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Then they are reunited.

This detonates an unstoppable explosion of events that embroils Mike Delaney in the battle of his life.

Hunted by 'the sepulchre killer' who uses an ancient and long forgotten weapon.

Ex assassin, Hong Kong cop and one-time warrior monk, Mike Delaney is part of confess-confess, the citizen's crime busting website. When he falls for a sob story in Ireland (the land of his birth) he is catapulted into a nail-biting battle for survival and sucked into an international conspiracy.

Delaney was simply doing a favour for an innocent Irish nun. He didn't expect it to spiral into a fight for survival, and grapple with an almost unstoppable force.

Identical twins unable to avoid their destinies. Will they both survive? 'You'll never read more high-octane thriller this year. Or any year.'

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First published December 11, 2017

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About the author

David Callinan

26 books133 followers
David Callinan is Anglo-Irish, born into a family from Limerick in the west of Ireland who grew up in the UK. After a spell at art school, early years saw a host of jobs from telegraphist to salesman – before discovering music. After busking all over Europe he rediscovered Irish music and formed The Spalpeens playing all over the UK, Europe and Ireland touring with The Dubliners, Sweeney's Men, The Chieftains and many others.

He appeared in films such as The Lion In Winter (Peter O'Toole, Katherine Hepburn) and Sinful Davey (John Hurt) and scores of television advertisements (was even directed by the late, great John Huston).

Later, he formed Urban Clearway, touring and performing with artists such as Elton John, Billy Connolly, Rod Stewart and Long John Baldry.

He co-wrote a Celtic rock opera for the Edinburgh Festival. 'Pucka-Ri' starred a young Pierce Brosnan and became one of the hits of the Fringe, before transferring to the Arts Theatre in London.

Latterly, an earlier spacey, folk-rock album, Freedom's Lament, recorded by Callinan-Flynn, has emerged as a highly sought after title on the Internet – and new wave Irish chanteur Sean Tyrrell has recorded a number of his songs on recent albums.

He began to write seriously, producing a string of screenplays and novels, the first of which, 'Fortress Manhattan' was published by Gollancz (Orion) and the '10-Minute Miracle' by HarperCollins.

Current books include thrillers: 'The Immortality Plot'; 'Knife Edge'; 'Bodyswitch' and 'An Angel On My Shoulder'.

He has written the YA fantasy trilogy, 'The Kingdoms Of Time And Space' and a chapter series for 7-10 year olds, 'The Weather Kids'.

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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
Profile Image for Jamie.
Author 1 book17 followers
September 11, 2019
I have read two David Callinan novels now and I like his style. Mike Delaney is a solid, likable character; a stainless steel nomad bent on fighting injustice.

Here we have a tale of two sisters, one pure and the other corrupted. Can one bring redemption for the other? Callinan tends to create his villains out of the criminally insane, those with peculiar propensities. The only criticism I would have for this story would be to minimize the cliche sayings. I don't remember this being an issue with The Immortality Plot.

The struggles & adventures of the Monk is a series with a lot of potential and sure to round out your thriller reading list.
4,005 reviews15 followers
December 12, 2017
"You can't change the habit of a lifetime."
On her 21st birthday, Beatrice, a young novice nun in an Irish convent still wrestling with the decision whether to commit her life to the order or take a leap into the unknown and enter the world outside, receives a letter which throws her into further confusion. She had lived her whole life inside the confines of her church firstly as an orphan brought up by nuns then in her chosen career in the monastery. The letter tells her she has a twin sister living in the USA, who, unlike her, was adopted at three months of age. She needs to find her, perhaps even meet her before she can make her final decision. Mike Delaney, ex soldier, ex Honk Kong police and briefly a monk, decides to help her and finds himself embroiled in a political plot of enormous proportion.

This well written story has such well developed main characters that the reader cannot help but be concerned about what will happen to them. The plot is simple in itself, but with twists that make for a very exciting read and the tension builds rapidly as the book proceeds towards the unexpected conclusion. It is detailed, too giving , for example, the effects of wind speed on a bullet and how to calculate it, as well as the action in the fights that occur. Nice touches, also, of a very human nature such as the reaction of a man unexpectedly finding a gun pointed at him "trying to verify the make of the pistol.", as well as some inherent humour in the text.

An exciting, well written and unusual thriller which does not play down to it's audience but allows for a certain amount of reader imagination whilst providing all salient facts. My thanks to the author for gifting me with a complimentary prepublication copy of Torn Apart and this unsolicited review is a true representation of my opinion.
High!y recommended..
Profile Image for Tex.
159 reviews
December 16, 2017
Innocence Torn Apart

(Disclaimer: I was provided the Advanced Review Copy of the book and decided to read it and provide my honest review, which I have.) Torn Apart is a Whodunits’ Whodunit. The book flowed like an operatic concerto. There were points in time where the opera crests and your heart races because an event occurs with or to a character to whom you have your emotions invested in. Or, you know, just know, something is going to happen to one of the individuals in the story, and your jaw drops because you’re in denial that the offense could be that awful, that horrible, that terrible, and it takes you a while to catch your breath to be able to move on. The protagonist is a man who admits upfront to be of no scars or innocence but has made peace with himself. As the story progresses he is loved, then scorned and then redeemed in the end. The character is strong, upon which other’s lean on at times when needed and he’s okay with that. No resentment, just encouragement. This is the world that author, David Callinan, creates in Torn Apart. He creates a masterful mystery thriller with several seemingly unrelated threads starting out, that begin to knock on each other’s door as the storyline progresses. When, at the end, all threads converge into a single point, the crescendo if you will, leaves you breathless, hopeless, heartbroken, and torn apart, all because of a simple innocent wish that started everything in motion. RECOMMENDATION: A Must Read. -Tex.
7,778 reviews50 followers
December 6, 2017
TORN APART. By David Callinan. A Mike Delaney thriller
Mike has a cold bed fellow a .38 Smith and Wesson, also known as The Monk. Assignment be a courier and deliver a packet to London, collect his fee, simple. Note flutters to the floor, Mike was in trouble. He meets up with his friend The Messenger, who has a request, to go as The Monk back to Ireland. Imagine spending one's life in a religious place, to turn twenty one and find you have an identical twin sister. She has no money or passport, and unknown to outside world. Mike doesn't do Lost and found.
Will you check in to see what happened when I delivered the packet, a case of bad tempered Russians or what. Talking with Beatrice, did she realize this could change her vocation. What follows when they find Constance, she was contacted also, the connected person same as for Mike. An assassination plot, what did they want, or was it something with adopted parents. This is a fantastic plot, that David wrote, how all the twist and turns makes a great story for readers.
Profile Image for Judy Johnson.
840 reviews2 followers
December 12, 2017
I started with this book as a beta reviewer, and followed it since July to its completion. It only got better and better through the editing process. This book, as was the first Mike Delaney book, was absolutely AMAZING! The characters are captivating, so much so, you can actually put yourself amongst them as you live the story! The thrills and excitement are evident from word one of this book, and you can't help but LOVE Delaney as he works together with his buddy the Messenger to do the right thing as always. This adventure takes Delaney to Ireland to detangle a web of mystery, deceit and unlikely alliances along the way! The villains are despicable, the hero has you cheering and you just can't help but race through this thriller! And, just when you think you've got this figured out, you discover that you don't. The ending was a complete surprise! Although this is the second Mike Delaney book, it works as a stand alone, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't read the first one. Get them both! You won't be disappointed!
Profile Image for Pete.
895 reviews7 followers
December 13, 2017
In Mike Delaney, David Callinan has produced a brilliant hero, his backstory is quite amazing and yet it is written in such a way as to be quite believable, very clever writing indeed.
This book is set in a variety of locations, all very well described, so that you feel that you are travelling with him. But the main things which stand out in this book are the plot and the characters. I don't do spoilers so won't describe the plot, but what I will say is that it is never predictable, it drew me in to the story to such a degree that I found it very difficult to put down when I needed to stop reading, and there are some fantastic action passages, some of which literally had me holding my breath.
The other characters in this book are also very believable and sometimes very surprising. A great thriller indeed!
I did receive a complimentary copy of the book from the author, but voluntarily wrote this review based entirely on my own opinions.
Profile Image for Randi Robinson.
657 reviews16 followers
December 18, 2017
David Callinan hits another one out of the park! The Monk is back with more nonstop action and I liked this second installment of the Mike Delaney series even more than the first. Mike returns to his Irish roots to help Sister Beatrice find the twin sister she was separated from at birth. Of course trouble finds Mike Delaney wherever he goes and a little romance finds him this time too. The book is filled with great characters, good and evil, including Oswald Dante, one of the more colorful bad guys I have seen in a long time. Mike gets out of trouble that seems insurmountable and left me wondering if he is part superhero. There are a lot of coincidences that to some may seem implausible but they added to the suspense and kept me reading into the wee hours. Look out Jack Reacher. Here comes Mike Delaney! This would make a great movie. Many thanks to the author for allowing me the chance to read this a few days early. I can't wait for the next installment.
Profile Image for Annemarie .
964 reviews23 followers
September 28, 2019
Twin girls separated at birth. One spends her life with nuns and the other an unhappy life with a well-to-do family. They don't know about each other until their twentieth birthday. Mike decided to help the Irish nun find her sister and having done so, found himself embroiled in an international conspiracy to kill the President of the United States. An action packed read. You will not see this ending coming. Happy reading. Annemarie
I received this book as an ARC from the Author and have chosen to leave a review.
Profile Image for Claudia.
2,988 reviews38 followers
December 12, 2017
A great story, with a well-planned plot and interesting characters, as is usual with David Callinan. Mike Delaney, in particular, is a really fascinating character, moral, with a belief in right and wrong that is his drive in life.

The story is captivating and will keep you reading well after your bed-time :P Really, this is a thriller you won't wish to miss.

I received a copy of this novel and I'm giving my review willingly.
776 reviews2 followers
December 13, 2017
Well there I am expecting another Mike Delaney book of the same ilk as the previous excellent books. Boy did I get that and more. This is definitely all that. Starts slowly like the others and then you are not only caught up in the plot but engrossed as well. The is a very good author, looking forward to reading more of his books. Highly recommended must read.
Profile Image for Phthon.
2,343 reviews8 followers
February 22, 2018
Another exceptional Mike Delaney thriller. I loved every moment I was reading this and I was very sad when it ended...I wanted to keep reading! I recommend this book!
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews

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