top of page

Winners and Nominees
2020 - 2022

Click buttons to move
from page to page

2022 - Minneapolis, Minnesota

BEST HARDCOVER NOVEL

Winner:

Razorblade Tears – S. A. Cosby - Flatiron Books

Nominees:

 

Runner - Tracy Clark - Kensington

Razorblade Tears-  S. A. Cosby- Flatiron Books

The Collective - Alison Gaylin - William Morrow

Clark and Division - Naomi Hirahara - Soho Crime

These Toxic Things - Rachel Howzell Hall  - Thomas & Mercer

BEST FIRST NOVEL

 

Winner:

 

Arsenic and Adobo – Mia Manansala - Berkley

Nominees:

 

Her Name is Knight - Yasmine Angoe -  Thomas & Mercer

The Other Black Girl  - Zakiya Dalila Harris - Atria Books

Walking through Needles- Heather Levy - Polis Books

Arsenic and Adobo - Mia Manansala -  Berkley

All Her Little Secrets -  Wanda M. Morris - William Morrow Paperbacks

BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL/E-BOOK/AUDIOBOOK NOVEL

Winner:

 

Bloodlilne - Jess Lourey - Thomas & Mercer

Nominees:

 

The Ninja Betrayed - Tori Eldridge - Agora Books

Warn Me When It's Time - Cheryl A. Head - Bywater Books

Bury Me In Shadows -Greg Herren - Bold Strokes Books

The Mother Next Door - Tara Laskowski - Graydon House

Bloodline - Jess Lourey -  Thomas & Mercer

BEST SHORT STORY

Winner:

 

"Not my Cross to Bear" - S. A. Cosby - Trouble No More - Down and Out Books

Nominees:

"The Search for Eric Garcia" - E. A. Aymar - Midnight Hour, Crooked Lane Books

“The Vermeer Conspiracy” - V. M. Burns - Midnight Hour - Crooked Lane Books

"Lucky Thirteen" – Tracy Clark -Midnight Hour - Crooked Lane Books

"Doc's at Midnight" - Richie Narvaez - Midnight Hour - Crooked Lane Books

“Not My Cross to Bear”  -  S. A. Cosby -Trouble No More - Down and Out Books

“The Locked Room Library” - Gigi Pandian- EQMM - July/August 2021

"Burnt Ends" - Gabriel Valjan - This Time for Sure - Down and Out Books

BEST ANTHOLOGY

Winner:

This Time for Sure: Bouchercon 2021 Anthology - Hank Phillippi Ryan, ed. - Down and Out Books

 

Nominees:

 

Under the Thumb: Stories of Police Oppression - edited by S. A. Cosby, ed. - Rock and a Hard Place Press

Midnight Hour: A Chilling Anthology of Crime Fiction from 20 Authors of Color -Abby L. VanDiver, ed. - Crooked Lane Books

Trouble No More:Crime Fiction Inspired By Southern Rock and Blues  - Mark Westmoreland - Down and Out Books

This Time for Sure: Bouchercon 2021 Anthology - Hank Phillippi Ryan, ed.- Down and Out Books

When a Stranger Comes to Town: A Collection of Stories from Crime Fiction's Top Authors - Michael Koryta, ed. - Hanover Square Press

BEST CRITICAL/NONFICTION WORK

Winner:

How to Write a Mystery: A Handbook from Mystery Writers of America - Lee Child and Laurie R. King, eds. -Scribner

Nominees:

 

The Combat Zone: Murder, Race, and Boston's Struggle for Justice - Jan Brogan -Bright Leaf

Murder Book: A Graphic Memoir of a true Crime Obsession -  Hilary Fitzgerald, ed. - Andrews McMeel Publishing

Last Call: A True Story of Love, Lust, and Murder in Queer New York - Elon Green - Celadon Books

How to Write a Mystery: A Handbook from Mystery Writers of America - Lee Child and Laurie R. King, eds. - Scribner

The Haunting of Alma Fielding: A True Ghost Story - Kate Summerscale, ed. - Penguin Books

BEST CHILDREN/ YA

 

Winner:

B

I Play One on TV – Alan Orloff - Down and Out Books


Nominees:

 

Cold Blooded Myrtle– Elizabeth Bunce - ‎ Algonquin Young Readers

Bury Me in Shadows – Greg Herren - Bold Strokes Books

The Forest of Stolen Girls - June Hur - Feiwel & Friends

I Play One on TV – Alan Orloff - Down and Out Books

Enola Holmes and the Black Barouche– Nancy Springer - Wednesday Books

 

2021 - New Orleans, Louisiana

BEST HARDCOVER NOVEL

Winner:

Blacktop Wasteland– S. A. Cosby - Flatiron Books

Nominees:

 

What You Don't See - Tracy Clark - Kensington

Blacktop Wasteland -  S. A. Cosby- Flatiron Books

Little Secrets -  Jennifer Hillier - Minotaur Books

And Now She's Gone- Rachel Howzell Hall - Forge Books

The First to Lie  - Hank Phillippi Ryan  -  Forge Books

BEST FIRST NOVEL

 

Winner:

 

Winter Counts – David Heska Wanbli Weiden - Ecco Press

Nominees:

 

Derailed- Mary Keliikoa-  Camel Press

Murder in Old Bombay  - Nev Marach -  Minotaur Books

Murder at the Mena House - Erica Ruth Neubauer - Kensington

The Thursday Murder Club - Richard Osman -  Pamela Dorman Books

Winter Counts -  David Heska Wanbli Weiden - Ecco Press

BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL/E-BOOK/AUDIOBOOK ORIGINAL NOVEL

Winner:

 

Unspeakable Things - Jess Lourey - Thomas & Mercer

Nominees:

 

The Fate of the Flapper - Susanna Calkins - Minotaur Books

When No One is Watching - Alyssa Cole - William Morrow

Unspeakable Things - Jess Lourey- Thomas & Mercer

The Lucky One  -  Lori Rader Day - Midnight Ink

Dirty Old Town - Gabriel Valjan-  Level Best Books

BEST CRITICAL/NONFICTION WORK

Winner:

Unspeakable Acts: True Tales of Crime, Murder, Deceit and Obsession - Sarah Weinman, ed. - Ecco Press

Nominees:

 

Sometimes You Have to Lie: The LIfe and Times of Louise Fitzhugh, Renegade Author of Harriet the Spy - Leslie Brody -

Seal Press

American Sherlock: Murder, Forensics and the Birth of American CSI  -  Kate Winkler- Dawson - G. P. Putnam's Sons

Howdunit: A Masterclass in Crime Writing by Members of the Detection Club -  Martin Edwards, ed. - Collins Crime Club

The Third Rainbow Girl: The Long Life of a Souble Murder in Appalachia - Emma Copley Eisenberg - Hachette Books

The Five: The Untold Stories of the Women Killed by Jack the RipperPhantom Lady: Hollywood Producer Joan Harrison, the Forgotten Woman Behind Hitchcock  - Christina Lane -  Chicago Review Press

Unspeakable Acts: True Tales of Crime, Murder, Deceit and Obsession - Sarah Weinman, ed. - Ecco Press

BEST SHORT STORY

Winner:

 

"90 Miles" – Alex Segura - Both Sides: Stories from the Border - Agora Books

Nominees:

“Dear Emily Etiquette” - Barb Goffman - EQMM - Dell Magazines

"90 Miles" – Alex Segura - Both Sides: Stories from the Border - Agora Books

"The Boy Detective I& the Summer of '74" - Art Taylor - AHMM (Jan-Feb) - Dell Magazines

“Elysian Fields”  -  Gabriel Valjan - California Schemin' - Wildside Press

“Better DaysThe Twenty-Five Year Engagement” - James W. Ziskin -  (In League with Sherlock Holmes - Pegasus Crime

BEST ANTHOLOGY OR COLLECTION

Winner:

Shattering Glass: A Nasty Woman Press Anthology- edited by Heather Graham, ed. - Nasty Woman Press

 

Nominees:

 

Shattering Glass: A Nasty Woman Press Anthology- edited by Heather Graham, ed. - Nasty Woman Press

Both Sides: Stories from the Border -  Gabino Iglesias, ed. -  Agoria Books

Crime Travel- Barb Goffman, ed. - Wildside Press

Noiryorican  - Richie Narvaez - Down and Out Books

The Beat of the Black Wings: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of Joni Mitchell - Josh Pachter, ed.- Untreed Reads Publishing

California Schemin' - Art Taylor, ed. - Wildside Press

Lockdown: Stories of Crime, Terror, and Hope During a Pandemic - Nick Kolakowski and Steve Weddle, eds. - Polis Books

BEST JUVENILE/ YOUNG ADULT

 

Winner:

Holly Hernandez and the Death of Disco – Jen Conley Richie Narvaez - Pinata Books


Nominees:

 

Midnight at the Barclay Hotel – Fleur Bradley - Viking Books for Young Readers

Premediated Myrtle – Elizabeth C. Bunce - Algonquin Young Readers

From the Desk of Zoe Washington – Janae Marks - Kathrine Tegen Books

Holly Hernandez and the Death of Disco – Jen Conley Richie Narvaez - Pinata Books

The Deceivers Star Wars Poe Dameron: Free Fall – Alex Segura - Disney Lucasfilm Press

2020 - Sacramento, California

BEST NOVEL

Winner:

The Murder List – Hank Phillippi Ryan - Forge

Nominees:

 

Your House Will Pay  - Steph Cha - Ecco

They All Fall Down -  Rachel Howzell Hall - Forge

Lady in the Lake -  Laura Lippman - William Morrow

The Murder List - Hank Phillippi Ryan - Forge

Miami Midnight  - Alex Segura  -  Polis Books

BEST FIRST NOVEL

 

Winner:

 

One Night Gone – Tara Laskowski - Graydon House

Nominees:

 

The Ninja Daughter - Tori Eldridge -  Agora Books

Miracle Creek  - Angie Kim -  Sarah Crichton Books

One Night Gone - Tara Laskowski- Graydon House

Three-Fifths - John Vercher  -  Agora Books

American Spy -  Lauren Wilkinson - Random House

BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL

 

Winner:

 

The Alchemist's Illusion - Gigi Pandian - Midnight Ink

Nominees:

 

The Unrepentant - E. A. Aymar - Down and Out Books

Murder Knocks Twice - Susanna Calkins - Minotaur

The Pearl Dagger - L. A. Chandlar - Kensington

Scot & Soda  -  Catriona McPherson - Midnight Ink

Drowned Under - Wendall Thomas -  Poisoned Pen Press

The Naming Game - Gabriel Valjan - Winter Goose Press

The Alchemist's Illusion - Gigi Pandian - Midnight Ink

BEST CRITICAL/NONFICTION WORK

Winner:

The Mutual Admiration Society: How Dorothy L. Sayers and her Oxford Circle Remade the World for Women – Mo Moulton  - Basic Books

Nominees:

 

Hitchcock and the Censors - John Billheimer - University Press of Kentucky

The Hooded Gunman: An Illustrated History of the Collins Crime Club -  John Curran - Collins Crime Club

The Mutual Admiration Society: How Dorothy L. Sayers and Her Oxford Circle Remade the World for Women -  Mo Moulton - Basic Books

The Trial of Lizzie Borden: A True Story - Cara Robertson - Simon & Schuster

The Five: The Untold Stories of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper  - Hallie Rubenhold  -  Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

BEST SHORT STORY

Winner:

 

The Red Zone – Alex Segura (appearing in ¡Pa'que Tu Lo Sepas!: Stories to Benefit the People of Puerto Rico)

Nominees:

“Turistas” - Hector Acosta - (appearing in ¡Pa'que Tu Lo Sepas!: Stories to Benefit the People of Puerto Rico)

“Unforgiven”  -  Hilary Davidson - (appearing in Murder a-Go-Go's: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Music of the Go-Go's)

“The Red Zone”  -  Alex Segura - (appearing in ¡Pa'que Tu Lo Sepas!: Stories to Benefit the People of Puerto Rico)

“Better Days” - Art Taylor  -  (appearing in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, May/June 2019)

“Hard Return” - Art Taylor - (appearing in Crime Travel)

BEST ANTHOLOGY OR COLLECTION

Winner:

Malice Domestic 14: Mystery Most Edible - edited by Verena Rose, Rita Owen, and Shawn Reilly Simmons - Wildside Press

 

Nominees:

 

The Eyes of Texas: Private Eyes from the Panhandle to the Piney Woods- Michael Bracken, ed. - Down and Out Books

¡Pa'que Tu Lo Sepas!: Stories to Benefit the People of Puerto Rico  -  Angel Luis ColÓn, ed. -  Down & Out Books

Crime Travel- Barb Goffman, ed. - Wildside Press

Malice Domestic 14: Mystery Most Edible  - Verena Rose, Rita Owen, and Shawn Reilly Simmons - Wildside Press

Murder A-Go-Go's: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Music of the Go-Go's - Holly West ed. - Down and Out Books

BEST YOUNG ADULT

 

Winner:

Seven Ways to Get Rid of Harry – Jen Conley - Down and Out Books


Nominees:

 

Seven Ways to Get Rid of Harry– Jen Conley - Down and Out Books

Catfishing on CatNet – J.C. Lane - Poisoned Pen

Killing November– Adriana Mather - Knopf Books for Young Readers

Patron Saints of Nothing – Randy Ribay - Kokila

The Deceivers – Kristen Simmons - Tor Teen

Wild and Crooked – Leah Thomas- Bloomsbury YA

bottom of page