MYSTERY AWARDS

*Denotes winner

AGATHA AWARDS 2026

Best Contemporary Novel

A Grave Eeception, Connie Berry, Cooked Lane
* At Death's Dough, Mindy Quigley, Minotaur
Murder in Fifth Position, Lori Robins, Level Best Books
The Devil Comes Calling, Annette Dashofy, One More Chapter
Waters of Destruction, Leslie Karst, Severn House

Best Historical Novel

Bye Bye Blackbird, Elizabeth Crowens, Level Best
The Girl in the Green Dress, Mariah Fredericks, Minotaur
Murder at the Moulin Rouge, Carol Pouliot, Level Best
* The Case of the Christie Conspiracy, Kelly Oliver, Boldwood Books
The Hindenburg Spy, I.A. Chandlar, Oliver Heber Publishers

Best First Novel

Murder in the Crazy Mountains
, K.L. Borges, Epicenter Press/Camel Press Imprint
Player Elimination, Shelly Jones, Tule Press
Savvy Summers and the Sweet Potato Crimes, Sandra Jackson-Opoku, Minotaur
Voices of the Elysian Fields, Michael Rigg, Leveltru
* Whiskey Business, Adrian Andover, Chestnut Avenue Press

Best Short Story

“Baby Love,” Barb Goffman, Double Crossing Van Dine Anthology, Crippen and Landru
“Boss Cat Fules,” Nikki Knight, Malice Domestic Mystery Most Humorous
“Lola's Last Dance,” Kerry Hammond, Celluloid Crimes, Level Best
* “Six-armed Robbery,” Ashley-Ruth Bernier, Malice Domestic Mystery Most Humorous
“When the Iron is Hot,” Maddie Day, EQMM Mar/Apr 2025

Best Non-fiction

Bone Valley
, Gilbert King, Flat Iron Books
Story of a Murder: the Wives, the Mistress, and Dr. Crippen, Hallie Rubenhold, Dutton
The Dinners all bow: Two Authors, One Murder, and the Real Hester Prynne, Kate Winkler Dawson, G. P. Putnam
* Vacations Can Be Murder: a True Crime Lover's Travel Guide to New England, Dawn M. Barclay, Level Best

Best Children’s/YA Mystery

* Death in the Cards
, Mia P. Manansala, Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Missing Mom, Lynn Slaughter, Fire and ice YA
Risky Pursuit, Nancy G. West, Fire and Ice YA
Rufus and the Dark Side of Magic, Marilyn Levinson, Level Best
Hurricane Heist, James Ponti, Aladin Books

ANTHONY AWARDS Finalists 2026

Best Hardcover Novel:

All This Could Be Yours by Hank Phillippi Ryan, Minotaur Books
The Black Wolf by Louise Penny, Minotaur Books
Crooks by Lou Berney, William Morrow & Company
Death of an Ex by Delia Pitts, Minotaur Books
King of Ashes by S.A. Cosby, Flatiron Books: Pine and Cedar

Best First Novel:

History Lessons by Zoe B. Wallbrook, Soho Crime
Julie Chan is Dead by Liann Zhang, Atria Books,
Mask of the Deer Woman by Laurie L. Dove, Berkley Books
The Retirement Plan by Sue Hincenbergs, William Morrow & Company
Voices of the Elysian Fields by Michael Rigg, Level Best Books
Whiskey Business by Adrian Andover, Chestnut Avenue Press

Best Paperback/E-book/Audiobook:

Crimson Thaw by Bruce Robert Coffin, Severn River Publishing
Edge by Tracy Clark, Thomas & Mercer
River of Lies by James L'Etoile, Oceanview Publishing
This Violent Heart by Heather Levy, Montlake
Tricks of Fortune by Lina Chern, Bantam

Best Juvenile/Young Adult Novel:

Death in the Cards by Mia P. Manansala, Delacorte Press
Miles in Time by Lee Matthew Goldberg, Wise Wolf Books
Risky Pursuit by Nancy G. West, Fire & Ice Young Adult Books
The Scammer by Tiffany D. Jackson, Quill Tree Books
Well-Behaved Children Seldom Make History by Chris Chan, Level Best Books


Best Critical/Non-fiction:

Bone Valley: A True Story of Injustice and Redemption in the Heart of Florida by Gilbert King, Flatiron Books
L.A. Coroner: Thomas Noguchi and Death in Hollywood by Anne Soon Choi, Third State Books
Murderland: Crime and Bloodlust in the Time of Serial Killers by Caroline Fraser, Penguin Press
The Secret History of the Rape Kit: A True Crime Story by Pagan Kennedy, Vintage
Vacations Can Be Murder: A True Crime Lover's Travel Guide to New England by Dawn M. Barclay, Level Tru


Best Anthology/Collection:

Blood on the Bayou: Case Closed: Bouchercon Anthology, Don Bruns (ed.), Down & Out Books
Crime Ink: Iconic: An Anthology of Crime Fiction Inspired by Queer Icons, John Copenhaver (ed.) and Salem West (ed.), Bywater Books
Hollywood Kills: An Anthology, Adam Meyer (ed.) and Alan Orloff (ed.), Level Short
On Fire and Under Water: A Climate Change Crime Fiction Anthology, Curtis Ippolito et al., Rock and a Hard Place Press
Whatever Kills the Pain by C.W. Blackwell, Rock and a Hard Place Press


Best Short Story:

"AITA for Using My Husband's Hobby to Teach Him a Lesson", by Mindy Carlson, in Myopic Duplicity: Do the Ends Ever Justify the Means?, Kindle/Audible
"Brotherly Love", by Cheryl A. Head, in Every Day a Little Death: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of Stephen Sondheim, Level Short
"Finding Jimmy Baldwin", by Cheryl A. Head, in Crime Ink: Iconic: An Anthology of Crime Fiction Inspired by Queer Icons, Bywater Books
"Hollywood Prometheus", by Christa Faust, in Crime Ink: Iconic: An Anthology of Crime Fiction Inspired by Queer Icons, Bywater Books
"Six-Armed Robbery" by Ashley-Ruth M. Bernier, in Donna Andrews Presents Malice Domestic: Mystery Most Humorous, Wildside Press
"The Skies Are Red", by Richie Narvaez, in On Fire and Under Water: A Climate Change Crime Fiction Anthology, Rock and a Hard Place Press

AUDIE AWARDS (for Best Audio Books) 2026

Mystery

* Gone Before Goodbye by Reese Witherspoon and Harlan Coben, narrated by Reese Witherspoon, Chris Pine, Kiff VandenHeuvel, Suehyla El-Attar Young, Peter Ganim, Saskia Maarleveld, and James Fouhey (Hachette Audio)
Gray Dawn by Walter Mosley, narrated by Michael Boatman and Walter Mosley (Hachette Audio)
The Queens of Crime by Marie Benedict, narrated by Bessie Carter (Macmillan Audio)
Secret Sister by Sarah A. Denzil, narrated by Jessica Gunning, Sacha Dhawan, Joanne Froggatt, Nathaniel Curtis, and Hopi Grace (Audible Originals)
Vera Wong's Guide to Snooping (on a Dead Man) by Jesse Q. Sutanto, narrated by Eunice Wong (Penguin Ranndom House Audio)

Thriller/Suspense

Beautiful Ugly by Alice Feeney, narrated by Richard Armitage and Tuppence Middleton (Macmillan Audio)
* Don't Let Him In by Lisa Jewell, narrated by Richard Armitage, Joanne Froggatt, Tamaryn Payne, Gemma Whelan, Louise Brealey, and Patience Tomlinson (Simon & Schuster Audio)
Everyone Is Lying to You by Jo Piazza, narrated by Rachel F. Hirsch, Sarah Reny, Vas Eli and Saskia Maarleveld (Penguin Random House Audio)
Havoc by Christopher Bollen, narrated by Maggi-Meg Reed (HarperAudio)
To Die For by David Baldacci, narrated by Zach Villa, Mela Lee, Cassandra Morris, Rena Marie Villano, Christine Lakin, Will Collyer, Kiff Vandenheuvel, and Erin Bennett (Hachette Audio)


BAD SYDNEY CRIME FESTIVAL DANGER AWARDS 2025

Debut Crime Fiction

What I Would Do To You by Georgia Harper (Penguin Random House)
Gus and the Missing Boy by Troy Hunter (Wakefield Press)
* A Town Called Treachery by Mitch Jennings (Harper Collins)
All You Took From Me by Lisa Kenway (Transit Lounge)
The Crag by Claire Sutherland (Affirm Press)

Best Crime Fiction

Shadow City by Natalie Conyer (Echo Publishing)
Sanctuary by Garry Disher (Text Publishing)
* Bone Lands by Pip Fioretti (Affirm)
High Wire by Candice Fox (Penguin Random House)
Joy Moody is Out of Time by Kerryn Mayne (Penguin Random House)
Highway 13 by Fiona McFarlane (Allen & Unwin)
Pheasant’s Nest by Louise Milligan (Allen & Unwin)
The Dream by Iain Ryan (Ultimo Press)
Girl Falling by Hayley Scrivenor (Pan Macmillan)
Cutler by David Whish Wilson (Fremantle Press)

Best Crime Nonfiction

In the Dead of Night by Greg Haddrick (Allen & Unwin)
* Black Witness by Amy McQuire (UQP)
The Kingpin and the Crooked Cop by Neil Mercer (Allen & Unwin)
Dark City by John Silvester (Pan Macmillan)
The Outback Court Reporter by Jamelle Wells (Harper Collins)

People's Choice Award

* Girl Falling by Hayley Scrivenor

BARRY AWARDS Finalists 2026

Best Mystery

The Impossible Thing, Belinda Bauer (Atlantic Monthly)
Crooks, Lou Berney (William Morrow)
King Of Ashes, S. A. Cosby (Flatiron Books)
The Black Wolf, Louise Penny (Minotaur Books)
The White Crow, Michael Robotham (Scribner)
Presumed Guilty, Scott Turow (Grand Central)

Best First Mystery

Leverage, Amran Gowani (Atria Books)
All The Other Mothers Hate Me, Sarah Harman (Putnam)
Dead Money, Jakob Kerr (Bantam)
The Vanishing Place, Zoe Rankin (Berkley)
Stillwater, Tanya Scott (Atlantic Monthly)
Julie Chan Is Dead, Liann Zhang (Atria Books)

Best Paperback Original Mystery

Crimson Thaw, Bruce Robert Coffin (Severn River)
Splintered Justice, Kim Hays (Seventh Street Books)
Making A Killing, Cara Hunter (William Morrow)
If Two Are Dead, Rick Mofina (MIRA)
Wolf Six, Alex Shaw (Boldwood Books)
The Dentist, Tim Sullivan (Atlantic Crime)

Best Thriller

Witness 8, Steve Cavanagh (Atria Books)
The Oligarch’s Daughter, Joseph Finder (Harper)
Midnight Black, Mark Greaney (Berkley)
Clown Town, Mick Herron (Soho Crime)
Head Cases, John McMahon (Minotaur Books)
The Mailman, Andrew Welsh-Huggins (Mysterious Press)


IBPA BOOK AWARD f/k/a BEN FRANKLIN AWARDS, MYSTERY/THRILLER 2025

* Hazardous Lies by Stephen J. Wallace
(River Grove Books)
Bone Pendant Girls by Terry S. Freedman (CamCat Books)
Sing for the Red Dress: Smokey River Suspense Series by Joseph M. Marshall, III (Lucid House Publishing)


BLOODY SCOTLAND/MCILVANNEY CRIME NOVEL OF THE YEAR 2025

* The Midnight King by Tariq Ashkanani
The Good Father by Liam McIlvanney
Paperboy by Callum McSorley
The Good Liar by Denise Mina
Midnight and Blue by Ian Rankin.


BLOODY SCOTLAND CRIME DEBUT OF THE YEAR 2025

* A Reluctant Spy by David Goodman (Headline)
The Malt Whisky Murders, by Natalie Jayne Clark (Polygon)
The Search for Othella Savage, by Foday Mannah (Quercus)
Five by Five, by Claire Wilson (Michael Joseph)
The Unrecovered, by Richard Strachan (Raven)

BRITISH BOOK AWARDS Best Crime and Thriller Finalists 2026

* A Case of Mice and Murder by Sally Smith (Raven Books, Bloomsbury)
Death at the White Hart by Chris Chibnall (Penguin Michael Joseph)
The God of the Woods by Liz Moore (The Borough Press, HarperCollins UK)
The Impossible Fortune by Richard Osman (Viking, Penguin General)
The Secret of Secrets by Dan Brown (Bantam, Transworld)
The Tenant by Freida McFadden (Poisoned Pen Press, Sourcebooks)


CAPITAL CRIME FINGERPRINT AWARDS Finalists 2026

Audio Book of the Year

Don’t Let Him In by Lisa Jewell
King of Ashes by  S A Cosby
We Live Here Now by Sarah Pinborough
Beautiful Ugly by Alice Feeney
Artificial Wisdom by Thomas R. Weaver

True Crime Book of the Year

Story of a Murder by Hallie Rubenhold
Nobody’s Girl by Virginia Roberts-Guiffre
Murderland: Crime and Bloodlust in the Time of Serial Killers by Caroline Fraser
A History of Modern Britain in Twenty Murders by Prof. David Wilson
A Flower Travelled in My Blood by Haley Cohen Gilliland 

Debut Crime Book of the Year

Broken by Jón Atli Jónasson
Deadline by  Steph McGovern
Death at the White Hart by Chris Chibnall
The Day of the Roaring by Nina Bhadreshwar
This is Not A Game by Kelly Mullen

Historical Book of the Year

The Art of A Lie by Laura Shepherd-Robinson
The Rush by Beth Lewis
Dangerous by Essie Fox
Burning Grounds by Abir Mukherjee
Marble Hall Murders by Anthony Horowitz

Genre-Busting Book of the Year

Kill Them with Kindness by Will Carver
Little Red Death by A. K. Benedict Book
Blood Like Ours by Stuart Neville
Small Fires by Ronnie Turner
Manhattan Down by Michael Cordy

Thriller Book of the Year

The Chemist by A A Dhand
Don’t Let Him In by Lisa Jewell
Human Remains by Jo Callaghan
The Man Made of Smoke by Alex North
Some of Us Are Liars by Fiona Cummins

Overall Best Crime Book of the Year

The Midnight King by Tariq Ashkanani
The Final Vow by M W Craven
Quantum of Menace by Vaseem Khan
The Good Father by Liam McIlveney
We Live Here Now by Sarah Pinborough

COLORADO BOOK AWARDS 2025

Best Mystery

Death Valley Duel by Scott Graham (Torrey House Press)
A Dream in the Dark by Robert Justice (Crooked Lane Books)
* Play of Shadows by Barbara Nickless (Thomas & Mercer)

Best Thriller

* Anyone But Her by Cynthia Swanson (Columbine York)
The Father She Went to Find by Carter Wilson (Sourcebooks)
If You Lie by Caleb Stephens (Thrillserscape Press)

CRIMEFEST AWARDS 2025 (Cancelled after 2025)

Specsavers Debut Crime Novel Award

Tom Baragwanath for Paper Cage (Baskerville)
Tasha Coryell for Love Letters to a Serial Killer (Orion Fiction)
C. L. Miller for The Antique Hunter’s Guide to Murder (Pan Macmillan)
* Akira Otani (and translator Sam Bett) for The Night of Baba Yaga (Faber & Faber)
Tracy Sierra for Nightwatching (Viking)
Claire Wilson for Five by Five (Michael Joseph)

edunnit award

Martin Edwards for Hemlock Bay (Head of Zeus)
Laurie R. King for The Lantern’s Dance (Allison & Busby)
* Jean Hanff Korelitz for The Sequel (Faber & Faber)
Bella Mackie for What A Way To Go (The Borough Press)
Liz Moore for The God of the Woods (The Borough Press)
Peter Swanson for A Talent for Murder (Faber & Faber)

Last Laugh Award

Cathy Ace for The Case of the Secretive Secretary (Four Tails Publishing Ltd.)
DG Coutinho for The Light and Shade of Ellen Swithin (Harvill Secker)
Bella Mackie for What A Way To Go (The Borough Press)
Orlando Murrin for Knife Skills for Beginners (Transworld)
* Mike Ripley for Mr Campion’s Christmas (Severn House)
Antti Tuomianen (and translator David Hackston) for The Burning Stones (Orenda Books)

H.R.F. Keating award

* Mark Aldridge for Agatha Christie’s Marple: Expert in Wickedness (HarperCollins)
Jem Bloomfield for Allusion in Detective Fiction (Palgrave Macmillan)
Ashley Bowden for Female Detectives in Early Crime Fiction 1841-1920 (Fabula Mysterium Press)
Dan Coxon & Richard V. Hirst for Writing the Murder: Essays in Crafting Crime Fiction (Dead Ink)
Sara Lodge for The Mysterious Case of the Victorian Female (Yale University Press)
Lynda La Plante for Getting Away With Murder: My Unexpected Life on Page, Stage and Screen (Zaffre)

Thalia Proctor Memorial Award For Best Adapted Tv Crime Drama

Bad Monkey, based on the book by Carl Hiaasen (Apple TV+)
Dalgliesh (series 3), based on the Inspector Dalgliesh books by P.D. James (Channel 5)
Lady in the Lake based on the book by Laura Lippman (Apple TV+)
Moonflower Murders based on the book by Anthony Horowitz (BBC)
* Slow Horses (series 4), based on the Slough House books by Mick Herron (Apple TV+)
The Turkish Detective, based on the Inspector Ikmen books by Barbara Nadel (BBC)

Best Crime Novel For Children

* Sufiya Ahmed for Rosie Raja: Undercover Codebreaker (Bloomsbury Education)
Natasha Farrant for The Secret of Golden Island (Faber & Faber)
A.M. Howell for Mysteries at Sea: The Hollywood Kidnap Case (Usborne Publishing)
M. G. Leonard for The Twitchers: Feather (Walker Books)
Beth Lincoln for The Swifts: A Gallery of Rogues (Penguin Random House Children’s UK)
Nicki Thornton for The Floating Witch Mystery (Faber & Faber)

Best Crime Novel For Young Adults

H.F. Askwith for A Cruel Twist of Fate (Penguin Random House Children’s UK)
Denise Brown for It All Started With a Lie (Hashtag Press)
A.J. Clack for Lie or Die (Firefly Press)
Amie  Jordan for All the Hidden Monsters (Chicken House)
* Kayvion Lewis for Heist Royale (Simon & Schuster Children’s Books)
Karen M. McManus for Such Charming Liars (Penguin Random House Children’s UK)

CRIME WRITERS OF CANADA AWARDS (f/k/a ARTHUR ELLIS AWARDS) Finalists 2026

The Peter Robinson Award for Best Crime Novel

Sue Hincenbergs, The Retirement Plan, HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Jen Sookfong Lee, The Hunger We Pass Down, McClelland & Stewart
Tamara L. Miller, Into the Fall, Thomas and Mercer
Louise Penny, The Black Wolf, Minotaur Books
Eddy Boudel Tan, The Tiger and the Cosmonaut, Viking Canada

Best Crime First Novel

Ray Critch, The Beltane Massacre, Breakwater Books
Jan Field, Yesterday’s Lies, La Cloche Publishing
Joel Nedecky, The Broken Detective, Run Amok Crime
David L. Tucker, A Painting to Die For, Otter & Osprey Press
A.L. Wahdel, Too Dark For the Light, Butterfly 80 Publishing

Best Crime Novel Set in Canada

Lis Angus, That Other Family, Next Chapter
Angela Douglas, Every Fall, Rising Action Publishing Co.
Uzma Jalaluddin, Detective Aunty, HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
C.S. Porter, Salt on Her Tongue, Vagrant Press
Chevy Stevens, The Hitchhikers, St. Martin’s Press

The Whodunit Award for Best Traditional Mystery

Shelley Adina, The Engineer’s Nemesis, Moonshell Books
Mel Anastasiou, Stella Ryman and the Search for Thelma Hu, Pulp Literature Press
Alice Fitzpatrick, A Dark Death, Stonehouse Publishing
Laury Silvers, Some Justice: A Ghazi Ammar Medieval Mystery, Independently Published
Iona Whishaw, The Cost of a Hostage, TouchWood Editions

Best Crime Short Story

Lis Angus, "Under the Circumstances," A Capital Mystery Anthology, Ottawa Press and Publishing
Madeleine Harris Callway, "The Lost Diner," Pulp Literature Press (story on p.115)
Barbara Fradkin, "Cold Shock," A Capital Mystery Anthology, Ottawa Press and Publishing
Billie Livingstone, "The Headache," Dark Yonder (story on p.31)
Sylvia Maultash Warsh, "Polly Wants a Freakin’ Cracker," Malice Domestic: Murder Most Humorous, Wildside Press

The Best French Language Crime Book (Fiction and Nonfiction)

Chrystine Brouillet, Le regard des autres, Druide
André Jacques, Jeux d’ombres, Druide
Steve Laflamme, La mémoire du labyrinthe, Libre Expression
Maureen Martineau, Une nuit d’été à Littlebrook, Héliotrope
Martin Michaud, Delta Zéro, Libre Expression

Best Juvenile/YA Crime Book

Charis Cotter The Mystery of the Haunted Dancehall, Tundra Books
Vicki Grant, Death by Whoopee Cushion, Tundra Books
Claire Hatcher-Smith, The Mizzy Mysteries: A Skeleton in the Closet, Tundra Books
Tanya Lloyd Kyi, The City of Lost Cats, Tundra Books
John Lekich, Bark Twice for Murder, Orca Book Publishers

The Brass Knuckles Award for Best Nonfiction Crime Book

Robert Cree with Therese Greenwood, The Many Names of Robert Cree: How a First Nations Chief, Brought Ancient Wisdom to Big Business and Prosperity to His People, ECW Press
John L. Hill, Acts of Darkness: Notorious Criminals, Their Defenders, Prosecutors, and Jailers, Durvile & UpRoute
Kathleen Lippa, Arctic Predator: The Crimes of Edward Horne Against Children in Canada’s North, Dundurn Press
Lorna Poplak, On the Lam: Great (and Not So Great) Escapes from Prison, Dundurn Press
Julian Sher & Lisa Fitterman, Hitman: The Untold Story of Canada’s Deadliest Assassin, HarperCollins Publishers Ltd

Best Unpublished Crime Novel manuscript

Anne Burlakoff, Val's Story
William Hall, The Less You Know
Francis K. Lalumière, Lens Flare
Barbara Stokes, Death Scent
Isabelle Zimmermann, Blistered 

CWA DAGGER AWARDS 2025

Diamond Dagger

* Mick Herron

Gold Dagger

A Divine Fury by D V Bishop (Macmillan)
The Bell Tower by R J Ellory (Orion)
The Hunter by Tana French (Penguin Books Ltd)
Guide Me Home by Attica Locke (Profile Books Ltd)
* Book of Secrets by Anna Mazzola (Orion)
I Died at Fallow Hall by Bonnie Burke-Patel (Bedford Square Publishers)

Ian Fleming Steel Dagger

* Dark Ride by Lou Berney (Hemlock Press/ HarperCollins)
Nobody's Hero by M W Craven (Constable/Little Brown, Hachette)
Sanctuary by Garry Disher (Viper/Profile Books)
Hunted by Abir Mukherjee (Harvill & Secker/ Penguin Random House)
Blood Like Mine by Stuart Neville (Simon & Schuster)
City in Ruins by Don Winslow (Hemlock Press/HarperCollins)

John Creasey (New Blood) Dagger

Miss Austen Investigates by Jessica Bull (Penguin Random House/ Michael Joseph)
Knife River by Justine Champine (Bonnier Books UK/ Manilla Press)
Three Burials by Anders Lustgarten (Penguin Random House/ Hamish Hamilton) 
A Curtain Twitcher's Book of Murder by Gay Marris (Bedford Square Publishers)         
* All Us Sinners by Katy Massey (Little, Brown /Sphere)
Deadly Animals by Marie Tierney (Bonnier Books UK/ Zaffre)

Historical Dagger

A Divine Fury by D.V. Bishop (Macmillan)
Banquet of Beggars by Chris Lloyd (Orion Fiction/Orion Publishing)
The Book of Secrets by Anna Mazzola (Orion Fiction/Orion Publishing)
* The Betrayal of Thomas True by A.J. West  (Orenda Books)
Poor Girls by Clare Whitfield (Aries / Head of Zeus)

Crime Fiction In Translation Dagger

Dogs and Wolves by Hervé Le Corre (Europa Editions UK) tr. Howard Curtis
Going to the Dogs by Pierre Lemaitre (Maclehose Press) tr. Frank Wynne
* The Night of Baby Yaga by Akira Otani (Faber & Faber) tr. Sam Bett
The Clues in the Fjord by Satu Rämö (Zaffre) tr.  Kristian London  
Butter by Asako Yuzuki (4th Estate) tr. Polly Barton
Clean by Alia Trabucco Zerán (4th Estate) tr. Sophie Hughes

Gold Dagger For Non-Fiction

Unmasking Lucy Let by Jonathan Coffey & Judith Moritz (Seven Dials)   
The Lady in the Lake by Jeremy Craddock (Mirror Books)   
Framed by John Grisham & Jim McCloskey (Hodder & Stoughton)  
The Criminal Mind by Duncan Harding (PRH/Michael Joseph)   
Four Shots in the Night by Henry Hemming (Quercus)   
* The Peepshow: The Murders at 10 Rillington Place by Kate Summerscale (Bloomsbury Circus)

Short Story Dagger

"The Glorious Twelfth" by S.J Bennett in Midsummer Mysteries, edited by Martin Edwards (Flame Tree Publishing/Flame Tree Collections)
* "A Date on Yarmouth Pier" by J.C Bernthal in Midsummer Mysteries, edited by Martin Edwards (Flame Tree Publishing/Flame Tree Collections)
"Why Harrogate?" by Janice Hallett in Murder in Harrogate, edited by Vaseem Khan (Orion Publishing Group/Orion Fiction)
"City Without Shadows" by William Burton McCormick in Midsummer Mysteries, edited by Martin Edwards (Flame Tree Publishing/Flame Tree Collections)
"A Ruby Sun" by Meeti Shroff-Shah in Midsummer Mysteries, edited by Martin Edwards (Flame Tree Publishing/Flame Tree Collections)
"Murder at the Turkish Baths" by Ruth Ware in Murder in Harrogate, edited by Vaseem Khan, (Orion Publishing Group/ Orion Fiction)

Whodunnit Dagger

A Death in Diamonds by SJ Bennett, (Bonnier Books UK, Zaffre)
Murder at the Christmas Emporium by Andreina Cordani,(Bonnier Books UK, Zaffre)
* The Case of the Singer and the Showgirl by Lisa Hall, (Hera Hera)
A Good Place to Hide a Body by Laura Marshall, (Hodder & Stoughton )
A Matrimonial Murder by Meeti Shroff-Shah, (Joffe Books)
Murder at the Matinee, by Jamie West, (Brabinger Publishing)

Twisted Dagger

Emma, Disappeared by Andrew Hughes (Hachette Books Ireland)
Beautiful People by Amanda Jennings (HarperCollins/ HQ FICTION)
The Stranger In Her House by John Marrs (Amazon Publishing/ Thomas & Mercer)
The Trials Of Marjorie Crowe by CS Robertson (Hodder & Stoughton)
* Nightwatching by Tracy Sierra: (PRH/ Viking)
Look In The Mirror by Catherine Steadman (Quercus)

Dagger In The Library

Kate Atkinson
Robert Galbraith
Janice Hallett
Lisa Jewell
Edward Marston
* Richard Osman

Publishers’ Dagger

Bitter Lemon Press
Faber & Faber
* Orenda Books
Pan Macmillan
Simon & Schuster

Emerging Author Dagger

Bahadur Is My Name by Loftus Brown, 
Funeral Games by Shannon Chamberlain
Soho Love, Soho Blood by Hywel Davies
* Ashland by Joe Eurell
The Fifth by Shannon Falkson,
Murder Under Wraps by Catherine Lovering

DANISH CRIMINAL ACADEMY AWARDS 2025

Palle Rosenkrantz prize (best foreign crime/thriller novel)

* Christoffer Carlsson, Levende og døde

Harald Mogensen award (best Danish crime/thriller novel)

* Søren Sveistrup, Tælle til en tælle til to

Debut Prize

* Mikkel Blaabjergm Den 6. magt

The Lasse Holm diploma (historical crime novel of the year)

* Mord i delegationen, Pernille Schou


DAPHNE AWARDS (FROM RWA KISS OF DEATH) 2025

Published Division Finalists

Cozy Mystery Suspense


Charlie’s Secrets — Lorena McCourtney

The Burning of Rosemont Abbey — Naomi Stephens
Ghost Appeal — Louisa West

Historical Romantic Mystery Suspense

Charlotte and the Seductive Spymaster — Grace Calloway

* With Winter Comes Darkness — Robbi Neal
A Hope Unburied— Kimberley Woodhouse

Long Romantic Mystery Suspense


Don’t Look Back —Rachel Grant

Stolen Beauty —Isabel Jolie
* Locked Down— Lori Matthews

Mainstream Mystery Suspense


The Third Estate Secrets of the Manor — D R Berlin

Shady Justice — Rena Koontz
* Cold Vengeance—Nancy Mehl

Novella & Short Romantic Mystery Suspense


Tracking the Missing — Sami A. Abrams

Raider Unleashed— Lori Matthews
* Wyoming Undercover Escape — Juno Rushdan

Unpublished Division Finalists

Mainstream Mystery Suspense

* Checkpoint — GK Daffu

Thirsty — Debbie Friedman
People Like You —  Mo Voaden

Romantic Suspense Category

First Note of Danger — Leah Miles

The Painting — Sheila Myers
* Buried — E.J. Whisler

DAVID L. GOODIS AWARD NOIRCON (Biannual) 2024

The David L. Goodis Award: PHILIPPE GARNIER (journalist, author)
The Jay and Deen Kogan Award for Excellence: JIM NISBET (posthumously) (author)
The Anne Friedberg Award for Contributions to Noir and Its Preservation: UCLA FILM & TELEVISION ARCHIVE

DAVITT AWARDS (Australia) 2025

Adult novels

* To the River
by Vikki Wakefield
The Rewilding by Donna M. Cameron
Safe Haven by Shankari Chandran
What I Would Do to You by Georgia Harper
Highway 13 by Fiona McFarlane

Nonfiction books

* The Lasting Harm: Witnessing the Trial of the Century by Lucia Osborne-Crowley
In Bad Faith by Dassi Erlich
Crimes of the Cross by Anne Manne

Young adult novels

*Into the Mouth of the Wolf by Erin Gough
Look Me in the Eye by Jane Godwin

Children’s novels

*The Midwatch by Judith Rossell
Outlaw Girls by Emily Gale & Nova Weetman
Queen of the Dogs by Joe Weatherstone

DERRINGER AWARDS 2026

FLASH

"Bradycardia" by Elizabeth Dearborn (Punk Noir Magazine, 2/4/2025)
"Check Rear Seat" by Carl Tait (Exquisite Death, 5/1/2025)
"It All Comes Out in the Wash" by James Patrick Focarile (Gumshoe Review, 10/31/2025)
"Just Like Old Times" by Shari Held (Yellow Mama, 2/15/2025)
* "The Man Under the Bridge" by Bern Sy Moss (Spillwords, 6/1/2025)

SHORT STORY

* "Blind Pig" by Michael Bracken (Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, September/October 2025)
"Chains" by Frank Vatel (All Due Respect, 9/1/25)
"Hollywood Prometheus" by Christa Faust (Crime Ink: Iconic: An Anthology of Crime Fiction Inspired by Queer Icons, Bywater Books)
"The Artist" by Linda Ann Bennett (Midnight Schemers & Daydream Believers: 22 Stories of Mystery & Suspense, Superior Shores Press)
"Wax On, Wax Off" by Nina Mansfield (Donna Andrews Presents Malice Domestic: Mystery Most Humorous, Wildside Press)

LONG STORY

"A Sign of the Times" by Tom Milani (Sleuths Just Wanna Have Fun: Private Eyes in the Materialistic Eighties, Down & Out Books)
"Masterpiece" by Mark Thielman (Black Cat Mystery Magazine 16, September 2025)
"Six-Armed Robbery" by Ashley-Ruth M. Bernier (Donna Andrews Presents Malice Domestic: Mystery Most Humorous, Wildside Press)
* "Whatever Kills the Pain" by C.W. Blackwell (Whatever Kills the Pain, Rock and a Hard Place Press)
"Zebra Finch" by donalee Moulton (The Most Dangerous Games, Level Best Books - Level Short)

NOVELETTE

"Aswarby Hall" by David Dean (Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, March/April 2025)
"Loose Change from a Mini Cooper" by Frank Zafiro (Chop Shop Episode 10, Down & Out Books)
"Saint Bullethead" by Nick Kolakowski (Fighting Words: Bruisers, Brawlers, & Bad Intentions, Leonardo Audio)
"The High Priest of Low Men" by C.W. Blackwell (Myopic Duplicity: Do the Ends Ever Justify the Means?, Leonardo Audio)
* "The Temporary Murder of Thomas Monroe" by Tia Tashiro (Clarkesworld, January 2025) (audio version)

ANTHOLOGY

Crimeucopia - The Not So Frail Detective Agency edited by John Connor (Murderous Ink Press)
Gone Fishin': Crime Takes a Holiday, The Eighth Guppy Anthology edited by James M. Jackson (Wolf's Echo Press)
* (tie) Hollywood Kills: An Anthology edited by Adam Meyer & Alan Orloff (Level Best Books - Level Short)
Midnight Schemers & Daydream Believers: 22 Stories of Mystery & Suspense edited by Judy Penz Sheluk (Superior Shores Press)
* (tie) On Fire and Under Water: A Climate Change Crime Fiction Anthology edited by Curtis Ippolito (Rock and a Hard Place Press)
SoWest: Danger Awaits! A Desert Sleuths Anthology edited by Claire A. Murray, Eva Eldridge, Suzanne E. Flaig, Denise Galley, and Sarah Smith (DS Publishing)

The Silver Derringer for Editorial Excellence:   TBA

Edward D. Hoch Memorial Golden Derringer for Lifetime Achievement:  TBA

Hall of Fame:  TBA

EDGAR AWARDS 2026

"Cold Turkey" by Patricia Dusenbury, Flash Bang Mysteries ed. Brandon Bourg (Summer 2017)

"Happy Birthday" by Alan Orloff, Shotgun Honey ed. Jen Conley, Angel Luis Colón, and Nick Kolakowski (June 15, 2017)

"Final Testimony" by Travis Richardson, Flash Fiction Offensive ed, Hector Duarte Jr. and Rob Pierce (July 10, 2017)

"Fishing for an Alibi" by Earl Staggs, Flash Bang Mysteries ed. Brandon Bourg (Fall 2017)

"Flash Point" by Elizabeth Zelvin, A Twist of Noir ed. Christopher Grant (March 20, 2017)


For Best Short Story (1,001-4,000 words)

"The Kids Keep Coming" by David H. Hendrickson, Fiction River: Tavern Tales ed. Kerrie L. Hughes, WMG Publishing Inc. (January 2017)

"The Cop Who Liked Gilbert and Sullivan" by Robert Lopresti, Sherlock Holmes Mystery Magazine #23, ed. Marvin Kaye, Wildside Press (October 2017)

"The New Score" by Alison McMahan, Fish Out of Water: A Guppy Anthology ed. Ramona DeFelice Long, Wildside Press (March 2017)

"The Bank Job" by Stephen D. Rogers, Trigger Warning Short Fiction with Pictures ed. Eric Lindbom and John Skewes (March 16, 2017)

"Every Picture Tells a Story" by Cathi Stoler, Where Crime Never Sleeps: Murder New York Style 4 ed. Elizabeth Zelvin, Level Best Books (September 2017)


For Best Long Story (4,001-8,000 words)

"El Asesino" by Rusty Barnes, BULL ed. Ben Drevlow (May 22, 2017)

"The #2 Pencil" by Matt Coyle, Coast to Coast: Private Eyes from Sea to Shining Sea ed. Andrew McAleer and Paul D. Marks, Down & Out Books (January 2017)

"Death in the Serengeti" by David H. Hendrickson, Fiction River: Pulse Pounders: Andrenaline ed. Kevin J. Anderson, WMG Publishing, Inc. (July 2017)

"Matricide and Ice Cream" by William Burton McCormick, The CWA Anthology of Short Stories: Mystery Tour ed. Martin Edwards, Orenda Books (November 2017)

"The Drive-by" by Alison McMahan, Busted: Arresting Stories from the Beat ed. Verena Rose, Harriette Sackler, and Shawn Reilly Simmons, Level Best Books (April 2017)


For Best Novelette (8,001-20,000 words)

"Flowing Waters" by Brendan DuBois, Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine ed. Janet Hutchings, January/February 2017

"Windward" by Paul D. Marks, Coast to Coast: Private Eyes from Sea to Shining Sea ed. Andrew McAleer and Paul D. Marks, Down & Out Books (January 2017)

"King's Quarter" by Andrew McAleer, Coast to Coast: Private Eyes from Sea to Shining Sea ed. Andrew McAleer and Paul D. Marks, Down & Out Books (January 2017)

"Kill My Wife, Please" by Robert J. Randisi, Coast to Coast: Private Eyes from Sea to Shining Sea ed. Andrew McAleer and Paul D. Marks, Down & Out Books (January 2017)

"Trouble Like a Freight Train Coming" by Tina Whittle, Lowcountry Crime: Four Novellas ed. James M. Jackson and Jan Rubens, Wolf's Echo Press (February 2017)

EDGAR AWARDS Finalists 2024

BEST NOVEL

* The Big Empty by Robert Crais (Penguin Random House – G.P. Putnam’s Sons)
Fagin the Thief by Allison Epstein (Penguin Random House – Doubleday)
The Dream Hotel by Laila Lalami (Penguin Random House – Pantheon Books)
Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy (Macmillan Publishers – Flatiron Books)
Hard Town by Adam Plantinga (Hachette Book Group – Grand Central Publishing)
The Inheritance by Trisha Sakhlecha (Penguin Random House – Pamela Dorman Books)
Presumed Guilty by Scott Turow (Hachette Book Group – Grand Central Publishing)

BEST FIRST NOVEL BY AN AMERICAN AUTHOR

Killer Potential by Hannah Deitch (HarperCollins – William Morrow)
All the Other Mothers Hate Me by Sarah Harman (Penguin Random House – G.P. Putnam’s Sons)
* Dead Money by Jakob Kerr (Penguin Random House – Bantam Books)
Johnny Careless by Kevin Wade (Macmillan Publishers – Celadon Books)
History Lessons by Zoe B. Wallbrook (Soho Press – Soho Crime)

BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL

Listen by Sacha Bronwasser (Penguin Random House – Penguin Books)
The Sideways Life of Denny Voss by Holly Kennedy (Amazon Publishing – Lake Union)
Broke Road by Matthew Spencer (Amazon Publishing – Thomas & Mercer)
* The Backwater by Vikki Wakefield (Sourcebooks – Poisoned Pen Press)
One Death at a Time by Abbi Waxman (Penguin Random House – Berkley)

BEST FACT CRIME

They Poisoned the World: Life and Death in the Age of Forever Chemicals by Mariah Blake (Penguin Random House – Crown)
Blood and the Badge: The Mafia, Two Killer Cops, and a Scandal That Shocked the Nation by Michael Cannell (Macmillan Publishers – Minotaur Books)
* Murderland: Crime and Bloodlust in the Time of Serial Killers by Caroline Fraser (Penguin Random House – Penguin Press)
Out of the Woods: A Girl, a Killer, and a Lifelong Struggle to Find the Way Home by Gregg Olsen (Amazon Publishing – Thomas & Mercer)
Story of a Murder: The Wives, the Mistress, and Dr. Crippen by Hallie Rubenhold (Penguin Random House – Dutton)

BEST CRITICAL/BIOGRAPHICAL

V is for Venom: Agatha Christie’s Chemicals of Death by Kathryn Harkup (Bloomsbury – Sigma)
The Kingdom of Cain: Finding God in the Literature of Darkness by Andrew Klavan (HarperCollins Christian Publishing – Zondervan)
* Edgar Allan Poe: A Life by Richard Kopley (University of Virginia Press)
Cooler Than Cool: The Life and Work of Elmore Leonard by C.M. Kushins (HarperCollins Publishers – Mariner Books)
Criss-Cross: The Making of Hitchcock’s Dazzling, Subversive Masterpiece Strangers on a Train by Stephen Rebello (Hachette Book Group – Running Press)

BEST SHORT STORY

“Reading at Night,” by Graham Greene (The Strand Magazine)
“The One That Got Away,” by Charlaine Harris (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine)
“Orphan X: A Mysterious Profile,” by Gregg Hurwitz (Penzler Publishers – Mysterious Press)
“Lucky Heart,” by Tim Maleeny (Blood on the Bayou – Case Closed, Down & Out Books)
“The Kill Clause,” by Lisa Unger (Amazon Original Stories )
* “Julius Katz Draws a Straight Flush,” by Dave Zeltserman (Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine)

BEST JUVENILE

Montgomery Bonbon: Murder at the Museum by Alasdair Beckett-King (Candlewick Press)
What Happened Then by Erin Soderberg Downing (Scholastic Press)
A Study in Secrets by Debbi Michiko Florence (Simon & Schuster – Aladdin)
* Blood in the Water by Tiffany D. Jackson (Scholastic Press)
The Midwatch Institute for Wayward Girls by Judith Rossell (Penguin Young Readers – Dial)
Mystery James Digs Her Own Grave by Ally Russell (Random House Children’s Books – Delacorte Press)

BEST YOUNG ADULT

* Under the Same Stars by Libba Bray (Macmillan Publishers – Farrar, Straus and Giroux BFYR)
Catch Your Death by Ravena Guron (Sourcebooks – Sourcebooks Fire)
This is Where We Die by Cindy R.X. He (Sourcebooks – Sourcebooks Fire)
The Scammer by Tiffany D. Jackson (HarperCollins Children’s Books – Quill Tree Books)
Codebreaker by Jay Martel (St. Martin’s Publishing Group – Wednesday Books)

BEST TELEVISION EPISODE TELEPLAY

“End of the Line” – Ballard, Written by Michael Alaimo & Kendall Sherwood (Amazon/Fabel)
* “Pilot” – Paradise, Written by Dan Fogelman (Hulu)
“Episode 101” – The Lowdown, Written by Sterlin Harjo (FX on Hulu)
“These Girls” – Long Bright River, Written by Nikki Toscano & Liz Moore (Peacock)
“Ye’iitsoh (Big Monster)” – Dark Winds, Written by John Wirth & Steven Paul Judd (AMC)

ROBERT L. FISH MEMORIAL AWARD 

“A Textbook Example,” by Luis Avalos (Sacramento Noir, Akashic Books)
* “How It Happened,” by Billie Kay Fern (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine)
“Baggage,” by Rick Marcou (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine)
“Bloodsurf,” by Tiffany D. Plunkett (Hollywood Kills, Level Best Books – Level Short)
“Grand Theft Auto in the Heart of Screenland,” by Robert Rotstein (Hollywood Kills, Level Best Books – Level Short)

THE SIMON & SCHUSTER MARY HIGGINS CLARK AWARD 


Five Found Dead by Sulari Gentill (Sourcebooks – Poisoned Pen Press)
Savvy Summers and the Sweet Potato Crimes by Sandra Jackson-Opoku (Macmillan Publishers – Minotaur Books)
No Comfort for the Dead by R.P. O’Donnell (Crooked Lane Books)
* All This Could Be Yours by Hank Phillippi Ryan (Macmillan Publishers – Minotaur Books)
Last Dance Before Dawn by Katharine Schellman (Macmillan Publishers – Minotaur Books)

THE G.P. PUTNAM’S SONS SUE GRAFTON MEMORIAL AWARD


Cold as Hell by Kelley Armstrong (Macmillan Publishers – Minotaur Books)
Rage: A Novel by Linda Castillo (Macmillan Publishers – Minotaur Books)
Fallen Star by Lee Goldberg (Amazon Publishing – Thomas & Mercer)
The Red Letter by Daniel G. Miller (Sourcebooks – Poisoned Pen Press)
* Gone in the Night by Joanna Schaffhausen (Macmillan Publishers – Minotaur Books)

THE LILIAN JACKSON BRAUN MEMORIAL AWARD


Mrs. Christie at the Mystery Guild Library by Amandah Chapman (Penguin Random House – Berkley)
* A Senior Citizen’s Guide to Life on the Run by Gwen Florio (Severn House)
The Marigold Cottages Murder Collective by Jo Nichols (Macmillan Publishers – Minotaur Books)
Murder Two Doors Down by Chuck Storla (Crooked Lane Books)
Vera Wong’s Guide to Snooping (On a Dead Man) by Jesse Q. Sutanto (Penguin Random House – Berkley)

SPECIAL AWARDS  

Grand Master

  • Donna Andrews
  • Lee Child

Raven Award

  • Book Passage, Corte Madera CA

Ellery Queen Award

John Scognamiglio, Kensington Books


FALCOLN AWARD (Japan) 2024

* Razorblade Tears by S.A. Cosby

GERMAN MYSTERY PRIZE (Deutscher Krimipreis) 2026

German Language

First place: Andreas Pflüger for Kälter (Suhrkamp)
Second Place: Zoran Drvenkar for Asa (Suhrkamp),
Third Place: Susanne Tägder for Die Farbe des Schattens (Tropen)

Crime Fiction in Translation

First place: Lavie Tidhar for Adama (Suhrkamp), translated by Conny Lösch
Second Place: Liz Moore for Der Gott des Waldes (C.H. Beck), translated by von Cornelius Hartz
Third Place: Gustavo Faverón Patriau for Unten leben (Droschl), translated by Manfred Gmeiner


GLASS KEY AWARD (Scandinavia) 2025

*Fuglekongen (Living and Dead) by Eva Fretheim

GOODREADS CHOICE AWARDS, MYSTERY & THRILLER 2025

*Not Quite Dead Yet by Holly Jackson


HAMMETT PRIZE 2025

*God of the Woods by Liz Moore (Riverhead)
The Long-Shot Trial by William Deverell (ECW Press)
Crooked by Dietrich Kalteis (ECW Press)
Rough Trade by Katrina Carrasco (MCD Books)
Broiler by Eli Cranor (Soho)


ICELANDIC 
Blóðdropan CRIME FICTION PRIZE Finalists 2026

Alfa by Lilja Sigurðardóttir
Allar litlu lygarnar (All the Little Lies) by Eva Björg Ægisdóttir
Eftirför (Pursuit) by Anna Rún Frímannsdóttir
Líf (LIfe) by Reynir Finndal Grétarsson
Lokar augum blám (Closing Blue Eyes) by Margrét S. Höskuldsdóttir


AN POST IRISH INDEPENDENT CRIME FICTION BOOK OF THE YEAR 2025

*It Should Have Been You by Andrea Mara (Bantam, Transworld
Burn After Reading by Catherine Ryan Howard (Bantam/Transworld PRH)  
Fair Play
by Louise Hegarty  (Pan Macmillan / Picador)  
The Killing Sense
by Sam Blake (Atlantic Books / Corvus)
The Secret Room
by Jane Casey (Hemlock / HarperCollins)
The Stolen Child
by Carmel Harrington (Headline Review)  
The Stranger Inside
by Amanda Cassidy (Canelo Crime)  
Two Kinds Of Stranger
by Steve Cavanagh (Headline) 


ITW THRILLER AWARDS 2026

Best Standalone Novel

* Megan Collins – Cross My Heart (Atria)
Ruth Knafo Setton – Zigzag Girl (Black Spring Press)
Gilly Macmillan – The Burning Library (William Morrow)
Sarah Pekkanen – The Locked Ward (St. Martin’s Press)
Olivia Worley – So Happy Together (Minotaur)

Best Series Novel

James Byrne – Chain Reaction (Minotaur)
* Robert Crais – The Big Empty (Penguin/Putnam)
John McMahon – Head Cases (Minotaur)
Christopher Reich – The Tourists (Thomas & Mercer)
Vincent Zandri – Terminal Moonlight (Down & Out Books)

Best First Novel

Chris Chibnall – Death At The White Hart (Pamela Dorman Books)
* Kelsey Cox – Party Of Liars (Minotaur)
Sophie Stava – Count My Lies (Gallery/Scout Press)
Zoe B. Wallbrook – History Lessons (Soho Crime)
Liann Zhang – Julie Chan Is Dead (Atria)

Best Audiobook

S. A. Cosby – King Of Ashes (Macmillan), narrated by Adam Lazarre-White
Mark Edwards – The Wasp Trap (Simon & Schuster), narrated by John Hopkins, Anna Burnett
Marisa Kashino – Best Offer Wins (Macmillan), narrated by Cia Court
Xan Kaur – When Devils Sing (Macmillan), narrated by Michael Crouch, Anjali Kunapaneni,  Jennifer Pickens, Landon Woodson
CN Mabry, N'Dia Rae – The Cheater's Wife (Simon Maverick), narrated by Ruffin Prentiss, Machelle Williams
* Michael Robotham – The White Crow (Simon & Schuster), narrated by Katy Sobey

Best Young Adult Novel

Liz Lawson – Murder Between Friends (Delacorte Press)
Margot McGovern – This Stays Between Us (Penguin Young Readers)
Clay McLeod Chapman – Shiny Happy People (Delacorte Press)
* Diana Rodriguez Wallach – The Silenced (Delacorte Press)
Julie Soto – The Thrashers (Wednesday Books)

Best Short Story

Katrina Carrasco – “Level Up” (Bywater Books)
Scott William Carter – “The Seduction of Dr. Dimension” (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine)
Lee Child – “Eleven Numbers” (Amazon Original Stories)
David Lagercrantz – “False Note” (Amazon Original Stories)
*Jessica Van Dessel – “The Violent Season” (Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine)


KILLER NASHVILLE SILVER FALCHION AWARDS 2025

John Siegenthaler Legends Award:  Sara Paretsky

Best Action Adventure 

* Jericho Burning by T.G. Brown
The General’s Gold by Bruce Robert Coffin
Desperate Measures by Ley Esses
Where Love Means Nothing by Howard Gimple 
The North Line  by Matt Riordan 

Best Comedy (includes comedic P.I. and crime caper)

The Princess Shoppe by Kerry Blaisdell
Swiped by L.M. Chilton
Get Gribnitz by Howard Gimple 
Model Ghost  by TK Sheffield
* Sorry, Knot Sorry
by Lois Winston 

Best Cozy

Beeswax Bewitchment by S.E. Babin 
Elizabeth Sails by Kristin Owens 
*Study Guide For Murder by Lori Robbins 
Framed For Murder by Marla White 
Wheeling And Dealing by Becki Willis

Best Historical 

Empowered By The Dream: A Journey Of Resilience by Gladys A. Barrio 
The Paris Mistress by Mally Becker 
* A Killing On The Hill by Robert Dugoni 
Find Your Way To My Grave by Chris Keefer 
What Once Was Promised by Louis Trubiano 

Best Investigator (includes procedural, serious P.I., detective, and noir)

The Things That Cannot Be Forgotten by Peter W.J. Hayes
Last Dog Out by Candace Irving 
Black & White by Justin M. Kiska 
Tiger Claw by Michael Allan Mallory 
* Murder Outside The Box by Saralyn Richard 

Best Juvenile / Y.A.

Beyond The Cemetery Gate: The Secret Keeper’s Daughter by Valerie Biel 
Dead Girl by Kerrie Faye 
Stealing Time by Tilia Klebenov Jacobs 
Snowed by Twist Phelan 
* Star Brother by Maxine Rose Schur 

Best Literary

She Ruined Our Lives by Chris Chan 
* An American Tragedy by Dan Flanigan 

Best Mainstream / Commercial

Those That Did Not Die by Penny Fletcher 
On The Mad River by Lucrecia Guerrero 
People Will Talk by Kieran Scott 
Between Lies And Revenge by Hannah Sharpe 
* Blindspot by Maggie Smith 

Best Mystery

* Drop Dead Sisters by Amelia Diane Coombs 
Obey All Laws by Cindy Goyette 
At First I Was Afraid by Marty Ludlum 
A World Of Hurt by Mindy Mejia 
Scorched: Burn Me Once… by Cam Torrens 

Best Nonfiction 

There Is No Ethan by Anna Akbari 
Lovers In Auschwitz: A True Story by Keren Blankfeld 
Ask Not: The Kennedys And The Women They Destroyed by Maureen Callahan 
* Tilghman: The Legendary Lawman And The Woman Who Inspired Him by Chris Enss
Seeds Of Leadership by Wilson Lukang 

Best Sci-Fi / Fantasy

Ocean’s Godori by Elaine Cho 
The Canopy Keepers by Veronica G. Henry 
* Master Version 1.1 by Antanas Marcelionis 
House Of Fire & Magic by Sherrilyn McQueen 
The Building That Wasn’t by Abigail Miles 

Best Short Story Collection / Anthology

Never Tell Collection by Kjersti Egerdahl
* Day by Patrick Kitson 
Deeds Of Darkness by William Burton McCormick
6-Lane Highway by Sean Mitchell
Larceny & Last Chances: 22 Stories Of Mystery & Suspense by Judy Penz Sheluk 

Best Southern Gothic

* Pocket Full Of Teeth by Lisa Kastner
Kentucky Blood (Book I Of The Kentucky Blood Series) by Ashley Thomas Sheikh

Best Supernatural

Not Born Of Woman by Teel Glenn
A Place For Good And Evil by Stacey Horan
* City Of Innocent Monsters by Stacey Horan
Dervla Alarms The Nanas by DR Ransdell
Cold Snap by Lindy Ryan

Best Suspense

A Friend In The Dark by Samantha M. Bailey
If You Tell A Lie by Lucinda Berry
* The Next Mrs. Parrish by Liv Constantine
Lost To Dune Road by Kara Thomas
The Last Party by AR Torre

Best Thriller

* Rich Justice by Robert Bailey
The Dredge by Brendan Flaherty
The Mechanics Of Memory by Audrey Lee
A Forgotten Kill by Isabella Maldonado
The Ascent by Adam Plantinga

Best Western

Knife River by Baron Birtcher
Sarita by Natalie Musgrave Dossett
* The Broken Blood by Dwight Holing

KILLER NASHVILLE CLAYMORE AWARDS 2025

Best Action Adventure

Leo And The Chess Game Of Ashoka  by Jaya Agrawal 
Tesla Enigma By Christopher Boswell
* The Invisible Predator  By Angela Greenman 
Angelians By Dennis Meredith
Die Along The Way  By Ga Rivers 

Best Childrens

Muppit Boy And The Allergies Of Evil  By Michael Bowler
* Francie Faye Ain’t Right By Kimberly Dana 

Night, Night Boogeyman! By kimberly dana 
Morse Code By Sue Dugan 
Wesley Finds His Wolf By Jennifer Page Stickney

Best comedy (includes comedic p.i. And crime caper)

* Murder In Lake Placid  By Katie Barron 
Getting Published Is A Murder By Amy Ivan 
Void  By Phil Latham 
Confessions Of An Innocent Man By Roger Toll

Best Cozy

High Tides And Homicides  By Elise Burke Brown 
* Lady Beryl And The Elusive Bijou  By Elizabeth Buttimer 
The Body In The Sauna  By Sr Chamberlain 
The Alphabet Cooking Club  By Janet Cobb
The Psychic Detective  By Linda Kelley 

Best Historical

Sea of Clouds by G.S. Arnold 
* Lilias Of The Valley  By Janel Nichols 
The Secret Of The Old Dock Hand By Amy Padden 
The Bone Child  By Laurel Remington 
By  Their Rules By J Morgyn White 

Best Invesigator

The Killer Argument  By Jack Conlan 
The Darker The Night  By Kate Flora 
Love Thy Neighbor By Marilyn Kay 
* Blood Moon Over Phoenix  By Arthur Kerns 
Informed Consent  By Matthew Riordan 

Best Juvenile

Gloriana Rising  By Corrie Bruce 
* The Seven Spells Of Sarafina Foxkit  By Cr Doyle 
Thirsty  By Debbie Freidman
Doppelgänger Jumper By Judy Gregg
Rung Three By Magda Smith 

Best Literary

After Constance  By David Dalessandro 
My Given Name  By Fe Davies
Iris Rising  By Masha Hamilton 
* Detroit South  By John Jeffire 
Mud Angels  By Kristin Russek 

Best Mainstream / Commercial

* Early Adopter  By Mark Guerin 
Jericho Lost  By Cj Kudlacz 
The Devil Comes To Kindland  By Phil Kushner 
The Lupin Gene  By Matthew Minson 
The Spirit Of The Gazelle  By Rodney Walther 

Best Mystery

No Forcible Entry  By Kate Bergquist
The Wolf We Bury  By Rebecca Jarnes 
Cold Shores  By Sara Johnson 
* Twelve Sinners  By Henry Kaye 
Harlow’s Gold  By Ej Whisler 

Best Nonfiction

Outside Bravo  By Jacob Moon
* Madam Coroner: Surviving Death And Politics In Suburbia  By Christina Vandepol

Best Sci-Fi / Fantasy

The Sublime Machine  By George Angelou 
The Wrong Side Of The Rainbow  By Bill Bibo 
* Even Human By Em Dasche 
The Vatra Witch  By Gv Hext 
Proxima B By Jl Yarrow 

Best Short Story Collection / Anthology

* Night Driving And Other Stories| By Kate Bergquist (Author)
Shadows And Dust  By John Bukowski (Author)
The Forgotten Monday  By Mark Connely (Author)
Bonedale By Patrick Kitson (Author)

Best Southern Gothic

* Mind Game  By Venita Bonds 
Wodehouse  By Elise Burke Brown 
Hush Little Birdie  By Minette Lauren 
Beauty Secrets  By Minette Lauren 
Blood Of Cotton, Blood Of Cane By Irene Smith 

Best Supernatural

* Herb, Hex, And Hourglass By Michelle Aumiller
The Devil’s Daughter  By Lydia Gullicksen
Blood Moon Shadows  By Matt Harlow 
Misled  By Sl Hulen 
The Book Of Demons  By John Ryland 

Best Suspense

Kill me if you can by r.g. Belsky 
Pressure  By Caroline O’donnell
Blindsided  By Chas Shutt
We Never Should Have Come By Lb Solobik 
* Diatoms Are A Girl’s Best Friend  By Ronda Wells 

Best Thriller 

Everlasting Tides  By Richard Hinkemeyer 
* Misled  By Sl Hulen 
What She Knows  By Renda Knapp 
All The Buried Secrets  By Kim Nuesse 
A Woman In Pieces  By Ruth Knafo Setton 

Best True Crime 

* The Country Western Killer On Hollywood’s Walk Of Fame  By Richard Carrico 
Marked By  The Ouiji  By Scott Wells 

Best Western 

* The Outlaw’s Daughter  By Patricia Thorpe 

LAMBDA LITERARY AWARD LGBT Authors/Themes Finalists 2026

Best Mystery/Thriller

A Queer Case by Robert Holtom (Titan Books);
Every Sweet Thing Is Bitter by Samantha Crewson (Crooked Lane Books)
Girl Falling by Hayley Scrivenor (Flatiron Books)
Mirage City by Lev AC Rosen (Minotaur Books)
The Case of the Missing Maid by Rob Osler (Kensington Publishing Corporation).
 
 

* Best Foreign Novel:  Dominic Nolan, White City
* Best French Novel: Benjamin Dierstein, Bleus, Blancs, Rouges
 
  • Boystown 5: Murder Book, Marshall ThorntonFierce, David Lennon
  • Foxed, Garry Ryan
  • The General and the Elephant Clock of Al-Jazari, Sarah Black
  • How to Greet Strangers: A Mystery, Joyce Thompson
  • In Real Life, The 3rd Gemini & Flowers Mystery, Jonathan Gregory
  • Pawn of Satan, Mark Zubro
  • Pretty Boy Dead, Jon Michaelsen
  • The Prisoner of the Riviera: A Francis Bacon Mystery, Janice Law
  • Baton Rouge Bingo, Greg Herren, Bold Strokes Books
  • Boystown 5: Murder Book, Marshall Thornton, MLR Press
  • Fierce, David Lennon, Blue Spike Publishing
  • Foxed, Garry Ryan, NeWest Press
  • The General and the Elephant Clock of Al-Jazari, Sarah Black, Dreamspinner Press
  • How to Greet Strangers: A Mystery, Joyce Thompson, Lethe Press
  • In Real Life, The 3rd Gemini & Flowers Mystery, Jonathan Gregory, Amazon Digital Services Inc
  • Pawn of Satan, Mark Zubro, MLR Press
  • Pretty Boy Dead, Jon Michaelsen, Wilde City Press
  • The Prisoner of the Riviera: A Francis Bacon Mystery, Janice Law, MysteriousPress.com/Open Road Media
- See more at: http://www.lambdaliterary.org/llf-news/2th-annual-lambda-literary-awards/#sthash.fLrg4ADR.dpuf
  • Boystown 5: Murder Book, Marshall Thornton, MLR Press
  • Fierce, David Lennon, Blue Spike Publishing
  • Foxed, Garry Ryan, NeWest Press
  • The General and the Elephant Clock of Al-Jazari, Sarah Black, Dreamspinner Press
  • How to Greet Strangers: A Mystery, Joyce Thompson, Lethe Press
  • In Real Life, The 3rd Gemini & Flowers Mystery, Jonathan Gregory, Amazon Digital Services Inc
  • Pawn of Satan, Mark Zubro, MLR Press
  • Pretty Boy Dead, Jon Michaelsen, Wilde City Press
  • The Prisoner of the Riviera: A Francis Bacon Mystery, Janice Law, MysteriousPress.com/Open Road Media
- See more at: http://www.lambdaliterary.org/llf-news/2th-annual-lambda-literary-awards/#sthash.fLrg4ADR.dpuf

LEFT COAST CRIME AWARDS 2026

Lefty Nominees for Best Humorous Mystery Novel

Ellen Byron, Solid Gold Murder (Kensington)
Jennifer J. Chow, Star-Crossed Egg Tarts (St. Martin’s Paperbacks)
Elizabeth Crowens, Bye Bye Blackbird (Level Best Books)
* Catriona McPherson, Scot’s Eggs (Severn House)
Cindy Sample, All’s Faire in Love and Murder (Cindy Sample Books)


Lefty Nominees for Best Historical Mystery Novel

Cara Black, Huguette (Soho Crime)
Mariah Fredericks, The Girl in the Green Dress (Minotaur Books)
Dianne Freeman, A Daughter’s Guide to Mothers and Murder (Kensington)
Claire M. Johnson, City Lights (Level Best Books)
Laurie R. King, Knave of Diamonds (Bantam)
* Rob Osler, The Case of the Missing Maid (Kensington)


Lefty Nominees for Best Debut Mystery Novel

* Adrian Andover, Whiskey Business (Chestnut Avenue Press)

Kristen L. Berry, We Don’t Talk About Carol (Bantam)
Laurie L. Dove, Mask of the Deer Woman (Berkley)
Sue Hincenbergs, The Retirement Plan (William Morrow)
Marisa Kashino, Best Offer Wins (Celadon Books)
Diane Schaffer, Mortal Zin (Sibylline Press)


Lefty Nominees for Best Mystery Novel

Lou Berney, Crooks (William Morrow)
Claire Booth, Throwing Shadows (Severn House)
Tracy Clark, Edge (Thomas & Mercer)
Leslie Karst, Waters of Destruction (Severn House)
* James L’Etoile, River of Lies (Oceanview Publishing)
Gigi Pandian, The Library Game (Minotaur Books)



LOS ANGELES TIMES BOOK PRIZE 2026

Mystery/Thriller

* El Dorado Drive by Megan Abbott (G.P. Putnam’s Sons)
The Proving Ground: A Lincoln Lawyer Novel by Michael Connelly (Little, Brown and Company)
Everybody Wants to Rule the World by Ace Atkins (William Morrow)
King of Ashes by S.A. Cosby (Flatiron Books: Pine & Cedar)
Crooks by Lou Berney (William Morrow)


MACAVITY AWARDS 2025

Best Mystery Novel

Hall of Mirrors by John Copenhaver (Pegasus Crime)

Served Cold by James L’Etoile (Level Best Books)

The God of the Woods by Liz Moore (Riverhead)

* California Bear by Duane Swierczynski (Mulholland)

The In Crowd by Charlotte Vassell (Doubleday)

All the Colors of the Dark by Chris Whitaker (Crown)

Best First Mystery

Outraged by Brian Copeland (Dutton)

A Reluctant Spy by David Goodman (Headline)

* Ghosts of Waikiki by Jennifer K. Morita (Crooked Lane)

You Know What You Did by K.T. Nguyen (Dutton)

The Expat by Hansen Shi (Pegasus Crime)

Holy City by Henry Wise (Atlantic Monthly Press)

Best Mystery Short Story

* “Home Game” by Craig Faustus Buck (in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, July/August 2024)

“The Postman Always Flirts Twice” by Barb Goffman (in Agatha and Derringer Get Cozy)

“Curse of the Supertaster” by Leslie Karst (in Black Cat Weekly, Feb 23, 2024)

“Two for One” by Art Taylor (in Murder, Neat)

“Satan’s Spit” by Gabriel Valjan (in Tales of Music, Murder, and Mayhem)

“Reynisfjara” by Kristopher Zgorski (in Mystery Most International)

Best Mystery Critical/Biographical

Writing the Cozy Mystery: Authors’ Perspectives on Their Craft edited by Phyllis M. Betz (McFarland)

Some of My Best Friends Are Murderers: Critiquing the Columbo Killers by Chris Chan (Level Best Books)

Witch of New York: The Trials of Polly Bodine and the Cursed Birth of Tabloid Justice by Alex Hortis (Pegasus Crime)

The Infernal Machine: A True Story of Dynamite, Terror, and the Rise of the Modern Detective by Steven Johnson  (Crown)

On Edge: Gender and Genre in the Work of Shirley Jackson, Patricia Highsmith, and Leigh Brackett by Ashley Lawson  (Ohio State University Press)

* Abingdon’s Boardinghouse Murder by Greg Lilly (History Press)

Sue Feder Memorial Award for Best Historical Mystery

The Wharton Plot by Mariah Fredericks (Minotaur)

An Art Lover’s Guide to Paris and Murder by Dianne Freeman (Kensington)

* Fog City by Claire Johnson (Level Best Books)

The Murder of Mr. Ma by John Shen Yen Nee and S.J. Rozan (Soho Crime)

The Bootlegger’s Daughter by Nadine Nettmann (Lake Union)

A Grave Robbery by Deanna Raybourn (Berkley)

MAINE LITERARY AWARDS 2025

Crime Fiction

* Maureen Milliken, Dying for News
Paul Doiron, Pitch Dark
Kathryn Lasky, Mortal Radiance
Thomas Ricks, Everyone Knows But You

MALTESE FALCOLN SOCIETY OF JAPAN AWARD 2025

*All the Sinners Bleed by S.A. Cosby

MINNESOTA BOOK AWARDS, GENRE  FICTION 2026

Apostle's Cove by William Kent Krueger (Atria Books/Simon & Schuster)
Broken Fields by Marcie Rendon (Soho Press/Penguin Random House)
The Codebreaker's Daughter by Amy Lynn Green (Bethany House Publishers/Baker Publishing Group)
* The Quiet Librarian by Allen Eskens (Mulholland Books/Little, Brown and Company/Hachette Book Group)


NED KELLY AWARDS (Australia) 2025

Best Crime Fiction:

Shadow City, by Natalie Conyer (Bonnier Echo)
Sanctuary, by Garry Disher (Text)
Unbury the Dead, by Fiona Hardy (Affirm Press)
* The Creeper, by Margaret Hickey (Random House Australia)
Cold Truth, by Ashley Kalagian Blunt (Ultimo Press)
Highway 13, by Fiona McFarlane (Allen & Unwin)
17 Years Later, by J.P. Pomare (Hachette Australia)
Storm Child, by Michael Robotham (Hachette Australia)

Best Debut Crime Fiction:

Down the Rabbit Hole, by Shaeden Berry (Bonnier Echo)
A Town Called Treachery, by Mitch Jennings (HarperCollins)
The Chilling, by Riley James (Allen & Unwin)
* All You Took From Me, by Lisa Kenway (Transit Lounge)
Everywhere We Look, by Martine Kropkowski (Ultimo Press)
Those Opulent Days, by Jacquie Pham (Atlantic Monthly Press)

Best True Crime:

They’ll Never Hold Me, by Michael Adams (Affirm Press)
* A Thousand Miles from Care, by Steve Johnson (William Collins)
The Kingpin and the Crooked Cop, by Neil Mercer (Allen & Unwin)
Meadow’s Law, by Quentin McDermott (HarperCollins)
The Lasting Harm, by Lucia Osborne-Crowley (HarperCollins)

Best International Crime Fiction:

Return to Blood, by Michael Bennett (Simon & Schuster UK)
Leave the Girls Behind, by Jacqueline Bublitz (Allen & Unwin)
The Waiting, by Michael Connelly (Allen & Unwin)
* A Case of Matricide, by Graeme Macrae Burnet (Text)
Moscow X, by David McCloskey (Swift Press)
Home Truths, by Charity Norman (Allen & Unwin)

NERO WOLF AWARDS 2025

The Nero for Best Mystery

* Agony Hill by Sarah Stewart Taylor (Minotaur Books)

Black Orchid Novella Award

* "The Troubling Mr. Truelove" by Pete Barnstrom


NGAIO MARSH AWARD (New Zealand) 2025

Best Novel

* Return To Blood by Michael Bennett (Simon & Schuster)
A Divine Fury by DV Bishop (Macmillan)
Woman, Missing by Sherryl Clark (HarperCollins)
Home Truths by Charity Norman (Allen & Unwin)
17 Years Later by JP Pomare (Hachette)
The Call by Gavin Strawhan (Allen & Unwin)
Prey by Vanda Symon (Orenda Books)

Best First Novel

Dark Sky by Marie Connolly (Quentin Wilson Publishing)
Lie Down With Dogs by Syd Knight (Rusty Hills)
A Fly Under The Radar by William McCartney 
* The Defiance Of Frances Dickinson by Wendy Parkins (Affirm Press)
The Call by Gavin Strawhan (Allen & Unwin)
Kiss Of Death
by Stephen Tester (Heritage Press)

Best Nonfiction

The Trials Of Nurse Kerr by Scott Bainbridge (Bateman Books)
The Survivors by Steve Braunias (HarperCollins)
* The Crewe Murders by Kirsty Johnstone & James Hollings (Massey Uni Press)
The Last Secret Agent by Pippa Latour & Jude Dobson (Allen & Unwin)
Gangster’s Paradise by Jared Savage (HarperCollins)
Far North by David White & Angus Gillies (Upstart Press)


PEPE CARVLHO AWARD (BCNegra literary festival in Barcelona), 2026

* Mick Herron


PETRONA AWARD, BEST SCANDINAVIAN CRIME FICTION IN TRANSLATION 2025

Samuel Bjørk – Dead Island tr. Charlotte Barslund (Norway, Bantam)
Pascal Engman – The Widows tr. Neil Smith (Sweden, Legend Press)
Malin Persson Giolito – Deliver Me tr. Rachel Willson-Broyles (Sweden, Simon & Schuster)
Óskar Guðmundsson – The Dancer tr. Quentin Bates (Iceland, Corylus Books)
Aslak Nore – The Sea Cemetery tr. Deborah Dawkin (Norway, MacLehose Press)
* Satu Rämö – The Clues in the Fjord tr. Kristian London (Finland, Zaffre)
Gunnar Staalesen – Pursued by Death tr. Don Bartlett (Norway, Orenda Books).

SHAMUS AWARDS 2025

Best PI Hardcover

Kingpin by Mike Lawson (Atlantic Monthly Press) 
The Hollow Tree by Phillip Miller (Soho Crime)
Farewell, Amethystine by Walter Mosley (Mulholland Books) 
* Trouble in Queenstown by Delia Pitts (Minotaur Books
Death and Glory by Will Thomas (Minotaur Books)

Best Original Pi Paperback

Geisha Confidential by Mark Coggins (Down & Out Books)
Quarry’s Return by Max Allan Collins (Hard Case Crime)
Not Born of Woman by Teel James Glenn (Crossroad Press)
Bless Our Sleep by Neil S. Plakcy (Samwise Books)
* Call of the Void by J.T. Siemens (NeWest Press)
The Big Lie by Gabriel Valjan (Level Best Books)

Best First Pi Novel

* Twice the Trouble by Ash Clifton (Crooked Lane Books)
The Devil’s Daughter by Gordon Greisman (Blackstone Publishing) 
Fog City by Claire M. Johnson (Level Best Books) 
The Road to Heaven by Alexis Stefanovich-Thomson (Dundurn Press) 
Holy City by Henry Wise (Atlantic Monthly Press)

Best PI Short Story

* “Deadhead” by Tom Andes (Issue 10.1: A Case of KINK - Cowboy Jamboree Magazine

“Alibi in Ice” by Libby Cudmore (July/August 2024, Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine)  
“Drop Dead Gorgeous” by M.E. Proctor (Janie’s Got a Gun: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Music of Aerosmith – White City Press) 
“Under Hard Rock” by Ed Teja (Black Cat Weekly #164
“The Five Cent Detective” by S.B. Watson (Crimeucopia: Great Googly-Moo!)

The Eye Lifetime Achieve Awards

*Christine Matthews

SISTERS IN CRIME ELEANOR TAYLOR BLAND CRIME FICTION CRIME FICTION WRITERS OF COLOR 2025

* Between a Dream and a Curse by Tina Ehsanipour
Checkpoint
by
GK Daffu
The First Wife by Cristina Escobedo
The Paper Wife by Amjed McDonnell
A Killing in Black Newpor by Christal Roberts 
Providence. by Catherine Tucker


SPEAKIES BRITISH AUDIOBOOK AWARDS 2025

Crime & Thriller Category

Guilty by Definition by Susie Dent (Zaffre), narrated by Louise Brealey
* Him by JD Kirk (Audible Originals), narrated by David Tennant, Louise Brealey
Lovers of Franz K by Burhan Sönmez (Oakhill), narrated by various
Marble Hall Murders by Anthony Horowitz (Penguin Random House Audio), narrated by Lesley Manville, Tim McMullan
Panic by LJ Ross (WF Howes), narrated by Richard Armitage
The Hotel Avocado by Bob Mortimer (Gallery), narrated by Bob Mortimer, Paul Whitehouse, Sally Phillips, Julie Maisey.  

SPOTTED OWL AWARD (Best Pacific NW Crime Novel) 2026

  1. Mike Lawson – Untouchable
  2. Marc Cameron – Deadline
  3. Robert Dugoni – A Dead Draw
  4. Sam Wiebe – The Last Exile
  5. Elizabeth George – A Slowly Dying Cause
  6. James Bryne – Chain Reaction
  7. Daniel Kalla – The Deepest Fake
  8. J.A. Jance – Overkill
  9. Phillip Margolin – False Witness
  10. Nolan Chase – A Lonesome Place for Murder


SPYMASTER'S BOOK PRIZE 2025

The Peacock and the Sparrow, by I.S. Berry (No Exit Press)
Gabriel’s Moon, by William Boyd (Viking)
Spy Hunter, by H.B. Lyle (Hodder Paperbacks)
Honour Among Spies, by Merle Nygate (No Exit Press)
Midnight in Vienna, by Jane Thynne (Quercus)
Shadow of Poison, by Peter Tonkin (Independently published)

STRAND CRITICS AWARD Finalists 2024

Best Novel

All the Sinners Bleed, by S.A. Cosby (Flatiron)
Everybody Knows, by Jordan Harper (Mulholland)
Small Mercies, by Dennis Lehane (Harper)
Resurrection Walk, by Michael Connelly (Little, Brown)
Prom Mom, by Laura Lippman (Morrow)
Time’s Undoing, by Cheryl A. Head (Dutton)
The Secret Hours, by Mick Herron (Soho Crime)

Best First Novel

Fadeaway Joe, by Hugh Lessig (Crooked Lane)
Mother-Daughter Murder Night, by Nina Simon (Morrow)
The House in the Pines, by Ana Reyes (Dutton)
Don’t Forget the Girl, by Rebecca McKanna (Sourcebooks Landmark)
Adrift, by Lisa Brideau (Sourcebooks Landmark)
The Peacock and the Sparrow, by I.S. Berry (Atria)

*Lifetime Achievement Awards  Kathy Reichs and Max Allan Collins.

*Publisher of the Year:  Jonathan Karp of Simon and Schuster 


SWEDISH CRIME ACADEMY 2025

Best Crime Novel:  Sara Strömberg, Sot (Modernista)

Best Crime Novel Translated into Swedish: Sebastian Barry, Old Sins' Sake, tr. Daniel Gustafsson (Norstedts)

Best Swedish Debut:  Johan Rundberg, The One Who Guards the Flock (Bokförlaget Forum).

Best Children's/YA:  Martin Jern and Loka Kanarp, The First Case on the Golden Hill  (Lilla Piratförlaget)

Best Nonfiction:  Anders Bergman, Crime Scene 1937. The Golden Age detective novel under the microscope (Aleph's Crime Library)

The Yard, by Alex Grecian (Putnam)
The Expats, by Chris Pavone (Crown)
Disappeared, by Anthony Quinn (Mysterious Press/Open Road)
The 500, by Matthew Quirk (Hachette) - See more at: http://mysteryreadersinc.blogspot.com/2013/03/strand-magazine-critics-awards-nominees.html#.dpuf
A Land More Kind Than Home, by Wiley Cash (Morrow)
The Yard, by Alex Grecian (Putnam)
The Expats, by Chris Pavone (Crown)
Disappeared, by Anthony Quinn (Mysterious Press/Open Road)
The 500, by Matthew Quirk (Hachette) - See more at: http://mysteryreadersinc.blogspot.com/2013/03/strand-magazine-critics-awards-nominees.html#.dpuf
A Land More Kind Than Home, by Wiley Cash (Morrow)
The Yard, by Alex Grecian (Putnam)
The Expats, by Chris Pavone (Crown)
Disappeared, by Anthony Quinn (Mysterious Press/Open Road)
The 500, by Matthew Quirk (Hachette) - See more at: http://mysteryreadersinc.blogspot.com/2013/03/strand-magazine-critics-awards-nominees.html#.dpuf

THEAKSTON'S OLD PECULIER CRIME NOVEL OF THE YEAR 2025

* Hunted, by Abir Mukherjee (Harvill Secker)
The Cracked Mirror, by Chris Brookmyre (Sphere)
The Mercy Chair, by M.W. Craven (Constable)
The Last Word, by Elly Griffiths (Quercus)
Deadly Animals, by Marie Tierney (Zaffre)
All the Colours of the Dark, by Chris Whitaker (Orion)

THEAKSTON MCDERMID DEBUT AWARD 2025

* David Goodman’s A Reluctant Spy (Headline)
Sick to Death, by Chris Bridges (Avon)
I Died at Fallow Hall, by Bonnie Burke-Patel (Bedford Square)
Her Two Lives, by Nilesha Chauvet (Faber & Faber)
Isolation Island, by Louise Minchin (Headline)
Black Water Rising, by Sean Watkin (Canelo)


THEAKSTON OLD PECULIER OUTSTANDING CONTRIBUTION AWARD 2025

* Elly Griffiths