Tara Holloway Series

Tax cheats, beware: The Treasury Department's Criminal Investigations Division has a new special agent on its payroll. A recovering tomboy with a head for numbers, Tara's fast becoming the Annie Oakley of the IRS-kicking ass, taking social security numbers, and keeping the world safe for honest taxpayers. Or else. Tara's latest mission finds her in hot pursuit of ice-cream vendor Joseph "Joe Cool" Cullen. Along with frozen treats he's selling narcotics-and failing to report his ill-gotten gains on his tax returns. Over Tara's dead body. Then there's Michael Gryder, who appears to be operating a Ponzi scheme . . . with banker Stan Shelton . . . whose lake house is being landscaped by Brett Ellington . . . who happens to be dating Tara. If following that money trail isn't tough enough, now Tara must face a new conundrum: Should she invest her trust in Brett-or put him behind bars? New love always comes at a cost, but justice? Priceless.

It's all in a day's work for Tara Holloway, the U.S. Treasury's latest, greatest, soon-to-be-skinniest weapon against the biggest, richest tax cheats in the nation . . . When she joined the Criminal Investigations Division, Tara knew she'd be investigating some very real crooks. Forget about waitresses hiding tips from the IRS or babysitters not declaring income! Tara and her partner, Eddie, are going after one of country's richest, dirtiest felons. Being on a diet doesn't help Tara's mood much. Hopefully, by the time the investigation is over, she'll be sitting somewhere in a string bikini, far, far away . . . But first: Reality. Marcos Mendoza is a suspected loan shark with connections across the Mexican border. He's never been accused of any crimes, yet his business associates have a history of disappearing . . . and resurfacing . . . in body bags. Will Tara risk life, limb, and the pursuit of filing a joint tax return with her maybe-serious boyfriend Brett? Fighting crime, like drinking a cup of coffee with low-fat milk and artificial sweetener, is often bittersweet . . .

It's bad enough that Tara has to go on trial against the mortgage-frauding "Tennis Racketeers" who cheated banks and homeowners out of millions in between doubles matches. Now she has to go undercover-in a strip club-to strip the sleazeball owner of his indeed illegal livelihood. At least she's working as a bookkeeper, not a pole dancer. And who needs tips when her undercover crush, Special Agent Nick, is the club's bodyguard? With so many hot bodies on display, Tara agrees to join her boss, Lu "the Lobo" Lobozinski, in her daily workouts at the Y. Lu's on a health kick after recovering from cancer, and she's pulled her leotards, tights, and hot-pink leg warmers out of mothballs. Which is okay with Tara. If she hopes to put Mr. Geils behind bars, grab the tennis boys by the balls, and lock lips with the unsuspecting Nick, she needs to be in the best shape of her life . . .

When you're an agent for the IRS, it's always tax time. And this season, Tara Holloway is up to her neck in work with two very knotty cases. One involves a charismatic minister who's using his mega-church as a tax shelter. The other is a crazy militant who's trying to turn Texas into a separate country. With her boyfriend out of town and her partner reassigned, Tara is on her own-and things are getting hairy. If dealing with the Lone Star State isn't enough, Tara has other new issues to take into account: There's a sexy new agent named Nick, who's got her head in the clouds . . . and Tara's boss, Lu, who's having a hair problem of epic proportions: not even her Chinese contraband industrial-strength hairspray is enough to keep her signature strawberry blonde beehive from falling flat. Can Tara help Lu find a wig-and keep from wigging out over Nick? Love, updos, taxes-this time, Tara's got a whole lot of kinks to iron out . . .

When it comes to exposing tax fraud, Tara and her partner Eddie are really cleaning up. From their brilliant takedown of the disappearing "Tax Wizard" to their perfectly planned downfall of the "Deduction Diva," they've earned the respect of their peers at Criminal Investigations. Now Tara's ready to celebrate with an ice-cold pitcher of peach sangria-even if her next case is totally the pits . . . Tara's looking forward to a challenge but, back at the office, everyone's looking for love. Her boss Lu "The Lobo" Lobozinski and office virgin Josh Schmidt are signing up for an online dating service, and-to Tara's dismay-so is her crush, Special Agent Nick Pratt. Tara's trying to act chill. But when she learns that her next case involves cash-funneling to terrorists, it's not just her love life that's on the rocks. It's her life, period.

Fired. Tara Holloway can't believe it. After all she's done for the IRS, a few too many shots fired from her weapon and suddenly she's public enemy number one. To add insult to injury, another agent has replaced her, and a ten-million-dollar assault case is hanging over her head. So much for traveling to Tokyo with Special Agent Nick Pratt, former partner and current boyfriend. Tara's stuck in Texas, and using green tea ice cream to soothe her disappointment, as well as the terrifying prospect of a life behind bars. Tara's former boss, Lu "the Lobo" Lobozinski, has a plan-to stick Tara in auditing, where she can't possibly get into trouble. But between bumping into a college frenemy whose family business is under audit, Tara's stubborn determination to keep an eye on Nick behind the scenes, and her new long-range rifle, she's about to get a taste of just how dangerous her life can be, in Death, Taxes, and Green Tea Ice Cream from Diane Kelly . . .

He's one of America's brightest stars. So maybe it goes without saying that IRS Special Agent Tara Holloway is star-struck? In Diane Kelly's Death, Taxes, and Silver Spurs, she's head over heels . . . in trouble. Easy's getting harder every day for Tara. A tax-evading pet groomer managed to buzz off a big chunk of her hair . . . just in time for her date strictly-business meeting with country-music heartthrob Brazos Rivers. Of course Tara shouldn't care-she's devoted to Special Agent Nick Pratt, after all-but Rivers does know how to steal a woman's heart with a song . . . Meanwhile, Tara's up to her fracking neck with another case: A natural-gas company with a money trail that is almost as suspicious as Brazos Rivers's tax return. Which is to say, he can't seem to cough up one. Tara figures the misdeeds of her celebrity crush must be an oversight. But will she dance to a different tune . . . when her tax-evading idol starts evading her, too?

TRUE CRIME DoeSN'T PAY . . . TAXES. IRS Special Agent Tara Holloway has risked her life to take down drug cartels and other dangerous tax frauds. But going after the mob is one offer she can't refuse . . . He's no Tony Soprano. Still, local crime boss Giustino "Tino" Fabrizio is one shady character that Tara would love to see behind bars. He operates a security business-or so he claims on his tax forms-but his clients don't feel so secure when it's time to pay up. Problem is, no one can get close enough to nail this wiseguy for extortion. No one, that is, except Tara . . . Going undercover, Tara lands a waitress job at Benedetta's Bistro-which is owned and operated by Tino's wife. Being surrounded by cream-filled cannolis could be hazardous to Tara's waistline . . . even though the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, right? Only thing Tara can't afford to do now is blow her cover. Because serving Tino his just desserts will surely come with a price . . .

FOR RICHER OR POORER, IN BUSINESS AND IN STEALTH. Can IRS Special Agent Tara Holloway break up a clever ring of tax cheats who love money, dishonor the IRS, and disobey the laws of justice? When Tara agreed to be her best friend's maid of honor, she knew it would be a ton of work. But planning a bachelorette party is a piece of (wedding) cake compared to her latest mission for the IRS. Her target is radio host Florence "Flo" Cash, star of "The Flo Cash Cash Flow Show." Not only has Flo been giving her listeners shady tax advice, she's set up an elaborate barter system that leaves Uncle Sam out of the equation-and Tara tied in knots . . . While Flo flouts the IRS at every turn, Tara has yet another case to tackle: a catfishing Casanova who's relieved several lonely ladies of their cash, credit cards, and dignity. When her best friend's big day arrives, it's all Tara can do to keep from crying uncle. But when Tara snatches the bridal bouquet and her boyfriend Nick catches the satin garter, could Tara's days of filing single tax returns be over?

SHE LOVES HER WORK-CASE CLOSED. IRS Special Agent Tara Holloway can calculate tax penalties to the penny. But seeing the world of white-collar crime through rose-colored glasses? Priceless. Tara's career comes with a lot of pros and cons-which is a nice way of saying that she's kick-a$$ in her fight against professional con-artists. And she's tough enough to deal with all the money-launderers, tax-evaders, and other such criminals who cross her path . . . Until her own boyfriend, Nick, joins their leagues. Now all bets are off. Nick is about to go deep undercover-and the stakes are higher than Tara could have ever imagined. It's all part of a joint task force with the DEA to bring down a powerful, violent drug cartel. It's going to take more than a pair of dime store shades for Tara to bring their dark deeds to light. Can she help Nick without blowing his cover . . . and ending up in harm's way herself?

LOVE BEGINS-AND ENDS-WITH A BANG. For IRS Special Agent Tara Holloway, this case is personal . . . Wedding bells are ringing as Tara and her soon-to-be-husband Nick prepare for their big day. But along with all the RSVP cards are a series of death threats from an unknown source. The culprit must be someone from an earlier investigation-a white-collar criminal with a red-hot grudge-but Tara has run across too many lawbreakers to narrow down the search. And time, like her biological clock, is ticking. Now, while dodging attempts on her life, Tara also finds herself embroiled in a rental scam in which a heartless crook is ripping people off left and right. Will she be able to track down the con artist and make it down the aisle in one piece? Or will "til death do us part" come before Tara can even say "I do"?

SHE HAS AN APPETITE FOR JUSTICE. But this time IRS Special Agent Tara Holloway is in over her head-and challenging every dietary law in the book . . . When the IRS is tasked with assisting the border patrol in pursuing unscrupulous "coyotes" who've transported illegal immigrants across the border, Tara finds herself at odds. Not only must she investigate Brett Ellington, her old flame whose landscaping business employs such workers, but now Tara has to convince her new romantic partner in crime, Nick Pratt, that she doesn't still carry a torch for Brett. #stresseating #greaseistheword Now, in addition to proving her love to her own fiance, Tara is on the hunt for a trail of bogus 1099s in the Dallas area. Someone, somewhere is using the IRS as a pawn in a cunning game of revenge. Will Tara be able to identify the culprit making the false tax reports-before her sweet-potato-fry addiction forces her to get her engagement ring resized? That is, if jealousy doesn't get the best of Nick first . . .