ANTHONY AWARDS

Bouchercon, the world mystery convention, announced the finalists for the 2025 Anthony Awards on May 7. Winners will be revealed at the event, being held in New Orleans this September.

Best Mystery Novel

• Missing White Woman by Kellye Garrett
• The God of the Woods by Liz Moore
• The Grey Wolf by Louise Penny
• Alter Ego by Alex Segura
• California Bear by Duane Swierczynski

Best First Mystery

• The Mechanics of Memory by Audrey Lee
• Ghosts of Waikīkī by Jennifer K. Morita
• You Know What You Did by K.T. Nguyen
• Good-Looking Ugly by Rob D. Smith
• Holy City by Henry Wise

Best Paperback/E-book/Audiobook

• The Last Few Miles of Road by Eric Beetner
• Echo by Tracy Clark
• Served Cold by James L’Etoile
• Late Checkout by Alan Orloff
• The Big Lie by Gabriel Valjan

Best Historical Mystery

• The Lantern’s Dance by Laurie R. King
• The Witching Hour by Catriona McPherson
• The Bootlegger’s Daughter by Nadine Nettmann
• The Murder of Mr. Ma by John Shen Yen Nee and S.J. Rozan
• The Courtesan’s Pirate by Nina Wachsman

Best Paranormal Mystery

• A New Lease on Death by Olivia Blacke
• Five Furry Familiars by Lynn Cahoon
• Exposure by Ramona Emerson
• Lights, Camera, Bone by Carolyn Haines
• Death in Ghostly Hue by Susan Van Kirk

Best Cozy/Humorous Mystery

• A Cup of Flour, a Pinch of Death by Valerie Burns
• A Very Woodsy Murder by Ellen Byron
• ll-Fated Fortune by Jennifer J. Chow
• Scotzilla by Catriona McPherson
• Cirque du Slay by Rob Osler
• Dominoes, Danzón, and Death by Raquel V. Reyes

Best Juvenile/Young Adult

• The Big Grey Man of Ben Macdhui by K.B. Jackson
• Sasquatch of Harriman Lake by K.B. Jackson
• First Week Free at the Roomy Toilet by Josh Proctor
• The Sherlock Society by James Ponti
• When Mimi Went Missing by Suja Sukumar

Best Critical or Nonfiction Work

• Writing the Cozy Mystery: Authors’ Perspectives on Their Craft edited by Phyllis M. Betz
• Some of My Best Friends Are Murderers: Critiquing the Columbo Killers by Chris Chan
• On Edge: Gender and Genre in the Work of Shirley Jackson, Patricia Highsmith, and Leigh Brackett by Ashley Lawson
• Abingdon’s Boardinghouse Murder by Greg Lilly
• The Serial Killer’s Apprentice by Katherine Ramsland and Tracy Ullman

Best Anthology or Collection

• Murder, Neat: A Sleuthslayer’s Anthology edited by Michael Bracken and Barb Goffman
• Scattered, Smothered, Covered & Chunked: Crime Fiction Inspired by Waffle House edited by Michael Bracken and Stacy Woodson
• Eight Very Bad Nights: A Collection of Hanukkah Noir edited by Tod Goldberg
• Tales of Music, Murder, and Mayhem: Bouchercon Anthology 2024 edited by Heather Graham
• Friend of the Devil: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of the Grateful Dead edited by Josh Pachter

Best Short Story

• “A Matter of Trust” by Barb Goffman, Three Strikes—You’re Dead
• “Twenty Centuries” by James D.F. Hannah, Eight Very Bad Nights: A Collection of Hanukkah Noir
• “Something to Hold Onto” by Curtis Ippolito, Dark Yonder, Issue 6
• “Satan’s Spit” by Gabriel Valjan, Tales of Music, Murder, and Mayhem: Bouchercon Anthology 2024
• “Reynisfjara” by Kristopher Zgorski, Mystery Most International

CRIMEFEST AWARD WINNERS 2025

CrimeFest, a British crime fiction convention in Bristol, presented the 2025 CrimeFest Awards on May 17. These prizes “honour the best crime books released in 2023 in the UK.”

SPECSAVERS DEBUT CRIME NOVEL AWARD

In association with headline sponsor, the Specsavers Debut Crime Novel Award is for debut authors first published in the United Kingdom in 2024. The winning author receives a £1,000 prize. 

• The Night of Baba Yaga by Akira Otani (and translator Sam Bett) (Faber & Faber)

H.R.F. KEATING AWARD

The H.R.F. Keating Award is for the best biographical or critical book related to crime fiction first published in the United Kingdom in 2024. The award is named after H.R.F. ‘Harry’ Keating, one of Britain’s most esteemed crime novelists, crime reviewers and writer of books about crime fiction.

• Agatha Christie’s Marple: Expert in Wickedness by Mark Aldridge (HarperCollins)

LAST LAUGH AWARD

The Last Laugh Award is for the best humorous crime novel first published in the United Kingdom in 2024.

• Mr Campion’s Christmas by Mike Ripley (Severn House)

eDUNNIT AWARD 

For the best crime fiction ebook first published in both hardcopy and in electronic format in the United Kingdom in 2024.

• The Sequel by Jean Hanff Korelitz (Faber & Faber)

BEST CRIME FICTION NOVEL FOR CHILDREN

This award is for the best crime novel for children (aged 8-12) first published in the United Kingdom in 2024.

• Rosie Raja: Undercover Codebreaker by Sufiya Ahmed (Bloomsbury Education)

BEST CRIME FICTION NOVEL FOR YOUNG ADULTS

This award is for the best crime novel for young adults (aged 12-16) first published in the United Kingdom in 2024.

• Heist Royale by Kayvion Lewis (Simon & Schuster Children’s Books)

THALIA PROCTOR MEMORIAL AWARD FOR BEST ADAPTED TV CRIME DRAMA

This award is for the best television crime drama based on a book, and first screened in the UK in 2024. 

• Slow Horses (series 4), based on the Slough House books by Mick Herron (Apple TV+)

THE CRIME WRITERS OF CANADA AWARDS OF EXCELLENCE

The Crime Writers of Canada have announced the 2025 shortlist for their annual Awards of Excellence. The winners will be revealed on May 30.

The Miller-Martin Award for Best Crime Novel

Sponsored by the Boreal Benefactor with a $1000 prize

• Colin Barrett, Wild Houses, McClelland & Stewart
• Jaima Fixsen, The Specimen, Poisoned Pen Press
• Conor Kerr, Prairie Edge, Strange Light, an imprint of Penguin Random House Canada
• John MacLachlan Gray, Mr. Good-Evening, Douglas & McIntyre
• Louise Penny, The Grey Wolf, Minotaur Books

Best Crime First Novel

Sponsored by Melodie Campbell with a $1000 prize

• Suzan Denoncourt, The Burden of Truth, Suzan Denoncourt
• Peter Holloway, The Roaring Game Murders, Bonspiel Books
• Jim McDonald, Altered Boy, Amalit Books
• Marianne K. Miller, We Were the Bullfighters, Dundurn Press
• Ashley Tate, Twenty-Seven Minutes, Doubleday Canada

Best Crime Novel Set in Canada

Sponsored by Shaftesbury with a $500 prize

• Brenda Chapman, Fatal Harvest, Ivy Bay Press
• Barry W. Levy, The War Machine, Double Dagger Books
• Shane Peacock, As We Forgive Others, Cormorant Books
• Greg Rhyno, Who By Fire, Cormorant Books
• Kerry Wilkinson, The Call, Bookouture

The Whodunit Award for Best Traditional Mystery

Sponsored by Jane Doe with a $500 prize

• Cathy Ace, The Corpse with the Pearly Smile, Four Tails Publishing Ltd.
• Raye Anderson, The Dead Shall Inherit, Signature Editions
• Susan Juby, A Meditation on Murder, HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.
• Thomas King, Black Ice, HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.
• Jonathan Whitelaw, Concert Hall Killer, HarperNorth/HarperCollins Canada

Best Crime Novella

Sponsored by Carrick Publishing with a $200 prize

• Marcelle Dubé, Chuck Berry is Missing, Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine
• Liz Ireland, Mrs. Claus and the Candy Corn Caper, Kensington
• Pamela Jones, The Windmill Mystery, Austin Macauley Publishers
• A.J. McCarthy, A Rock, Black Rose Writing
• Twist Phelan, Aim, Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine

Best Crime Short Story

• Catherine Astolfo, Farmer Knudson, from Auntie Beers: A Book of Connected Short Stories, Carrick Publishing
• Therese Greenwood, Hatcheck Bingo, from The 13th Letter, Mesdames and Messieurs of Mayhem, Carrick Publishing
• Billie Livingston, Houdini Act, Saturday Evening Post
• Linda Sanche, The Electrician, from Crime Waves, Dangerous Games, A Canada West Anthology
• Melissa Yi, The Longest Night of the Year, Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine

Best French Language Crime Book

• J.L. Blanchard, La femme papillon, Fides
• R. Lavallée, Le crime du garçon exquis, Fides
• Jean Lemieux, L’Affaire des montants, Québec Amérique
• Guillaume Morrissette, Une mémoire de lion, Saint-Jean
• Johanne Seymour, Fracture, Libre Expression

Best Juvenile / YA Crime Book

Sponsored by Superior Shores Press with a $250 prize

• Sigmund Brouwer, Shock Wave, Orca Book Publishers
• Meagan Mahoney, The Time Keeper, DCB Young Readers
• Twist Phelan, Snowed, Bronzeville Books, LLC
• David A. Poulsen, The Dark Won’t Wait, Red Deer Press
• Melissa Yi, The Red Rock Killer, Windtree Press

The Brass Knuckles Award for Best Nonfiction Crime Book

Sponsored by David Reid Simpson Law Firm (Hamilton) with a $300 prize

• Denise Chong, Out of Darkness: Rumana Monzur’s Journey through Betrayal, Tyranny and Abuse, Random House Canada
• Nate Hendley, Atrocity on the Atlantic: Attack on a Hospital Ship During the Great War, Dundurn Press
• John L. Hill, The Rest of the [True Crime] Story, AOS Publishing
• Dean Jobb, A Gentleman and a Thief: The Daring Jewel Heists of a Jazz Age Rogue, HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.
• Tanya Talaga, The Knowing, HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.

Best Unpublished Crime Novel manuscript written by an unpublished author

Sponsored by ECW Press with a $500 prize

• Robert Bowerman, The Man in The Black Hat
• Luke Devlin, Govern Yourself Accordingly
• Delee Fromm, Dark Waters
• Lorrie Potvin, A Trail’s Tears
• William Watt, Predators in the Shadows

SPOTTED OWL AWARD

The winner of the 2025 Spotted Owl Award was announced in May by the Friends of Mystery. The award is for a mystery published during the previous calendar year by an author whose primary residence is Alaska, Washington, Oregon, Idaho or the Province of British Columbia. The winner is:

• Marc Cameron, Bad River 

The other finalists were:

• Baron Birtcher, Knife River 
• Rene Denfeld, Sleeping Giants 
• Warren Easley, Deadly Redemption 
• J.A. Jance, Den of Iniquity 
• Phillip Margolin, An Insignificant Case 
• Katrina Carrasco, Rough Trade 
• Frank Zafiro & Colin Conway, The Silence of the Dead 
• Kerri Hakado, Cold to the Touch 
• Eric Redman, Death in Hilo