Torn Apart

Cliff Hardy #35

by Peter Corris

Hardy has never been much of a family man, so when he meets his second cousin Patrick Malloy it's like being hit with a left hook to the solar plexus—Malloy is his double. Cliff and his cousin become friends and travel to attend a gathering of the Irish Travellers, the gypsy-like folk from whom they are descended. On their return, Malloy is brutally murdered—but perhaps the shotgun blast was intended for Hardy. He is delicensed and semiretired, but this investigation is personal. The plot becomes still more personal when Malloy's ex-wife, Sheila, comes onto the scene. Hardy has his own enemies and Malloy's to consider as he searches for the killer. Clues point in many directions—to Sheila's motives, to Malloy's suspect business dealings, and to his time as a mercenary in Angola. The search takes Hardy north to a paramilitary training camp and south to a meeting of Traveller descendants in Kangaroo Valley. Other players have other interests and their playing style is ruthless.

Genres: Crime, Mystery, Fiction, Australia

240 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

Peter Corris was an Australian academic, historian, journalist and a novelist of historical and crime fiction. His first novel was published in 1980. Corris is credited with reviving the fully-fledged Australian crime novel with local settings and reference points and with a series character firmly rooted in Australian culture, Sydney PI Cliff Hardy. As crime fiction writer, he was described as "the Godfather of contemporary Australian crime-writing".

He won the Lifetime Achievement award at the Ned Kelly Awards for Crime Writing in 1999 and was shortlisted for best novel in 2006 for Saving Billy and in 2007 for The Undertow.

Reviews

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

It couldn't ever be said that the loss of his Private Investigator's licence has slowed Cliff Hardy down. In TORN APART, the death of his look-alike cousin in Cliff's house, an arrest for importing illegal drugs, a trip to Ireland, a gathering of Irish Traveller descendants, a brush with the spooks and a new woman don't even slow him down. But they do coincide to give him a moment or two's thought.

Meeting Patrick - a second cousin he never knew about, a second cousin who is the absolute spitting image of him certainly does give Cliff something to think about. Not the least because the contact comes out of the blue and impetuously leads to a trip to Ireland to track down their joint ancestors. Having had a tremendous trip overseas, the cousins return to Sydney and Cliff's house, only to have Patrick shot to death in Cliff's back bathroom. For a while it's not particularly clear who was the intended target - Cliff or Patrick, the physical similarity being as startling as it is. Pretty soon Patrick's ex-wife enters the fray (and Cliff's bed), the spooks appear, and Patrick is obviously not exactly what he seemed to be. Cliff starts out investigating - to avenge his cousin, protect his own skin, clear his own name, keep in sweet with the girl, and because he just can't help himself.

There have been some terrific books in the Cliff Hardy series recently, in the lead up to, and the ultimate loss of his PI Licence. A heart attack, a near fatal bullet wound, getting older, a lot of things have contributed in recent books to Cliff becoming a slightly (very slightly) different person to who he used to be. Perhaps that's why TORN APART isn't my absolute favourite of the recent books - mostly because this outing felt more like a return to the expected pattern. Events happen; Cliff gets the girl; he's threatened and backed into a corner; solves the case; starts to lose the girl. Not that the pattern isn't well executed, enjoyable, and just a darn good entertaining read, but perhaps it's that slight feeling of returning to the same old same old, the lack of Cliff continuing to move on, changing, aging, adapting. There's none of that feeling in TORN APART, and because of that, it's not going to make my one of my favourite Cliff Hardy books. Mind you, it's still a good, entertaining, perfect summer quick read, in the full-on style of Cliff Hardy. There's not a lot wrong with that.

[Vicki Tyley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Strong, fluid writing with a distinctively Australian voice, but it's not until 17% through that anything really happens. Prior to that, it's all set up with Cliff Hardy meeting and getting to know his second cousin. I'm happy I stuck with it, though.

[Gary Vassallo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great Cliff Hardy adventure! Enjoyable fast paced plot leading to a satisfying climactic ending.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Those of you who follow my reviews will notice that this is the first time I've rated a Peter Corris novel lower than a 4. I was disappointed in this Cliff Hardy novel.

The story begins well, as usual. Hardy has been "ordered" by his doctor to slow down, take a vacation, but because of his heart problems, to have someone go with him.

Voila! Out of the blue, Hardy is contacted by an unknown second cousin, related through grandparents, both of Irish stock. Patrick Malloy, who looks almost exactly like Hardy and whom Hardy likes from the beginning, wants to go to Ireland to "experience" their common background in the Irish Travellers, a gypsy-like community.

Hardy goes, although he isn't as interested in the culture as Patrick is. They often go off on their own during the days. Patrick says he is going to a bookstore which allows him to read on-site, but Hardy has his doubts. One day he follows Patrick and watches him go into a veterinarian's office.

When they return to Australia, Hardy offers Patrick his spare room until the apartment Patrick is planning to move into becomes free. However, he returns one day to discover parts of Patrick splattered all over the bathroom.

Why would someone kill Patrick? What is in his background that he never told Hardy? They didn't exchange much background information other than geneology. BUT, since they look almost like twins, was the murder meant for Hardy instead?

When he forges Patrick signature and picks up the package Patrick sent from Ireland, things get blacker. Inside the package to Patrick, Hardy finds steroids. He is picked up by the police and charged with forging the signature and retrieveing a package not his own. All of a sudden, the charges are dropped with no explanation.

This is the kind of beginning that is usual with Corris in the Hardy series. But from there it gets succeedingly weaker.

Patrick's wife appears and, although he originally has deep suspicions about her, Hardy decides, too quickly in my mind, that she is innnocent and she becomes the love interest in this book. A contact in the force that Hardy's friend Frank suggests he contact, seems to imply dropping the charges came from "higher up." He's frightened to tell Hardy more. The son of a man Hardy killed years ago and who threatened to kill him for it has been released from prison, but after Hardy tracks him down, he finds that the son has changed.

The ending was extremely weak to me. Of course, I can't say anything, but Patrick's background isn't filled in sufficiently and the final encounter doesn't completely make sense. A character introduced near the end doesn't seem to have a real role in the windup either.

Although disappointing, the book is, of course, worth reading if only because I love Cliff Hardy and the series. But I hope I don't find another one of these.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cliff Hardy has mellowed over the years. He has become gentrified, much like the Sydney environment in which he lives. No longer is he the hard drinking, fast living detective with boundless energy from the earlier novels. He's had heart-bypass surgery, lost his soulmate to murder, surrendered his PI license and is showing the wear and tear of his tough life - but the grit and intrigue remains. Peter Corris has constantly added layers to Cliff Hardy throughout the 30+ novels. Cliff has never been fashionable with his older cars and rough edges and general layer of shoddiness. With each new book he continues to evolve as a character. All of which creates an added dimension for the reader that goes beyond the plot line of the book.

I initially thought that Corris had made a rod for his own back when Cliff Hardy surrendered his PI license. How was Cliff going to continue his investigations from the sidelines without a license? How was he going to support himself? Cleverly Corris provided the solutions. A large inheritance left by Cliff's former partner solves Hardy's money problems, and Cliff manages to get to the core of the investigation into the death of his Irish cousin through family tie-ins and by using information provided by his old police and investigative sources.

Not my faourite all-time Cliff Hardy novel by any means (plenty to choose from), but nevertheless a very enjoyable read for all devotees of crime fiction. Is this kind of unlicensed Cliff Hardy investigation sustainable? I am not so sure. I feel that Cliff's powers are a little benign since his de-licensing and I wonder how long he can keep 'sponging' on former sources for assistance. Secretly I am hoping that Cliff may have his PI license re-instated. Or perhaps the emergence of Cliff's daughter as a PI may provide the avenue for the series to continue. Possibly Corris is preparing Cliff Hardy for a Glebe retirement village. I hope not! I'm a loyal Cliff Hardy devotee and I want more, more, more and more Cliff Hardy novels!

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Torn Apart is book thirty-five in the Cliff Hardy series by Peter Corris. Cliff Hardy and his second cousin Patrick Malloy attended the Irish Travellers' gathering. Harry has no license and semiretired. However, after the death of Patrick in subspecies circumstances, Cliff Hardy had to find answers. Cliff Hardy's investigation became more personnel when Patrick Malloy's ex-wife Sheila came involved in finding who killed Patrick Malloy. The readers of Torn Apart will continue to follow Cliff Hardy investigation to find out what happens.

I enjoy reading books in the Cliff Hardy series, and I was looking forward to reading Torn Apart. Soon as I open the first page, Torn Apart had me hooked on the characters and the plot of this book. I love Peter Corris portrayal of his characters and how they intertwine with each other throughout this book. Torn Apart is well written and researched by Peter Corris. I like Peter Corris description of the settings of Torn Apart that allow me to imagine being part of the book's plot.

The readers of Torn Apart will learn about the Irish Travellers' a nomadic indigenous ethnic group from Ireland. Also, the readers of Torn Apart will learn about corruption in Australian paramilitary groups.

I recommend this book.

[Robert Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is not the best Cliff Hardy novel by Peter Corris that I have read, but still very good. I wish that more people read these books about an Australian PI (known as a Private Enquiry Agent or PEA). It takes some getting used to Aussie terms and idiom, but is some of the best crime fiction to be found anywhere in the world. The problem here is that DBRL only has a few titles and it is hard to request purchase because they are published in Australia and don't become available in the US for 11 - 13 months and library buyers won't purchase titles over a year old. So help you crime buffs, read these and request more.

[Captain Basil · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am a long time fan and enjoyed this rather offbeat entry in the Cliff Hardy series. It was not much of a mystery but it had a very interesting story. I would not recommend this one as an introduction to this series, but fans should be pleased.

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Light, thin and very easy to read. The writing style is direct and the story line straightforward. He wrote 42 or so of these using this character and it is not hard to imagine how he pumped them out. I might try one of the early ones to see if they were deeper.

[Deepa Duraisamy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Felt like a dud. Very slow paced. Very casual for a murder thriller. Kept waiting for the tension to build, for it to get taut but it dissapointed.

[Karen Harrison · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't think that this was a particularly good book.

[Yvonne Boag · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one of the books shortlisted for NSW as part of 2012 year of reading. If you have ever read a Cliff Hardy novel you know what to expect. Cliff has lost his private detective license and doesn't know what to do with himself when he receives a phone call out of the blue. It turns out he has a second cousin, Patrick, he never knew existed who looks almost identical. After travelling to Ireland to research their roots, Patrick moves in with Cliff and all is going well until Cliff returns home one day to find Patrick dead from a shot gun blast in the shower. Cliff is unable to stop himself from investigating. But the question is was the killer after Patrick or himself?

You can see why the book is nominated as it gives a real sense of location. Ranging from around Sydney to the South Coast you can feel Peter Corris' love of the land and the history of the places he describes. Very character driven in none the less provides an interesting plot that leaves you guessing until the end.

[Balthazar Lawson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the 35th book in the Cliff Hardy series and the first for me. I liked it.

Cliff Hardy is, or in this book, was a private investigator but is now facing retirement after his licence is revoked. But of course he still ends up in troubles. It's a nice easy read and very enjoyable book. I like it because it's Australian based and I will definitely be reading more.

[Doug Riley · Rating 3 out of 5]

This must be getting to the end of the Cliff Hardy series, Peter seems to begetting bored with it and Cliff should have be enjoying his retirement now and not getting involved in this sort of stuff.

[Pete Loveday · Rating 3 out of 5]

As usual, Peter Corris has written a good story with Frank Hardy doing what he does best...solving crimes, avoiding Police time, and finding female company! However, Frank is tiring as the years catch up with him. Maybe it's time for Frank to start reading the Retirement Home adverts!

[Justine · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a formula, but it's a fun and successful one. Interesting mix as a reader of strange unfamiliar world (Irish 'travellers') and very familiar inner city Sydney haunts. Doesn't disappoint if Corris or Hardy fan.

[Warren Olson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another entertaining Cliff Hardy tale ;
While not a five star read, an easy holiday read with Cliff getting himself into the usual difficulties with both the law and female company. In this tale he ventures to Ireland and mercenary soldiers are involved.

[Shelleyrae at Book'd Out · Rating 2 out of 5]

A little formulaic but an easy read

[Cathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Undemanding easy read with good scenes of inner city Sydney. Blokey main character who is quite likeable.

[Marla · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an okay book that I got from the Library. Sure glad I did not pay the $12-$14 it was listed at as it was not that good

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good fast paced read.

[Sue Law · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another solid, fast-paced Cliff Hardy novel (though not one of the best). A remote cousin turns up out of the blue and Cliff finds himself tagging along on a ride. But is everything as it seems?

[Lorraine Shaw · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book.