Or the crime fiction awards do, anyway.

DEAD GOOD READER AWARDS. The Dead Good Reader Awards shortlists were announced June 20. Public voting is open through July 17:

The Nosy Parker Award for Best Amateur Detective
Who’s been sticking their nose in where it doesn’t belong? This award is for the civvie who can’t resist mystery.

• A Clean Canvas by Elizabeth Mundy
• The Brighton Mermaid by Dorothy Koomson
• Red Snow by Will Dean
• The Stone Circle by Elly Griffiths
• The Suspect by Fiona Barton
• The Taking of Annie Thorne by C J Tudor

The Jury’s Out Award for Most Gripping Courtroom Drama
The stakes are high and the twists and turns are unpredictable. This award is for the book packed full of legal thrills.

• Anatomy of a Scandal by Sarah Vaughan
• Blood Orange by Harriet Tyce
• Marked for Death by Tony Kent
• No Further Questions by Gillian McAllister
• Our Kind of Cruelty by Araminta Hall
• Thirteen by Steve Cavanagh

The Dish Served Cold Award for Best Revenge Thriller
Retribution’s the name of the game here. This award is for the book serving up just – or unjust – deserts.

• Do No Harm by L V Hay
• Final Betrayal by Patricia Gibney
• Marked for Death by Tony Kent
• My Lovely Wife by Samantha Downing
• The Puppet Show by M W Craven
• Sticks and Stones by Jo Jakeman

The Cancel All Plans Award for the Book You Can’t Put Down
Clear your diary. Switch off your phone. Call in sick. This award is for the book that demands you keep reading.

• The Brighton Mermaid by Dorothy Koomson
• Her Name Was Rose by Claire Allan
• The Night Olivia Fell by Christina Mcdonald
• The Passengers by John Marrs
• Skin Deep by Liz Nugent
• Sleep by C L Taylor

The Cat and Mouse Award for Most Elusive Villain
The hunt is on! This award is for those dastardly cunning criminals who are particularly difficult to pin down.

• Beautiful Liars by Isabel Ashdown
• Do No Harm by L V Hay
• The Infirmary by L J Ross
• The Last of the Magpies by Mark Edwards
• The Rumour by Lesley Kara
• Twisted by Steve Cavanagh

The Dead Good Recommends Award for Most Recommended Book
Which book do you press into the hands of everyone you meet? This award is for the novel you recommend above all others.

• The Death of Mrs Westaway by Ruth Ware
• Now You See Her by Heidi Perks
• The Passengers by John Marrs
• Skin Deep by Liz Nugent
• Sleep by C L Taylor
• The Stone Circle by Elly Griffiths

MCILVANNEY PRIZES. Scottish noir is celebrated by the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish crime fiction . Here is the McIlvanney Prize 2019 longlist:

• All the Hidden Truths, Claire Askew (Hodder)
• No Man’s Land, Neil Broadfoot (Little, Brown)
• Fallen Angel, Chris Brookmyre (Little, Brown)
• Breakers, Doug Johnstone (Orenda)
• All That’s Dead, Stuart MacBride (Harper Collins)
• In the Silence, M R Mackenzie (Bloodhound Books)
• Broken Ground, Val McDermid (Little, Brown)
• A Breath on Dying Embers, Denzil Meyrick (Polygon)
• Conviction, Denise Mina (Vintage)
• The Way of All Flesh, Ambrose Parry (Canongate) aka Chris Brookmyre and Marisa Haetzman
• In a House of Lies, Ian Rankin (Orion)
• A Treachery of Spies, Manda Scott (Transworld)
• Thunder Bay, Douglas Skelton (Polygon)

Followed by the shortlist for the 2019 McIlvanney Debut Prize. Both awards are handed out at the Bloody Scotland festival in Stirling, Scotland.

• All the Hidden Truths, Claire Askew* (Hodder)
• From the Shadows, G R Halliday (Vintage)
• Black Camp 21, Bill Jones (Polygon)
• In the Silence, M R Mackenzie* (Bloodhound)
• The Peat Dead, Allan Martin (Thunderpoint)

They were chosen by an independent panel of readers and booksellers. The finalists for the McIlvanney Prize 2019 will be revealed at the beginning of September and selected by Alison Flood, books reporter for The Guardian and a former news reporter for The Bookseller; James Crawford, chair of Publishing Scotland and presenter of BBC series, Scotland from the Sky and Stuart Cosgrove, writer and broadcaster who was formerly a senior executive at Channel 4. The debut prize will be judged by a panel from the board of Bloody Scotland including crime writers Lin Anderson, Craig Robertson, Gordon Brown and Abir Mukherjee.

Winner will be presented at the Opening Reception of Bloody Scotland International Crime Writing Festival in Stirling on Friday 20 September 2019.

[Thanks to Cora Buhlert for the story.]