CRIME FICTION AWARD WINNERS – SEPTEMBER 2024

September is a busy month for crime fiction awards with the Anthony and Barry Awards winners being announced at the Bouchercon World Mystery Convention in Nashville at the beginning of the month, and the Australian Ned Kelly Awards being announced last night (25 September 2024).

I thought that I would do a quick round-up of the three awards.

I was fortunate to be at the Bouchercon Convention in Nashville and was on hand for both the Anthony and Barry Awards.

BARRY AWARDS

First off were the BARRY AWARDS, which were handed out by the Editor of Deadly Pleasures Mystery Magazine, George Easter.

The Winners were:

Best Mystery or Crime Novel – Dennis Lehane for SMALL MERCIES

Best First Mystery or Crime Novel – I. S. Berry for THE PEACOCK AND THE SPARROW

Best Paperback Original Mystery or Crime Novel – Jake Needham for WHO THE HELL IS HARRY BLACK?

Best Thriller – Mick Herron for THE SECRET HOURS

For a full list of the nominees: https://murdermayhemandlongdogs.com/2024-barry-award-nominees/

ANTHONY AWARDS

The Anthony Awards are named for Anthony Boucher, one of the founders of the Mystery Writers of America. The Awards are voted for by the attendees of the annual Bouchercon Convention. Awards are given in three categories: Best Hardcover Novel, Best First Novel and Best Paperback Novel. At the 2024 Nashville Convention the winners were:

Best Hardcover Novel: ALL THE SINNERS BLEED by S. A. Cosby

Best First Novel: MOTHER-DAUGHTER MURDER NIGHT by Nina Simon

Best Paperback Novel: HIDE by Tracy Clark

The Anthony Awards are always interesting, and the involvement of attendees in the voting often brings some unexpected results. Nevertheless, it was really good to see S. A. Cosby win for his outstanding novel, All The Sinners Bleed. A little surprisingly, Nina Simon’s Mother-Daughter Murder Night beat out I. S. Berry’s The Peacock And The Sparrow for Best First Novel, as Ilana Berry’s novel had won the Edgar and the Barry Award in this category and is a very good novel. I have not read Hide by Tracy Clark, but it is very well regarded.

NED KELLY AWARDS

The highlight of the Australian Crime Fiction year is the annual awarding of the Ned Kelly Awards. First started in 1996, the Ned Kelly Awards represent the pinnacle of crime writing in Australia.

In a well choreographed video presentation, with former Award Winner Jane Harper as MC, the Winners were announced on the evening of Wednesday 25 September. The winners and the nominees are below:

BEST CRIME FICTION:

WINNER: Darling Girls – Sally Hepworth

Killer Traitor Spy – Tim Ayliffe
Dark Corners – Megan Goldin
Dark Mode – Ashley Kalagian Blunt
The Seven – Chris Hammer
Ripper – Shelley Burr
The Tea Ladies – Amanda Hampson
Everyone on This Train Is A Suspect – Benjamin Stevenson

BEST DEBUT CRIME FICTION:

WINNER: Murder in the Pacific: Ifira Point – Matt Francis

Four Dogs Missing – Rhys Gard
Gus and the Missing Boy – Troy Hunter
Lowbridge – Lucy Campbell
Murder in the Pacific: Ifira Point – Matt Francis
The Fall Between – Darcy Tindale
The Beacon – P.A. Thomas
Violet Kelly and the Jade Owl – Fiona Britton

BEST INTERNATIONAL CRIME FICTION:

WINNER: The Only Suspect – Louise Candlish

Birnam Wood – By Eleanor Catton
Dice – By Claire Baylis
Resurrection Walk – By Michael Connelly
The Search Party – By Hannah Richell
Zero Days – By Ruth Ware

BEST TRUE CRIME:

WINNER: Crossing the Line – By Nick McKenzie

Killing for Country – By David Marr
The Murder Squad – By Michael Adams
Reckless – By Marele Day
The Teacher’s Pet – By Hedley Thomas

As can be seen from above, the fields for each of the categories were very strong and shows the great state of Australian crime fiction at present. Congratulations to all the winners and nominees!

Personal Disclosure: I am on the judging committees for the Barry Awards and the Ned Kelly Best Debut Award.