2020 Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Shortlist

The shortlist for the 2020 Theakston old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year was unveiled today. The prize was created to celebrate the very best in crime fiction and is open to UK and Irish crime authors whose novels were published in paperback during the eligibility period.

  • My Sister the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite (Atlantic Books)
  • Worst Case Scenario by Helen Fitzgerald (Orenda Books)
  • The Lost Man by Jane Harper (Little, Brown Book Group, Little, Brown)
  • Joe Country by Mick Herron (John Murray Press)
  • The Chain by Adrian McKinty (Orion Publishing Group, Orion Fiction)
  • Smoke and Ashes by Abir Mukherjee (VINTAGE, Harvill Secker)

The public has until July 17 to vote for the winner at https://harrogatetheakstoncrimeaward.com/vote/.  

The winner is ordinarily announced at the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, hosted in Harrogate each July, however, the 2020 event has been cancelled because of he COVID-19 epidemic. This year, the winner will be revealed at a virtual awards ceremony on July 31, and receive £3,000, and a handmade, engraved beer barrel provided by Theakston Old Peculier.

2020 Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Longlist

The longlist for the 2020 Theakston old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year has been announced.

The prize was created to celebrate the very best in crime fiction and is open to UK and Irish crime authors whose novels were published in paperback during the eligibility period.

The administrators received a record number of submissions, and the longlist of 18 titles includes 10 by women, four former winners (Denise Mina, Chris Brookmyre, Tony Hill, and Lee Child), and a Booker Prize contender (Oyinkan Braithwaite).

The public are now invited to vote for a shortlist of six titles on www.harrogatetheakstoncrimeaward.com, which will be announced on June 8.

The Longlist in Full:

  • My Sister the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite (Atlantic Books)
  • Fallen Angel by Chris Brookmyre (Little, Brown Book Group, Abacus)
  • Nothing Important Happened Today by Will Carver (Orenda Books)
  • Cruel Acts by Jane Casey (HarperCollins, Harper Fiction)
  • Blue Moon by Lee Child (Transworld, Bantam)
  • The Long Call by Ann Cleeves (Pan Macmillan, Macmillan/Pan)
  • Red Snow by Will Dean (Oneworld, Point Blank)
  • Platform Seven by Louise Doughty (Faber & Faber)
  • Worst Case Scenario by Helen Fitzgerald (Orenda Books)
  • The Lost Man by Jane Harper (Little, Brown Book Group, Little, Brown)
  • Joe Country by Mick Herron (John Murray Press)
  • How the Dead Speak by Val McDermid (Little, Brown Book Group, Little, Brown)
  • The Chain by Adrian McKinty (Orion Publishing Group, Orion Fiction)
  • Conviction by Denise Mina (VINTAGE, Harvill Secker)
  • Smoke and Ashes by Abir Mukherjee (VINTAGE, Harvill Secker)
  • The Whisper Man by Alex North (Penguin Random House, Michael Joseph)
  • Blood & Sugar by Laura Shepherd-Robinson (Headline Publishing Group, Wildfire)
  • Blood Orange by Harriet Tyce (Pan Macmillan, Mantle/Pan)

The winner is ordinarily announced at the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, hosted in Harrogate each July, however, the 2020 event has been cancelled because of he COVID-19 epidemic. This year, the winner will be revealed at a virtual awards ceremony on July 31, and receive £3,000, and a handmade, engraved beer barrel provided by Theakston Old Peculier.

2019 Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year

The winner of the 2019 Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year was announced at the on July 18.

  • Thirteen by Steve Cavanagh – Hachette

The prize celebrates the very best in crime fiction — UK and Irish crime authors whose novels were published in paperback from May 1, 2018 to April 30, 2019 were eligible.

Thirteen, a legal thriller,is scheduled for release in the U.S. in August by Flatiron Books.

It’s the murder trial of the century. And Joshua Kane has killed to get the best seat in the house – and to be sure the wrong man goes down for the crime. Because this time, the killer isn’t on trial. He’s on the jury.

The  award was presented at the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival in Harrogate, an event co-founded in 2003 by Val McDermid, agent Jane Gregory, and arts charity Harrogate International Festivals.

More Crime Fiction Awards

A flurry of crime fiction awards shortlists and winners:

OLD PECULIER. The 2019 Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year shortlist was posted on May 19.

  • Snap by Belinda Bauer
  • Thirteen by Steve Cavanagh
  • London Rules by Mick Herron
  • Broken Ground by Val McDermid
  • The Quaker by Liam McIlvanney
  • East of Hounslow by Khurrum Rahman

The prize was created to celebrate the very best in crime fiction and is open to UK and Irish crime authors whose novels were published in paperback from May 1, 2018 to April 30, 2019. The winner is announced at the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, hosted in Harrogate each July.

ITW THRILLER AWARDS. The finalists for the 2019 International Thriller Writers Awards have been announced. The award is given by the International Thriller Writers, whose board of directors boasts such famous members as Lee Child and R.L. Stine. ITW will announce the winners at ThrillerFest XIV on July 13, 2019 at the Grand Hyatt, New York City.

BEST HARDCOVER NOVEL

  • Lou Berney — NOVEMBER ROAD (William Morrow)
  • Julia Heaberlin — PAPER GHOSTS (Ballantine Books)
  • Jennifer Hillier — JAR OF HEARTS (Minotaur Books)
  • Karin Slaughter — PIECES OF HER (William Morrow)
  • Paul Tremblay — THE CABIN AT THE END OF THE WORLD (William Morrow)

BEST FIRST NOVEL

  • Jack Carr — THE TERMINAL LIST (Atria/Emily Bestler Books)
  • Karen Cleveland — NEED TO KNOW (Ballantine Books)
  • Ellison Cooper — CAGED (Minotaur Books)
  • Catherine Steadman — SOMETHING IN THE WATER (Ballantine Books)
  • C. J. Tudor — THE CHALK MAN (Crown)

BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL NOVEL

  • Jane Harper — THE LOST MAN (Pan Macmillan Australia)
  • John Marrs — THE GOOD SAMARITAN (Thomas & Mercer)
  • Andrew Mayne — THE NATURALIST (Thomas & Mercer)
  • Kirk Russell — GONE DARK (Thomas & Mercer)
  • Carter Wilson — MISTER TENDER’S GIRL (Sourcebooks Landmark)

BEST SHORT STORY

  • Jeffery Deaver — “The Victims’ Club” (Amazon Original Stories)
  • Emily Devenport — “10,432 Serial Killers (In Hell)” (Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine)
  • Scott Loring Sanders — “Window to the Soul” (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine)
  • Helen Smith — “Nana” in KILLER WOMEN: CRIME CLUB ANTHOLOGY #2 (Killer Women Ltd.)
  • Duane Swierczynski — “Tough Guy Ballet” in FOR THE SAKE OF THE GAME: STORIES INSPIRED BY THE SHERLOCK HOLMES CANON (Pegasus Books)

BEST YOUNG ADULT NOVEL

  • Teri Bailey Black — GIRL AT THE GRAVE (Tor Teen)
  • Gillian French — THE LIES THEY TELL (HarperTeen)
  • Marie Lu — WARCROSS (Penguin Young Readers/G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers)
  • Dana Mele — PEOPLE LIKE US (Penguin Young Readers/G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers)
  • Peter Stone — THE PERFECT CANDIDATE (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers)

BEST E-BOOK ORIGINAL NOVEL

  • Clare Chase — MURDER ON THE MARSHES (Bookouture)
  • Gary Grossman — EXECUTIVE FORCE (Diversion Books)
  • Samantha Hayes — THE REUNION (Bookouture)
  • T.S. Nichols — THE MEMORY DETECTIVE (Alibi)
  • Alan Orloff — PRAY FOR THE INNOCENT (Kindle Press)

ARTHUR ELLIS. The winners of the 2019 Arthur Ellis Award for Excellence in Canadian Crime Writing were announced on May 23, recognizing the best in mystery, crime, and suspense fiction and crime nonfiction by Canadian authors.

The Arthur Ellis Awards are not named after a writer, but after the official pseudonym of Canada’s hangman and the trophy is a jumping jack type wood figure on a gallows. Cora Buhlert says “It’s the only award with a creepier trophy than the old World Fantasy Award.”

BEST CRIME NOVEL

  • Though the Heavens Fall, by Anne Emery (ECW Press)

BEST FIRST CRIME NOVEL (Sponsored by Rakuten Kobo)

  • Cobra Clutch, by A.J. Devlin (NeWest Press)

BEST CRIME NOVELLA – The Lou Allin Memorial Award

  • Murder Among the Pines, by John Lawrence Reynolds (Orca Book Publishers)

BEST CRIME SHORT STORY (Sponsored by Mystery Weekly Magazine)

  • “Terminal City,” by Linda L. Richards (Vancouver Noir, Akashic Books)

BEST CRIME BOOK IN FRENCH

  • Adolphus – Une enquête de Joseph Laflamme, by Hervé Gagnon (Libre Expression)

BEST JUVENILE/YOUNG ADULT CRIME BOOK

  • Escape, by Linwood Barclay (Puffin Canada)

BEST NONFICTION CRIME BOOK

  • The Real Lolita: The Kidnapping of Sally Horner and the Novel that Scandalized the World, by Sarah Weinman (Alfred A. Knopf Canada)

BEST UNPUBLISHED MANUSCRIPT – aka The Unhanged Arthur (Sponsored by Dundurn Press)

  • The Scarlet Cross, by Liv McFarlane

THE ICEPICKS. The finalists for the Icepicks, the 2019 Iceland Noir Award for Translated Crime Fiction (into Icelandic) have been released. The winning book will be announced in November. 

  • James M. Cain: Double Indemnity (Translated by Þórdís Bachmann)
  • Keigo Higashino: The Devotion of Suspect X (Translated by Ásta S. Guðbjartsdóttir)
  • Shari Lapena: A Stranger in the House (Translated by Ingunn Snædal)
  • Pierre Lemaitre: Three Days and a Life (Translated by Friðrik Rafnsson)
  • Henning Mankell: After the Fire (Translated by Hilmar Hilmarsson)

The jury for the award is composed of Katrín Jakobsdóttir, Prime Minister of Iceland, Kolbrún Bergþórsdóttir journalist and literary critic, and Ragnar Jónasson, crime writer.

[Thanks to Cora Buhlert for the story.]

2019 Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Longlist

Crime and mystery awards season is in full swing — the longlist for the 2019 Theakston old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year has been announced.

The prize was created to celebrate the very best in crime fiction and is open to UK and Irish crime authors whose novels were published in paperback from May 1, 2018 to April 30, 2019.

The Longlist in Full:

  • Snap by Belinda Bauer – Transworld
  • Our House by Louise Candlish – Simon & Schuster UK
  • Thirteen by Steve Cavanagh – Hachette
  • Wild Fire by Ann Cleeves – Pan Macmillan
  • This Is How It Ends by Eva Dolan – Bloomsbury Publishing
  • Take Me In by Sabine Durrant – Hodder & Stoughton
  • The Dark Angel by Elly Griffiths – Quercus
  • London Rules by Mick Herron – John Murray Press
  • Broken Ground by Val McDermid – Little, Brown Book Group
  • The Quaker by Liam McIlvanney – HarperCollins
  • The Way of All Flesh by Ambrose Parry – Canongate Books
  • East of Hounslow by Khurrum Rahman – HarperCollins
  • Hell Bay by Kate Rhodes – Simon & Schuster UK
  • Salt Lane by William Shaw – Quercus
  • The Chalk Man by C. J. Tudor – Penguin Random House
  • The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton – Bloomsbury Publishing
  • Anatomy of a Scandal by Sarah Vaughan – Simon & Schuster UK
  • Changeling by Matt Wesolowski – Orenda Books

The winner is announced at the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, hosted in Harrogate each July. The festival was co-founded in 2003 by Val McDermid, agent Jane Gregory, and arts charity Harrogate International Festivals.

[Thanks to Cora Buhlert for the story.]