Stage Fright, by Marianne Delacourt

I reacted immediately, twisting, ducking and punching. A slight ooph told me I’d hit my mark, but a second set of hands grabbed me around the waist from the other direction and a hand went over my mouth.
I scrabbled in my bag, searching for a weapon, and latched onto something slippery. With all my strength, I began whacking the guy in front of me with the barbecue duck.

Stage Fright

Tara Sharp might be good investigator, but she doesn’t need to use her psychic skills to know that she’s in a bit of trouble in Perth, thanks to her past couple of jobs. So when her friend (and sometime sidekick) Wal  finds her a gig in Brisbane, she thinks it’s worth taking, even if minding troubled rap stars isn’t part of her usual line of work. But even in Brisbane, trouble seems to find Tara wherever she goes. Looking after music star Sledge isn’t easy, and then there are the people who are out to make sure his tour runs anything but smoothly. And Johnny Viaspa, the man she upset in Perth, is involved in whatever it is that’s going down. Tara has to wonder if she’s bitten off a bit too much this time.

Stage Fright is the third title featuring Tara Sharp, a Private Investigator with the ability to read auras, and, like its predecessors, is action-packed and exciting, as well as humorous. Sharp has an eclectic blend of friends and enemies, including other psychics, bikies, and a luscious toy-boy model. The situations she finds herself in sometimes defy belief, but that is part of her appeal.

Great for summer reading.

Stage Fright, by Marianne Delacourt
Allen & Uniwn, 2012
ISBN 9781742377902

Available from good bookstores and online.

Sharp Turn, by Marianne Delacourt

‘It’s from Wal Grominsky. He says, Keep a watch out for anyone tailing y–‘
I planted the accelerator and ran the red light, ripping a sharp left off the highway soon after.
‘–ou,’ Ed oophed out. He fell hard against his door and yelped in pain but I didn’t have time for apologies. In fact, I didn’t say a word for half-a-dozen more hairpin turns and a backtrack around the water tank on top of the Mosman Park hill.
Ed rubbed his shoulder. ‘What the-‘

Unorthodox PI Tara Sharp needs new clients, but she’s less than impressed when Madame Vine, proprietor of a high-class brothel, wants to hire her to sort out her staff. When the chance to work on a mystery threatening a high-profile motor racing team comes up, she’s much more keen. Tara is a petrol head, and hanging out at the track – and getting paid for it – seems like heaven to her.

But it isn’t long before Tara’s life is once again in danger. A body found floating in the Swan River reminds her that Johnny Viaspa may have it in for her. Add in a murder at Madam Vine’s abd a mysterious greay car tailing her, and it seems certain that Tara is in for more action than she bargained for.

Sharp Turn is the second action-filled crime novel in the Tara Sharp series, set in and around Perth. Tara is a sassy, clever investigator with the unorthodox investigative skill of being able to read auras. She is surrounded by an eclectic mix of characters, including a narcoleptic body guard, a runaway teen, posh parents and enough hunky men to satisfy any reader.

Readers will look forward to seeing more of Tara Sharp.

Sharp Turn

Sharp Turn, by Marianne Delacourt
Allen & Unwin, 2010
ISBN 9781742370033

This book can be purchased in good bookstores, or online from Fishpond.

Sharp Shooter, by Marianne Delacourt

I froze, not knowing which way to jump.
A shout from behind me urged me to run. It snapped my paralysis and I leaped back onto the pavement. I saw some things really clearly: scratches on the duco, a plastic spider swinging from the car’s rear-vision mirror, the mask and hoodie that hid the driver’s identity.
A split second before the car smashed up over the curb, I threw myself backwards off the retaining wall and into the river.
There was a loud thunk, followed by a roar of acceleration, and the car drove off, leaving me a quivering mess in the water.

Tara Sharp is unemployed and living in her parents’ garage. Her one gift -an ability for reading people – is always landing her in trouble, Until she meets Mr Hara, who teaches her to understand what people’s auras mean, and to more accurately read their motives and abilities. Now Tara is in business as an investigator, and things are looking up. For now.

On her first case, Tara finds herself caught up with some of Perth’s most colourful criminal personalities – and soon she is fighting for her life, desperate to solve the case before it kills her.

Sharp Shooter is the first story featuring Tara, a sassy twenty-something with a knack of landing herself in trouble. Filled with humour, this action packed thriller set in the suburbs of Perth, is billed as targeting fans of Janet Evanovich, and is a satisfying blend of action, mystery and laughs.

Sharp Shooter

Sharp Shooter, by Marianne Delacourt
Allen & Unwin, 2009

This book can be purchased online at Fishpond. Buying through this link supports Aussiereviews.