Quite simply, I rated this book so highly not only based on its plot and storyline and action, but because it is AWESOME to encounter a mystery novel in which the woman is the beat-em-up, shoot-to-kill tough woman.

We need more books like that, that aren't aimply thinly-veiled tawdry romances.

Only other thing I have to say is this: the majority of the novel was set in my hometown of Daytona Beach, Florida, and I can promise you, Sharp did her research. She knows her craft.

First Drop grabbed my attention and I have to admit - I looked at the future book reviews to satisfy my "please tell no" moments in the book. Charlie Fox in pink hair gave me the mental image you can only get by losing yourself in the written word. The moment in the parking garage had me on pins and needles. The end of First Drop left me eagerly awaiting the next book.

In her fourth novel, though it was the first book released in the USA, First Drop described Charlie’s first official gig as a bodyguard. I first read this last year and have decided to re-read the series prior to the Sept. 2019 release of #13 n  Bad Turnn.

People who have complained about how difficult it was for them to start a new career have nothing on Charlie Fox!

Power plays between your supervisor and higher-ups that destablize the workplace? Check.

Unfriendly to downright hostile work colleagues? Check.

Bratty clients who do not listen? Check

Ridiculous hours - literally 24x7? Check.

Oh, yes, there was also the need to evade the police in a foreign country while avoiding being included in the quickly mounting body count. Though a bit shaky, Charlie triumphantly emerged by the end.

My only criticism was putting up with the bratty client and his slang for 75 percent of the book. Yes, he had elicited more empathy after learning of his parents’ neglect but I had to endure his manipulative petulance and temperamental outbursts for a long portion of the story.

First Drop had a great deal more action compared with the earlier books. This was written as a standalone with enough backstory to get a look at this fantastically complex heroine. And there was even a glimpse into the dark side of Charlie’s nature she wanted to kill to avenge Sean. I would encourage readers to check out the earlier books because this is such a fantastic heroine.


0)  Trial Under Fire

Charlie Fox is a hired gun who's working to protect a young man while in Florida on a mission. The team is ambushed and separated leaving Charlie alone with the most annoying teen she's charged with protecting. A very interesting book.

British ex-army soldier takes on her first assignment in the public sector. Not sure why I didn't like it better: too many tendrils maybe?

OK, this chick's love-life is getting annoyingly predictable. *SPOILER-ALERT*

STAGE 1: 'I love Sean, I wish we could be together'
STAGE 2: 'We're going to die. If only I pulled my head out of my arse and made the most of it while we still had the chance...'
STAGE 3: 'Allright, so we did not die. We're the luckiest people on the planet. Now, instead of kissing the guy like there's no tomorrow, I'm going to be complicated and distant and leave him without so much as a cheerio.'

And repeat. Every. Book. Again.

FOUR books in a row Charlie Fox escapes death, mostly with the love of her life Sean Meyer close by. You would THINK that the action and the continued almost-dying, combined with the continued realization of her intense love for him would lead to some serious spark, no?

Not according to Sharp. Instead, I'm to believe that two attractive, young, single people, who happen to have healthy amounts of testosterone flying around, and happen to be deeply in love and soul-mates and all that stuff, are also pretty much celibate. For like, 1,5 years now. Are you kidding me? In all this time, they got together only once. ONCE! And in a lousy flash-back in book 4, designed to give you some last-minute fuzzy feelings, so shit is able to hit the fan extra nicely. And what about that scene in which Sean and Charlie were thrown into a dark chamber, awaiting their execution? They held hands Hands! Like it was freaking World War One! You are both about to die, just kiss the guy already!

Don't get me wrong, the series is great, I like the writing a lot, and it did remind me of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (a big favorite of mine) more than once.

But the Charlie/Sean trick is starting to feel a little old. Well, like a trick, really. Stop dangling the freaking carrot. (That's not going to happen by the looks of it, the next book seems to kick off with some serious STAGE3.)

I began reading this before I realised there were 3 books before it in the series. so I stopped reading and began again with killer instinct. it made much more sense to the character development. I love this series. CF is such a breath of fresh air.

Charlie is gutsy, but the excapes etc are implausible....not quite realistic enough.

[close:] Charlie Fox works as a bodyguard for the personal security agency run by her ex-lover, Sean Mayer. Her new assignment seems easy enough: all she has to do is babysit Trey Pelzner, the gawky fifteen-year-old son of a rich computer programmer in Fort Lauderdale. The last thing anyone expected was that Trey's father and his entire entourage—including Sean—would disappear. And someone has begun stalking Charlie and Trey. As danger circles them, Charlie Fox is about to show everyone why she is, as Lee Child says, the real deal. [close:]

Sharp writing, fast plotting.

Another suspenseful, action filled book with a complex who-dun-it mystery included. Just what I like!

The teenager that Charlie is protecting, at great personal risk and sacrifice, is a real jerk. Very hard to sympathize with. And other characters are a bit one dimensional, too. But, hey! it's great pulp fiction! The story moves quickly and never lets down. Action, danger, and deceit fill every chapter.

I will definitely read all of this series!

This book was fantastic! Definitely my favorite in the series so far. Much like the roller coaster Charlie finds herself on at the start of this story, we, the readers, are on a roller coaster ride of our own. This story was non-stop, "edge of your seat" excitement. There were lots of twists and turns, some surprising, others not. Charlie is such a wonderful character. Zoe Sharp is a great writer and I am so excited that I still have 6 more Charlie Fox books to read. I need to slow down and savor them!

Once again Charlie Fox is mixing it with the hard men, and taking plenty of knocks in the process. A little too much of the gun culture for me, however, it's a great story that's fast paced, keeps you turning pages, and, even though the reader knows Charlie will survive, it does have the reader wondering if this is the end.