Bouchercon may not be happening in-person this year, but our beloved genre will still celebrate its best and brightest as part of Bouchercon’s digital conference, set to take place on October 16-17 of this year. Awards will be announced the evening of October 17 in a digital ceremony that, rest assured, at least one of the CrimeReads editors will still be dressing up for. Yesterday, the finalists for this year’s Anthony Awards were announced by the Bouchercon organizers, based on months of voting. It’s a fantastic list full of well-deserved authors, books, and stories, and we wish all the nominees the best. Congratulations, and keep up the amazing work!
*Also, if anyone’s running a betting pool, drop us a note…*
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BEST NOVEL
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Your House Will Pay, by Steph Cha (Ecco)
They All Fall Down, by Rachel Howzell Hall (Forge)
Lady in the Lake, by Laura Lippman (William Morrow)
The Murder List, by Hank Phillippi Ryan (Forge)
Miami Midnight, by Alex Segura (Polis Books)
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Read Steph Cha on why we need noir fiction.
Read Rachel Howzell Hall on surviving cancer and writing a novel.
Read Laura Lippman on a thirty-five year love affair with Marjorie Morningstar.
Read Hank Phillippi Ryan on the Hall-Mills Murders, a crime of the century.
Read Alex Segura on the tradition of jazz-infused crime novels.
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BEST FIRST NOVEL
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The Ninja Daughter, by Tori Eldridge (Agora Books)
Miracle Creek, by Angie Kim (Sarah Crichton Books)
One Night Gone, by Tara Laskowski (Graydon House)
Three-Fifths, by John Vercher (Agora Books)
American Spy, by Lauren Wilkinson (Random House)
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Read Tori Eldridge on the heart of modern action thrillers.
Read Angie Kim on how not to write courtroom scenes.
Read Tara Laskowski on ghost stories, longing, and grief.
Read John Vercher on graphic novels and social justice.
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BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL
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The Unrepentant, by E.A. Aymar (Down & Out Books)
Murder Knocks Twice, by Susanna Calkins (Minotaur)
The Pearl Dagger, by L.A. Chandlar (Kensington)
Scot & Soda, by Catriona McPherson (Midnight Ink)
The Alchemist’s Illusion, by Gigi Pandian (Midnight Ink)
Drowned Under, by Wendall Thomas (Poisoned Pen Press)
The Naming Game, by Gabriel Valjan (Winter Goose Press)
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Read Gigi Pandian on a guide to locked-room mysteries.
Read Catriona McPherson on the mother archetypes of crime fiction.
Read E.A. Aymar on going noir in D.C.
Read L.A. Chandlar on New York’s forgotten art deco treasures.
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BEST CRITICAL NON-FICTION WORK
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Hitchcock and the Censors, by John Billheimer (University Press of Kentucky)
The Hooded Gunman: An Illustrated History of the Collins Crime Club, by John Curran (Collins Crime Club)
The Mutual Admiration Society: How Dorothy L. Sayers and her Oxford Circle Remade the World for Women, by Mo Moulton (Basic Books)
The Trial of Lizzie Borden: A True Story, by Cara Robertson (Simon & Schuster)
The Five: The Untold Stories of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper, by Hallie Rubenhold (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
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Read Cara Robertson on true crime and Lizzie Borden.
Read Hallie Rubenhold on the five women killed by Jack the Ripper.
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BEST SHORT STORY
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“Turistas,” by Hector Acosta (appearing in ¡Pa’que Tu Lo Sepas!: Stories to Benefit the People of Puerto Rico)
“Unforgiven,” by Hilary Davidson (appearing in Murder a-Go-Gos: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Music of the Go-Gos)
“The Red Zone,” by Alex Segura (appearing in ¡Pa’que Tu Lo Sepas!: Stories to Benefit the People of Puerto Rico)
“Better Days,” by Art Taylor (appearing in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, May/June 2019)
“Hard Return,” by Art Taylor (appearing in Crime Travel)
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BEST ANTHOLOGY OR COLLECTION
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The Eyes of Texas: Private Eyes from the Panhandle to the Piney Woods, edited by Michael Bracken (Down & Out Books)
¡Pa’que Tu Lo Sepas!: Stories to Benefit the People of Puerto Rico, edited by Angel Luis Colón (Down & Out Books)
Crime Travel, edited by Barb Goffman (Wildside Press)
Malice Domestic 14: Mystery Most Edible, edited by Verena Rose, Rita Owen, and Shawn Reilly Simmons (Wildside Press)
Murder A-Go-Go’s: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Music of the Go-Gos, edited by Holly West (Down & Out Books)
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BEST YOUNG ADULT
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Seven Ways to Get Rid of Harry, by Jen Conley (Down & Out Books)
Catfishing on CatNet, by Naomi Kritzer (Tor Teen)
Killing November, by Adriana Mather (Knopf Books for Young Readers)
Patron Saints of Nothing, by Randy Ribay (Kokila)
The Deceivers, by Kristen Simmons (Tor Teen)
Wild and Crooked, by Leah Thomas (Bloomsbury YA)
