Death and Taxes

by Mark David Zaslove

Death and Taxes follows Mark Douglas, an ex-Marine turned IRS agent, who, along with auditing the weird and the profane, also goes out with his gang of government-sanctioned revenuers over weekends, merrily gathering back-taxes in the form of cash, trade or MILFs-with-their-robes-open barter.

Things turn ugly when Mark’s favorite boss and dearest friend Lila is tortured and killed over what she finds in a routine set of 1040 forms. Mark follows a trail dotted with plutonium-enriched cows, Saudi sheikhs with jewel-encrusted wieners (and we’re not talkin’ Oscar Mayer), edge-of-death ex-drug sniffing dogs named The Cabbage, overly-excited magicians who pull doves out of orifices that shouldn’t have doves pulled out from them, billionaire Texans with fetishes for barbecue-sauced ladies underthings, and even an FBI agent whose nickname is “Tightass.” All of which lead to more and bloodier murders.

With aid from his IRS pals—Harry Salt, a crazed thirty-year vet with a quantum physical ability to drink more than humanly possible; Wooly Bob, who’s anything but wooly, egg-bald on top with shaved eyebrows for effect; Miguel, an overly excited newbie, with a company-issued bullhorn and a penchant for getting kicked in the jumblies—Mark hunts down the eunuch hit man Juju Klondike and the mee krob snorting Mongolian mob that hired him as only an angry IRS agent can. There will be no refunds for any of them when April 15th comes around. There will only be Death and Taxes.

219 pages, Hardcover

Published June 12, 2018

About the author

Mark Zaslove is a long-standing writer/director/producer, live-action and animation entertainment industry veteran, working in both movies and television. He’s done time – scratch that – created content for all the major studios, including Disney, Universal, Paramount and Warner Bros. A two-time Emmy Award winner for writing/producing, Mark also won the Humanitas Prize (for writing uplifting human values in television and movies – go figure). He also writes short fiction and right after college (where he studied astrophysics), he served as senior editor on various magazines including a couple for the notorious LFP, Inc.—google it—but from there he went to “Winnie the Pooh,” so his karma is still cool.

Finally, one day, he got fed up with the rigorous structure of scriptwriting and everyone giving him notes and decided: “WTH! Time to stretch my legs, step on the gas and write a novel for the sheer fun of it!” And voila, almost before you could say “Death and Taxes,” the book was done. What’s more, it’s just the first in a series of fast-paced thrillers following the escapades of IRS agent Mark Douglas and his band of merry revenuers as they bring justice to those in great need of same, while collecting your Federal dollars along the way. Hey, for both Marks, it’s a living.

Reviews

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book review can be found on my blog here: https://booksonthebookshelf.wordpress...

Thank you to Aperient Press and Jane Wesman Public Relations for the free copy of this book to read and review.

This book follows the work and personal life of the main character Mark Douglas, an ex-marine and now IRS Agent. Along with his IRS gang, they go out to collect back taxes in many forms, from cash, trade, etc. One day Mark’s good friend Lila, who is also his boss, ends up murdered and Mark and his IRS team is determined to find out what exactly happened.

I really enjoyed reading this book. The main character Mark is a true badass IRS Agent. I loved his up front, blunt and tell it how it is attitude and outlook on everything. I enjoyed reading about his character and learning about his past, to get an understanding of what made him into the man and IRS Agent that he is today.

This book is full of many likable characters, and I enjoyed reading and learning about all of them. This book was hard to put down once I started reading and I found myself hooked from the very first page. The book is very well written in a way that draws you in and keeps your attention the whole way through and leads you wanting to continue reading to find out what happens next.

The book draws you in form the very beginning and I loved all the shocking twists and suspenseful turns in the story.

[S. Jeyran Main · Rating 4 out of 5]

Death and taxes is a witty novel about Mark Douglas, an IRS agent who happens to be an accountant. As he is carrying on with his merry way, his friend and boss, Lila, is killed causing him to seek answers and justice for her death.




Mark teams up with his very interesting friends in order to crack the case, causing a lot of stir, laughter, and excitement. The literature was very humorous and the casting crew definitely added to its colors diverse character development.

I found the pace to be steady and sometimes diverting. The writing was very straightforward and easy to follow, and I particularly enjoyed the descriptive writing style the author possessed.



This fictional story would suit readers that like to experience a good laugh as they read a more serious subject matter.



I believe that the casting crew and the humorous literature style of writing are what made this book stand out. The author has done her research, and it is evident that she has potential.



I look forward to reading more of her work.

[Ruth Pople · Rating 5 out of 5]

So much fun! This book is a scream! Trouble in the tax arena? I say so! You will be flipping through these pages faster than your tax man can flip out those forms. Ex- Marine Mark Douglas turned tax collector of sorts is getting the paybacks anyway possible finding those with let's just say have a few tax deductions that may be in question. magicians, horse lovers, picking locks, safety deposit boxes? Loved it! Recommend it and a must read !

[Hobart · Rating 3 out of 5]

This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.
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I'm not sure I can go this book justice with a hand-crafted synopsis, I'll just copy and paste from Zaslove's site (slightly different than the Goodreads copy as of this date):

Death and Taxes follows Mark Douglas, an ex-Marine turned IRS agent, who, along with auditing the weird and the profane, also spearheads weekend raids with his locked-and-loaded gang of government-sanctioned revenuers, merrily gathering back taxes in the form of cash, money order, or more often than not, the debtor’s most prized possessions.

Things turn ugly when Mark’s much-loved boss and dear friend Lila is tortured and killed over what she finds in a routine set of 1040 forms. Mark follows a trail dotted with plutonium-enriched cows, a Saudi sheik with jewel-encrusted body parts, a doddering, drug sniffing, gun-swallowing dog named The Cabbage, a self-righteous magician with a flair for safecracking, a billionaire Texan with a fetish for spicy barbecue sauce and even spicier women, and an FBI field agent whose nickname is “Tightass.” All of which lead to more and bloodier murders – and more danger for Mark.

Enlisting his IRS pals – Harry Salt, a 30-year vet with a quantum physical ability to drink more than humanly possible; Wooly Bob, who’s egg-bald on top with shaved eyebrows to match; Miguel, an inexperienced newbie with a company-issued bullhorn and a penchant for getting kicked in the jumblies – Mark hunts down the eunuch hit man Juju Klondike and the deadly Mongolian mob that hired him as only an angry IRS agent can. There will be no refunds for any of them when April 15th comes around. There will only be Death and Taxes.

This is hyper-violent (not that filled with blood and guts, really -- there is some), a lot of guns, bombs, more guns. Sometimes played for comedic effect, sometimes it's the good guys vs. the bad guys. Sometimes, it's a little of both. It never got to the overkill point for me, probably because this felt more like a cartoon than a "realistic" thriller.* What was overkill for me was the hypersexualization of every woman under the age of sixty. I didn't need to hear that much about every woman's physical appearance -- there are more gorgeous women with perfect (sometimes surgically enhanced) bodies in this guy's life than an episode of Miami Vice.

But man, is this funny. There are sections -- sometimes a sentence or two, sometimes several paragraphs long -- that are the literary equivalent of a shot of espresso, they are so taught with action, cultural references, and humor that you just revel in them. This reminds me a lot of the John Lago Thrillers by Shane Kuhn -- I think Kuhn shows more discipline in his plots and characters, but on the whole, these two are cut from the same cloth. The same energy, a similar style, similar sense of humor -- and frankly, that stuff is catnip to me. I think the plot got a little convoluted, a little confusing -- but it was worth working through.

Am I planning on reading Tales of a Badass IRS Agent, #2? Yeah, I will be keeping an eye out for it. This is a heckuva romp, and will entertain anyone who gives it a shot.
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* Really, what thriller is realistic?

Disclaimer: I was provided with a copy of this novel in exchange for my honest opinion, which you see above.

[Lisa Holloway · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book begins with an action packed, humorous raid to collect back taxes, and quickly introduces the good guys. The main character, Mark, was a Marine and is now an IRS agent. There are some quirky, colorful characters in this book. In a way, in the beginning, this book reminded me of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series, but with a male protagonist. The story line itself was simple and easy to follow. The focus of the writer seemed to be the humor, but even more so than in Evanvich's writing.

I have never liked comedy shows and there are many comedy movies that I just can't get into. I find about the first five minutes funny, and then, I just lose interest with line after line of jokes that are supposed to make me laugh. They're just not funny to me after those first few. The same happens when I read comical books. I enjoy a book more when there is a really good story and all throughout the book, every once in awhile, there is something funny unexpectedly thrown in. When there is just line after line of humor, I lose interest. Unfortunately that is what happened with this book and it was hard for me to get through. Now I know MANY people just love this type of humor, and you'll probably love this book, especaiily if you like unconventional characters. So, if you're looking for a good old fashioned mystery or crime novel, this is not what you are looking for, but, if you are looking for a comical book that doesn't let up on the funny lines, this is for you. This book is definitely for adults.

[Book Him Danno · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title alone should have this book flying off the shelf. The second an email pop up in my in box requesting me to read this book I couldn't say no. This time judging a book by its cover has paid off.

This is a must read can't miss book and to top it off I found myself laughing a few times with the tax write off people come up with.

They story is well paced that keeps readers engaged and will be excited for the next installment in the series. If you love a good mystery, well crafted story and characters that jump off the pages this book is a must read.

Thank you to Aperient Press for the Copy of Mark David Zaslove Death and Taxes.

[Micheal · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novel was witty, suspenseful, action packed and it also had romance! To say that the main characters are "Badass IRS Agents" is to say the least because they are "Badass"! The author did an excellent job keeping the reader (me) intrigued. For me, it was a page turner because I really wanted to know what was going to happen next and how it ended. This novel did not disappoint me one bit. I highly recommend picking this novel up for a summer read and following this new and upcoming author, Mark Zaslove. Well written story line.

[Irene · Rating 3 out of 5]

Received a copy from Goodreads giveaways.

This one didn't appeal to me very much. Too much testosterone for me. It was funny in the beginning, but soon became a little over the top for me.

However, my husband loved the book. I compromised and gave it three stars.

[Devon Zook · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked where this book ended up. As my wife would say, “wrapped up nicely in a little bow.” BUT, it took FOREVER to get there. I almost gave up a couple times in the first half of the book. Glad I stuck with it. Overall an enjoyable book.

[Sheila Cohen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of chuckles in this book. Very original.

[Tricha Leary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book! I know men who act like these guys!