Book Spotlight with Chapter 1: Murder Across The Ocean by Charlene Wexler

Murder Across The Ocean 
by Charlene Wexler

Paperback: 232 pages
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform; F First Edition Promotional Copy edition (July 23, 2014)
Amazon Paperback Link

Kindle Edition
File Size: 704 KB
Print Length: 235 pages
Page Numbers Source ISBN: 1500439428
Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
Amazon Kindle Link



About the book: 

Seventy-something American Lori Brill thought she’d have a pleasant, uneventful vacation in London visiting her granddaughter, Cate. 

Lori’s trip started out even better than she could have imagined when she ran into Josh, her old high-school boyfriend, in line for the same flight at the airport—resulting in an unexpected night of passion in a London hotel room. Lori was all smiles as she stepped out of the shower the next morning, ready to slip back into Josh’s arms—until she saw his bloody corpse lying in the bed where they had made love only a few short hours before.

The London police naturally suspect Lori of murdering her lover, but the case becomes more complicated when it is discovered that international ladies’ man and real estate mogul Josh has swindled millions of dollars from hundreds of people—a fact that broadens the case beyond the Scotland Yard team led by Inspector Geoffrey Holmes and brings in American FBI agent Jordan Gould.

Also on the case are Lori’s granddaughter Cate and Cate’s fiancé Joseph, two London solicitors. Complicating matters are Cate’s and Jordan Gould’s growing mutual attraction as the investigation progresses; another growing mutual attraction between Lori and Inspector Holmes; and Lori’s family’s unexpected connection to Joseph’s father, Lord Roger Lunt, and to the wealthy German nobleman Baron Joseph Braun and the horror of the Holocaust.

So who killed Josh? Was it Josh’s beautiful girlfriend Suzi, who unexpectedly appears in London? Was it Josh’s Chinese financial backers? Was it British mobsters, led by the evil Roland McKeifer, who kidnap Lori in an attempt to find Josh’s hidden millions? Was it Baron Braun, who summons Lori to Germany to tell her a 70-year-old secret? Was it someone whose money had been stolen or heart had been broken by Josh? Or was it someone else? Find out in Murder Across the Ocean.

Chapter 1

Lori stood in the shower feeling sensuous and alive as she enjoyed the spray of hot water cascading over her body. She ran the bar of floral scented soap over every part of her skin, appreciating the fullness of her breasts and the mature expanse of her hips. She lingered longer than usual; it had been a long flight to London yesterday, and a rather physically challenging, but wonderful, evening. Remembering how she’d spent the night, she blushed at the thought of the wild sex she’d enjoyed—too wild for her years—and of how his hands and mouth had tenderly caressed her whole body.

She shrugged off her momentary embarrassment and, humming happily to herself, turned off the water and stepped out of the shower into the bright morning sun shining through the small bathroom window. As she reached for her towel, she heard a sudden pounding noise coming from the adjacent bedroom. She dismissed it as nothing more than the sound of room service bringing breakfast.

Lori ran her tongue over her lips and smiled while saying aloud, “Josh.” Gazing at her reflection in the mirror, she realized she glowed. Yes, she thought, last night with Josh was almost as wonderful as the senior prom. At that moment, she felt like a teenager again instead of a seventy-year-old grandmother.

She toweled and then dabbed herself with Chanel No. 5, put on her expensive flowered silk dressing gown, slipped on her complimentary hotel slippers, and stepped out of the bathroom into their luxurious suite in the world-famous Palace Hotel.

Her eyes immediately stung from a smoky cloud hovering in the air; her nostrils twitched from the thick metallic scent of blood. Fear grasped her entire being. She slowly edged farther into the room while cautiously calling his name.

“Josh? Josh!

He didn’t answer.

Slowly, she approached the bed, then stopped cold, gasping in disbelief. Bright red blood spattered the rich tan-colored wall and the mahogany headboard, continuing down to the unmade bed where Josh’s body hung over the side of the mattress. White bone and gray-red brain matter dripped from the side of his head, staining the white silk sheets and the lush beige carpet. A burst feather pillow, also besmirched with blood and gore, lay on the floor.

Lori fixated on Josh’s face; a shower of white feathers clung to his forehead and cheek. Where once was a beautiful blue eye, there now appeared a mangled, bloody hole. It took a few moments for her mind to gather this information, process it, and allow a scream to escape.

Once she began screaming, she was unable to stop.

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