Samplers of the upcoming season's reads are always fun. Some titles will be ones I'm already excited about, some will be completely new to me, some will make me eager to read a particular book, and some will make me say "meh"—which is the nature of samplers. The point is to find what one appreciates most. However, none of the pieces in the Minotaur Sampler 9 is a "meh." Nonetheless, I have my favorites and will highlight them here.

Rekjavik: A Crime Story, written by Ragnar Jónasson and Katrin Jakobsdottir (who just happens to be the Prime Minister of Iceland), opens with a missing persons case. The detective who is investigating is discouraged from pursing the case with too much energy. Then, the novel moves forward in time, looking at the same crime from a point further in the future where it's being investigated as a cold case. The characterizations are detailed and quirky in the best of ways. The descriptions of the setting in which the novel takes place make real an environment that will be unfamiliar to many readers.

Amy Chua's The Golden Gate also involves a cold case which becomes increasingly relevant after a new murder takes place at the same location, the famed Claremont Hotel in Berkely. (If you're not familiar with it, you can check it out here—be sure to look at both interior and exterior photos.) This second murder occurs while WWII is underway, and that time period is a key part of the novel. Biases, distrust, and "othering" of various groups affect the case. The investigator is a mixed-race police detective who is both insider and outsider simultaneously.

The Curse of Penryth Hall by Jess Armstrong is set in the aftermath of WWI. Ruby Vaughn, the central character, has been shipped overseas following a scandal. She now works in a bookstore in Exeter. When she has to deliver a collection of books to Cornwall, she finds herself confronted with her past in the form of a beloved friend who left Ruby to marry a landed, but not wealthy, member of the English nobility. Ruby quickly realizes that her friend is unsafe in this marriage, and realizes she'll need to take action.

The first two titles are stand-alones. The Curse of Penryth Hall is the first volume in what will be a continuing series. Since this was the preview I enjoyed most of all, I'm delighted to know I'll have future volumes to look forward to. If you enjoy any kind of mystery/thriller, you'll want to keep an eye out for Minotaur's fall and winter releases. I tend to prefer historical mysteries, but they've also got contemporary thrillers in the line-up. ( )