Killer Instiinct Novel by Zoë Sharp

Killer Instinct	Click book cover for larger image View full jacket of Busted Flush edition


New US paperback includes introduction by Lee Child (see below)		Busted Flush Press US Trade Paperback May 2010	ISIS Publishing UK Large Print Feb 2010	Piatkus Books UK Hardback Aug 2001 Paperback Feb 2002

Killer Instinct is the first book in the Charlie Fox series . . .

The New York Times said . . .

'The bloody bar fights are bloody brilliant, and Charlie's skills are both formidable and for real.'

'Charlie Fox came on strong in Zoë Sharp's early novels but, like a lot of tough girls, softened up with time. Now, thanks to an enterprising small press, we can catch Charlie in the rough. Originally published in 2001, KILLER INSTINCT (Busted Flush, paper, $15) finds this army-trained martial-arts expert on her first job, working security for a club in an English seaside town. Charlie looks like a made-for-TV model, with her red hair and motorcycle leathers, but Sharp means business. The bloody bar fights are bloody brilliant, and Charlie's skills are both formidable and for real.'

Marilyn Stasio, New York Times Sunday Book Review, 4 July 2010

Lee Child's introduction

Best-selling author Lee Child very kindly wrote an introduction for the new US trade paperback of Killer Instinct, and I’m very proud to quote a bit here:

'I was on tour in the UK in the Spring of 2002, for my sixth novel, and at the end of the events a woman came up to me and told me she loved my books, which is always a wonderful thing to hear. I responded happily − believe me, no forced politeness is ever required on such occasions − and then she said, "But Zoë Sharp is better."

'Naturally I asked, "Are you Zoë's mom?"

'She denied any family connection, and I filed the name away, because at heart I'm a reader, not a writer, and if a well-read fan offers a recommendation, I take it seriously. I write only one book a year, after all, but I read hundreds, and life is too short for bad books. Rushing from place to place on tour didn't give me time to go shopping, but fortunately free books are a currency in the publishing trade, so I had my publicist call Zoë's publicist, and within a day a copy of "Killer Instinct" was biked over to my next stop, and I read it in short order.

'And was very impressed.'

Modesty prevents me from quoting the rest of Lee's analysis of the book and my debut as a writer. But I hope you'll get hold of your own copy, read the introduction in full − and enjoy the book as much as Lee did!

Lee Goldberg emphatically approves

There has been much acclaim for the decision by US publishers Busted Flush Press to re-issue four of the early Charlie Fox books as trade paperbacks. Ebullient US crime writer and tv producer, Lee Goldberg, emailed his emphatic approval:

'If you only know Charlie Fox from First Drop, Second Shot, and Third Strike, you don't know Charlie. What you've got in your hands is a rare and special treat. It’s like finding some lost Jack Reacher novel or a couple of non-alphabet Kinsey Milhones that nobody knew existed. Don't let anyone tear it from your hands without drawing their blood.

'These early Zoë Sharp books haven’t been a secret, but they've been harder-to-get than Charlie Fox in your bed. Think of these as the early years of Charlie Fox − she’s lethal and relentless, but still raw from the military experience that made her the kick-ass, take-no-prisoners bodyguard that she’s become.

'But there’s more going on in these books than breakneck action and adventure. Charlie has heart, maybe too much for a woman in her profession . . . and it’s that caring, that humanity, that makes her much more than a killer babe on a motorbike. These books are your chance to discover Charlie Fox as she discovers herself, her strengths and her weaknesses, and sustains the scars to her body and soul that make her such a unique and compelling character.'

'Susie Hollins may have been no great shakes as a karaoke singer, but I didn't think that was enough reason for anyone to want to kill her.'

Killer Instinct introduces Charlie Fox, a tough new heroine who can very definitely take care of herself. Charlie makes a living of sorts teaching self-defence to women. It's a skill she picked up out of necessity having been kicked out of the army for reasons she prefers not to go into. So, when Susie Hollins is found dead after she mistakenly tussles with Charlie at the New Adelphi Club, Charlie knows it's only a matter of time before the police come calling. What they don't tell her is that the unlucky Hollins is the latest victim of a homicidal rapist stalking the local area.

Charlie finds herself inadvertently drawn into the investigation when the New Adelphi's enigmatic owner, Marc Quinn, offers her a job. Viewed as an outsider by the existing all-male security team, her suspicion that there's a link between the club and the serial killer doesn't exactly endear her to anyone. Charlie has always taught her students that it's better to run away than to stand and fight. But, when the killer starts taking a very personal interest, it becomes clear that he isn't going to give her that option . . .

From the author's notebook

While I was in the midst of writing Killer Instinct, one of the local nightclubs in Lancaster, where the book is set, was raided and shut down for drug-related reasons that seemed eerily to mirror events in the book!

Anyone who followed the scandal over abuse of army trainees at the Deep Cut military base in the UK, which occurred while I was writing this book, would find Charlie's traumatic army experiences readily understandable.

For anyone who's interested, the self-defence technique Charlie uses trying to break up the fight at the New Adelphi in chapter nine is a genuine one, taught to me by Ian ['this won't hurt'] Cottam. I know, I have the bruises to prove it . . .