What's New - 2005 Archive
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For What's New? for 2006, click here
12/30/05
It appears that some unsavory creatures have sent millions of spam emails purporting to be from the blackravenpress.com domain. If you received junk mail that looked like it came from us, please be aware that we do not spam and only contact you by email regarding your subscription if there is a problem or question.
Updated the Publishers page to include links to Bitter Lemon Press and Europa Editions. Added the excerpt to the James Sallis interview to the Sallis page and updated the Authors page. Updated the Calendar page to include the Arizona Book Festival, Hardboiled Heroes & Cozy Cats 2006 and the Ann Arbor Book Festival.
12/21/05
The December/January 2006 issue of Mystery News was mailed Monday, December 19, 2005. Our cover interview (by James Clar) is of James Sallis, whose newest work, Drive, is hitting the 10 best of 2005 lists of a slew of major newspapers and mystery mavens. Drive is published by Poisoned Pen Press. Other highlights of this issue include articles on Nancy Drew's 75 years of sleuthing (by Colleen Barnett) and L.A. Confidential's 15 years as a noir classic; and Steve Miller's "In the beginning" column on Chris Knopf, whose debut novel, The Last Refuge, came out earlier this year. Marv Lachman's "Out of the Past" column is on Dorothy B. Hughes, whose classic, In a Lonely Place, was republished by the Feminist Press a couple of years ago. Dave Magayna reviews audiobooks by Eileen Dreyer and James W. Hall in his "The Sound of Mystery" column. And our usual columns, reviews, previews and convention calendar. Updates to related pages on the site will come in a day or so...
The Wolfe Pack presented the 2005 Nero Wolfe award to Lee Child for The Enemy at the Black Orchid Banquet on December 3, 2005 in New York.
Updated the Calendar page to remove outdated info.
12/3/05
Eddie Muller has founded the Film Noir Foundation to find and preserve films in danger of being lost or irreparably damaged, and to ensure that high quality prints of these classic films remain in circulation for theatrical exhibition to future generations. According to the Foundation's website,
The Foundation is still in its early stages, but the future looks darka good thing as far as we're concerned. Anita Monga, one of the most respected film programmers in the nation, has signed on as the FNF's official Programming Director. Authors James Ellroy and Dennis Lehaneserious noir junkieshave joined the Board of Directors. So has Nancy Gertsman, co-president of Zeitgeist Films, who will work with us in developing and promotiing NOIR CITY as a traveling show. More intriguing names are sure to join the cadre as things develop.While the San Francisco Film Noir Festival will remain the annual centerpiece of the Foundation's public activities, there are plans for expanding the scope of the NOIR CITY festivals, to include more special guests, seminars, publications, even musical events.
MWA has announced that Janet Evanovich has been elected President and will serve a one-year term beginning in February, 2006.
The Calendar page has been updated to correct the dates for the LA Times Festival of Books and to add the National Book Festival, which will take place in Washington DC on September 30, 2006. While perusing the Book Festival website, I discovered that there is a treasure trove of more than 300 videotaped webcasts of author presentations from previous festivals...many of them are mystery and crime fiction authors. I've only watched a couple of them (Dana Stabenow's is excellent!) and will be going back often to see and hear more.
Added Crime and Suspense ezine to the general mystery links page - this site is updated monthly with short stories and reviews, and also has a page of links to classic detective stories that are in the public domain...including stories by Anna Katherine Green, Edgar Allan Poe, Arthur Conan Doyle and others. Also added Miss Snark - the blog of an anonymous literary agent who shares insights into the publishing business in an amusingly snarky way. She also is a big fan of mystery and crime fiction. And the Film Noir Foundation.
11/26/05
A few updates to the Calendar page and the Publishers pages. Also added a link to the George Kelley Paperback and Pulp Fiction Collection at the State University of NY at Buffalo on the General Mystery Links page.
11/24/05
Happy Thanksgiving to all of our readers! Here in the Northeast, it's quite brisk and there's a whisper of the "s" word, but no sign of the white stuff so far. In Door Country, where Lynn and Mack are celebrating the holiday, there's snow and they're lovin' it. We hope you're having a cozy day, wherever you may be. Now for some updates before I head out to have dinner with friends and family...
We told you a few weeks ago that Bonnie and Joe of the Black Orchid Bookshop will be the recipients of a Raven Award in the spring - since then, MWA has announced that Joan Hansen, who has organized the annual "Men of Mystery" event on behalf of the non-profit Literary Guild of Orange County in California, will also be honored with a Raven Award at the same time. MWA also announced that the Ellery Queen Award, which honors teams and outstanding people in the mystery-publishing field, will be presented to Kate Stine and Brian Skupin, publishers of Mystery Scene magazine.
The 2005 Ned Kelly Awards, presented annually by the Crime Writers' Association of Australia for outstanding works in the field of crime, both fiction and non-fiction, by Australian authors, were announced in Melbourne on Thursday, 25 August.
Best Crime Novel: Lost by Michael Robotham (Time Warner UK)
Best First Crime Novel: A Private Man by Malcolm Knox (Random House)
Best True Crime: Mr Big by Tony Reeves (Allen & Unwin)
Visit this
page for more
winners and nominees.
A couple of years ago, Steve Lewis revived his publication, Mystery*File. He recently ceased paper publication, but Mystery*File is alive and well on the web at this link. Check it out!
An update to the Dagger Award info below - the Debut Dagger Award was won by Ruth Dugdall for The Woman Before Me and a Special Citation was given to Susan Runholt for The Mystery of the Third Lucretia.
On Thursday, November 24 and Friday, November 25, public radio station KCRW (89.9 FM-Santa Monica and KCRW.com) debuts its newest original production, Mean Streets USA: A Collection of Short Crime Fiction.
Included in the series are short stories by Raymond Chandler, Michael Connelly, Sue Grafton, Dashiell Hammett, Elmore Leonard, Ross Macdonald, Walter Mosley, George Pelecanos and Jim Fusilli, whose "Serpent's Dance" is a prequel to "Closing Time," Jim's debut novel featuring private investigator Terry Orr. Robert Egan directs the series, and with longtime musical collaborator, Karl Lundeberg, establishes a moody noir tone, in a moral universe where black and white are not always what they seem. After the series is broadcast, it will be available on CD.
Noir City 4, the 4th annual San Francisco Film Noir Festival will be held January 13 - 24, 2006 at two venues in San Francisco. Once again hosted by Eddie Muller, this looks to be the best yet. Click here for more info.
Felony and Mayhem Press, the independent mystery publisher founded by Maggie Topkis (one of the owners of Partners & Crime bookstore), now has a website. Maggie is reprinting some wonderful books - do visit the site and check out Felony and Mayhem's lineup.
11/8/05
Stuart Kaminsky has been named the 2006 Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America's board of directors. The presentation will be made at the annual Edgar Awards dinner on April 27, 2006, at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in New York.
Kaminsky is the author of 50 published novels, five biographies, four textbooks, and more than three dozen short stories. The six-time Edgar nominee, who won for his novel "A Cold Red Sunrise" in 1989, is a past president of the organization. He taught for 16 years at Northwestern University before becoming a professor at Florida State, where he headed the Graduate Conservatory in Film and Television Production until leaving to pursue his writing full-time.
Kaminsky will join Marcia Muller on a list of Grand Masters that includes Robert B. Parker, Elmore Leonard, Lawrence Block, Donald Westlake, Tony Hillerman, P.D. James, Joseph Wambaugh, Ira Levin, Ellery Queen, Daphne du Maurier, Graham Greene, James M. Cain, Rex Stout, Agatha Christie, and Raymond Chandler.
The Crime Writers Association announced the winners of the balance of the 2005 Dagger Awards, which were presented at the CWA Dagger Awards Lunch in London earlier today.
Dagger of Daggers Award: The Spy Who Came in from the Cold by John Le Carre (1963)
Gold Dagger for Fiction: Silence of the Grave by Arnaldur Indridason (Harvill Secker)
Silver Dagger for Fiction: Deadly Web by Barbara Nadel (Headline)
The John Creasey Memorial Dagger: Running Hot by Dreda Say Mitchell (Maia Press)
The Ian Fleming Steel Dagger: Brandenburg by Henry Porter (Orion)
The Short Story Dagger: "No Flies on Frank" by Danuta Reah from Sherlock Magazine (Issue 64)
The Dagger in the Library: Jake Arnott
Gold Dagger for Non-Fiction: On the Run by Greg & Gina Hill (Hutchinson)
For more information about the Dagger Awards, click here.
10/26/05
Our web site is back! It was down for about 2 days because our web hosting company's data center in South Florida lost power as a result of Hurricane Wilma. Service was restored in the early morning hours of October 26. We apologize if you tried to get to the page and were told it didn't exist. Our emails are routed through the same data center, so there may be brief delays in responses.
Updated the Calendar page to include the MWA Symposium and the Edgar Allan Poe banquet, both in late April 2006.
And
here's info on another
mystery writing
contest with cash
prizes ($10,000
Best New Play; $5,000
Most Promising New
Writer; $2,500 Best
New Screenplay or
Teleplay). The River
Park Center in Owensboro,
KY is sponsoring
Discovering
New Mysteries,
and is accepting
submission of original
plays, screenplays
and teleplays. Deadline
for submissions
is November 30,
2005. The Festival
Final 12 will
be selected in January
2006, in conjunction
with their first
annual mystery writers
festival. According
to the website,
this will be the
only new works festival
in the English-speaking
world specializing
in Discovering
New Mysteries.
Click here
for more info.
10/24/05
The October/November 2005 issue was mailed today. Click here or here for information about its contents.
Updated the Calendar page to include the International Conference on the Book, American Library Association Midwinter meeting, LA Times Festival of Books, Portland (OR) Wordstock Festival, Harriette Austin Writers Conference, and the Book Passage Mystery Writing Conference.
And
now for something
completely different.
The Great Mustard
Mystery Contest,
a writing contest
open to writers
and aspiring writers
of all ages. Chapter
One of Murder
at the Mustard Museum
is complete and
appears in the 2005-06
catalog of the Mount
Horeb Mustard Museum
and on this
web site. Contestants
will write their
best Chapter 2 and
a summary of how
the story turns
out for the opportunity
to win the Grand
Prize of $5,000.
There's even a "Young
Writers" division
for high-school
students, with its
own Grand Prize
of $250. Thank you
to my pal Sara Blake
for bringing this
to my attention.
10/21/05
Tonight Noreen Wald, Executive VP of the Mystery Writers of America, announced that Bonnie Claeson and Joe Guglielmelli, proprietors of the Black Orchid Bookshop, will be recipients of the MWA's Raven Award at next year's Edgar Allan Poe banquet. The Raven is a special award given or outstanding achievement in the mystery field outside the realm of creative writing. Previous recipients include mystery bookstores/owners (including the Poisoned Pen, Rue Morgue, Mysterious Bookstore and Murder by the Book), readers of the year (including Bill Clinton and Dorothy Kilgallen), institutions (Poe Museum, Mercantile Library) and our own Marv Lachman, for his contributions to mystery fandom. Regular readers of Mystery News know that the Black Orchid is my home away from home and that Joe has been an occasional contributor to MN. Bonnie and Joe are wonderful ambassadors of the genre and dear friends. I am so pleased to see their efforts honored by the MWA Board.
Book news - Reed Farrel Coleman and Ken Bruen are collaborating on a novel that will be called Tower. According to Coleman, the book will be done early in the new year. It sounds like it will be terrific.
10/17/05
The Crime Writers' Association has announced that the winner of the The Ellis Peters Historical Dagger is Dark Fire by C.J. Sansom.
You may not be counting, but we've been! The October/November issue will be the 50th published by Black Raven Press. To celebrate, we are including several retrospectives in this over-sized issue that features in interview with Michael Connelly (by Chris Aldrich) on the front cover. The new issue will be in the mail a week from today - other highlights of this issue include an interview of Margaret Frazer by Virginia R. Knight. Frazer is the author of the popular series featuring Dame Frevisse set in the fifteenth century. Steve Miller's "In the beginning" column checks in with Edie Claire, Stan Jones and Marcia Talley - who were brand-new authors when Steve profiled in his first year. Marv Lachman's "Out of the Past" column takes a look at what he was reading 60 years ago. Reed Andrus interviews Jeff Abbott, whose eighth novel, Panic, is the first to be published in hardcover. Dave Magayna offers a change of pace with a "The Sound of Mystery" column focused on the sounds of Bouchercon. Pam Lawrence interviews Andrew Taylor, who's been called "the most underrated mystery writer in Britain today". Gary Warren Niebuhr interviews Terence Faherty, author of the Owen Keane and Scott Elliott series. And James Clar reflects on Raymond Chandler's essay, "The Simple Art of Murder". Of course, we include our usual columns, reviews, previews and convention calendar.
Updated the Back Issues and Authors pages to include info related to the new issue. Updated the Calendar page to add the Miami International Book Fair in mid-November, Love is Murder and Murder in the Magic City, which will both be held on the first weekend of February 2006, South Carolina Book Festival in late February, as well as the Virginia Festival of the Book, March 22-26. Also added links to the Crime Lab Project, founded by Jan Burke, to our home page and our General Links page.
10/3/05
Our Bouchercon photos are finally up, along with the photos I took in Chicago during my extra few days there. Lots of photos from the river, taken during an architectural cruise.
The Crime Writers' Association announced the nominees for its 2005 Dagger Awards, most of which will be presented at the CWA Dagger Awards Lunch in London on November 8, 2005.
Gold And Silver Daggers for Fiction
Calling Out to You by Karin Fossum (Harvill Secker)
In Matto's Realm by Fredrich Glauser (Bitter Lemon Press)
Skinny Dip by Carl Hiaasen (Bantam)
Silence of the Grave by Arnaldur Indridason (Harvill Secker)
Deadly Web by Barbara Nadel (Headline)
Seeking Whom He May Devour by Fred Vargas (Harvill Secker)The John Creasey Memorial Dagger
The Great Stink by Clare Clark (Viking Penguin)
Blood Harvest by Richard Kunzmann (Macmillan)
Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay (Orion)
Grip by David Mckoewen (Hodder & Stoughton)
Running Hot by Dreda Say Mitchell (Maia Press)The Ian Fleming Steel Dagger
A Blind Eye by G.M. Ford (Macmillan)
A Good Day to Die by Simon Kernick (Bantam)
An Apothecary's House by Adrian Matthews (Pan Macmillan)
Labyrinth by Kate Mosse (Orion)
Brandenburg by Henry Porter (Orion)
Double Cross Blind by Joel Ross (Hodder & Stoughton)
A Death in Vienna by Daniel Silva (Penguin)The Ellis Peters Historical DaggerThe God of Chaos by Tom Bradby (Bantam/Transworld)
The Palace Tiger by Barbara Cleverly (Constable & Robinson)
After The Armistice Ball by Catriona Macpherson (Constable & Robinson)
The Portrait by Iain Pears (Harpercollins)
Dark Fire by C.J. Sansom (Macmillan)
Mortal Mischief by Frank Tallis (Century)The Short Story Dagger
"Miss Froom Vampire" by John Connolly from Nocturnes (Hodder & Stoughton)
"Test Drive" by Martin Edwards from Crime On the Move (The Do-Not Press)
"Top Deck" by Kate Ellis from Sherlock Magazine (Issue 64)
"No Flies on Frank" by Danuta Reah from Sherlock Magazine (Issue 64)
"The Wrong Hands" by Peter Robinson from Not Safe After Dark (Macmillan)The Dagger in the Library
Jake Arnott
Mark Billingham
Joolz Denby
Nicci French
Mo Hayder
Martyn WaitesGold Dagger for Non-Fiction
The Wreckers by Bella Bathurst (Harpercollins)
On the Run by Greg & Gina Hill (Hutchinson)
The Last Duel by Eric Jager (Century)
The Trial by Sadakat Kadri (Harpercollins)
A Serpent in Eden by James Owen (Little Brown)CWA also announced the shortlist for the Dagger of Daggers Award. To celebrate the Golden Jubilee of the organization, the membership voted for the best of the best out of the past Gold Dagger winners. The nominees are:
The Spy Who Came in from the Cold by John Le Carre (1963)
Other Paths to Glory by Anthony Price (1974)
Gorky Park by Martin Cruz Smith (1981)
The False Inspector Dew by Peter Lovesey (1982)
A Fatal Inversion by Barbara Vine (1987)
Bones and Silence by Reginald Hill (1990)
The Mermaids Singing by Val McDermid (1995)
The Wolfe Pack has announced the following nominees for the Nero Award, which will be presented at the group's annual Black Orchid banquet in New York on December 3, 2005.
A Spectacle of Corruption by David Liss (Random House)
The Enemy by Lee Child (Delacorte)
The Drowning Tree by Carol Goodman (Ballantine)
9/14/05
Along with others in the mystery fan community, we were incredibly saddened to learn that Sue Feder died September 9. Sue was already an icon in mystery fandom when I met her around in the late 1990s. She was known for being an expert on the works of Edith Pargeter (aka Ellis Peters, author of the Brother Cadfael series), and in more recent years she founded the Historical Mystery Appreciation Society. You can read her obituary here, She'd been battling lymphoma since 1998. We will miss her.
9/11/05
Here is some info on a few more awards from Bouchercon. Our Bouchercon photos will be posted in about a week.
In addition to the Barry Awards listed below, Deadly Pleasures presented the Don Sandstrom Memorial Award for Lifetime Achievement in Mystery Fandom to Bill Crider.
In addition to the Shamus Awards listed below, the Private Eye Writers of America presented The Eye, their lifetime achievement award, to Sara Paretsky.
The American Crime Writers League presented the Ellen Nehr Award for excellence in mystery reviewing to Hallie Ephron, a mystery writer who reviews for the Boston Globe.
Also updated the Calendar page with the Santa Barbara Book & Author Festival, Clive Cussler Convention, Sleuthfest 2006, Murder in the Grove, Of Dark and Stormy Nights, Bloody Words and and with guest of honor info for Bouchercon 2006 and Bouchercon 2007.
9/4/05
Oops! In my haste to post these Shamus winners, I got one wrong. Best First was won by Ingrid Black not Richard Aleas. My sincere apologies for having incorrect info up here for about 45 minutes on Sunday afternoon...
The Private Eye Writers of America announced the 2005 Shamus Award winners on Friday night during Bouchercon.
Best Novel: While I Disappear by Ed Wright (Putnam)
Best Paperback: Fade to Blonde by Max Phillips (Hard Case Crime)
Best First: The Dead by Ingrid Black (St. Martin's)Best Short Story: "Hasidic Noir" by Pearl Abraham (in Brooklyn Noir; Akashic Press)
9/3/05
The
Anthony Awards were
presented at Bouchercon
2005, the World Mystery
Convention at the
Sheraton Hotel in
Chicago.
Best Novel: Blood Hollow by William Kent Krueger (Simon & Schuster/Atria)
Best First Novel: Dating Dead Men by Harley Jane Kozak (Random House/Doubleday)
Best Non Fiction: Men's Adventure Magazines by Max Allan Collins et al (Taschen)
Best Paperback Original: Twisted City by Jason Starr (Vintage Crime/Black Lizard)
Best Short Story: "Wedding Knife" by Elaine Viets (Chesapeake Crimes;Quiet Storm)
Best Cover Art: Sohrab Habibion for Brooklyn Noir (Akashic)
9/2/05
The following awards were presented over the last 2 days at Bouchercon in Chicago.
The Hammett Prize, which is given each year for "a work of literary excellence in the field of crime writing by a US or Canadian author" was presented to Chuck Hogan, author of Prince Of Thieves (Scribner).
The Macavity Awards 2005, which are nominated and voted on by members of Mystery Readers International.
Best Novel: The Killing of the Tinkers by Ken Bruen (St. Martin's Minotaur)
Best First Novel: Dating Dead Men by Harley Jane Kozak (Doubleday)
Best Nonfiction: Forensics for Dummies by D.P. Lyle, MD (Wiley Publishing)
Best Short Story: "The Widow of Slane" by Terence Faherty (EQMM, March/April 2004)
The Barry Award, presented by Deadly Pleasures mystery magazine.
Best Novel: The Enemy by Lee Child
Best First Novel: The Shadow Of The Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
Best UK Novel: Flesh and Blood by John Harvey
Best Paperback Original: Tagged for Murder by Elaine Flinn
Best Thriller Award: Rain Storm by Barry Eisler
Best Short Story Award: "The War in Wonderland" by Edward D. Hoch (Green For Danger)
The Closers by Michael Connelly (Little Brown and Co.)
Eleven on Top by Janet Evanovich (St. Martin's Press)
The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova (Little Brown and Co.)
In the Company of Cheerful Ladies by Alexander McCall Smith (Pantheon)
With No One as Witness by Elizabeth George (HarperCollins)
You can find the lists of nominees in other categories, as well as an on-line ballot for the awards, at this link.
Updated the Bouchercon "Meet & Greet" schedule to add Peter Robinson and to correct the time for Jane Jakeman on Saturday.
Also added the 2006 Harrogate Crime Writing Festival to our Calendar page.
8/29/05
Modified the Bouchercon "Meet & Greet" schedule.
8/28/05
Our tentative signing schedule for Bouchercon 2005 is now posted here. Please join us at our table in the book dealer's room to meet & greet some of our (and your) favorite authors.
Also added Deadly Ink, which will be held June 23-24, 2006 in Parsippany NJ, to our Calendar page.
8/21/05
We just learned of the passing of Dennis Lynds, who also wrote under the pen name of Michael Collins, on Friday August 19. He was 81. Lynds was the highly respected author of more than 80 books including the Dan Fortune series. He won the Edgar Award for Best First Novel for Act of Fear, the first Fortune novel, published in 1967 and was also awarded the Marlowe Lifetime Achievement Award from MWA, SoCal Chapter, and the Eye Lifetime Achievement Award of the Private Eye Writers of America. We send our condolences to his wife, author Gayle Lynds, and to his family and colleagues.
Updated the Calendar page to add ThrillerFest and And Then There Were None and did some reformatting of the calendar.
8/15/05
The August/September 2005 issue of Mystery News was mailed Monday, August 15, 2005 [note: the cover calls it Volume 23 Issue 4.1 to distinguish it from the June/July issue erraneously labeled Issue4]. Our cover interview (by Pam Lawrence) is of Denise Mina, the writer from Scotland dubbed the "Crown Princess" by fellow Scot Val McDermid. Other highlights of this issue include an interview of Barbara Cleverly (by Virginia R. Knight); and Steve Miller's "In the beginning" column on David Terrenoire, whose debut novel featuring former CIA operative John Harper, Beneath a Panamanian Moon, came out earlier this year. Marv Lachman's "Out of the Past" column is on Hugh Pentecost, whose mystery-writing career spanned over 60 years. Dave Magayna reviews audiobooks by Rochelle Krich and William Lashner in his "The Sound of Mystery" column. And our usual columns, reviews, previews and convention calendar.
Updated the Back Issues and Authors pages to include info related to the new issue, and the Calendar page to add the Sierra Vista Book Fair, a mystery book fair sponsored by the Cochise County chaper of Sisters in Crime, and which will take place on March 25, 2006.
7/20/05
The
Standing Committee of
Bouchercon, the World
Mystery Convention,
is happy to announce
its permanent website:
http://www.bouchercon.info.
Each individual Bouchercon
will continue to have
its own convention website
with details of that
particular year. For
example: Bouchercon
in Chicago this year
remains at www.bouchercon.net.
The new permanent site
provides links to the
websites of each of
these annual conventions,
as well as histories
of Bouchercons dating
back to the first in
1970, including the
names of organizers
and guests of honor.
The site also features
a compilation of Anthony
Award winners dating
back to 1986, as well
as current standing
committee members, Bouchercon
bylaws, and minutes
of meetings.
The committee thanks
Beth Tindall and Cincinnati
Media for providing
the site.
7/17/05
Lots more info about Bouchercon 2008 can be found at the official Bouchercon 2008 blog.
7/16/05
Bouchercon 2008 will be held October 9 - 12.
7/15/05
The Bouchercon Standing Committee has just announced that in 2008 the World Mystery Convention will take place in Baltimore, MD. The convention cochairs are Ruth Jordan and Judi Bobalik. We'll post more details as they are made available.
7/9/05
Today's NY Times has an appreciation of Evan Hunter by Frank J. Prial - click here to read it.
7/8/05
Spent some time updating the Calendar page to include: St. Hilda's Mystery & Crime Weekend in Oxford from 8/19/05 - 8/21/05; the South Dakota Festival of Books in Deadwood from 9/23/05 - 9/25/05; the National Book Festival in Washington, DC on 9/24/05; Cape Fear Crime Festival in Wilmington, NC 10/28/05 - 10/30/05; Book Expo America in Washington, DC 5/18/06 - 5/21/06; and - saving the one of the best for last - Mayhem in the Midlands, sponsored by the Omaha Public Library and featuring our own Sally Fellows as one of the organizers 5/25/06 - 5/28/06.
7/6/05
We just learned that Ed McBain passed away this afternoon after battling cancer for several years. Born Salvatore Lombino in 1926, he changed his legal name to Evan Hunter in 1952. He wrote more than 80 novels, including the acclaimed 87th Precinct series, as well as several teleplays and screenplays...including the screenplay for The Birds. He provided more than fifty years of reading pleasure and was an inspiration to two generations of crime writers. His last 87th Precinct book, Fiddlers is due to be published in September by Harcourt. May he rest in peace. [Update: click here to read the obituary from the NY Times or here to read the obituary from the Washington Post]
7/5/05
We got to know Steve Miller ten years ago and Lynn finally convinced him to write a column for us in 1999. His "In the beginning" column has profiled dozens of first-time crime fiction authors and now you can read his thoughts at his new blog, The Darkened Stacks - Musings About Books, Americana, Pop Culture. And Other Stuff. According to Steve, "Here, we celebrate the backlist -- books not displayed on the front tables, but rather, in The Darkened Stacks. I can't promise postings every day, but I'll try to keep the place interesting on a reasonably current basis." Check it out now!
Wordharvest Workshops for Writers has announced the second annual Tony Hillerman Conference: Focus on Mystery, which will be held November 3-6 in Albuquerque, NM.
Updated the General Links and Calendar pages with the above.
6/28/05
Fixed some problems with the most recently updated pages and updated the Calendar page to include the New England Crime Bake on November 12 & 13, 2005.
6/24/05
The June/July 2005 issue of Mystery News was mailed Monday, June 20, 2005 [note: the cover erroneously calls it Volume 23 Issue 4 - it is actually Issue 3]. Our cover interview (by James Clar) is of Ken Bruen, the Irish noir writer who has taken the US by storm this past year with his series featuring ex-Garda Siochana Jack Taylor. Other highlights of this issue include a remembrance of Barbara Burnett Smith (by Virginia R. Knight); and Steve Miller's column about the origins of, well. "In the beginning...", which he's been writing for us for the past six years! Marv Lachman's "Out of the Past" column is on Earl Derr Biggers, creator of Charlie Chan, and we also have an article by James Clar celebrating the 80th anniversary of the publication of Biggers' The House Without a Key. Dave Magayna reviews audiobooks by Margaret Truman and Ian Rankin in his "The Sound of Mystery" column. And our usual columns, reviews, previews and convention calendar.
Updated the Back Issues and Authors pages to include info related to the new issue.
6/12/05
The Crime Writers of Canada announced the winners of the 2005 Arthur Ellis Awards. See the full list of nominees on our Awards page.
Best First Novel:
Dark Places by Jon Evans (HarperCollins Canada)Best Novel:
Fifth Son by Barbara Fradkin (RendezVous Press)Best Short Story:
"Crocodile Tears" by Leslie Watts in Revenge: A Noir Anthology (Insomniac Press)Best Non-Fiction:
The Irich Game: A True Story of Crime and Art by Matthew Hart (Viking Canada)Best Juvenile:
The Beckoners by Carrie Mac (Orca Book Publishers)Best Crime Writing in French:
Les Douze Pierres by Ann Lamontagne (Vents d'Ouest)Derrick Murdoch Award:
Max Haines, for years of giving new life to old crimes
6/8/05
The Macavity Award Nominations 2005 (for works published in 2004) have been announced. The Macavity Awards are nominated and voted on by members of Mystery Readers International. Winners will be announced at Bouchercon in September 2005.
Best Novel
The Killing of the Tinkers by Ken Bruen (St. Martin's Minotaur)
Cold Case by Robin Burcell (Avon)
Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay (Doubleday)
High Country Fall by Margaret Maron (Mysterious Press)
California Girl by T. Jefferson Parker (HarperCollins)
Playing with Fire by Peter Robinson (William Morrow)
Best First Novel
Uncommon Grounds by Sandra Balzo (Five Star)
Summer of the Big Bachi by Naomi Hirahara (Delta)
Whiskey Sour by J A Konrath (Hyperion)
Dating Dead Men by Harley Jane Kozak (Doubleday)
Misdemeanor Man by Dylan Schaffer (Bloomsbury)
Best Nonfiction
Famous American Crimes & Trials, Vol. 1 by Frankie Y Bailey & Steven Chermak, (Praeger Publishers)
Just the Facts: True Tales of Cops & Criminals by Jim Doherty (Deadly Serious Press)
The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes: The Complete Short Stories edited by Leslie S. Klinger (W.W.Norton)
Latin American Mystery Writers: An A-to-Z Guide by Darrell B. Lockhart (Greenwood Press)
Forensics for Dummies by D.P. Lyle, MD (Wiley Publishing)
Best Short Story
"Viscery" by Sandra Balzo (EQMM, December 2004)
"The Widow of Slane" by Terence Faherty (EQMM, March/April 2004)
"The Lady's Not for Dying" by Alana White (Futures Mystery Anthology Magazine, Winter 2004)
6/3/05
The Private Eye Writers of America announced the 2005 Shamus Award nominees. The Shamus will be presented in September in Chicago during Bouchercon.
Best Novel:
Fade to Clear by Leonard Chang (St. Martin's)The Wakeup by Robert Ferrigno (Pantheon)
After The Rain by Chuck Logan (HarperCollins)
Choke Point by James Mitchell (St. Martin's)
While I Disappear by Ed Wright (Putnam)
Best Paperback:
Call the Devil by His Oldest Name by Sallie Bissell (Dell)
Shadow of the Dahlia by Jack Bludis (Quiet Storm Publishing)
London Blitz by Max Allan Collins (Berkley Prime Crime)
Island of Bones by P. J. Parrish (Pinnacle Books)
Fade to Blonde by Max Phillips (Hard Case Crime)
Best First:
Little Girl Lost by Richard Aleas (Five Star)
The Last Goodbye by Reed Arvin (HarperCollins)
The Dead by Ingrid Black (St. Martin's)
Aspen Pulp by Patrick Hasburgh (St. Martin's)
Some Danger Involved by Will Thomas (Simon & Schuster)
Best Short Story:
"Hasidic Noir" by Pearl Abraham (in Brooklyn Noir; Akashic Press)
"Burnt Wood" by Mitch Alderman (AHMM, July 2004)
"Trumpeter Swan" by John F. Dobbyn (AHMM, January/February 2004)
"Dog on Fire" by Gregory S. Fallis (AHMM, May 2004)
"Tricks" by Steve Hockensmith (AHMM, August 2004)
5/23/05
The
Anthony Award Committe
has announced the following
nominees for the award,
named for Anthony Boucher.
The awards will be presented
on Saturday, September
3, at Bouchercon 2005,
the World Mystery Convention
at the Sheraton Hotel
in Chicago.
Best NovelThe Killing of the Tinkers by Ken Bruen (St. Martins/Minotaur)
The Madman's Tale by John Katzenbach (Random House/Ballantine)
Blood Hollow by William Kent Krueger (Simon & Schuster/Atria)
By a Spider's Thread by Laura Lippman (HarperCollins)
California Girl by T. Jefferson (HarperCollins)
Out of the Deep I Cry by Julia Spencer-Fleming (St. Martins/Minotaur)Best First Novel
Uncommon Grounds by Sandra Balzo (Five Star)
Until the Cows Come Home by Judy Clemens (Poisoned Pen Press)
Retribution by Juliane P. Hoffman (Putnam)
Whiskey Sour by JA Konrath (Hyperion)
Dating Dead Men by Harley Jane Kozak (Random House/Doubleday)
Best Non Fiction
Famous American Crimes & Trials by Frankie Bailey & Steven Chermak (Greenwood Publishing)
Men's Adventure Magazines by Max Allan Collins et al (Taschen)
Blue Blood by Edward Conlon (Penguin Putnam/Riverhead)
The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes edited by Leslie S. Klinger (Norton)
The Ballad of the Whiskey Robber by Julian Rubinstein (TimeWarner/Little, Brown)
Best Paperback Original
Cold Case by Robin Burcell (HarperCollins/Avon)
Putt to Death by Roberta Isleib (Penguin/Berkley Prime Crime)
Blue Blood by Susan McBride (HarperCollins/Avon)
The Halo Effect by M.J. Rose (Harlequin/Mira)
Twisted City by Jason Starr (Vintage Crime/Black Lizard)
Best Short Story
"Voodoo" by Rhys Bowen (Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Nov. 2004)
"The Widow of Slane" by Terence Faherty (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, March/April 2004)
"It's Crackers to Slip a Rozzer the Dropsey in Snide" by Ted Hertel, Jr. (Small Crimes; Betancourt/Wildside)
"Hunter Trapper" by Arthur Nersesian (Brooklyn Noir; Akashic Books)
"Wedding Knife" by Elaine Viets (Chesapeake Crimes;Quiet Storm)
Best Cover Art
Sohrab Habibion for Brooklyn Noir (Akashic)
Gregory Manchess for Fade to Blonde (Hard Case Crime)
Sal Barracca/Bradford Foltz Design for Whiskey Sour (Hyperion)
Robert Santora for Good Morning Darkness (TimeWarner/Mysterious)
Michael Kellner for Monkology (Dennis McMillan)
The Agatha Awards were presented on April 30th at a banquet in Arlington, VA. In addition to the awards listed below, H.R.F. Keating was given a Lifetime Achievement Award and Angela Lansbury was the recipient of the Malice Domestic Poirot Award, given to honor individuals other than writers who have made outstanding contributions to the Malice Domestic genre. See below or see our Awards page for the complete list of nominees.
Best Novel
Birds of a Feather by Jacqueline Winspear (Soho Press)
Best First Novel
Dating Dead Men by Harley Jane Kozak (Doubleday)
Best Nonfiction
Private Eye-Lashes: Radio's Lady Detectives by Jack French (Bear Manor Media)
Best Short Story
"Wedding Knife" by Elaine Viets (from Chesapeake Crimes, Quiet Storm Publishing)
Best Children's/Young Adult Novel
Chasing Vermeer by Blue Balliett (Scholastic Press)
The North American Branch of the International Association of Crime Writers has announced the nominees for the Hammett Prize, which is given each year for "a work of literary excellence in the field of crime writing by a US or Canadian author". The winner will be announced at Bouchercon in Chicago in early September.
The Havana Room by Colin Harrison (Farrar, Straus & Giroux)
Prince Of Thieves by Chuck Hogan (Scribner)
The Madman's Tale by John Katzenbach (Ballantine)
California Girl by T. Jefferson Parker (William Morrow)
Playing With Fire by Peter Robinson (William Morrow)
Crime
Writers of Canada is
pleased to announce
the nominees for the
2005 Arthur Ellis Awards.
The winners will be
announced at the gala
22nd anniversary Arthur
Ellis Awards dinner
on Thursday, June 9,
at Mysteriously Yours
Dinner
Theatre in Toronto.
Best Short Story
"The Robbie Burns Revival" by Cecilia Kennedy (The Robbie Burns Revival; Broken Jaw Press)
"Sound of Silence" by Dennis Murphy (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, December 2004)
"Death of a Dry-Stone Wall" by Dennis Murphy (Storyteller, Summer 2004)
"Sunnyside" by Coleen Steele (Storyteller, Summer 2004)
"Crocodile Tears" by Leslie Watts (Revenge: A Noir Anthology; Insomniac Press)
Best Nonfiction
Mobsters, Gangsters and Men of Honour by Pierre de Champlain (HarperCollins Canada)
Night Justice: The True Story of the Black Donnellys by Peter Edwards (Key Porter Books)
Instruments of Murder by Max Haines (Viking Canada)
The Irish Game: A True Story of Crime and Art by Matthew Hart (Viking Canada)
Crime School: Money Laundering by Chris Mathers (Key Porter Books)
Best Juvenile
Thread of Deceit by Susan Cliffe (Sumach Press)
The Hippie House by Katherine Holubitsky (Orca Book Publishers)
Kat's Fall by Shelley Hrdlitschka (Orca Book Publishers)
The Beckoners by Carrie Mac (Orca Book Publishers)
Sea Chase by Curtis Parkinson (Tundra Books)
Best Crime Writing in French
La Souris et le rat by Jean-Pierre Charland (Vents d'Ouest)
Le Transmetteur by Jacques Diamant (Stanké)
Les Douze Pierres by Ann Lamontagne (Vents d'Ouest)
Virgo intacta by Louise Lévesque (La Veuve noire)
La Femme de Berlin by Pauline Vincent (Libre Expression)
Best First Novel
Death in the Age of Steam by Mel Bradshaw (RendezVous Press)
Dark Places by Jon Evans (HarperCollins Canada)
Raw Deal by Rick Gadziola (ECW Press)
Mad Money by Linda L. Richards (MIRA Books)
The Border Guards by Mark Sinnett (HarperCollins Canada
Best Novel
The Last Good Day by Gail Bowen (McClelland & Stewart)
Fifth Son by Barbara Fradkin (RendezVous Press)
The Magyar Venus by Lyn Hamilton (Berkley Prime Crime)
Playing with Fire by Peter Robinson (McClelland & Stewart)
Sweep Lotus by Mark Zuehlke (Dundurn)
The Short Mystery Fiction
Society has announced
the winners of their
2005 Derringer Awards
given for the best short
mystery fiction published
during the calendar
year 2004.
Flash Story (Up to 500 Words)
"The Big Guys" by JA Konrath (Small Bites; Coscom Entertainment) 8/04
Short-Short Story (501-2000 Words)
"The Test" by Mike Wiecek (Woman's World, 11/30/04)
Midlength Story (2001-6000 Words)
"Viscery" by Sandy Balzo (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, 12/04)
Longer Story (6001 - 15000 Words)
"Secondhand Heart" by Doug Allyn (Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, Jan/Feb 2004)
The editor of Deadly Pleasures has announced the nominees for their Barry Award. The winners will be announced at Bouchercon in Chicago in September.
Best Novel
The Enemy by Lee Child
Alone at Night by K.J. Erickson
Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay
Remembering Sarah by Chris Mooney
Little Scarlet by Walter Mosley
Hard Revolution by George Pelecanos
Best First Novel
Relative Danger by Charles Benoit
Walking Money by James O. Born
The Coroner's Lunch by Colin Cotterill
Skinny-Dipping by Claire Matturro
Some Danger Involved by Will Thomas
The Shadow Of The Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
Best UK Novel
The Burning Girl by Mark Billingham
The Dramatist by Ken Bruen
Flesh and Blood by John Harvey
Tokyo by Mo Hayder
The Crime Trade by Simon Kernick
First Drop by Zoe Sharp
Best Paperback Original
The Librarian by Larry Beinhart
Into the Web by Thomas H. Cook
Tagged for Murder by Elaine Flinn
Last Seen in Aberdeen by M.G. Kincaid
The Confession by Domenic Stansberry
Twisted City by Jason Starr
Best Thriller Award
Scarecrow by Matthew Reilly
Rain Storm by Barry Eisler
Bagman by Jay Maclarty
Whirlwind by Joseph Garber
A Death in Vienna by Daniel Silva
Paranoia by Joseph Finder
Best Short Story Award
"Cold Comfort" by Catherine Aird (Chapter And Hearse And Other Mysteries)
"The War in Wonderland" by Edward D. Hoch (Green For Danger)
"Facing Up" by Melodie Johnson Howe (Eqmm July,2004)
"Rumpole And The Christmas Break" by John Mortimer (The Strand Magazine No. XIV)
"Murder, The Missing Heir And The Boiled Egg" by Amy Myers (Criminal Appetites)
"Ledgers" by Neil Schofield (EQMM July, 2004)
Updated
our Awards
page to include
the above awards and
nominations. Updated
the Calendar
page to add some new
events and remove past
events.
4/29/05
The Mystery Writers of America presented the Edgar awards at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in New York a few hours ago, on Thursday night. Here is the complete list of winners. See below or see our Awards page for the complete list of nominees.
BEST
NOVEL
California
Girl by T. Jefferson
Parker (William Morrow)
BEST
FIRST NOVEL BY AN AMERICAN
AUTHOR
Country
of Origin by Don Lee
(W.W. Norton & Company)
BEST
PAPERBACK ORIGINAL
The Confession by Domenic
Stansberry (Hard Case
Crime)
BEST
CRITICAL/BIOGRAPHICAL
The
New Annotated Sherlock
Holmes: The Complete
Short Stories edited
by Leslie S. Klinger
(W.W. Norton)
BEST
FACT CRIME
Conviction: Solving
the Moxley Murder: A
Reporter and a Detective's
Twenty-Year Search for
Justice by Leonard Levitt
(Regan Books)
BEST
SHORT STORY
"Something
About a Scar" by
Laurie Lynn Drummond
(from Anything You Say
Can and Will Be Used
Against You, HarperCollins)
BEST
YOUNG ADULT
In Darkness, Death by
Dorothy & Thomas
Hoobler (Philomel Books)
BEST
JUVENILE
Chasing
Vermeer by Blue Balliett
(Scholastic Press)
BEST
PLAY
Spatter
Pattern (Or, How I Got
Away With It) by Neal
Bell (Playwrights Horizons)
BEST
TELEVISION EPISODE TELEPLAY
Law
& Order: Criminal
Intent: "Want",
teleplay by Elizabeth
Benjamin, story by René
Balcer & Elizabeth
Benjamin
BEST
TELEVISION FEATURE OR
MINI-SERIES TELEPLAY
State
of Play by Paul Abbott
(BBC America)
BEST
MOTION PICTURE SCREENPLAY
A
Very Long Engagement,
screenplay by Jean-Pierre
Jeunet, based on the
novel by Sebastien Japrisot
(2003 Productions)
ROBERT
L. FISH MEMORIAL AWARD
Thomas
Morrissey for "Can't
Catch Me" (from
Brooklyn Noir (Akashic
Books)
GRAND
MASTER
Marcia
Muller
ELLERY
QUEEN AWARD
Carolyn
Marino, Vice President/Executive
Editor, HarperCollins
RAVEN
AWARDS
Cape
Cod Radio Mystery Theatre
(founded by Steve Oney)
DorothyL listserv (founded
by Diane Kovacs and
Kara Robinson)
Murder by the Book,
Houston, TX (Martha
Farrington, Owner)
SPECIAL
EDGAR AWARDS
David
Chase (writer/producer
- The Sopranos, The
Rockford Files, Kolchak:
The Night Stalker, and
many other breakthrough
TV shows)
Tom Fontana (writer/producer
- Homicide: Life on
the Street, Oz, The
Jury, and many other
breakthrough TV shows)
THE
SIMON & SCHUSTER-MARY
HIGGINS CLARK AWARD
(Awarded on Tuesday,
April 26th)
Grave Endings by Rochelle
Krich (Ballantine Books)
4/24/05
The April/May 2005 issue of Mystery News was mailed Monday, April 18, 2005 [date corrected 4/29]. Our cover interview (by Lynn Kaczmarek) is of PJ Tracy, the mother-daughter writing team of PJ Lambrecht and Traci Lambrecht, whose newest book, Dead Run, is just out. Other highlights of this issue include an interview with Sharon Kay Penman, author of Prince of Darkness, (by Virginia R. Knight); and Steve Miller's "In the beginning" column on Ray Banks, author of The Big Blind, published by Point Blank Press. Marv Lachman's "Out of the Past" column is on Thomas B. Dewey (no, not the politician!), who created private eyes Singer Batts and "Mac". Dave Magayna reviews audiobooks by Anne George in his "The Sound of Mystery" column. There's also a special article commemorating the 60th anniversary of the Mystery Writers of America. And our usual columns, reviews, previews and convention calendar.
Updated Back Issues and Authors pages to include info related to the new issue.
2/28/05
Congratulations to the Left Coast Crime 2005 committee for a very enjoyable convention these past few days in El Paso, Texas. The following awards were presented on Saturday, February 26 (for a full list of mystery awards and nominees, click here):
The DILYS, for the book that the members of the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association (IMBA) most enjoyed selling during the past year.
Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay
The LEFTY, for the best humorous mystery novel published in 2004.
Blue
Blood by Susan McBride
We'll Always Have Parrots
by Donna Andrews
The BRUCE ALEXANDER
HISTORY MYSTERY AWARD,
or the best historical
mystery (set anywhere
and in any time period
up to the end of World
War II) published in
2004.
The Witch in the Well by Sharan Newman
The CALAVERA, like the Otter in 2004, for the best mystery set in the geographic area covered by Left Coast Crime and published in 2004.
Grave Endings by Rochelle Krich
2/22/05
The February/March 2005 issue of Mystery News was mailed today, Tuesday, February 22, 2005. Our cover interview (by Pam Lawrence) is of Ian Rankin, whose newest book, Fleshmarket Alley, is the fifteenth to feature detective John Rebus. Other highlights of this issue include interviews with Michael Z. Lewin, author of Eye Opener, (by Gary Warren Niebuhr); Caroline Roe, who also writes as Medora Sale, (by Virginia R. Knight); and Steve Miller's "In the beginning" column on James R. Winter, author of Northcoast Shakedown, published in January 2005 by Quiet Storm Publishing. Marv Lachman's "Out of the Past" column is on Stanley Ellin, who was named an MWA Grand Master in 1981. Dave Magayna reviews audiobooks by Catherine Coulter and Michael Palmer in his "The Sound of Mystery" column. A special feature is the list of Top 5 Books read in 2004 by each of our reviewers. And our usual columns, reviews, previews and convention calendar.
Updated Back Issues and Authors pages to include info related to the new issue
2/17/05
Malice Domestic has announced the nominees for the Agatha Awards for the best mystery works of 2004, which will be presented at the Agatha Banquet on April 30, 2005 in Arlington, Virginia.
Best Novel
We'll
Always Have Parrots
by Donna Andrews (Thomas
Dunne Books)
By a Spider's Thread
by Laura Lippman (HarperCollins)
High Country Fall by
Margaret Maron (Mysterious
Press)
The Pearl Diver by Sujata
Massey (HarperCollins)
Birds of a Feather by
Jacqueline Winspear
(Soho Press)
Best First Novel
Till
The Cows Come Home by
Judy Clemens (Poisoned
Pen Press)
Arson and Old Lace by
Patricia Harwin (Pocket
Books)
I Dreamed I Married
Perry Mason by Susan
Kandel (HarperCollins)
Dating Dead Men by Harley
Jane Kozak (Doubleday)
The Clovis Incident
by Pari Noskin Taichert
(University of New Mexico
Press)
Best Nonfiction
Private
Eye-Lashes: Radio's
Lady Detectives by Jack
French (Bear Manor Media)
The New Annotated Sherlock
Holmes: The Complete
Short Stories edited
by Leslie Klinger (W.
W. Norton & Company)
Best Short Story
"The
Butler Didn't Do It"
by Maria Y. Lima (from
Chesapeake Crimes, Quiet
Storm Publishing)
"The Two Marys"
by Katherine Hall Page
(from Mistletoe and
Mayhem, Avon Books)
"Wedding Knife"
by Elaine Viets (from
Chesapeake Crimes, Quiet
Storm Publishing)
Best Children's/Young Adult Novel
Chasing
Vermeer by Blue Balliett
(Scholastic Press)
Betrayal at Cross Creek
by Kathleen Ernst (American
Girl)
Green Streak by Daniel
J. Hale and Matthew
LaBrot (Top Publications)
2/13/05
Updated the Calendar page, made minor corrections to list of Edgar nominees.
2/6/05
The Mystery Writers of America have announced the nominees for the Edgar Allan Poe Awards 2005, honoring the best in mystery fiction, non-fiction, television, and film published or produced in 2004. The Edgar Awards will be presented at the 59th Gala Banquet, April 28, 2005 at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in New York.
BEST NOVEL
Evan's
Gate by Rhys Bowen (St.
Martin's Minotaur)
By a Spider's Thread
by Laura Lippman (William
Morrow)
Remembering Sarah by
Chris Mooney (Atria
Books)
California Girl by T.
Jefferson Parker (William
Morrow)
Out of the Deep I Cry
by Julia Spencer-Fleming
(St. Martin's Minotaur)
BEST FIRST NOVEL BY AN AMERICAN AUTHOR
Little
Girl Lost by Richard
Aleas (Hard Case Crime)
Relative Danger by Charles
Benoit (Poisoned Pen
Press)
Cloud Atlas by Liam
Callanan (Delacorte
Press)
Tonight I Said Goodbye
by Michael Koryta (St.
Martin's Minotaur)
Country of Origin by
Don Lee (W.W. Norton
& Company)
Bahamarama by Bob Morris
(St. Martin's Minotaur)
BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL
The
Librarian by Larry Beinhart
(Nation Books)
Into the Web by Thomas
H. Cook (Bantam)
Dead Men Rise Up Never
by Ron Faust (Dell)
Twelve-Step Fandango
by Chris Haslam (Dark
Alley)
The Confession by Domenic
Stansberry (Hard Case
Crime)
BEST CRITICAL/BIOGRAPHICAL
The
New Annotated Sherlock
Holmes: The Complete
Short Stories edited
by Leslie S. Klinger
(W.W. Norton)
Latin American Mystery
Writers: An A-to-Z Guide
by Daniel B. Lockhart
(Greenwood Press)
Booze and the Private
Eye: Alcohol in the
Hard-Boiled Novel by
Rita Elizabeth Rippetoe
(McFarland & Co.)
The Life of Graham Greene,
Vol. 3: 1956-1991 by
Norman Sherry (Viking
Books)
BEST FACT CRIME
Ready
for the People: My Most
Chilling Cases as Prosecutor
by Marissa N. Batt (Arcade
Publishing)
Conviction: Solving
the Moxley Murder: A
Reporter and a Detective's
Twenty-Year Search for
Justice by Leonard Levitt
(Regan Books)
Forensics for Dummies
by D.P. Lyle, MD (Wiley
Publishing - For Dummies)
Are You There Alone?:
The Unspeakable Crime
of Andrea Yates by Suzanne
O'Malley (Simon &
Schuster)
Ballad of the Whiskey
Robber: A True Story
of Bank Heists, Ice
Hockey, Transylvanian
Pelt Smuggling, Moonlighting
Detectives, and Broken
Hearts by Julian Rubinstein
(Little, Brown)
Green River, Running
Red: The Real Story
of the Green River Killer
- America's Deadliest
Serial Murderer by Ann
Rule (Free Press)
BEST SHORT STORY
"Something
About a Scar" by
Laurie Lynn Drummond
(from Anything You Say
Can and Will Be Used
Against You, HarperCollins)
"The Widow of Slane"
by Terence Faherty (EQMM
- March/April 2004)
"The Book Signing"
by Pete Hamill (from
Brooklyn Noir, Akashic
Books)
"Adventure of the
Missing Detective"
by Gary Lovisi (from
Sherlock Holmes: The
Hidden Years, St. Martin's
Minotaur)
"Imitate the Sun"
by Luke Sholer (EQMM
- November 2004)
BEST YOUNG ADULT
Story
Time by Edward Bloor
(Harcourt Children's
Books)
In Darkness, Death by
Dorothy & Thomas
Hoobler (Philomel Books)
Jude by Kate Morgenroth
(Simon & Schuster
Children's Publishing)
The Book of Dead Days
by Marcus Sedgwick (Wendy
Lamb Books)
Missing Abby by Lee
Weatherly (David Fickling
Books)
BEST JUVENILE
Chasing
Vermeer by Blue Balliett
(Scholastic Press)
Assassin: The Lady Grace
Mysteries by Patricia
Finney (Delacorte Books
for Young Readers)
Abduction! by Peg Kehret
(Dutton Children's Books)
Looking for Bobowicz
by Daniel Pinkwater
(HarperCollins Children's
Books)
The Unseen by Zilpha
Keatley Snyder (Delacorte
Books for Young Readers)
BEST PLAY
Spatter
Pattern (Or, How I Got
Away With It) by Neal
Bell (Playwrights Horizons)
Eliot Ness: An Untouchable
Life by Max Allan Collins
(The Art House)
An Evening of Murder
and the Like by Edward
Musto (Barrow Group
Studio Theatre)
BEST TELEVISION EPISODE TELEPLAY
Law
& Order: Criminal
Intent: "Want",
teleplay by Elizabeth
Benjamin, story by René
Balcer & Elizabeth
Benjamin
Law & Order: Criminal
Intent: "Conscience",
teleplay by Gerry Conway,
story by René
Balcer & Gerry Conway
Law & Order: Criminal
Intent: "Consumed",
teleplay by Warren Leight,
story by René
Balcer & Warren
Leight
Law & Order: Criminal
Intent: "Pas De
Deux", teleplay
by Warren Leight, story
by René Balcer
& Warren Leight
Monk: "Mr. Monk
and the Girl Who Cried
Wolf", teleplay
by Hy Conrad
BEST TELEVISION FEATURE OR MINI-SERIES TELEPLAY
State
of Play by Paul Abbott
(BBC America)
Prime Suspect 6: The
Last Witness by Peter
Berry (Granada TV &
WGBH Boston)
Death in Holy Orders
by Robert Jones, based
on the novel by P.D.
James (BBC Worldwide)
Amnesia by Chris Lang
(BBC America)
Wire in the Blood: "The
Darkness of Light"
by
BEST MOTION PICTURE SCREENPLAY
A
Very Long Engagement,
screenplay by Jean-Pierre
Jeunet, based on the
novel by Sebastien Japrisot
(2003 Productions)
The Bourne Supremacy,
screenplay by Tony Gilroy,
based on the novel by
Robert Ludlam. (The
Kennedy/Marshall Company,
Universal Pictures,
Hypnotic)
Collateral, screenplay
by Stuart Beattie (DreamWorks
SKG)
I'm Not Scared, screenplay
by Francesca Marciano,
based on the novel by
Niccolo Ammaniti. (Miramax
Films)
Maria Full of Grace,
screenplay by Joshua
Marston (HBO Films)
ROBERT L. FISH MEMORIAL AWARD
Thomas Morrissey for "Can't Catch Me" (from Brooklyn Noir (Akashic Books)
GRAND MASTER
Marcia Muller
ELLERY QUEEN AWARD
Carolyn Marino, Vice President/Executive Editor, HarperCollins
RAVEN AWARDS
Cape
Cod Radio Mystery Theatre
(founded by Steve Oney)
DorothyL listserv (founded
by Diane Kovacs and
Kara Robinson)
Murder by the Book,
Houston, TX (Martha
Farrington, Owner)
SPECIAL EDGAR AWARDS
David
Chase (writer/producer
- The Sopranos, The
Rockford Files, Kolchak:
The Night Stalker, and
many other breakthrough
TV shows)
Tom Fontana (writer/producer
- Homicide: Life on
the Street, Oz, The
Jury, and many other
breakthrough TV shows)
THE SIMON & SCHUSTER-MARY HIGGINS CLARK AWARD
Perfect
Sax by Jerrilyn Farmer
(William Morrow/Avon)
The Drowning Tree by
Carol Goodman (Ballantine
Books)
Scent of a Killer by
Christiane Heggan (MIRA
Books)
Grave Endings by Rochelle
Krich (Ballantine Books)
Murder in a Mill Town
by P.B. Ryan (Berkley
Prime Crime)
1/26/05
The organizers of Left Coast Crime have announced the nominees for various awards that will be presented at LCC in El Paso in about a month. LCC registrants may vote at the web site at this link by February 20, 2005.
The LEFTY is for the best humorous mystery novel published in 2004.
Blue
Blood by Susan McBride
Carnage on the Committee
by Ruth Dudley Edwards
Holy Guacamole by Nancy
Fairbanks
Perfect Sax by Jerrilyn
Farmer
We'll Always Have Parrots
by Donna Andrews
The BRUCE ALEXANDER HISTORY MYSTERY AWARD is for the best historical mystery (set anywhere and in any time period up to the end of World War II) published in 2004.
Birds
of a Feather by Jacqueline
Winspear
Five for Silver by Mary
Reed and Eric Mayer
Murder on Marble Row
by Victoria Thompson
Tyrant of the Mind by
Priscilla Royal
The Witch in the Well
by Sharan Newman
The CALAVERA, like the Otter in 2004, is for the best mystery set in the geographic area covered by Left Coast Crime and published in 2004.
Family
Claims by Twist Phelan
Grave Endings by Rochelle
Krich
Shadow Play by David
Cole
Snap Shot by Meg Chittenden
What Others Know by
L.C. Hayden
1/24/05
Updated the Calendar page to include No Crime Unpublished, June 11 in Hollywood, CA (put on by the LA chapter of Sisters in Crime) and the Virginia Festival of the Book, March 16-20 in Charlottesville, VA.
1/19/05
Updated the Calendar page to include GenreCon 2005, which will take place in Sarnia, Ontario on April 30, 2005 and Of Dark and Stormy Nights, the longest-running (23 years!) workshop for mystery writers in the world, which will take place in Schaumberg, IL on June 11, 2005. It's sponsored by the Midwest chapter of the MWA and this year's Guests of Honor will be Laura Lippman and Charlaine Harris. They had so much fun last year that Manhattan Library Association is putting on The Great Manhattan Mystery Conclave II in Manhattan, Kansas September 30-October 2, 2005. And Book Passage bookstore has scheduled their annual Mystery Writers Conference for July 7-10 in Corte Madera, CA.
Also added Book 'Em, a book fair subtitled "Buy a Book and Stop a Crook" on October 22 and 23, 2005 in Waynesboro, VA. This event sounds pretty interesting - it's sponsored by the Waynesboro Police Department and the City of Waynesboro and all proceeds are used for increasing literacy rates, decreasing crime, and helping police solve unsolved crimes. Authors and Publishers, there's info on their site on how to donate books or set up an appearance at the event.
Hallmark Channel is running 3 sets of new mystery movries on alternating Friday nights: Mystery Woman starring Kellie Martin, Jane Doe starring Lea Thompson, and McBride starring John Larroquette. Find more info here.
1/15/05
The Mystery Writers of America has announced that they will be honoring television producers and writers Tom Fontana and David Chase with Special Edgar awards for their groundbreaking work in television crime shows.
HarperCollins Vice President and Executive Editor Carolyn Marino will receive the Ellery Queen award, presented to editors or publishers who have distinguished themselves by their generous and wide-ranging support of the mystery genre.
The Raven award, given to individuals and institutions who have made significant contributions to the mystery genre or to MWA, will go to four recipients: Martha N. Farrington, owner of Murder by the Book bookstore; Steven Oney, founder of Cape Cod Radio Mystery Theater; and Diane Kovacs and Kara Robinson, founders and owners of the DorothyL Internet list.
Click here
for more information.
1/13/05
More news about Left Coast Crime 2007: the "pro" guests of honor will be Michael Collins (aka Dennis Lynds) and Gayle Lynds, the fan guests honor will be Diane Kovacs and Kara Robinson, the moderators/owners/founders of the DorothyL internet mailing list. And the toastmaster will be Gary Phillips.
News we missed in December: Marcia Muller has been named Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America. Click here for the press release.
1/2/05
This bit of good news just in from Andi Shechter:
"Happy 2005 friends. Just to let you know it's official; Left Coast Crime 2007 will be held in Seattle, Washington."
Tentative dates: Feb 1-4, 2007, more info to follow. I'm already looking forward to it. It's not too late to sign up for LCC 2005 in El Paso or LCC 2006 in Bristol, UK.
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The What's New? page is updated regularly by Chris Aldrich, one of the partners in Black Raven Press. Items of general interest to fans of mystery and crime fiction may be emailed to her at whatsnew@blackravenpress.com. Please do not send promotional announcements for individual authors or books - they will likely not be used and will likely only cause annoyance. Please refer to our submission guidelines for information on submitting books for review.