, but if I read it aloud with an old bloke in mind, it made sense. Reminds me of many old blokes I knew as a kid.
August 18, 2013
OK, it helps if you really know Melbourne, which I do, and you understand the historical and cultural allusions (Phar Lap, the extinct Fitzroy Football Club etc). These, along with the humour and truncated, laconic dialogue, are uniquely Australian, or more specifically Melburnian. Example: "I remember you when you were two bricks and a pisspot high, your mum made a little Roys jumper for you." I had seen the excellent ABC film of this, and was pleased to find that the novel was just as good.
There's a crowded field of characters, some of whom are obviously villains from the start because they're rich and powerful: in this genre of Australian fiction, it's usually an odds-on bet that wealth + power = corruption. Then there are others, police, lawyers and Jack's potential love interest, whom one is not quite sure about. This, combined with the rapidly shifting scenes of action, means you have to keep your wits about you. But the quality of the writing itself, the colourful characters, the humour and the pace sustains the reader throughout.
There's a crowded field of characters, some of whom are obviously villains from the start because they're rich and powerful: in this genre of Australian fiction, it's usually an odds-on bet that wealth + power = corruption. Then there are others, police, lawyers and Jack's potential love interest, whom one is not quite sure about. This, combined with the rapidly shifting scenes of action, means you have to keep your wits about you. But the quality of the writing itself, the colourful characters, the humour and the pace sustains the reader throughout.
June 20, 2012
I don't know if I just wasn't in the headspace for it, or if it was because my brain was all melty because I'm in the middle of a marking jag, but I struggled with this second Jack Irish thriller even though I enjoyed the first. There seemed to be so many characters and I was confusing them all throughout the different plots - it was like reading a fantasy novel.
However, i did enjoy reading the locales of my hometown, and reminiscing about the very same streets of Fitzroy and Northcote that I trod.
However, i did enjoy reading the locales of my hometown, and reminiscing about the very same streets of Fitzroy and Northcote that I trod.
December 30, 2012
No wonder Temple has won multiple Australian awards for his novels ; Great dialogue/descriptions and the usual fast paced tale of the trials and tribulations faced by his hero ? Jack Irish.
Possibly having a knowledge of Australiana/Melbourne gives this book that little extra for me to rate it a 5 star.
Regardless of that its a top read, with Temples bad guys as usual related to the money/political/development scenario, while his side-kicks remain static, the old footy supporters, the coup planning racehorse brigade, and the latest love interest all playing their part.
Possibly having a knowledge of Australiana/Melbourne gives this book that little extra for me to rate it a 5 star.
Regardless of that its a top read, with Temples bad guys as usual related to the money/political/development scenario, while his side-kicks remain static, the old footy supporters, the coup planning racehorse brigade, and the latest love interest all playing their part.
February 10, 2026
Reviewing Peter Temple’s Black Tide is really difficult. Starting with the good, actually the really good, Peter Temple is a writer whose style resonates with me. As an Australian, I love the almost Aussie larrikinism (if that is actually a word) of both language and content. Laconic and rich description is an appropriate way of describing it.
On the downside though, I found it too often confusing. The horse racing and football tangents were great fun but they introduced more characters than I could keep track of, particularly when the main game was a world wide conspiracy involving way too many companies, banks and shady individuals.
My confusion may also be partially my fault so don’t be totally put off. After the pure joy of The Broken Shore, my first meeting with Peter Temple, I was just wanting to read more of his work. Black Tide is the second book in his Jack Irish series and it was all that was available. Maybe if I had started at the start, it may have been more obvious.
On the downside though, I found it too often confusing. The horse racing and football tangents were great fun but they introduced more characters than I could keep track of, particularly when the main game was a world wide conspiracy involving way too many companies, banks and shady individuals.
My confusion may also be partially my fault so don’t be totally put off. After the pure joy of The Broken Shore, my first meeting with Peter Temple, I was just wanting to read more of his work. Black Tide is the second book in his Jack Irish series and it was all that was available. Maybe if I had started at the start, it may have been more obvious.
February 27, 2024
Aussie noir that akes a while to get going with a quite convoluted conspiracy filled plot, but like the horse in the book, splendid vision, it flies into the final furlong at a cracking pace.
February 23, 2013
The Australian slang is so heavy that I couldn't decipher at least 50 terms, but it makes for a delightful experience.
Peter Temple is an excellent and intelligent mystery/detective writer with a host of colorful three-dimensional characters, maybe a modern-day Damon Runyon. Much of it is even set -- largely irrelevantly to the plot -- at low level racetracks. He's even good with female characters. There are masses of human-interest threads that have nothing at all to do with the plot, in fact, and are luckily good enough that they add value instead of distraction.
One of the better writers of detective novels out there. Minus one star for an overheated plot involving a giant world conspiracy that far outweighs the everyday working class setting of the book.
Peter Temple is an excellent and intelligent mystery/detective writer with a host of colorful three-dimensional characters, maybe a modern-day Damon Runyon. Much of it is even set -- largely irrelevantly to the plot -- at low level racetracks. He's even good with female characters. There are masses of human-interest threads that have nothing at all to do with the plot, in fact, and are luckily good enough that they add value instead of distraction.
One of the better writers of detective novels out there. Minus one star for an overheated plot involving a giant world conspiracy that far outweighs the everyday working class setting of the book.
May 18, 2023
Excellent, gritty stuff, very entertaining. I enjoyed Marco Chiappi's narration for the most part, although there were a few occasions when his rendition didn't fit the one in my head when I read the paper copy. Having read this again, & Bad Debts fairly recently, I now want to re-watch the TV series where Guy Pearce does such an excellent job as Jack Irish.
Jack is very lucky to have survived this adventure. For a suburban lawyer he certainly gets himself into some very tight spots. Just as well he's got a friend in Cam (love Aaron Pederson in this role), who's a bit of a fix-it man, with contacts.
Jack is very lucky to have survived this adventure. For a suburban lawyer he certainly gets himself into some very tight spots. Just as well he's got a friend in Cam (love Aaron Pederson in this role), who's a bit of a fix-it man, with contacts.
August 18, 2012
I bought this for 99 pence on Kindle hoping that I'd like it since I had read Broken Shore a few years ago and thought that it was pretty good.
However, 30% into the book and I still can't grasp the plot!! It's confusing and new characters keep getting introduced with barely any description - no way I can remember them!! As for the dialogue - God help me! I can't understand a thing they are saying!
Very disappointing and don't know if I'll bother to finish it.
I refuse to waste my time trying to finish reading this horrible book - very disappointed!
However, 30% into the book and I still can't grasp the plot!! It's confusing and new characters keep getting introduced with barely any description - no way I can remember them!! As for the dialogue - God help me! I can't understand a thing they are saying!
Very disappointing and don't know if I'll bother to finish it.
I refuse to waste my time trying to finish reading this horrible book - very disappointed!
January 16, 2017
Peter Temple's books are enjoyable reads, & Jack Irish is a great leading man who is now familiar to TV viewers. Like all good "private detective" (which, in spite of his stated profession of solicitor, is what Jack really is) novels the plot is all-but incomprehensible, but the characters Jack meets along the way are beautifully-drawn & often extremely amusing.
January 24, 2013
Not in the league of Truth or The Broken Shore, and an oversimilarity with elements to the recently read Bad Debts diminished it somewhat, but still a good Melbourne crime novel.
June 8, 2016
a rather involved book with a lot of people.
February 7, 2021
In Black Tide, the second of Peter Temple's Jack Irish novels, an old friend of Jack's deceased father comes looking for help. Des Connors' ne'er do well son Gary has disappeared, along with $60,000 the retired Des needs if he is going to keep his house. It's the kind of thing Jack would do anyway, and with Des the last living link to Bill Irish, it's a no-brainer.
But what looks like a fairly straightforward case of locating a small-time swindler quickly turns out to be much more. People who have known Gary, who have worked with Gary, and who have talked to Gary have an alarming fatality rate. Individually, there doesn't seem to be anything to connect these victims of suicide, break-ins gone wrong, and car accidents, but Gary is clearly at the center of a web of secrets and violence. As Jack digs relentlessly to find Des' son, he is repeatedly warned that he's taking on an organization with tentacles in the governments, police forces, and the militaries of more than one country. On his own, he might walk away, but with his father's friend's future in the balance, he has no choice but to keep pushing. And by the time he realizes he has pushed too hard, it's too late.
Peter Temple was an author who respected his reader, and, wow, could he write - whether it's indelibly setting a scene in just a few sentences (""I went into the concrete-floored [horse track] betting barn, a deeply inhospitable place, people chewing hotdogs with the apprehensive look of submariners waiting for the depth charge to buckle the plates, pop the rivets."); describing characters in the most Australian way possible ("In the room was a blond woman of indeterminate age, lowered to around forty by cutting, injecting, and sanding."); or painting the emotional portrait of a man who has had too many endings ("I slumped in the chair. I'd known it was coming. Absolutely no doubt. You know. I'd been feeling sick about it for weeks. So, why did I now feel even sicker? Love. Not a word for casual use. The life-scarred use the word with extreme caution. If you're lucky, you go through life being held up by people loving you. But you don't know you're being held up. You think you're buoyant. You think the buoyancy came first, the love is a bonus you get for being buoyant. And that can go on for a long time. But then one day, the love isn't there anymore and you're sinking, waving arms and sinking, all the old sources of love gone, the newer ones turn out to be fickle. They move on. No one to hold you up, you're just a skinny boy, all ribs, knees, and feet, out in the deep water, can't touch bottom.")
In Black Tide, Temple not only spins a masterful nail-biter of a thriller, but also manages to continue developing both his protagonist and all the people that surround him. And he does all this while keeping you on the edge of your seat, making you laugh, and getting you to contemplate life. Peter Temple was a giant of not just Australian crime fiction, but of crime fiction in general, and in Black Tide he is in top form.
But what looks like a fairly straightforward case of locating a small-time swindler quickly turns out to be much more. People who have known Gary, who have worked with Gary, and who have talked to Gary have an alarming fatality rate. Individually, there doesn't seem to be anything to connect these victims of suicide, break-ins gone wrong, and car accidents, but Gary is clearly at the center of a web of secrets and violence. As Jack digs relentlessly to find Des' son, he is repeatedly warned that he's taking on an organization with tentacles in the governments, police forces, and the militaries of more than one country. On his own, he might walk away, but with his father's friend's future in the balance, he has no choice but to keep pushing. And by the time he realizes he has pushed too hard, it's too late.
Peter Temple was an author who respected his reader, and, wow, could he write - whether it's indelibly setting a scene in just a few sentences (""I went into the concrete-floored [horse track] betting barn, a deeply inhospitable place, people chewing hotdogs with the apprehensive look of submariners waiting for the depth charge to buckle the plates, pop the rivets."); describing characters in the most Australian way possible ("In the room was a blond woman of indeterminate age, lowered to around forty by cutting, injecting, and sanding."); or painting the emotional portrait of a man who has had too many endings ("I slumped in the chair. I'd known it was coming. Absolutely no doubt. You know. I'd been feeling sick about it for weeks. So, why did I now feel even sicker? Love. Not a word for casual use. The life-scarred use the word with extreme caution. If you're lucky, you go through life being held up by people loving you. But you don't know you're being held up. You think you're buoyant. You think the buoyancy came first, the love is a bonus you get for being buoyant. And that can go on for a long time. But then one day, the love isn't there anymore and you're sinking, waving arms and sinking, all the old sources of love gone, the newer ones turn out to be fickle. They move on. No one to hold you up, you're just a skinny boy, all ribs, knees, and feet, out in the deep water, can't touch bottom.")
In Black Tide, Temple not only spins a masterful nail-biter of a thriller, but also manages to continue developing both his protagonist and all the people that surround him. And he does all this while keeping you on the edge of your seat, making you laugh, and getting you to contemplate life. Peter Temple was a giant of not just Australian crime fiction, but of crime fiction in general, and in Black Tide he is in top form.
September 14, 2021
Kriminálka, ve které je detektivní rovina tak trochu navíc. Je tam čistě coby nudná nezbytnost, která autorovi moc nejde a ani ho tolik nezajímá. Takže vyloví z šuplíku klasických rekvizit obří gigantické ďábelské spiknutí za účasti vlády a všemožných tajných organizací, které dokáže zlikvidovat každého kromě hlavního hrdiny… ale které je po celou dobu zcela mimo záběr a vynoří se vlastně jen na konci, aby třikrát rychle za sebou mělo hrdinu na lopatě – ale v poslední vteřině ho někdo zničehonic zachránil. Jako ano, autor se snaží podtrhnout, že hrdina není žádný superborec, ovšem tady už ho nezachraňuje deus ex machina, ale celý panteon ex machina. Celkem líný způsob řešení problémů, což jen podtrhuje i finále s dalším deusexákem, ve kterém se celý gordický uzel rozplete jako špatně uvázaná tkanička od boty. (Zásadní poučka pro autory detektivek: Je dobré mít silné protivníky - ale ve chvíli, kdy si je děláte tak silné, že vlastně nejdou porazit, a tudíž musíte různě fixlovat, nechat hrdinu stále zachraňovat a padouchy nutíte dělat komické chyby (takzvaný Kingův syndrom), pak je to spíš na škodu.)
Mnohem zajímavější než zápletka je svět, ve kterém se děj odehrává a lidé, co v něm žijí. Po Městu plném oken (a dalších moderních thrillerech) mi tohle přišlo jako velká literatura, s uvěřitelnými a zajímavými postavami. Jasně, to, že je detektivka jen záminkou k potkávání různých lidí, je celkem běžné. Jenže tady většina těch postav s kriminální zápletkou vůbec nesouvisí a jsou to prostě jen hrdinovi známí. Což je taky zajímavý – jak bývá u detektivek hrdina zacílený a soustředí se jen na případ (a případně na nějakou tu holku, se kterou si o víkendu rekapituluje pozice kámasútry), tak tady je pro hrdinu pátrání jen jednou z mnoha zájmových činností. Vedle toho vyrábí nábytek, je právníkem, součástí týmu, který se živí sázením na dostizích, a v hospodě rozebírá, komu se bude fandit ve fotbale, když se rodný tým odstěhoval z města. Což je mimochodem jedna z nejzajímavějších otázek celé knihy – najdou si staří fandové nový tým, nebo budou brát, že původní tým patří pořád k městu, jen prostě teď víc hostuje? Dialogy jsou zábavné takovým tím nenuceným způsobem, hlášky padají docela přirozeně a postavy jsou sympatičtější než zvýšení platu. Stejně tak jsou zábavné dostihové čachry: ježdění po Austrálii, obhlížení koní, maskování favoritů, manipulace se sázkami… ani by mi nevadilo, kdyby se celá detektivní rovina vyhodila a bylo tam jen tohle.
Když o tom tak zpětně přemýšlím, tak možná není ani problém v detektivní zápletce. Thrillerů s podobnou invencí vychází měsíčně tak deset. Problém je v tom, že to ostatní je o tolik lepší, civilnější a přesvědčivější, že najednou tenhle úporně mainstreamový příběh, který byste u nějakého moderního thrilleru brali jako úplně normální, působí jako zmírající nedochůdče. Z čehož vyplývá, že někdy je být v něčem moc dobrý spíš na škodu.
Mnohem zajímavější než zápletka je svět, ve kterém se děj odehrává a lidé, co v něm žijí. Po Městu plném oken (a dalších moderních thrillerech) mi tohle přišlo jako velká literatura, s uvěřitelnými a zajímavými postavami. Jasně, to, že je detektivka jen záminkou k potkávání různých lidí, je celkem běžné. Jenže tady většina těch postav s kriminální zápletkou vůbec nesouvisí a jsou to prostě jen hrdinovi známí. Což je taky zajímavý – jak bývá u detektivek hrdina zacílený a soustředí se jen na případ (a případně na nějakou tu holku, se kterou si o víkendu rekapituluje pozice kámasútry), tak tady je pro hrdinu pátrání jen jednou z mnoha zájmových činností. Vedle toho vyrábí nábytek, je právníkem, součástí týmu, který se živí sázením na dostizích, a v hospodě rozebírá, komu se bude fandit ve fotbale, když se rodný tým odstěhoval z města. Což je mimochodem jedna z nejzajímavějších otázek celé knihy – najdou si staří fandové nový tým, nebo budou brát, že původní tým patří pořád k městu, jen prostě teď víc hostuje? Dialogy jsou zábavné takovým tím nenuceným způsobem, hlášky padají docela přirozeně a postavy jsou sympatičtější než zvýšení platu. Stejně tak jsou zábavné dostihové čachry: ježdění po Austrálii, obhlížení koní, maskování favoritů, manipulace se sázkami… ani by mi nevadilo, kdyby se celá detektivní rovina vyhodila a bylo tam jen tohle.
Když o tom tak zpětně přemýšlím, tak možná není ani problém v detektivní zápletce. Thrillerů s podobnou invencí vychází měsíčně tak deset. Problém je v tom, že to ostatní je o tolik lepší, civilnější a přesvědčivější, že najednou tenhle úporně mainstreamový příběh, který byste u nějakého moderního thrilleru brali jako úplně normální, působí jako zmírající nedochůdče. Z čehož vyplývá, že někdy je být v něčem moc dobrý spíš na škodu.
December 10, 2024
There's nothing like a good audiobook to get one out walking or gardening. I've done quite a bit of both in the past 2-3 days. Novel #1 in the Jack Irish series was out on loan so I borrowed this instead. I'll listen to #1 soon I hope.
I have lived in North Fitzroy, and Brunswick, and Coburg - too long ago to remember them intimately, but enough that Jack Irish's milieu feels very familiar. I loved the Jack Irish television series, and now I'm very reassured to find that, in terms of setting and the regular characters, it is meticulously faithful to the originals (well, #2 anyway). It was a comfort that the Bolinda Audiobooks reader appears to know the television series too, and isn't inclined to innovate. You will visualise the characters just as they appear on the television, with all their delightful idiosyncrasies.
Like the only other Peter Temple novel I've 'read' (another audiobook, actually), you don't learn what the crime is till the narrative is well advanced. Is that standard practice for crime fiction? I don't read a lot of it.
In my limited experience of crime fiction, readers (unless they're much smarter than I am) must take it on faith that the crime has been solved by the end of the novel, because in my head the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle are invariably still hopelessly jumbled. Have I paid insufficient attention, or do crime writers practice some sleight of hand for the benefit of readers more than willing to be conned? Just musing! Black Tide isn't such an egregious example, though if you're not already familiar with all the regular characters, you may find it helpful to keep an index of personal and corporate names while reading it. There are soooo many of them, so that can be quite challenging.
I have lived in North Fitzroy, and Brunswick, and Coburg - too long ago to remember them intimately, but enough that Jack Irish's milieu feels very familiar. I loved the Jack Irish television series, and now I'm very reassured to find that, in terms of setting and the regular characters, it is meticulously faithful to the originals (well, #2 anyway). It was a comfort that the Bolinda Audiobooks reader appears to know the television series too, and isn't inclined to innovate. You will visualise the characters just as they appear on the television, with all their delightful idiosyncrasies.
Like the only other Peter Temple novel I've 'read' (another audiobook, actually), you don't learn what the crime is till the narrative is well advanced. Is that standard practice for crime fiction? I don't read a lot of it.
In my limited experience of crime fiction, readers (unless they're much smarter than I am) must take it on faith that the crime has been solved by the end of the novel, because in my head the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle are invariably still hopelessly jumbled. Have I paid insufficient attention, or do crime writers practice some sleight of hand for the benefit of readers more than willing to be conned? Just musing! Black Tide isn't such an egregious example, though if you're not already familiar with all the regular characters, you may find it helpful to keep an index of personal and corporate names while reading it. There are soooo many of them, so that can be quite challenging.
March 22, 2018
Jack Irish is weduwnaar, advocaat, part-time speurneus en gokker. Hij houdt zich het liefst op met mannen die er een wat onconventioneel leven op na houden. Zijn vriendin Linda blijkbaar niet, want die heeft als het verhaal begint net een mooie baan in een andere stad aangenomen, en het ziet er naar uit dat ze voorlopig niet terugkomt.
Een oude vriend van Jacks vader vraagt hem op een dag om zijn zoon Gary op te sporen. Gary heeft een kapitaal bedrag geleend van zijn vader en is vervolgens verdwenen. Jack komt wel heel eigenaardige zaakjes op het spoor, met een luchtje er aan.
Zo te zien aan het verhaal is het leven van iemand die zijn tijd doorbrengt met speuren, gokken en rechtbanken, niet zoveel anders in Australië als in bijvoorbeeld Engeland of Amerika. Jack Irish dwaalt van ontmoeting naar ontmoeting, eet hier eens een hapje, drinkt daar eens een drankje, is ´s avonds thuis heel eenzaam en verricht tussendoor wonderen op het gebied van het gokken op paarden en het vinden van verdwenen mensen. Dit boek is best ´spannend´ te noemen, maar de auteur heeft het volgepropt met korte ontmoetingen in bars en restaurants, waar Jack dan moet luisteren naar verhalen van andere mensen over andere mensen. Die grote hoeveelheid namen maakt het allemaal erg omslachtig en verwarrend. Je weet als lezer namelijk niet welke informatie je moet onthouden en welke je onmiddellijk weer mag vergeten. Daarnaast is het mij in elk geval af en toe volslagen duister waarom Jack bepaalde dingen doet.
Het geheel heeft een beetje een ´ouderwets´ tintje; alsof de auteur een poging heeft gedaan de sfeer van de ´film noir´ op te roepen. Bij mij riep dit echter alleen verwarring op.
Een oude vriend van Jacks vader vraagt hem op een dag om zijn zoon Gary op te sporen. Gary heeft een kapitaal bedrag geleend van zijn vader en is vervolgens verdwenen. Jack komt wel heel eigenaardige zaakjes op het spoor, met een luchtje er aan.
Zo te zien aan het verhaal is het leven van iemand die zijn tijd doorbrengt met speuren, gokken en rechtbanken, niet zoveel anders in Australië als in bijvoorbeeld Engeland of Amerika. Jack Irish dwaalt van ontmoeting naar ontmoeting, eet hier eens een hapje, drinkt daar eens een drankje, is ´s avonds thuis heel eenzaam en verricht tussendoor wonderen op het gebied van het gokken op paarden en het vinden van verdwenen mensen. Dit boek is best ´spannend´ te noemen, maar de auteur heeft het volgepropt met korte ontmoetingen in bars en restaurants, waar Jack dan moet luisteren naar verhalen van andere mensen over andere mensen. Die grote hoeveelheid namen maakt het allemaal erg omslachtig en verwarrend. Je weet als lezer namelijk niet welke informatie je moet onthouden en welke je onmiddellijk weer mag vergeten. Daarnaast is het mij in elk geval af en toe volslagen duister waarom Jack bepaalde dingen doet.
Het geheel heeft een beetje een ´ouderwets´ tintje; alsof de auteur een poging heeft gedaan de sfeer van de ´film noir´ op te roepen. Bij mij riep dit echter alleen verwarring op.
September 21, 2023
I was excited to read this book because I remember the movie based on it was a little hard to follow at times. Now having finished Black Tide in book form I promptly rewatched the movie and was thankful for a lot of what was cut out for the screenplay. This was a bit of a convoluted mess of names, organizations, roles, and how they connected. Even Jack was so confused that he had to repeat multiple conversations in internal monolog he'd had earlier to try and make sense of things, and I can't really say it was all cleared up in the end beyond taking down the head person.
Don't get me wrong, there was a lot to like here and the book was difficult to put down most of the time, I just think it would've worked better to focus on finding the guy he was hired for in the beginning earlier rather than why he was missing. Everything could've played out exactly the same way, just not in the order it played out. Also, while I like Harry and Cam, not having a firm grasp or interest in horse racing brings the pacing to a standstill for me in those chapters. Alternatively, I thoroughly enjoyed the chapters featuring Charlie's shop and 'cabinet making', so I guess for the sections not directly focused on the plot comes down to personal preference.
I'd rate Black Tide at a solid 3.5 stars but I can't bring myself to round up like I normally would; not sure why that is. Three is still in the positive realm however, and I would definitely recommend the book, movie, and TV series to anyone interested in crime/political thrillers. Having said that, regarding the story of Black Tide, I prefer the movie over the novel for a number of reasons. Cheers
Don't get me wrong, there was a lot to like here and the book was difficult to put down most of the time, I just think it would've worked better to focus on finding the guy he was hired for in the beginning earlier rather than why he was missing. Everything could've played out exactly the same way, just not in the order it played out. Also, while I like Harry and Cam, not having a firm grasp or interest in horse racing brings the pacing to a standstill for me in those chapters. Alternatively, I thoroughly enjoyed the chapters featuring Charlie's shop and 'cabinet making', so I guess for the sections not directly focused on the plot comes down to personal preference.
I'd rate Black Tide at a solid 3.5 stars but I can't bring myself to round up like I normally would; not sure why that is. Three is still in the positive realm however, and I would definitely recommend the book, movie, and TV series to anyone interested in crime/political thrillers. Having said that, regarding the story of Black Tide, I prefer the movie over the novel for a number of reasons. Cheers
November 27, 2022
-4.5- Ok sports fans I have to say I really enjoy the Jack Irish series by Peter Temple (the movies are currently available on Amazon Prime and excellent). Jack Irish is, as Isaac Hayes sang about Shaft a complicated man. He is a barrister in somewhat good standing in the Australian bar association but more of a private eye who finds himself in a variety of political hi-jinx and scandals involving corruption--primarily political. In this installment much is happening. Jack embarks on helping a mate of his father recover 60,000 dollars from the mate's shitbag son who is involved in a variety of nefarious activities. This seemingly innocuous effort finds Jack on a path of murder and mayhem that reaches into the highest levels of corrupt Australian gobment. As the body count piles up, Jack also finds himself involved in more horse racing shenanigans with Cam and Harry. Somewhere along the way he finds an ally in an attractive roommate of one of the victims of the evil gobment operatives. Temple weaves the narrative in a seamless fashion and manages to keep all of dinner plates in the air without crashing down until the raucous conclusion. This series is unlike any other out there, so if you want your mayhem with a twist of Aussie flair then this is the series for you.
June 7, 2020
Peter Temple writes a complicated plot, laying out the plot extensively before the action begins and then it is explosive, tense, exciting and fast paced. The introduction to Black Tide was interesting but there’s some looseness following on from there that could be tightened up so that it doesn’t take half a book to get to the exciting parts.
Jack Irish is an interesting character, an unassuming bloke and not a heroic character, yet he is the sort of man that you would feel safe knowing he had your back; despite moving in dubious circles at times, he is a kind man who will help when needed to. After having read several of the Jack Irish series I’m becoming familiar with him.
Temple marries several aspects of Jack’s life as he interacts with his friends during their various enterprises, with his paid assignments which eventually become the focus of the story. The vernacular becomes familiar after a few books. Temple’s description is very good; it’s not a pretty scene that he paints but he does it well.
I gave it 🌟🌟🌟🌟.
Jack Irish is an interesting character, an unassuming bloke and not a heroic character, yet he is the sort of man that you would feel safe knowing he had your back; despite moving in dubious circles at times, he is a kind man who will help when needed to. After having read several of the Jack Irish series I’m becoming familiar with him.
Temple marries several aspects of Jack’s life as he interacts with his friends during their various enterprises, with his paid assignments which eventually become the focus of the story. The vernacular becomes familiar after a few books. Temple’s description is very good; it’s not a pretty scene that he paints but he does it well.
I gave it 🌟🌟🌟🌟.
June 25, 2021
Jack Irish is asked by an old friend of his Dad to find this man's son who borrowed $60,000 from him and disappeared. Jack discovers a complex organization involving money laundering and drugs that this missing man works for. Since Jack also works with a group that bets on horse races and also does wood working, a significant part of the story involves both of these. And a story can't be written without some love interest for Jack, despite his loss of his real love who has moved to another city for work.
I enjoyed this book, but the details of horse racing got in the way of the primary story for me. The cast of characters is the same as in the first book and in the videos shown on Acorn TV; and this is a good thing.
This book also includes a lot of Australian words, so I'm glad that I read this with the Google Play Books app so that I could look up the words I didn't understand. Learning new words is something I enjoy.
I enjoyed this book, but the details of horse racing got in the way of the primary story for me. The cast of characters is the same as in the first book and in the videos shown on Acorn TV; and this is a good thing.
This book also includes a lot of Australian words, so I'm glad that I read this with the Google Play Books app so that I could look up the words I didn't understand. Learning new words is something I enjoy.
December 24, 2022
Having lent his son a ton of money, Des Connors is troubled when his offspring, Gary, goes missing. Asked to investigate, Jack Irish wonders if Gary has deliberately absented himself, and if so, might the reasons be the result of mixing with the wrong sort of people? The trail soon points to trouble for Jack as he uncovers a complex web of intrigue that leads to threats to Jack’s own life.
This is the second book in the Jack Irish series. While I really enjoyed the first one (Bad Debts), this one didn’t grab me quite so much. The author’s use of language is still spot on and there are some nice developments in Jack’s personal life, but the whole horse racing thing is just plain boring and didn’t seem to bear any relation to the plot. Also, the story itself is overly complicated and I occasionally struggled to understand all the intricacies of the Black Tide business. The final section, however, is good fun and makes the read worthwhile.
This is the second book in the Jack Irish series. While I really enjoyed the first one (Bad Debts), this one didn’t grab me quite so much. The author’s use of language is still spot on and there are some nice developments in Jack’s personal life, but the whole horse racing thing is just plain boring and didn’t seem to bear any relation to the plot. Also, the story itself is overly complicated and I occasionally struggled to understand all the intricacies of the Black Tide business. The final section, however, is good fun and makes the read worthwhile.
March 9, 2024
I'm glad this book exists and was popular, it's so extremely Melbourne and I love it for it. Peter Temple has a fun eye for detail, and the concept of an amoral lawyer/detective/woodworker is a lot of fun.
I just think it might not quite be for me. Structurally it felt like it was missing some connective tissue to help keep me engaged. I can read fantasy books that include hundreds of made up words and names, and I'll handle it well, but with this book I couldn't hold onto anything so when someone was mentioned later I had no idea who they are or their relevance. It was quite odd.
But still, now when I'm walking down Russell St and take a right into Little Collins I feel like a character in a story, and that kind of gift is incalculable.
I just think it might not quite be for me. Structurally it felt like it was missing some connective tissue to help keep me engaged. I can read fantasy books that include hundreds of made up words and names, and I'll handle it well, but with this book I couldn't hold onto anything so when someone was mentioned later I had no idea who they are or their relevance. It was quite odd.
But still, now when I'm walking down Russell St and take a right into Little Collins I feel like a character in a story, and that kind of gift is incalculable.
February 16, 2025
I'd seen a couple of Jack Irish episodes on TV so I knew I'd like this book. I already liked the central character, so what with it being about lawyers, police, violence, international intrigue, and all kinds of other skullduggery, I thought, what's not to like? Hoo boy! I couldn't keep the characters straight (there were too many), I couldn't follow the plot (it meandered & took many sudden turns down blind/dead-ends) and I couldn't understand much of the lingo. There was too much jargon, euphamisms & slang (I don't speak Oz), all of which made reading this book a real struggle. And then there were all the horseracing references I didn't get. I'll try another, but I'm not holding my breath it'll be any better.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 143 reviews