KAREN’S KILLER BOOK BENCH: Welcome to Karen’s Killer Book Bench, where readers can discover talented new authors and take a peek inside their wonderful books. This is not an age-filtered site, so all book peeks are PG-13 or better. Come back and visit often. Happy reading!
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ONE ACROSS IS DEATH
A Crossword Puzzle Cozy Mystery
BY LOUISE FOSTER
BLURB
When Tracy’s co-worker is murdered, can a con man help her find the real killer?
Find out in this prequel to the Crossword Puzzle Cozy Mystery series from Louise Foster.
If you like crossword puzzles, cozy mysteries, and small resort towns then you’ll love escaping into this series!
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ONE ACROSS IS DEATH
A Crossword Puzzle Cozy Mystery
BY LOUISE FOSTER
Excerpt
1 Across; 10 Letters;
Clue: A state of mutual trust and support
Answer: Friendship
“He was dead when I walked in the room.” Edward Ephraim held his hands out at his sides. Uncharacteristic panic threaded through his voice. His sapphire eyes filled with worry as he backed up from the corpse that used to be my co-worker, Jim Feldman.
For the first time since I met Edward three days ago, he had no canned spiel. Of course, it would be hard to explain the dead body at his feet, drilled with three bullet holes and lying in a pool of blood.
Not that I could blame him for his evident shock. My lungs seized up as my gaze returned to Jim’s body. I’d been in Las Vegas for several years, but I’d never seen a dead man, let alone someone I’d spoken to a few hours ago.
Greg, the evening security guard, and I stood shoulder-to-shoulder in the doorway of the executive meeting room of the Thulton Consolidated Supply firm in Las Vegas, Nevada. He was older, and pale, even for a white guy. He, Jim, and I were supposed to be the first ones here. The only ones here.
The rush of cold air that had washed over me when I opened the door had left goosepimples on my arms. Finding a corpse on the floor hadn’t helped my nerves.
My gaze flicked to the guard’s belt. No holster. No gun. Everyone knew his assigned weapon always remained locked away in the security office.
Greg’s white hair brushed his thick eyebrows as he turned to me. No trace of sorrow colored the older man’s gaze. Greg had hated Jim. Costing someone half-a-million-dollar retirement account to your own profit will do that.
The older man backed up. “You’re in charge.”
Relief. Accusation. Warning. The mix of emotions underlined his words.
“Coward,” I muttered. Heavy the brow that wears the crown and all that rot. My promotion was barely four weeks old and this was my reward. I swallowed hard and took a deep breath. “I’ll call 9-1-1. Don’t touch anything.”
“I didn’t.” Edward raised his hands even higher. “Including the gun.”
Eying the automatic pistol on the ground, I took his disclaimer with a grain of salt. The room had been locked when Greg opened the door and I hadn’t seen anyone else on this floor.
If Edward didn’t kill Jim, who did?
I’m Tracy Rae Belden. White. Twenty-six. Five-nine. Shoulder length brown hair. Gray eyes. Moderately slim, through no fault of my own. I’m told I’m a rising star at Thulton Consolidated Supply Company.
Don’t ask me how that happened. I’m not really sure. I can barely get the words out with a straight face. For once in my life, I was in the right place at the right time.
Born and raised in the Midwest, Louise didn’t pursue a writing career until well out of college. However, a lifelong love of reading and solving puzzles proved to be good training when the writing bug bit.
While she enjoys reading many different types of books, from thrillers to fantasy to science fiction, mysteries have always intrigued her.
Working on jigsaw puzzles as well as crossword puzzles with her family has also been a constant part of her life. A habit that carries through to today.
In the Crossword Puzzle Mystery Series, her love of writing and solving puzzles have come together. She hopes you love the quirky characters and their high-spirited adventures as much she enjoys writing them.
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Links to Louise’s websites, blogs, books, #ad etc.:
Get the prequel for FREE here: https://dl.bookfunnel.com/jhy2ry3xbu
Link to Excerpt – https://www.louisefoster.com/_files/ugd/517007_7776904020334a4d9af90aa5644ad291.pdf
Series buy link https://www.amazon.com/dp/B098R27WX6
This series is in Kindle Unlimited.
Happy Reading!
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Thanks, Louise, for sharing your book with us!
Don’t miss the chance to read this book!
Thank you for sharing your intriguing book with us.
Book looks and sound like a real good read plus the author is new to me so really looking forward to reading this author’s books
This sounds great! Thanks for sharing!
I’m looking forward to reading this one. Thank you for sharing!
Ok, then…I’m hooked 👍🏻
Thanks, Louise, and thanks, Karen
Looking forward to solving this one.