I love these samplers but also hate them. I love that I get an idea what the writing is like but hate when the sample is over! A Flicker in the Dark and Night Shift are definitely being added to my tbr!

This is a great group of mysteries that would be perfect for summer reading!
A Flicker in the Dark and The Night Shift are quite similar at the beginning, with multiple murders in the past of two teenage protagonists who become dysfunctional therapists, but each offers a small twist at the end of the samples that made me want to read on.
Under Lock and Skeleton Key is wholly original, combining a murder mystery, magic, and mysterious architecture into a story that was just beginning to take shape in the pages that I read. Tempest, her rabbit, her adorable grandparents and Ivy were all characters that I liked and wanted to read more about.
I had never heard of prosopagnosia before and find it an intriguing plot point for a murder mystery! The Resting Place uses this condition and a super creepy house to set up at least one murder mystery and I'd love to read more to find out how other deaths may be intertwined with the one that starts the book.
The Shadow House also centers on a creepy house in a creepy eco-town that a single mom runs away to with her surly teenage son a and a new baby. This sample didn't give me much to base a review on so was the weakest of the lot for me to decide on.
Finally, Pay Dirt Road laid the groundwork for a mystery based around a small town and semi-dysfunctional family - both things that I like - though there was just a lot of groundwork and no cliffhanging hook to make me want to instantly want to grab the full book. I do like Annie and would like to read more interaction with her investigator-grandfather, Leroy.

This sampler pack is such a cool idea to get a feel for upcoming releases! Just enough of the story to have you HOOKED and wanting more. These books sound really good, can't wait to read them in full now!

I always love looking through these, but this may be my favorite volume yet. All these upcoming releases look so good and I'm eager to read them in their entirety- especially the new book by Alex Finlay! Going to request/preorder them now!
Many thanks to Minotaur and NetGalley for the sampler.

I love receiving these samplers from Minotaur as a way to try out new books before committing to the whole thing.

I've already read and reviewed A Flicker in the Dark and The Resting Place, both of which I really enjoyed. I also have a full copy of The Night Shift that I'll be reading and reviewing soon, so the teaser got me even more excited for that!

I really enjoyed the opportunity to check out The Shadow House and Pay Dirt Road, and am eager to read full versions of both of those. Under Lock and Skeleton Key wasn't really to my taste, but it was nice to read an excerpt to know for sure.

This sampler has sample chapters from some really great books that I've read (A Flicker in the Dark, The Night Shift), but also introduced me to some new titles and authors that wouldn't have been on my radar. I'm especially excited to read The Shadow by Anna Downes.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for making these samplers available.

Love these samplers! Definitely lets you know which books to be on the lookout for and which ones do not appeal to you.

Enjoyed this sampler of thriller books. I’m so ready to read A Flicker in the Dark! Nice variation of stories.
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book

This was an amazing look into a wonderful set of books. I have already read Flicker in the Dark and LOVED it. This mini look also has me intrigued with Nightshift. Each of the books involved in this Minotaur only included the first 4 chapters, so some of them were harder to give an opinion on.

A Flicker in the Dark was published last month and looks at an adult whose father killed 6 teens and even though she was relocated and is working as a psychiatrist, in the new town she resides in, the same things begin to happen. Girls start to disappear one by one. Through her own engagement to be married, she discovers some deep secrets and twists. I did not see the ending when it came. It had some wonderful twists and was one of the best thrillers I have read in awhile,. I highly recommend this book.

Nightshift is written in two timelines with multiple POVs. The first timeline taking place in the Blockbuster video days, at the local store when a massacre kills all but one person. She later becomes a FBI agent. Then another massacre occurs in the very same nature at an ice cream shop 15-20 years later, The first killer is never caught and it bleeds into the second massacre. This book looks extremely intriguing and if i do not get the opportunity to review on NetGalley, I will be purchasing when it comes out later this year.

Under Lock and Key was a thriller that looks promising. This novel is written from the POV of Tempest Raj. A magicians career gets railroaded and Tempest Raj is forced to move back home to California with her grandfather. While visiting her dad’s latest renovation project, her stage double from her former life is discovered dead inside the staircase, but appears to have been sealed there for a century,. She has to solve the crime to save herself but fears the family curse will be too much to bear….

Resting Place is another psychological thriller that looks promising, a book I would likely pick up when released later this year. Eleanor does not have the ability to recognize familiar faces, a rare disorder. When she was younger, her grandmothers was extremely cruel to her but to compromise, she would have dinner with her once a week. Upon entering the house for dinner like she has done many times before, she finds her grandmother dead, murdered. The killer is still in the house when Elenor enters but since she does not recognize faces, she may never know she was standing next to a killer. After the family lawyer goes through the estate, Elenor finds out that the family house was left to her, a house that has decades of secrets. As she begins to uncover these secrets with her boyfriend and aunt, she wishes that she did not. A very interesting novel that looks to keep my attention throughout the story.

The Shadow House also looks amazingly promising. Alex is a single mother looking for a fresh start in a small town for her and her children, to escape a horrifying past. Pine Ridge is a small town like you see in Hallmark movies that is very welcoming to newcomers. When a bizarre chain of events, very familiar to the locals, start to occur, Alex realizes that her family may be in more damages. She has to confront Pine Ridge to save her family.

Pay Dirt Road is about a young women, Alex who is lured into the family PI business by her grandfather, who is supposed to be retiring. When a waitress at the local diner goes missing, Annie begins to investigate. During the course of the investigation, Annie begins to identify with the victim in an increasing, unsettling ways and understands she has to confront her own past of romances that have failed, a disturbing experience she does want to remember, and the trick of the mirror of nostalgia itself, if she wants to survive this home coming.

This is one of the first times I've tried the sampler pack of new releases. It's such a great way to be able to preview upcoming releases, but the downside is, you get completely hooked and need more! After looking through this preview, I'm super excited to check out "A Flicker in the Dark". Next, "The Shadow House". Having read a previous Anna Downes novel, I'm intrigued to see how she crafts this story. "Night Shift" also looks like it's going to be one listed as a have to read. I've heard great things about author Camilla Sten, and this might be a great novel to start with, as an introduction to her writing. The last two also look good and because I've now read the introductions, I'm going to have to finish them at some point because I need to know what happens next. This was a great experience in finding new books to add to my wish list and I look forward to reading some new to me authors I might not have discovered otherwise.

All of these samples are addicting. I am excited to pick up the books and continue reading them I particularly enjoyed The Shadow House sample. Thank you.

I absolutely loved this book sampler from Minotaur. It is a wonderful resource for those who love thrillers. I actually read two books after reading the samples and loved both books. This is a wonderful way of reviewing a book before purchasing to ensure its the right novel for you.

Love the samplers. Please continue doing these! I love getting to get a taste of a writing style or story structure before requesting the title

I love these samplers! I'm so excited to try the new books listed in this sampler, especially the new books by Anna Downes and Alex Finlay.

If I could I would buy each of these books. The sampler was a fantastic way to experience a taste of each of these mystery/thrillers. I loved them all.

Really great sampler! The selections are great and I am looking forward to reading the full books. These samplers really help me to get an idea of the stories and to find new books I think I'd enjoy.

Great preview of some upcoming titles I am really looking forward to reading. Thank you for providing.

A Flicker In the Dark
This sample intrigued me from the start. Not a lot happened yet, but the writing was fantastic. The synopsis tells us that Chloe’s father is a serial killer and murders are starting to happen again. I look forward to reading the rest of this book soon.

The Night Shift
This sample grabbed my attention right away with the 1999 Blockbuster murder scene. After that, we follow three different characters fifteen years later - the lone survivor, an FBI agent, and a lawyer. These three characters are all introduced as they are learning about a similar murder that took place at an ice cream parlor. I definitely plan on requesting and/or buying this book to continue on with the story.

Under Lock and Skeleton Key
I only read the first couple of pages of this one. I could tell right away that it wasn’t for me. It had cozy vibes, which isn’t what I look for in a mystery/thriller.

The Resting Place
This is one of the ones I was most excited about. The synopsis sounded right up my alley. The first chapter immediately gripped me. I started to lose interest as the story went on though. I’m mildly interested in picking up this book.

The Shadow House
I hadn’t heard of this one prior to reading this sampler. I didn’t love the writing, but the plot had me mildly interested.

Pay Dirt Road
I didn’t care for this sample at all. It felt very YA with the beginning party scene. I had to go back and reread part to make sure I was understanding that she had just graduated college. I’m definitely not interested in this book.

I was fortunate to recently attend an online event whereby these six authors collaborated on-the-spot to write a short story. Also, I have read both The Night Shift and A Flicker in the Dark and thought both books were very good. After the collective short story effort, I was intrigued to sample the books for the other four authors. For me, I would rank them top-down as Pay Dirt Road, The Shadow House, The Resting Place, and Under Lock and Skeleton Key. None of the other four books hooked me to continue at this time but it helped introduce me to these authors of which only one was on my reading radar before starting the sampler (Pay Dirt Road).
Thanks to both the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Minotaur for this sampler! Most of these were already on my TBR and now the rest are. This sampler starts off super strong with A Flicker in the Dark. This is a great way to find your next favorite read. Highly recommend if you're on the fence about any of these books.