In these crazy times where we’re staying home as much as possible, this was a wonderful introduction to some cozy mystery books and authors, some of whom I haven’t read books by previously. I enjoyed all of the samples and now have some new books and series to read!

Engrossing collection of murder mysteries from some of the top names in the genre.
I loved the food in Egg Drop Dead and the cat point on view in Dead in the Doorway. Agatha Raisin is back in wicked form as a Private Investigator in Beating About the Bush as causing as much trouble as usual.

If you're looking for a new cozy author to read or waiting for the next book in your favorite series, this is a great book. It gives you a few chapters of 5 different cozies, just enough to pull you in. I've added all 5 to my TBR list.

I received a free e-copy of this book in return for a fair and honest review.

I think that having the first three chapters of new books together to see if it's of interest is a terrific idea!
Egg Drop Dead by Vivien Chien: I loved it when I recently read it!
Dead in the Doorway by Diane Kelly: like the author's style and imagination but have not read
anything in this series. Looks good!
Hems and Homicide by Elizabeth Penney: Loved this one when I read it courtesy of NetGalley.
The Stolen Letter by Paige Shelton: I read book 3 and absolutely adored it!
Beating About the Bush by M. C. Beaton: I've only read one other Agatha Raisin, but this one looks to
be even funnier!
This is such a good idea! I requested and received a free ebook copy from St. Martin's Press via NetGalley. Thank you!

This is a great way to discover new series, authors and books. I loved it!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read and provide an honest review of this book.

It was an excellent introdution to some new to me authors. Now I want to read the all and enjoy their stories

Thank you for this! What a great way to discover your new favorite author. The only.problem with this is you only get a couple of chapters when you really want.to read the rest of the book. I've added most of these to my TBR pile and can't wait to read them!!

Cozy Case Files is a sneak-preview collection of 5 new cozy mystery novels. Released 7th Jan 2020 from Macmillan on their St. Martin's imprint, it's 180 pages and can be accessed on most ebook retailers (Amazon, Rakuten/Kobo etc) to download and read for free. This is the 8th cozy mystery sampler from St. Martin's. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.

The collection includes a few chapters from each of 5 upcoming (or recently released) cozy mysteries by M.C. Beaton, Vivien Chien, Diane Kelly, Elizabeth Penney, and Paige Shelton. It was especially poignant for me because Marion Chesney (M.C. Beaton) passed away fairly recently.

All of them are appealing, and all of the included mysteries are reviewed (or scheduled) on my blog. The full mysteries themselves are all in the 4 star range, all are entertaining and well crafted.

Definitely worth downloading the collection to test sample the upcoming books. Four stars for the collection.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes

Cozy Case Files is Volume 8 in the Cozy Mystery Sampler series. I this book we are able to find samples of authors Paige Shelton, Diane Kelly, Vivien Chien, Elizabeth Penney, Susan Cox, and the late M. C. Beaton. Each section will give you a taste of the writer's style and interest covered in their book. This is a great way to find out if you would like to read the books written by each of the authors or not.

this is a great compilation of multiple book excerpts from a variety of mystery cozy writers. It gave me a lot of books to add to my list to look out for. This was entertaining and got me interested in several more new books.

Thank you so much! I'm a big cozy fan and love reading excerpts. This sampler is even more significant with the passing of M.C. Beaton.

Super Sampler....
Entertaining and varied sampler of cozy crime/mystery. A nice selection of well known authors and enough of each sample for the reader to decide whether or not to read on. Plenty of choice for the cozy crime addict and a chance to sample work of authors that you may not have read. An excellent idea well executed.

This is such a fun compilation of cozy mysteries. I love the variety here and that M.C. Beaton was included as Marion Chesney just passed away. (aka M.C. Beaton). . I have been reading her books for over 30 years and a new Agatha Rasin is always delightful. I was thrilled to see some of my favorite cozy authors included such as Vivian Chen, Diane Kelly, Elizabeth Penney, Paige Shelton as well as M.C. Beaton. I loved all of the books and look forward to more work by these cozy authors. This is a great way to introduce yourself to cozy mysteries if your not familiar and a great body of work for fans of cozies.

Thank you for the ARC to Net Galley and the publisher. My review opinion is my own.

Lovers of cozy mysteries will enjoy looking at this title as they plan their next reads.  Included are descriptions of new titles by Vivien Chen, Diane Kelly, Elizabeth Penney, Paige Shelton and M.C. Beaton. 


There is everything here from a new Agatha Raisin mystery. (Note there is now a tv series based on these books) to a story set in Scotland.  There then are three U.S. based cozies featuring mystery solving heroines.


This title is available for free from on line stores.  Read some excerpts and find out if the author's newest books appeal to you.  Hopefully some will.


Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this sampler in exchange for an honest review.

This book was received as an ARC from St. Martin's Press - Minotaur Books in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

I could not stop reading these mysteries. Cozy mysteries are very popular in our collection and these were mostly about food and cats which are very popular in our collection. A lot of the authors especially M.C. Beaton are very popular with our community and knowing that one of her stories is featured in this compilation will be satisfying for them. I also loved Paige Shelton's Egg Drop Murder especially because it features on of my favorite dishes and one of the characters shares the same first name as me. I know our readers will love this and it will fit perfectly in our cozy up with a book display.

We will consider adding this title to our Mystery collection at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

Cozy Case Files Volume 8 is a collection of the introductions to a few different mysteries coming out soon or recently released. Each story started with a brief introduction, followed by a few chapters. These are just my initial thoughts after reading the first 20-30 minutes of each story.

Egg Drop Dead by Vivien Chien

This mystery started off very fast and I am super intrigued as to who the murderer is. I love the Asian aspect as well.

Dead in the Doorway by Diane Kelly

This is the perfect mystery series for those who love home renovation shows. This is a cozy mystery set in Nashville, with an adorable cat named Sawdust! I enjoyed how Whitney takes Sawdust to work and has conversations with him. There are also chapters written from Sawdust’s point of view!!! With cats being such a curious animal, combining a cat’s point of view with mysteries is so clever! Sawdust’s point of view is hilarious and heartwarming. I can also say the murder scene is a little creepier than other cozy mysteries, but I liked that. Dianne Kelly has a very easy and clear writing style. I cannot wait to get my hands on a copy of this mystery!

Hems and Homicide by Elizabeth Penney

I love books set in Maine, as I find Maine to be such a cozy state. I love the premise of the story. A feud with a landlord, the landlord ends up dead, one friend becomes the prime suspect, and her friend must clear her name. Add to that an old high school crush. It is the start to a perfect, new cozy mystery series! This mystery has a more old-time feel. Family, café, older fashion style, sewing, etc. The setting is very developed, and Penney has great description. The relationship between Iris and Madison is sweet, and I love how they want to push each other out of their comfort zones.

The Stolen Letter by Paige Shelton

The brief description grabbed my attention immediately. The main character works in a book shop, she runs into someone who looks like herself but nods to Mary Queen of Scots, and it is set in Scotland! I love the historical aspect of this mystery. It reads pretty close to a historical fiction novel as well.

Beating About the Bush by M. C. Beaton

This was a very interesting and unique start to a mystery. This story starts off extremely quickly. I had a hard time with this excerpt.

Overview. If you are looking for/enjoy:
Asian Culture, Foodie- Egg Drop Dead
Home Renovations, Cats, Humour- Dead in the Doorway
Stereotypical, Cozy Mystery- Hems and Homicides
Historical Fiction meets Mystery- The Stolen Letter
Cops and Law Enforcement- Beating About the Bush

The stories here are varied. All look interesting enough to read the entire book. #CozyCaseFilesACozyMysterySamplerVolume8 #NetGalley