It’s a quiet day – let’s catch up with the year-end crime fiction awards announcements.

CRIME FICTION LOVER AWARDS 2021

The inaugural Crime Fiction Lover Awards winners have been announced. The shortlists were selected by Crime Fiction Lover readers. One set of winners were chosen by public vote. There is also a set of Editor’s Choice.

Best Crime Novel

• The Night Hawks by Elly Griffiths

Best Novel Editor’s Choice

• Razorblade Tears by SA Cosby

Best Debut Crime Novel of 2021

• The Source by Sarah Sultoon

Best Debut Editor’s Choice

• Winter Counts by David Heska Wanbli Weiden

Best Crime Novel in Translation of 2021

• The Girl Who Died by Ragnar Jonasson, translated by Victoria Cribb

Best Crime Novel in Translation Editor’s Choice

• Riccardino by Andrea Camilleri, translated by Stephen Sartarelli

Best Indie Crime Novel of 2021

• Strangers of Braamfontein by Onyeka Nwelue

Best Indie Novel Editor’s Choice

• The Quiet People by Paul Cleave

Best Crime Show of 2021

• Line of Duty

Best Crime Show Editor’s Choice

• Mare of Easttown

Best Author

• Elly Griffiths

Best Author Editor’s Choice

• Ian Rankin

CRIME TIME FM NOVEL OF THE YEAR AWARD

Crime Time FM, a crime fiction podcast, has announced the winners of the Crime Time FM Novel of the Year Award.

WINNER

• Razorblade Tears SA Cosby (Headline)

RUNNER-UP

• Vine Street Dominic Nolan (Headline)

OTHER SHORTLISTED BOOKS

• The Village of Eight Graves by Seichi Yokomizo trans. Bryan Karetnyk (Pushkin Press)
• The Turnout Megan Abbott (Faber & Faber)
• The First Day of Spring by Nancy Tucker (Hutchinson)
• Future Perfect by Felicia Yap (Wildfire)

 HARVILL SECKER BLOODY SCOTLAND CRIME WRITING AWARD

The winner of the 2021 Harvill Secker Bloody Scotland Crime Writing Award was announced December 2. The prize aims to discover exciting new crime fiction by writers of color.

• The Light and Shade of Ellen Swithin by Dettie Gould

As the winner, Gould’s book will be published under the Harvill Secker imprint, in a publishing deal with an advance of £5,000.

JOFFE BOOKS PRIZE FOR CRIME FICTION WRITERS OF COLOR

The 2021 winner of the Joffe Books Prize for Crime Fiction Writers of Color is:

• Christie J. Newport

The winner is offered a two-book publishing contract with Joffe Books, on its standard author agreement terms.

SCARLET STILETTO AWARDS

Sisters in Crime Australia have announced the winners of the 2021 Scarlet Stiletto Awards. This year, 241 short stories – equal to last year’s record – competed for a record $11,910 in prize money and benefits. 

Swinburne University of Technology First Prize ($1500) and ScriptWorks’s Great Film Idea Award ($500)

• Hayley Young for “Monster Hunters”

Simon & Schuster Second Prize ($1000) 

• Jaclyn Riley-Smith (Margate) for “On the inside”

The Sun Bookshop & Wild Dingo Press Third Prize ($600) 

• Ellen Coates for “The Gospel of Cecily” 

Clan Destine Press Cross-Genre Award ($750) 

• Ellen Coates

Affirm Press Young Writer’s Award ($500) for under 19s

• Caitlyn Whitbread for “The Braxton Mystery”

The Melbourne Athenaeum Body-in-the-Library Library Award ($1250) 

• Clare Fletcher for “Death’s Waiting Room”

The Melbourne Athenaeum Body-in-the-Library Library Runner-Up Award ($750)

• Susan Green for “Creativity Now!”

Kerry Greenwood’s Malice Domestic Award ($750)

• Jane Lee for “What I Did in Lokdown by Chloe Martin age 9 1/2”

The Every Cloud Production’s History with Mystery Award ($750)

• Natalie Conyer for “The Séance”

Viliama Grakalic Best Art and Crime Story Award ($750)

• Caroline de Costa for “The Fragrance of the Corpse Flower”

Booktopia Publisher Services Best Environmental Mystery Award ($750)

• Stephanie Holm for “Mystery Off the Jillawong Road”

Writers Victoria’s Crime and Punishment Award for Most Satisfying Retribution 

• Janet Moore for “Cash Sale”

The HQ Fiction Award for Best Thriller ($500)

• Janice Shaw for “Put the Kettle On”

Queensland Chapter of Sisters in Crime’s Liz Navratil Award for the story with the Best Disabled Protagonist ($400)

• Christine Fontana for “Waiting”

COMEDY WOMEN IN PRINT PRIZE

The winner of the 2021 Comedy Women in Print Prize is a cozy mystery by a Chinese-Indonesian writer. The value of the prize is £3,000.

• Dial A for Aunties by Jesse Sutanto