Diane Kelly

Diane Kelly is Filing for Readers

DEATH, TAXES, AND A FRENCH MANICURE
A Tara Holloway Novel
St. Martin’s Press
ISBN: 0312551266

Tara Holloway has got your number. A special agent on the IRS’s payroll, she’s dead-set on making sure that money crimes don’t pay…

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.

FILE EARLY  If you'd like a sneak peek at Diane's Debut !!

THE AUDIT
A CPA and tax attorney, Diane spent several years at an international accounting firm where she had the pleasure of working with a partner later convicted of tax shelter fraud. She also served a stint as an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Texas under an AG who pled guilty to criminal charges related to the tobacco company lawsuits. Given this work history, Diane decided self-employment might be a good idea. She also realized her experiences with white-collar crime were excellent fodder for a novel. Her fingers hit the keyboard and thus began her "Death and Taxes" mystery series.

Diane won the prestigious Romance Writers of America Golden Heart® Award in 2009 and has earned over two dozen RWA chapter awards.

THE INTERVIEW
ANGI: How often to you get lost in a story?
DIANE: As often as possible!

ANGI: What’s the first book you remember reading?
DIANE: LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE. I grew up in the Midwest and loved Laura Ingalls Wilder’s books. When I was young, we went on family vacations to visit some of her homes. My sisters and I loved it but my brother would complain about being dragged to another one of “that darn pioneer girl’s houses.”

ANGI: What’s your favorite fairy tale?
DIANE: I never liked fairy tales much, to be honest. So many of them involve a female waiting to be saved by a male. While I like a strong male character, I want my heroines to be smart and resourceful and feisty, too. They need to play an active role in their own rescue and to be equal to the male.

ANGI: What’s your favorite cartoon character?
DIANE: I always related to the little bird in the Foghorn Leghorn cartoons who claimed to be a chicken hawk. I was the youngest of four children and thus sometimes treated dismissively when I was young. But like the little bird, I was determined that I was, indeed, a chicken hawk and my voice would be heard!

ANGI: What turns you off like nothing else?
DIANE: Men who spit in public. Ew!

ANGI: Where do you read and how often?
DIANE: I always have a book with me and take advantage of snippets of time to read while waiting in the school parking lot, going on a road trip, standing in lines at the bank or post office. I read a few pages in bed every night when winding down at the end of the day. I also read sometimes in the bathtub when I can find a spare moment to relax.

ANGI: What sound or noise do you love?
DIANE: I’ve always liked the sound of a train whistle in the distance. It makes me feel like I’m connected to other parts of the world and my mind wanders, wondering where the train came from and where it’s going and what interesting things might be happening in those places.

ANGI: Fairy Tale or Action Adventure?
DIANE: Definitely action adventure! The female characters play a much more active role in action adventure movies than in fairy tales.

ANGI: Be honest, when reading...do you put yourself in the heroine’s role?
DIANE: Yes! I love to live vicariously through characters, especially when they are doing exciting, dangerous, courageous things I’d never be brave enough to try myself. It’s all the fun and thrills with none of the risks!

ANGI: Is writing or story-telling easier for you?
DIANE: Definitely writing. I like to play with words and try to say things in clever, funny ways. An agent once told me that it was clear I had a love of language. I was very flattered by that. My kids often groan at my puns, though. Nothing like living with two teenagers to keep a person humble.

ANGI: What’s something you’d like to tell your fans?
DIANE: That I write for them, with the hope that I can bring laughter to their day. Life can be tough. We all need a good laugh now and then!

ANGI’S GOTTA ASK: I have adored the title of your debut release since first seeing it on the contest circuit. I’m so glad you got to keep your title. And I laughed out loud when reading the title of your second: DEATH, TAXES & A SKINNY NO-WHIP LATTE. Care to share anything about that No-Whip Latte? And what might be next for Tara Holloway?
DIANE’S GOTTA ANSWER: Tara becomes addicted to lattes when running late-night undercover surveillance. Unfortunately, while the extra-whip, extra-drizzle caramel lattes may help her stay awake in the wee hours of the night, they aren’t doing her waistline any good. She’s forced to switch to skinny, no-whip lattes lest her butt become as big as the case she’s working on. In book #3, DEATH, TAXES, AND EXTRA-HOLD HAIRSPRAY, Tara’s after a preacher who’s pulling the wool over the eyes of his sheep. He may not worship a golden calf, but he’s using the church as his own cash cow, using the funds from the collection plates to finance a lavish lifestyle.

Funny thing about the title of my debut novel. Originally it was “Filing Status: Single.” Not nearly so catchy, huh? Once I changed it the manuscript really took off in contests. I’m a firm believer in a catchy title!

DIANE WILL draw from those leaving comments for THREE (3) copies of DEATH, TAXES, AND A FRENCH MANICURE.
Note: Offer void where prohibited. Prizes will be mailed to North America addresses only unless specifically mentioned in the post. Odds of winning vary due to the number of entrants. Winners of drawings are responsible for checking this site in a timely manner. If prizes are not claimed in a timely manner, the author may not have a prize available. Get Lost In A Story cannot be responsible for an author's failure to mail the listed prize. GLIAS does not automatically pass email addresses to guest authors unless the commenter publicly posts their email address.

THE CPA’S QUESTION FOR TODAY: Who’s more important to you in a book – the heroine or the hero?

READERS CAN FIND DIANE on her Website on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/dianekellybooks or Twitter.
Send an email to: diane@dianekelly.com. Watch for Diane on Killer Fiction.

READERS DON’T FORGET to follow us on Facebook & Twitter (#GetLostStories) for a daily update on who’s visiting GLIAS and what they might be giving away! Join us on tomorrow when Cat hosts Addison Fox and back on Friday when Donnell hosts Linda Lovely. ~Angi