Mystery Melange

 

Finalists were announced for the Harrogate International Festival's Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year award. The 2021 nods go to The Lantern Men by Elly Griffiths; Three Hours by Rosamund Lupton; The Last Crossing by Brian McGilloway; Death in the East by Abir Mukherjee; We Begin At The End by Chris Whitaker; and The Man on the Street by Trevor Wood. Fans can now vote on the shortlisted titles, with the winner to be crowned during the Harrogate Festival, this year held in person once again from July 22-25.

Penguin Random House Australia (PRH) has announced that the twisty psychological thriller, Denizen by James McKenzie Watson, has won the 2021 Penguin Literary Prize. Watson receives $20,000 as an advance against royalties, with Denizen to be published by PRH Australia publisher Meredith Curnow in 2022.

London-based independent bookstore, Goldsboro Books, announced the longlist for its fifth annual Glass Bell Award. A shortlist of six titles to be voted upon by booksellers is expected August 5 and a winner’s announcement will arrive on September 30. The listed titles include the crime-related novels The Sin Eater by Megan Campisi; Blacktop Wasteland by S.A Cosby; The Familiar Dark by Amy Engel; The Court of Miracles by Kester Grant; Three Hours by Rosamund Lupton; The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman; Eight Detectives by Alex Pavesi; and The Devil and the Dark Water by Stuart Turton.

The Friends of the Ferguson Library and Mystery Writers of America/NY Chapter are presenting CCX2 - CrimeCONN Express 2, Connecticut's Own (Virtual) Mystery Lovers' Conference, tonight from 7-8 pm ET. This is the third of three events this month, with tonight's titled "We Gotta Get Out of This Place. How Changing Up Settings Can Free Your Imagination," and featuring Scott Adlerberg, Timothy Hallinan, Cara Black, and Johnny Temple. Registration is free.

Noir at the Bar has expanded around the globe since Peter Rozovsky organized the first event in Philadelphia back in 2008. Most of these have gone virtual during the pandemic, and one of the next upcoming events will be from Toronto on June 24th at 7 pm. Hosts Rob Brunet and Hope Thompson will emcee readings from authors Mark Govin, Madeleine Harris-Callway, Terrence McCauley, Hannah Mary McKinnon, C.S. O'Cinneide, David Rotenberg, and Robert Rotenberg.

If you missed a couple of other recent virtual events, you're in luck because they're available online: the NorCal Chapter of Mystery Writers of America and San Francisco Public Library sponsored a Queer Mystery Writers panel with Michael Nava (moderator), and authors Cheryl A. Head, Greg Herren, Dharma Kelleher, and P.J. Vernon. Also, the New York Society Library and the New York Chapter of Mystery Writers of America co-sponsored a panel on "How to Write a Mystery," with authors Jeffery Deaver, Laurie King, and Charles and Caroline Todd.

The Palmetto Chapter of Sisters in Crime (based in Columbia, South Carolina) is once again sponsoring Murder in the Midlands, an annual conference which will be virtual on Saturday, June 26, from 10:00 am to 2:30 pm ET. The special guest is Dr. Kathy Reichs (bestselling author of the Temperance Brennan series, which was the basis for the TV series, BONES). There will also be panels on "Scorching Short Stories"; "Hot for Historicals (British mysteries by American authors)"; and "Searing Suspense." Authors scheduled to appear include Dana Kaye (moderator), Paula Gail Benson, Frankie Bailey, Michael Bracken, Barb Goffman, Laurie R. King, Lori Rader-Day, Caroline Todd, Yasmin Angoe, Robert Dugoni, and Alex Segura.

Hachette UK is launching a series of free virtual events, "Opening the Book," later this month, aiming to demystify publishing. Its event series marks the fifth anniversary of its diversity and inclusion program, Changing the Story, "with a renewed drive to make publishing more transparent and accessible to underrepresented groups." The first events will focus on sharing the realities of working in publishing with people who want to break into the industry, while another will focus on aspiring authors. The series will launch on June 28th at 1 p.m with tickets to the events free via Eventbrite.

On June 8, mystery pioneer, Anna Katharine Green (1846-1935), was inducted into the New York State Writers Hall of Fame in a ceremony that included an appearance by Rebecca Crozier, Green's great-great granddaughter. Green's The Leavenworth Case is one of the first mysteries penned by an American woman, and she is credited with developing the series detective in the form of Ebenezer Gryce of the New York Metropolitan Police Force (although in three novels he is assisted by the nosy society spinster, Amelia Butterworth, the prototype for Miss Marple). (HT to Elizabeth Foxwell)

Kittling Books kicked off a series featuring books with a "a strong sense of place," broken down by regions of the world. First up is a look at Africa and Australasia.

Agatha Christie fans are plotting via the Save Agatha's Home campaign to turn the legendary crime writer's home into an arts and events venue. Time, however, is short:  Christie's house has been listed since April and the Save Agatha's Home campaign is competing with private buyers to secure the historic five-bedroom house - which covers 6,256 square feet and comes with five acres of land, a study, library, adjoining one-bedroom cottage, and stunning landscaped gardens leading down to the River Thames.

If you're a fan of "old school" writing and LEGO and have $199 to spare, this might be for you.

This week's crime poem at the 5-2 Crime Poetry Weekly is "Pins" by David Cranmer.

In the Q&A roundup, Deborah Kalb spoke with Maureen Johnson, author of the new young adult mystery novel, The Box in the Woods; Lisa Haselton chatted with Michael Campeta about his new mystery/suspense, The Late Mr. Cary; and Author Interviews welcomed Martine Bailey to dicsuss The Prophet, a historical crime novel in which a new mother, Tabitha Hart, investigates a cold-blooded murder and a utopian sect in an ancient forest.