Barry Awards 2023

The winners of the 2023 Barry Awards given by Deadly Pleasures Mystery Magazine were announced during Opening Ceremonies at Bouchercon San Diego.  

BEST MYSTERY OR CRIME NOVEL

  • Desert Star, Michael Connelly (Little,Brown)

BEST DEBUT MYSTERY OR CRIME NOVEL

  • The Maid, Nita Prose (Ballantine)

BEST THRILLER

  • Killers of a Certain Age, Deanna Raybourn (Berkley)

Also presented:

DON SANDSTROM AWARD FOR LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT IN MYSTERY FANDOM

  • “Mystery” Mike Bursaw

Crime Fiction Awards News Roundup

CWA DIAMOND DAGGER

Walter Mosley is the 2023 winner of The Crime Writers’ Association Diamond Dagger Award.

The Diamond Dagger recognizes authors whose crime writing careers have been marked by sustained excellence, and who have made a significant contribution to the genre, and is regarded as one of the foremost awards hosted in Britain for crime writing.

Walter Mosley said: “At the beginning of my writing career I was fortunate enough to be awarded the CWA’s New Blood Dagger, otherwise called the John Creasey Award. That was the highest point of my experience as a first book author.  Since then, I have picked up other honours along the way but the only award that comes near the Diamond Dagger is the MWA’s Grand Master nod.  These two together make the apex of a career that I never expected.”

2022 SALTIRE SOCIETY LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

Mystery writer Alexander McCall Smith was given the 2022 Saltire Society Lifetime Achievement Award for his contribution to Scottish literature..

2022 JOFFE BOOKS PRIZE FOR CRIME WRITERS OF COLOUR

The shortlist for the 2022 Joffe Books Prize for Crime Writers of Colour has been announced.

  • The Labelled Bones by FQ Yeoh
  • Everyone Is Going To Know by Kingsley Pearson
  • The Smiling Mandarin by Mai Le Dinh
  • Red Obsession by Rose Lorimer
  • Savage Territory by Sam Genever

2023 BARRY AWARDS

The Barry Awards Nominations 2023 have been released by Deadly Pleasures magazine.

Best Mystery or Crime Novel

  • The Accomplice, Steve Cavanagh (Orion)
  • Desert Star, Michael Connelly (Little,Brown)
  • The Dark Flood, Deon Meyer (Atlantic Monthly)
  • Shifty’s Boys, Chris Offutt (Grove Press)
  • Secret Identity, Alex Segura (Flatiron Books)
  • City On Fire, Don Winslow (William Morrow)

Best First Mystery or Crime Novel

  • Before You Knew My Name, Jacqueline Bublitz (Atria/EmilyBestler)
  • Don’t Know Tough, Eli Cranor (Soho Crime)
  • Shutter, Ramona Emerson (Soho Crime)
  • The Maid, Nita Prose (Ballantine)
  • Blood Sugar, Sascha Rothchild (Putnam)
  • Dirt Creek, Hayley Scrivenor (Flatiron)

Best Thriller

  • In The Blood, Jack Carr (Atria/Emily Bester)
  • Winter Work, Dan Fesperman (Knopf)
  • Sierra Six, Mark Greaney (Berkley)
  • Bad Actors, Mick Herron (Soho Crime)
  • Killers Of A Certain Age, Deanna Raybourn (Berkley)
  • Goering’s Gold, Richard O’Rawe (Melville House)

DEUTSCHER KRIMIPREIS

The winners of the Deutscher Krimipreis 2022 have been announced. (Translations by Cora Buhlert.) 

GERMAN LANGUAGE CRIME FICTION

First place: Die Stunde der Hyänen (The Hour of the Hyaenas) by Johannes Groschupf.

Second Place: Einmal noch sterben (Die once more) by Oliver Bottini

Third place: Davenport 160×90 by Sybille Ruge

CRIME FICTION IN TRANSLATION

First place: Die Aosawa Morde (The Aosawa Murders) by Riku Onda, translated by Nora Bartels

Second place: Die Knochenleser (The Bone Readers) by Jacob Ross, translated by Karin Diemerling

Third place: Wie die einarmige Schwester das Haus fegt (How the One-Armed Sister Sweeps Her House) by Cherie Jones, translated by Karen Gerwig

[Thanks to Cora Buhlert for these stories.]

Crime Fiction News for September 2022

2022 BARRY AWARDS

The winners of the 2022 Barry Awards were announced September 8 at Bouchercon. The Barry Award winners are selected by subscribers and readers of Deadly Pleasures, where one of the magazine’s stated goals is to search out and report on the best works being published in the field of crime fiction each year.

BEST MYSTERY/CRIME NOVEL

  • Razorblade Tears, S. A. Cosby (Flatiron Books)

BEST FIRST MYSTERY/CRIME NOVEL

  • Sleeping Bear, Connor Sullivan (Emily Bestler/Atria)

BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL

  • The Good Turn, Dervla Mctiernan (Blackstone)

BEST THRILLER

  • Five Decembers, James Kestrel (Hardcase Crime)

2022 MCILVANNEY PRIZE SHORTLIST

The McIlvanney Prize recognizes excellence in Scottish crime writing, and includes a prize of £1,000 and nationwide promotion in Waterstones. Here is the McIlvanney Prize 2022 shortlist which was announced September 6:

  • May God Forgive by Alan Parks (Canongate)
  • The Second Cut by Louise Welsh (Canongate)
  • A Corruption of Blood by Ambrose Parry (Canongate)
  • The Heretic by Liam McIlvanney (Harpercollins)

The McIlvanney Prize winner will be announced on September 15.

Crime Fiction Awards News To Begin 2022

Crime fiction award season is gearing up and the finalists for the 2022 Barry Awards and 2021 Agatha Awards have been announced.

2022 BARRY AWARDS

BEST MYSTERY/CRIME NOVEL

  • The Dark Hours, Michael Connelly (Little, Brown)
  • Razorblade Tears, S. A. Cosby (Flatiron Books)
  • Last Redemption, Matt Coyle (Oceanview)
  • Clark and Division, Naomi Hirahara (Soho Crime)
  • Billy Summers, Stephen King (Scribner)
  • We Begin at the End, Chris Whitaker (Henry Holt)

BEST FIRST MYSTERY/CRIME NOVEL

  • Who Is Maude Dixon?, Alexandra Andrews (Little, Brown)
  • Girl A, Abigail Dean (Viking)
  • Down Range, Taylor Moore (William Morrow)
  • Falling, T. J. Newman (Simon & Schuster)
  • Sleeping Bear, Connor Sullivan (Emily Bestler/Atria)
  • Steel Fear, Brandon Webb & John David Mann (Bantam)

BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL

  • The Hunted, Gabriel Bergmoser (Harpercollins)
  • Arsenic and Adobo, Mia P. Manansala (Berkley)
  • Black Coral, Andrew Mayne (Thomas & Mercer)
  • The Good Turn, Dervla Mctiernan (Blackstone)
  • Search For Her, Rick Mofina (Mira)
  • Bound, Vanda Symon (Orenda Books)

BEST THRILLER

  • The Devil’s Hand, Jack Carr (Emily Bestler/Atria)
  • The Nameless Ones, John Connolly (Emily Bestler/Atria)
  • Dead By Dawn, Paul Doiron (Minotaur)
  • Relentless, Mark Greaney (Berkley)
  • Slough House, Mick Herron (Soho Crime)
  • Five Decembers, James Kestrel (Hardcase Crime)

The winners of these awards will be announced at the Opening Ceremonies at the Minneapolis Bouchercon on September 8, 2022.

THE 2021 AGATHA AWARD NOMINEES

BEST CONTEMPORARY NOVEL

  • Cajun Kiss of Death by Ellen Byron (Crooked Lane Books)
  • Watch Her by Edwin Hill (Kensington)
  • The Madness of Crowds by Louise Penny (Minotaur)
  • Her Perfect Life by Hank Phillippi Ryan (Forge)
  • Symphony Road by Gabriel Valjan (Level Best Books)
  • BEST HISTORICAL NOVEL
  • Murder at Mallowan Hall by Colleen Cambridge (Kensington)
  • Clark and Division by Naomi Hirahara (Soho Crime)
  • The Bombay Prince by Sujata Massey (Soho Crime)
  • Death at Greenway by Lori Rader-Day (HarperCollins)
  • The Devil’s Music by Gabriel Valjan (Winter Goose Publishing)
  • BEST FIRST NOVEL
  • The Turncoat’s Widow by Mally Becker (Level Best Books)
  • A Dead Man’s Eyes by Lori Duffy Foster (Level Best Books)
  • Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala (Berkley)
  • Murder in the Master by Judy L. Murray (Level Best Books)
  • Mango, Mambo, and Murder by Raquel V. Reyes (Crooked Lane Books)
  • BEST SHORT STORY
  • “A Family Matter” by Barb Goffman (Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine Jan/Feb 2021)
  • “A Tale of Two Sisters” by Barb Goffman in Murder on the Beach (Destination Murders)
  • “Doc’s at Midnight” by Richie Narvaez in Midnight Hour (Crooked Lane Books)
  • “The Locked Room Library” by Gigi Pandian (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine July/Aug 2021)
  • “Bay of Reckoning” by Shawn Reilly Simmons in Murder on the Beach (Destination Murders)
  • BEST NON-FICTION
  • The Combat Zone: Murder, Race, and Boston’s Struggle for Justice by Jan Brogan (Bright Leaf Press)
  • Murder Most Grotesque: The Comedic Crime Fiction of Joyce Porter by Chris Chan (Level Best Books)
  • The Irish Assassins: Conspiracy, Revenge, and the Phoenix Park Murders that Stunned Victorian England by Julie Kavanaugh (Atlantic Monthly Press)
  • How to Write a Mystery: A Handbook from Mystery Writers of America by MWA with editors Lee Child and Laurie R. King (Simon & Schuster)
  • BEST CHILDREN’S/YA MYSTERY
  • ?Cold-Blooded Myrtle by Elizabeth C. Bunce (Algonquin Young Readers)
  • The Forest of Stolen Girls by June Hur (Fiewel and Friends/Macmillan)
  • I Play One on TV by Alan Orloff (Down & Out Books)
  • Leisha’s Song by Lynn Slaughter (Fire and Ice/Melange Books)
  • Enola Holmes and the Black Barouche by Nancy Springer (Wednesday Books)

The awards will be presented during Malice Domestic, which is being held April 22-24 in Bethesda, MD.

[Thanks to Cora Buhlert and Todd Mason for the information.]

2021 Barry Awards

The winners of the 2021 Barry Awards have been announced early, because Bouchercon is cancelled. The Barry Award winners are selected by subscribers and readers of Deadly Pleasures, where one of the magazine’s stated goals is to search out and report on the best works being published in the field of crime fiction each year.

The authors’ acceptance remarks are at the link.

BEST NOVEL

Blacktop Wasteland, S. A. Cosby (Flatiron Books)

BEST FIRST NOVEL

Winter Counts, David Heska Wanbli Weiden (Ecco)

BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL

Turn To Stone, James W. Ziskin (Seventh Street Books)

BEST THRILLER

Eddie’s Boy, Thomas Perry (Mysterious Press)

[Thanks to Cora Buhlert for the story.]

2021 Crime Fiction Award Update

The 2021 finalists for Left Coast Crime’s Lefty Awards, the Barry Awards, the shortlisted authors for the Lindisfarne Prize for Crime Fiction, and the finalists in the British Book Awards crime and thriller category have been announced.

2021 LEFTY AWARDS FINALISTS

LEFTY FOR BEST HUMOROUS MYSTERY NOVEL

  • Ellen Byron, Murder in the Bayou Boneyard (Crooked Lane Books)
  • Jennifer J. Chow, Mimi Lee Gets a Clue (Berkley Prime Crime)
  • Carl Hiaasen, Squeeze Me (Alfred A. Knopf)
  • Cynthia Kuhn, The Study of Secrets (Henery Press)
  • J. Michael Orenduff, The Pot Thief Who Studied the Woman at Otowi Crossing (Aakenbaaken & Kent)
  • Sung J. Woo, Skin Deep (Agora Books)

LEFTY FOR BEST HISTORICAL MYSTERY NOVEL

Bruce Alexander Memorial for books covering events before 1970

  • Susanna Calkins, The Fate of a Flapper (Minotaur Books)
  • Dianne Freeman, A Lady’s Guide to Mischief and Murder (Kensington Books)
  • Laurie R. King, Riviera Gold (Bantam Books)
  • Catriona McPherson, The Turning Tide (Quercus)
  • Ann Parker, Mortal Music (Poisoned Pen Press)
  • James W. Ziskin, Turn to Stone (Seventh Street Books)

LEFTY FOR BEST DEBUT MYSTERY NOVEL

  • Daisy Bateman, Murder Goes to Market (Seventh Street Books)
  • Mary Keliikoa, Derailed (Camel Press)
  • Erica Ruth Neubauer, Murder at the Mena House (Kensington Books)
  • Richard Osman, The Thursday Murder Club (Viking)
  • Halley Sutton, The Lady Upstairs (Putnam)
  • David Heska Wanbli Weiden, Winter Counts (Ecco)

LEFTY FOR BEST MYSTERY NOVEL

  • Tracy Clark, What You Don’t See (Kensington Books)
  • S.A. Cosby, Blacktop Wasteland (Flatiron Books)
  • Matt Coyle, Blind Vigil (Oceanview Publishing)
  • Rachel Howzell Hall, And Now She’s Gone (Forge)
  • Louise Penny, All the Devils Are Here (Minotaur Books)

2021 BARRY AWARD NOMINATIONS

BEST NOVEL

The Boy From The Woods, Harlan Coben (Grand Central)
The Law Of Innocence, Michael Connelly (Little, Brown)
Blacktop Wasteland, S. A. Cosby (Flatiron Books)
And Now She’s Gone, Rachel Howzell Hall (Forge)
Moonflower Murders, Anthony Horowitz (Harper)
All The Devils Are Here, Louise Penny (Minotaur)

BEST FIRST NOVEL

Deep State, Chris Hauty (Atria/Emily Bester)
Murder In Old Bombay, Nev March (Minotaur)
The Thursday Murder Club, Richard Osman (Viking\Pamela Dorman)
The Eighth Detective, Alex Pavesi (Henry Holt)
Winter Counts, David Heska Wanbli Weiden (Ecco)
Darling Rose Gold, Stephanie Wrobel (Berkley)

BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL

When No One Is Watching, Alyssa Cole (Morrow)
Mongkok Station, Jake Needham (Hp)
Hide Away, Jason Pinter (Thomas & Mercer)
Bad News Travels Fast, James Swain (Thomas & Mercer)
Darkness For Light, Emma Viskic (Pushkin Vertigo)
Turn To Stone, James W. Ziskin (Seventh Street Books)

BEST THRILLER

Double Agent, Tom Bradby (Atlantic Monthly)
Blind Vigil, Matt Coyle (Oceanview)
One Minute Out, Mark Greaney (Berkley)
The Last Hunt, Deon Meyer (Atlantic Monthly)
Eddie’s Boy, Thomas Perry (Mysterious Press)
The Wild One, Nick Petrie (Putnam)

2021 LINDISFARNE PRIZE FOR CRIME FICTION

The Lindisfarne Prize is a literary prize which recognizes outstanding writing in the genre of crime or thriller fiction. The shortlisted authors are:

  • Rob Scragg
  • Barbara Scott Emmett
  • Ellie Davies
  • David Cooper
  • Ed Walsh

The winning entry will be awarded a prize of £2500 to support the completion of their work and funding towards a year’s membership of both the Society of Authors (SoA) and the Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi), and smaller financial awards to shortlisted candidates. 

2021 BRITISH BOOK AWARDS

Crime And Thriller Category

  • Troubled Blood by Robert Galbraith (Sphere)
  • The Sentinel by Lee Child and Andrew Child (Bantam)
  • The Patient Man by Joy Ellis (Joffe Books)
  • The Guest List by Lucy Foley (HarperFiction)
  • The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman (Viking)
  • A Song for the Dark Times by Ian Rankin (Orion Fiction)

[Thanks to Cora Buhlert for the story.]

2020 Barry Awards

Deadly Pleasures Mystery Magazine announced the 2020 Barry Award winners during this year’s Virtual Bouchercon.

The magazine’s readers voted on the recipients.

Best Mystery/Crime Novel

  • The Lost Man by Jane Harper (Flatiron)

Best First Mystery/Crime Novel

  • The Chestnut Man by Soren Sveistrup (Harper)

Best Paperback Original Mystery/Crime Novel

  • Missing Daughter by Rick Mofina (Mira)

Best Thriller

  • The Chain by Adrian Mckinty (Mulholland)

Best Mystery/Crime Novel of the Decade

  • Suspect by Robert Crais (Putnam)

[Thanks to Todd Mason for the story.]

2020 Barry Award Nominees

Deadly Pleasures Mystery Magazine has announced the Barry Award nominees for 2020, chosen by panels of experts in mystery/crime fiction.  

The magazine’s readers will vote on the winners, which will be revealed during the Opening Ceremonies of Bouchercon in Sacramento, California on October 15.

Best Mystery/Crime Novel

  • The Lost Man by Jane Harper (Flatiron)
  • If She Wakes by Michael Koryta (Little, Brown)
  • Metropolis by Philip Kerr (Putnam)
  • The Border by Don Winslow (Harpercollins)
  • Your House Will Pay by Steph Cha (Ecco)
  • Thirteen by Steve Cavanagh (Flatiron)

Best First Mystery/Crime Novel

  • The Chestnut Man by Soren Sveistrup (Harper)
  • The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides (Celadon)
  • American Spy by Lauren Wilkinson (Random House)
  • Save Me From Dangerous Men by S. A. Lelchuk (Flatiron)
  • Scrublands by Chris Hammer (Atria)
  • To The Lions by Holly Watt    (Dutton)

Best Paperback Original Mystery/Crime Novel

  • The Godmother by Hannelore Cayre (Ecw)
  • Winner Kills All by R. J. Bailey (Simon & Schuster Uk)
  • Killing Quarry by Max Allan Collins (Hardcase Crime)
  • Fate by Ian Hamilton (Spiderline)
  • Missing Daughter by Rick Mofina (Mira)
  • No Good Deed by James Swain (Thomas & Mercer)

Best Thriller

  • Mission Critical by Mark Greaney (Berkley)
  • Backlash by Brad Thor (Atria/Emily Bester)
  • The Chain by Adrian Mckinty (Mulholland)
  • The Burglar by Thomas Perry (Mysterious Press)
  • True Believer by Jack Carr (Atria/Emily Bester)
  • White Hot Silence by Henry Porter (Mysterious Press)

Best Mystery/Crime Novel of the Decade

  • Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn (Crown)
  • November Road by Lou Berney (William Morrow)
  • Suspect by Robert Crais (Putnam)
  • The Dry by Jane Harper (Flatiron)
  • The Black House by Peter May (Quercus)
  • The Cartel by Don Winslow (Knopf)

Barry and Shamus Award Winners Named at Bouchercon

2019 BARRY AWARDS

The 2019 Barry Awards were presented October 31 at Bouchercon by Deadly Pleasures Mystery Magazine. 

Best Novel

  • November Road by Lou Berney (Morrow) 

Best First Novel

  • The Chalk Man by C. J. Tudor (Crown)

Best Paperback Original 

  • The Ruin by Dervla McTiernan (Penguin)

Best Thriller

  • Safe Houses by Dan Fesperman (Knopf)

Dan Sandstrom Award for Lifetime Achievement in Mystery
Fandom

  • Jeff Popple

2019 SHAMUS AWARDS

The Private Eye Writers of America announced the 2019 Shamus Awards winners at Bouchercon in Dallas on November 1.

BEST PI HARDCOVER

  • What You Want to Seeby Kristen Lepionka (Minotaur Books)

BEST FIRST PI NOVEL

  • The Best Bad Things by Katrina Carrasco (MCD Farrar, Straus, Giroux)

BEST PI PAPERBACK ORIGINAL

  • The Questionable Behavior of Dahlia Moss by Max Wirestone (Redhook Books)

BEST PI SHORT STORY

  • “Chin Yong-Yun Helps a Fool” by S.J. Rozan (EQMM)

2019 Barry Awards Nominees

The nominees for the 2019 Barry Awards have been published by Deadly Pleasures Mystery Magazine. The winners will be announced on October 31 at the Dallas Bouchercon Opening Ceremonies

Best Novel
November Road by Lou Berney,(Morrow) 
Dark Sacred Night by Michael Connelly, (Little, Brown)
The Shadow We Hide by Allen Eskens, (Mulholland)
Depth of Winter by Craig Johnson, (Viking)
Leave No Trace by Mindy Mejia,(Atria)
A Necessary Evil by Abir Mukherjee, (Pegasus)

Best First Novel
My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite,(Doubleday)
Need to Know by Karen Cleveland, (Ballantine)
Dodging and Burning by John Copenhaver,(Pegasus)
Sweet Little Lies by Caz Frear, (Harper)
Bearskin by James A. McLaughlin, (Ecco)
The Chalk Man by C. J. Tudor (Crown)

Best Paperback Original 
A Sharp Solitude by Christine Carbo, (Atria)
Dead Pretty by David Mark, (Blue Rider Press)
The Ruin by Dervla McTiernan, (Penguin)
The Hollow of Fear by Sherry Thomas,(Berkley)
Resurrection Bay by Emma Viskic, (Pushkin Vertigo)

Best Thriller
The Terminal List by Jack Carr, (Atria)
Safe Houses by Dan Fesperman,(Knopf)
London Rules by Mick Herron, (Soho)
Forever and  a Day by Anthony Horowitz, (Harper)
Light it Up by Nick Petrie, (Putnam)
The King Tides by James Swain, (Thomas & Mercer) 

[Thanks to Cora Buhlert for the story.]