SYKM
AUTHORS:
A - B - C - D - E - F - G - H - I - J - K - L - M - N - O - P - Q - R - S - T - U - V - W - X - Y - Z - •
CHARACTERS:
A - B - C - D - E - F - G - H - I - J - K - L - M - N - O - P - Q - R - S - T - U - V - W - X - Y - Z - nln - #
Anthony®Awards
The Anthony Awards are given at each annual Bouchercon World Mystery Convention with the winners selected by attendees. The award is named for the late Anthony Boucher (William Anthony Parker White), well-known writer and critic from the San Francisco Chronicle and New York Times, who helped found the Mystery Writers of America.

2025

Best Mystery Novel
  *  The God of the Woods by Liz Moore [review]
  °  Missing White Woman by Kellye Garrett [review]
  °  The Grey Wolf by Louise Penny [review]
  °  Alter Ego by Alex Segura [review]
  °  California Bear by Duane Swierczynski [review]

Best First Mystery
  *  You Know What You Did by K.T. Nguyen [review]
  °  The Mechanics of Memory by Audrey Lee [review]
  °  Ghosts of Waikīkī by Jennifer K. Morita
  °  Good-Looking Ugly by Rob D. Smith
  °  Holy City by Henry Wise [review]

Best Paperback/E-book/Audiobook
  *  Echo by Tracy Clark [review]
  °  The Last Few Miles of Road by Eric Beetner
  °  Served Cold by James L’Etoile
  °  Late Checkout by Alan Orloff
  °  The Big Lie by Gabriel Valjan

Best Historical Mystery
  *  The Murder of Mr. Ma by John Shen Yen Nee and S.J. Rozan [review]
  °  The Lantern’s Dance by Laurie R. King
  °  The Witching Hour by Catriona McPherson
  °  The Bootlegger’s Daughter by Nadine Nettmann
  °  The Courtesan’s Pirate by Nina Wachsman

Best Paranormal Mystery
  *  A New Lease on Death by Olivia Blacke
  °  Five Furry Familiars by Lynn Cahoon
  °  Exposure by Ramona Emerson
  °  Lights, Camera, Bone by Carolyn Haines
  °  Death in Ghostly Hue by Susan Van Kirk

Best Cozy/Humorous Mystery
  *  Cirque du Slay by Rob Osler
  °  A Cup of Flour, a Pinch of Death by Valerie Burns
  °  A Very Woodsy Murder by Ellen Byron
  °  ll-Fated Fortune by Jennifer J. Chow
  °  Scotzilla by Catriona McPherson [review]
  °  Dominoes, Danzón, and Death by Raquel V. Reyes

Best Juvenile/Young Adult
  *  When Mimi Went Missing by Suja Sukumar
  °  The Big Grey Man of Ben Macdhui by K.B. Jackson
  °  Sasquatch of Harriman Lake by K.B. Jackson
  °  First Week Free at the Roomy Toilet by Josh Proctor
  °  The Sherlock Society by James Ponti

Best Critical or Nonfiction Work
  *  The Serial Killer’s Apprentice by Katherine Ramsland and Tracy Ullman
  °  Writing the Cozy Mystery: Authors’ Perspectives on Their Craft edited by Phyllis M. Betz
  °  Some of My Best Friends Are Murderers: Critiquing the Columbo Killers by Chris Chan
  °  On Edge: Gender and Genre in the Work of Shirley Jackson, Patricia Highsmith, and Leigh Brackett by Ashley Lawson
  °  Abingdon’s Boardinghouse Murder by Greg Lilly

Best Anthology or Collection
  *  Tales of Music, Murder, and Mayhem: Bouchercon Anthology 2024 edited by Heather Graham
  °  Murder, Neat: A Sleuthslayer’s Anthology edited by Michael Bracken and Barb Goffman
  °  Scattered, Smothered, Covered & Chunked: Crime Fiction Inspired by Waffle House edited by Michael Bracken and Stacy Woodson
  °  Eight Very Bad Nights: A Collection of Hanukkah Noir edited by Tod Goldberg
  °  Friend of the Devil: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of the Grateful Dead edited by Josh Pachter

Best Short Story
  *  “Something to Hold Onto” by Curtis Ippolito
  Dark Yonder, Issue 6
  °  “A Matter of Trust” by Barb Goffman
  Three Strikes—You’re Dead
  °  “Twenty Centuries” by James D.F. Hannah
  Eight Very Bad Nights: A Collection of Hanukkah Noir
  °  “Satan’s Spit” by Gabriel Valjan
  Tales of Music, Murder, and Mayhem: Bouchercon Anthology 2024
  °  “Reynisfjara” by Kristopher Zgorski
  Mystery Most International
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2024

Best Mystery Novel
  *  All the Sinners Bleed by S.A. Cosby [review]
  °  Everybody Knows by Jordan Harper [review]
  °  Time’s Undoing by Cheryl A. Head [review]
  °  Face of Greed by James L’Etoile
  °  The Last Devil To Die by Richard Osman [review]

Best First Mystery
  *  Mother-Daughter Murder Night by Nina Simon [review]
  °  The Peacock and the Sparrow by I.S. Berry [review]
  °  Play the Fool by Lina Chern [review]
  °  Scorched Grace by Margot Douaihy [review]
  °  City Under One Roof by Iris Yamashita [review]

Best Paperback Original
  *  Hide by Tracy Clark [review]
  °  No Home for Killers by E.A. Aymar
  °  Because the Night by James D.F. Hannah
  °  The Taken Ones by Jess Lourey
  °  Magic City Blues by Bobby Matthews
  °  Lowdown Road by Scott Von Doviak

Best Short Story
  *  “Ticket to Ride” by Dru Ann Love and Kristopher Zgorski
  Happiness Is a Warm Gun: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of The Beatles
  °  “Real Courage” by Barb Goffman
  Black Cat Mystery Magazine, October 2023
  °  “Knock” by James D.F. Hannah
  Playing Games
  °  “Green and California Bound” by Curtis Ippolito
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, September/October 2023
  °  “Tell Me No Lies” by Holly West
  Shotgun Honey Presents: Thicker Than Water

Best Juvenile/Young Adult
  *  Enola Holmes and the Mark of the Mongoose by Nancy Springer
  °  Finney and the Secret Tunnel by Jamie Lane Barber
  °  Myrtle, Means, and Opportunity by Elizabeth C. Bunce
  °  The Sasquatch of Hawthorne Elementary by K.B. Jackson
  °  The Mystery of the Radcliffe Riddle by Taryn Sounders

Best Critical or Nonfiction Work
  *  A Fever in the Heartland: The Ku Klux Klan’s Plot to Take Over America, and the Woman Who Stopped Them by Timothy Egan
  °  Finders: Justice, Faith and Identity in Irish Crime Fiction by Anjili Babbar
  °  Spillane: King of Pulp Fiction by Max Allan Collins and James L. Traylor
  °  A Mystery of Mysteries: The Death and Life of Edgar Allan Poe by Mark Dawidziak
  °  Fallen Angel: The Life of Edgar Allan Poe by Robert Morgan
  °  Agatha Christie, She Watched: One Woman's Plot to Watch 201 Christie Adaptations Without Murdering the Director, Screenwriter, Cast, or Her Husband by Teresa Peschel
  °  Love Me Fierce in Danger: The Life of James Ellroy by Steven Powell

Best Anthology or Collection
  *  Killin’ Time in San Diego: Bouchercon Anthology 2023 edited by Holly West
  °  School of Hard Knox edited by Donna Andrews, Greg Herren, and Art Taylor
  °  Here in the Dark: Stories by Meagan Lucas
  °  Happiness Is a Warm Gun: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of The Beatles edited by Josh Pachter
  °  The Adventure of the Castle Thief and Other Expeditions and Indiscretions by Art Taylor
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2023

Best Hardcover
  *  Like a Sister by Kellye Garrett [review]
  °  The Devil Takes You Home by Gabino Iglesias
  °  The Bullet That Missed by Richard Osman [review]
  °  A World of Curiosities by Louise Penny
  °  The Maid by Nita Prose [review]
  °  Secret Identity by Alex Segura [review]

Best Paperback/EBook/Audiobook
  *  The Quarry Girls by Jess Lourey
  °  Real Bad Things by Kelly J. Ford
  °  Dead Drop by James L’Etoile
  °  Hush Hush by Gabriel Valjan
  °  In the Dark We Forget by Sandra SG Wong

Best First Novel
  *  The Maid by Nita Prose [review]
  °  Don’t Know Tough by Eli Cranor [review]
  °  Shutter by Ramona Emerson [review]
  °  The Bangalore Detectives Club by Harini Nagendra [review]
  °  Devil’s Chew Toy by Rob Osler [review]

Best Historical
  *  Anywhere You Run by Wanda M. Morris [review]
  °  The Lindbergh Nanny by Mariah Fredericks [review]
  °  In Place of Fear by Catriona McPherson [review]
  °  Danger on the Atlantic by Erica Ruth Neubauer
  °  Under a Veiled Moon by Karen Odden [review]
  °  Lavender House by Lev AC Rosen [review]

Best Humorous
  *  Scot in a Trap by Catriona McPherson
  °  Bayou Book Thief by Ellen Byron
  °  Death by Bubble Tea by Jennifer J. Chow
  °  A Streetcar Named Murder by T.G. Herren
  °  Calypso, Corpses, and Cooking by Raquel V. Reyes

Best Short Story
  *  “Beauty and the Beyotch” by Barb Goffman
  Sherlock Holmes Mystery Magazine, February 2022
  °  “Still Crazy After All These Years” by E.A. Aymar
  Paranoia Blues: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of Paul Simon
  °  “The Impediment” by Bruce Robert Coffin
  Deadly Nightshade: Best New England Crime Stories 2022
  °  “The Estate Sale” by Curtis Ippolito
  Vautrin Magazine, Summer 2022
  °  “C.O.D.” by Gabriel Valjan
  Low Down Dirty Vote Volume 3: The Color of My Vote

Best Critical or Nonfiction
  *  The Life of Crime: Detecting the History of Mysteries and Their Creators by Martin Edwards
  °  The Alaskan Blonde: Sex, Secrets and the Hollywood Story that Shocked America by James T. Bartlett
  °  American Demon: Eliot Ness and the Hunt for America’s Jack the Ripper by Daniel Stashower
  °  Promophobia: Taking the Mystery Out of Promoting Crime Fiction edited by Diane Vallere
  °  Scoundrel: How a Convicted Murderer Persuaded the Women Who Loved Him, the Conservative Establishment, and the Courts to Set Him Free by Sarah Weinman
  °  Agatha Christie: An Elusive Woman by Lucy Worsley

Best Children’s/Young Adult
  *  Enola Holmes and the Elegant Escapade by Nancy Springer
  °  Daybreak on Raven Island by Fleur Bradley
  °  In Myrtle Peril by Elizabeth C. Bunce
  °  Vanish Me by Lee Matthew Goldberg
  °  #shedeservedit by Greg Herren
  °  The New Girl by Jesse Q. Sutano

Best Anthology
  *  Crime Hits Home: A Collection of Stories from Crime Fiction’s Top Authors edited by S.J. Rozan
  °  Low Down Dirty Vote Volume 3: The Color of My Vote edited by Mysti Berry
  °  Lawyers, Guns, and Money: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Music of Warren Zevon edited by Libby Cudmore & Art Taylor
  °  Land of 10,000 Thrills: Bouchercon Anthology 2022 edited by Greg Herron
  °  Paranoia Blues: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of Paul Simon edited by Josh Pachter
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2022

Best Mystery Novel
  *  Razorblade Tears by S.A. Cosby [review]
  °  Runner by Tracy Clark [review]
  °  The Collective by Alison Gaylin
  °  Clark and Division by Naomi Hirahara
  °  These Toxic Things by Rachel Howzell Hall [review]

Best First Mystery
  *  Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala [review]
  °  Her Name Is Knight by Yasmin Angoe
  °  The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris [review]
  °  Walking Through Needles by Heather Levy
  °  All Her Little Secrets by Wanda M. Morris [review]

Best Paperback/EBook/AudioBook
  *  Bloodline by Jess Lourey
  °  The Ninja Betrayed by Tori Eldridge
  °  Warn Me When It’s Time by Cheryl A. Head
  °  Bury Me In Shadows by Greg Herren
  °  The Mother Next Door by Tara Laskowski

Best Short Story
  *  “Not My Cross to Bear” by S.A. Cosby
  Down & Out Books
  °  “The Search for Eric Garcia” by E.A. Aymar
  °  “The Vermeer Conspiracy” by V.M. Burns
  Midnight Hour
  °  “Lucky Thirteen” by Tracy Clark
  Midnight Hour
  °  “Doc’s at Midnight” by Richie Narvaez
  °  “The Locked Room Library” by Gigi Pandian
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine
  °  “Burnt Ends” by Gabriel Valjan

Best Juvenile/Young Adult
  *  I Play One on TV by Alan Orloff
  °  Cold-Blooded Myrtle by Elizabeth C. Bunce
  °  Bury Me In Shadows by Greg Herren
  °  The Forest of Stolen Girls by June Hur
  °  Enola Holmes and the Black Barouche by Nancy Springer

Best Critical or Nonfiction Work
  *  How to Write a Mystery: A Handbook from Mystery Writers of America by MWA with editors Lee Child and Laurie R. King
  °  The Combat Zone: Murder, Race, and Boston’s Struggle for Justice by Jan Brogan
  °  Murder Book: A Graphic Memoir of a True Crime Obsession by Hilary Fitzgerald Campbell
  °  Last Call: A True Story of Love, Lust, and Murder in Queer New York by Elon Green
  °  The Haunting of Alma Fielding: A True Ghost Story by Kate Summerscale

Best Anthology or Collection
  *  This Time for Sure: Bouchercon Anthology 2021 edited by Hank Phillippi Ryan
  °  Under the Thumb: Stories of Police Oppression edited by S.A. Cosby
  °  Midnight Hour: A Chilling Anthology of Crime Fiction from 20 Authors of Color by Abby L VanDiver
  °  Trouble No More: Crime Fiction Inspired by Southern Rock and Blues edited by Mark Westmoreland
  °  When a Stranger Comes to Town edited by Michael Koryta
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2021

Best Hardcover Novel
  *  Blacktop Wasteland by S.A. Cosby [review]
  °  What You Don’t See by Tracy Clark [review]
  °  Little Secrets by Jennifer Hillier [review]
  °  And Now She’s Gone by Rachel Howzell Hall [review]
  °  The First To Lie by Hank Phillippi Ryan

Best First Novel
  *  Winter Counts by David Heska Wanbli Weiden [review]
  °  Derailed by Mary Keliikoa
  °  Murder in Old Bombay by Nev March [review]
  °  Murder at the Mena House by Erica Ruth Neubauer [review]
  °  The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman [review]

Best Paperback Original/E-Book/Audiobook Original Novel
  *  Unspeakable Things by Jess Lourey [review]
  °  The Fate of a Flapper by Susanna Calkins
  °  When No One Is Watching by Alyssa Cole [review]
  °  The Lucky One by Lori Rader-Day
  °  Dirty Old Town by Gabriel Valjan

Best Short Story
  *  “90 Miles” by Alex Segura
  Both Sides: Stories from the Border
  °  “Dear Emily Etiquette” by Barb Goffman
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine
  °  “The Boy Detective & The Summer of ’74” by Art Taylor
  Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine
  °  “Elysian Fields” by Gabriel Valjan
  California Schemin’: The 2020 Bouchercon Anthology
  °  “The Twenty-Five Year Engagement” by James W. Ziskin
  In League with Sherlock Holmes

Best Juvenile/Young Adult
  *  Holly Hernandez and the Death of Disco by Richard Narvaez
  °  Midnight at the Barclay Hotel by Fleur Bradley
  °  Premeditated Myrtle by Elizabeth C. Bunce
  °  From the Desk of Zoe Washington by Janae Marks
  °  Star Wars Poe Dameron: Free Fall by Alex Segura

Best Critical or Nonfiction Work
  *  Unspeakable Acts: True Tales of Crime, Murder, Deceit, and Obsession edited by Sarah Weinman
  °  Sometimes You Have to Lie: The Life and Times of Louise Fitzhugh, Renegade Author of Harriet the Spy by Leslie Brody
  °  American Sherlock: Murder, Forensics, and the Birth of American CSI by Kate Winkler Dawson
  °  Howdunit: A Masterclass in Crime Writing by Members of the Detection Club edited by Martin Edwards
  °  The Third Rainbow Girl: The Long Life of a Double Murder in Appalachia by Emma Copley Eisenberg
  °  Phantom Lady: Hollywood Producer Joan Harrison, the Forgotten Woman Behind Hitchcock by Christina Lane

Best Anthology or Collection
  *  Shattering Glass: A Nasty Woman Press Anthology edited by Heather Graham
  °  Both Sides: Stories from the Border edited by Gabino Iglesias
  °  Noiryorican by Richie Narvaez
  °  The Beat of Black Wings: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of Joni Mitchell edited by Josh Pachter
  °  California Schemin’: The 2020 Bouchercon Anthology edited by Art Taylor
  °  Lockdown: Stories of Crime, Terror, and Hope During a Pandemic edited by Nick Kolakowski and Steve Weddle
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2020

Best Mystery Novel
  *  The Murder List by Hank Phillippi Ryan
  °  Your House Will Pay by Steph Cha [review]
  °  They All Fall Down by Rachel Howzell Hall
  °  Lady in the Lake by Laura Lippman
  °  Miami Midnight by Alex Segura

Best First Mystery
  *  One Night Gone by Tara Laskowski [review]
  °  The Ninja Daughter by Tori Eldridge [review]
  °  Miracle Creek by Angie Kim [review]
  °  Three-Fifths by John Vercher [review]
  °  American Spy by Lauren Wilkinson [review]

Best Paperback Original
  *  The Alchemist’s Illusion by Gigi Pandian [review]
  °  The Unrepentant by E.A. Aymar
  °  Murder Knocks Twice by Susanna Calkins
  °  The Pearl Dagger by L.A. Chandlar
  °  Scot & Soda by Catriona McPherson
  °  Drowned Under by Wendall Thomas [review]
  °  The Company Files: 2. The Naming Game by Gabriel Valjan

Best Critical Non-Fiction
  *  The Mutual Admiration Society: How Dorothy L. Sayers and her Oxford Circle Remade the World for Women by Mo Moulton
  °  Hitchcock and the Censors by John Billheimer
  °  The Hooded Gunman: An Illustrated History of Collins Crime Club by John Curran
  °  The Trail of Lizzie Borden: A True Story by Cara Robertson
  °  The Five: The Untold Stories of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold

Best Short Story
  *  “The Red Zone” by Alex Segura
  Pa’que Tu Lo Sepas!: Stories to Benefit the People of Puerto Rico
  °  “Turistas” by Hector Acosta
  Pa’que Tu Lo Sepas!: Stories to Benefit the People of Puerto Rico
  °  “Unforgiven” by Hilary Davidson
  Murder a-Go-Go’s: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Music of the Go-Go’s
  °  “Better Days” by Art Taylor
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, May/June 2019
  °  “Hard Return” by Art Taylor
  Crime Travel

Best Anthology or Collection
  *  Malice Domestic 14: Mystery Most Edible edited by Verena Rose Rita Owen and Shawn Reilly Simmons
  °  The Eyes of Texas: Private Investigators from the Panhandle to the Piney Woods edited by Michael Bracken
  °  ¡Pa’que Tu Lo Sepas!: Stories to Benefit the People of Puerto Rico edited by Angel Luis Colón
  °  Crime Travel edited by Barb Goffman
  °  Murder a-Go-Go’s: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Music of the Go-Go’s edited by Holly West

Best Young Adult
  *  Seven Ways to Get Rid of Harry by Jen Conley
  °  Catfishing on CatNet by Naomi Kritzer [review]
  °  Killing November by Adriana Mather
  °  Patron Saints of Nothing by Randy Ribay
  °  The Deceivers by Kristen Simmons
  °  Wild and Crooked by Leah Thomas
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2019 Nominees

Best Mystery Novel
  *  November Road by Lou Berney [review]
  °  Give Me Your Hand by Megan Abbott [review]
  °  Jar of Hearts by Jennifer Hillier [review]
  °  Sunburn by Laura Lippman [review]
  °  Blackout by Alex Segura

Best First Mystery
  *  My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite [review]
  °  Broken Places by Tracy Clark [review]
  °  Dodging and Burning by John Copenhaver [review]
  °  What Doesn’t Kill You by Aimee Hix [review]
  °  Bearskin by James A. McLaughlin [review]

Best Paperback Original
  *  Under a Dark Sky by Lori Rader-Day [review]
  °  Hollywood Ending by Kellye Garrett
  °  If I Die Tonight by Alison Gaylin [review]
  °  Hiroshima Boy by Naomi Hirahara
  °  A Stone’s Throw by James W. Ziskin

Best Short Story
  *  “The Grass Beneath My Feet” by S.A. Cosby
  Tough Magazine, August 2018
  °  “Bug Appétit” by Barb Goffman
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, November/December 2018
  °  “Cold Beer No Flies” by Greg Herren
  Florida Happens
  °  “English 398: Fiction Workshop” by Art Taylor
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, July/August 2018
  °  “The Best Laid Plans” by Holly West
  Florida Happens

Best Critical or Nonfiction Work
  *  I’ll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman's Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer by Michelle McNamara
  °  Dead Girls: Essays on Surviving an American Obsession by Alice Bolin
  °  Mastering Plot Twists: How to Use Suspense, Targeted Storytelling Strategies, and Structure to Captivate Your Readers by Jane K. Cleland
  °  Pulp According to David Goodis by Jay A. Gertzman
  °  Classic American Crime Fiction of the 1920s by Leslie S. Klinger
  °  The Real Lolita: The Kidnapping of Sally Horner and the Novel that Scandalized the World by Sarah Weinman
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2018

Best Mystery Novel
  *  Bluebird, Bluebird by Attica Locke [review]
  °  The Late Show by Michael Connelly
  °  Magpie Murders by Anthony Horowitz [review]
  °  Glass Houses by Louise Penny
  °  The Force by Don Winslow

Best First Mystery
  *  Hollywood Homicide by Kellye Garrett [review]
  °  The Dry by Jane Harper [review]
  °  She Rides Shotgun by Jordan Harper [review]
  °  Ragged; or, The Loveliest Lies of All by Christopher Irvin
  °  The Last Place You Look by Kristen Lepionka [review]

Best Paperback Original
  *  The Day I Died by Lori Rader-Day
  °  Uncorking a Lie by Nadine Nettmann
  °  Bad Boy Boogie by Thomas Pluck
  °  What We Reckon by Eryk Pruitt
  °  Cast the First Stone by James W. Ziskin [review]

Best Short Story
  *  “My Side of the Matter” by Hilary Davidson
  Killing Malmon
  °  “The Trial of Madame Pelletier” by Susanna Calkins
  Charlaine Harris Presents Malice Domestic 12: Mystery Most Historical
  °  “God’s Gonna Cut You Down” by Jen Conley
  Just to Watch Them Die: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of Johnny Cash
  °  “Whose Wine Is It Anyway” by Barb Goffman
  50 Shades of Cabernet
  °  “The Night They Burned Miss Dixie’s Place” by Debra Goldstein
  Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, May/June 2017
  °  “A Necessary Ingredient” by Art Taylor
  Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI

Bill Crider Award for Best Novel in a Series
  *  Y Is for Yesterday (Kinsey Millhone #25) by Sue Grafton
  °  Give Up the Dead (Jay Porter #3) by Joe Clifford
  °  Two Kinds of Truth (Harry Bosch #20) by Michael Connelly
  °  Glass Houses (Armand Gamache #13) by Louise Penny
  °  Dangerous Ends (Pete Fernandez #3) by Alex Segura

Best Anthology
  *  The Obama Inheritance: Fifteen Stories of Conspiracy Noir edited by Gary Phillips
  °  Just to Watch Them Die: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of Johnny Cash edited by Joe Clifford
  °  Killing Malmon edited by Dan & Kate Malmon
  °  Coast to Coast: Private Eyes from Sea to Shining Sea edited by Andrew McAleer & Paul D. Marks
  °  Passport to Murder, Bouchercon Anthology 2017 edited by John McFetridge

Best Critical/Non-Fiction Book
  *  Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by David Grann
  °  From Holmes to Sherlock: The Story of the Men and Women Who Created an Icon by Mattias Boström
  °  The Story of Classic Crime in 100 Books by Martin Edwards
  °  Chester B. Himes: A Biography by Lawrence P. Jackson
  °  Rewrite Your Life: Discover Your Truth Through the Healing Power of Fiction by Jessica Lourey

Best Online Content
  *  Jungle Red Writers
  °  BOLO Books
  °  Do Some Damage: An Inside Look at Crime Fiction
  °  Dru’s Book Musings
  °  Writer Types Podcast
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2017

Best Mystery Novel
  *  A Great Reckoning by Louise Penny
  °  You Will Know Me by Megan Abbott [review]
  °  Where It Hurts by Reed Farrel Coleman [review]
  °  Red Right Hand by Chris Holm [review]
  °  Wilde Lake by Laura Lippman

Best First Mystery Novel
  *  IQ by Joe Ide [review]
  °  Dodgers by Bill Beverly [review]
  °  Decanting a Murder by Nadine Nettmann [review]
  °  Design for Dying by Renee Patrick [review]
  °  The Drifter by Nicholas Petrie [review]

Best Paperback Original
  *  Heart of Stone by James W. Ziskin [review]
  °  Shot in Detroit by Patricia Abbott [review]
  °  Leadfoot by Eric Beetner
  °  Salem’s Cipher by Jess Lourey
  °  Rain Dogs by Adrian McKinty [review]
  °  How To Kill Friends and Implicate People by Jay Stringer

Best Short Story
  *  “Oxford Girl” by Megan Abbott
  Mississippi Noir
  °  “Autumn at the Automat” by Lawrence Block
  In Sunlight or in Shadow: Stories Inspired by the Paintings of Edward Hopper
  °  “Gary’s Got A Boner” by Johnny Shaw
  Waiting To Be Forgotten: Stories of Crime and Heartbreak, Inspired by the Replacements
  °  “Parallel Play” by Art Taylor
  Chesapeake Crimes: Storm Warning
  °  “Queen of the Dogs” by Holly West
  44 Caliber Funk: Tales of Crime, Soul and Payback

Best Critical Nonfiction Work
  *  Shirley Jackson: A Rather Haunted Life by Ruth Franklin
  °  Alfred Hitchcock: A Brief Life by Peter Ackroyd
  °  Letters from a Serial Killer by Kristi Belcamino & Stephanie Kahalekulu
  °  Something in the Blood: The Untold Story of Bram Stoker, the Man Who Wrote Dracula by David J. Skal
  °  The Wicked Boy: The Mystery of a Victorian Child Murderer by Kate Summerscale

Best Children’s/YA Novel
  *  The Girl I Used to Be by April Henry [review]
  °  Snowed by Maria Alexander
  °  Tag, You’re Dead by J.C. Lane [review]
  °  My Sister Rosa by Justine Larbalestier [review]
  °  The Fixes by Owen Matthews [review]

Best Anthology
  *  Blood on the Bayou: Bouchercon Anthology 2016 edited by Greg Herren
  °  Unloaded: Crime Writers Writing Without Guns edited by Eric Beetner
  °  In Sunlight or in Shadow: Stories Inspired by the Paintings of Edward Hopper edited by Lawrence Block
  °  Cannibals: Stories from the Edge of the Pine Barrens by Jen Conley
  °  Waiting To Be Forgotten: Stories of Crime and Heartbreak, Inspired by the Replacements edited by Jay Stringer

Best Novella (8,000-40,000 words)
  *  The Last Blue Glass by B.K. Stevens
  Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, April 2016
  °  Cleaning Up Finn by Sarah M. Chen
  °  No Happy Endings by Angel Luis Colón
  °  Crosswise by S.W. Lauden
  °  Beware the Shill by John Shepphird
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2016

Best Mystery Novel
  *  The Killing Kind by Chris Holm [review]
  °  Night Tremors by Matt Coyle [review]
  °  The Child Garden by Catriona McPherson [review]
  °  The Nature of the Beast by Louise Penny
  °  What You See by Hank Phillippi Ryan [review]

Best First Mystery
  *  Past Crimes by Glen Erik Hamilton [review]
  °  Concrete Angel by Patricia Abbott [review]
  °  New Yorked by Rob Hart
  °  Bull Mountain by Brian Panowich [review]
  °  On the Road with Del & Louise by Art Taylor

Best Paperback Original
  *  The Long and Faraway Gone by Lou Berney [review]
  °  Gun Street Girl by Adrian McKinty [review]
  °  Little Pretty Things by Lori Rader-Day [review]
  °  Young Americans by Josh Stallings
  °  Stone Cold Dead by James W. Ziskin [review]

Best Critical or Nonfiction
  *  Forensics: What Bugs, Burns, Prints, DNA and More Tell Us About Crime by Val McDermid
  °  The Golden Age of Murder: The Mystery of the Writers Who Invented the Modern Detective Story by Martin Edwards
  °  Meanwhile There Are Letters: The Correspondence of Eudora Welty and Ross Macdonald by Suzanne Marrs & Tom Nolan, editors
  °  The Lost Detective: Becoming Dashiell Hammett by Nathan Ward
  °  The Mystery Writers of America Cookbook: Wickedly Good Meals and Desserts to Die For, edited by Kate White

Best Short Story
  *  “The Little Men” by Megan Abbott
  A Bibliomystery by MysteriousPress.com
  °  “The Siege” by Hilary Davidson
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, December 2015
  °  “Feliz Navidead” by Brace Godfrey/Johnny Shaw
  Thuglit Presents: Cruel Yule: Holiday Tales of Crime for People on the Naughty List
  °  “Old Hands” by Erin Mitchell
  Dark City Lights
  °  “Quack and Dwight” by Travis Richardson
  Jewish Noir: Contemporary Tales of Crime and Other Dark Deeds
  °  “Don’t Fear the Ripper” by Holly West
  Protectors 2: Heroes

Best Anthology or Collection
  *  Murder Under the Oaks: Bouchercon Anthology 2015 edited by Art Taylor
  °  Safe Inside the Violence by Christopher Irvin
  °  Protectors 2: Heroes-Stories to Benefit PROTECT edited by Thomas Pluck
  °  Thuglit Presents: Cruel Yule: Holiday Tales of Crime for People on the Naughty List edited by Todd Robinson
  °  Jewish Noir: Contemporary Tales of Crime and Other Dark Deeds edited by Kenneth Wishnia

Best Young Adult Novel
  *  Need by Joelle Charbonneau [review]
  °  How to Win at High School by Owen Matthews
  °  A Madness So Discreet by Mindy McGinnis
  °  The Sin Eater’s Daughter by Melinda Salisbury
  °  Fighting Chance by B.K. Stevens
  °  Ask the Dark by Henry Turner

Best Crime Fiction Audiobook
  *  The Nature of the Beast by Louise Penny, narrated by Robert Bathurst
  °  Dark Waters by Chris Goff, narrated by Assaf Cohen
  °  The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins, narrated by by Clare Corbett, Louise Brealey & India Fisher
  °  Causing Chaos by Deborah J Ledford, narrated by Christina Cox
  °  Young Americans by Josh Stallings, narrated by Em Eldridge

Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2015

Best Mystery Novel
  *  After I’m Gone by Laura Lippman [review]
  °  Lamentation by Joe Clifford [review]
  °  The Secret Place by Tana French
  °  The Long Way Home by Louise Penny
  °  Truth Be Told by Hank Phillippi Ryan

Best First Mystery
  *  The Black Hour by Lori Rader-Day [review]
  °  Blessed Are the Dead by Kristi Belcamino
  °  Ice Shear by M.P. Cooley [review]
  °  Invisible City by Julia Dahl
  °  The Life We Bury by Allen Eskens [review]

Best Paperback Original
  *  The Day She Died by Catriona McPherson [review]
  °  Stay With Me by Alison Gaylin [review]
  °  The Killer Next Door by Alex Marwood [review]
  °  World of Trouble by Ben H. Winters [review]
  °  No Stone Unturned by James W. Ziskin [review]

Best Short Story
  *  “The Odds Are Against Us” by Art Taylor
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, November 2014
  °  “Honeymoon Sweet” by Craig Faustus Buck
  Murder at the Beach: The Bouchercon Anthology 2014
  °  “The Shadow Knows” by Barb Goffman
  Chesapeake Crimes: Homicidal Holidays
  °  “Howling at the Moon” by Paul D. Marks
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, November 2014
  °  “Of Dogs & Deceit” by John Shepphird
  Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, November 2014

Best Critical or Non-Fiction Work
  *  Writes of Passage: Adventures on the Writer’s Journey edited by Hank Phillippi Ryan
  °  The Figure of the Detective: A Literary History and Analysis by Charles Brownson
  °  Death Dealer: How Cops and Cadaver Dogs Brought a Killer to Justice by Kate Clark Flora
  °  Dru’s Book Musings by Dru Ann Love
  °  Poe-Land: The Hallowed Haunts of Edgar Allan Poe by J.W. Ocker

Best Anthology or Collection
  *  In the Company of Sherlock Holmes: Stories Inspired by the Holmes Canon edited by Laurie R. King & Leslie S. Klinger
  °  Face Off edited by David Baldacci
  °  Murder at the Beach: The Bouchercon Anthology 2014 edited by Dana Cameron
  °  Trouble in the Heartland: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of Bruce Springsteen edited by Joe Clifford
  °  Carolina Crimes: 19 Tales of Love, Lust, and Longing edited by Karen Pullen
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2014

Best Mystery Novel
  *  Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger [review]
  °  Suspect by Robert Crais [review]
  °  A Cold and Lonely Place by Sara J. Henry
  °  The Wrong Girl by Hank Phillippi Ryan [review]
  °  Through the Evil Days by Julia Spencer-Fleming

Best First Mystery
  *  Yesterday’s Echo by Matt Coyle [review]
  °  Ghostman by Roger Hobbs [review]
  °  Rage Against the Dying by Becky Masterman [review]
  °  Reconstructing Amelia by Kimberly McCreight [review]
  °  The Hard Bounce by Todd Robinson [review]

Best Paperback Original
  *  As She Left It by Catriona McPherson [review]
  °  The Big Reap by Chris F. Holm
  °  Purgatory Key by Darrell James
  °  Joyland by Stephen King
  °  The Wicked Girls by Alex Marwood [review]

Best Short Story
  *  “The Caxton Private Lending Library & Book Depository” by John Connolly
  Bibliomysteries, The Mysterious Bookshop
  °  “Dead End” by Craig Faustus Buck
  Untreed Reads
  °  “Annie and the Grateful Dead” by Denise Dietz
  The Sound and the Furry
  °  “Incident on the 405” by Travis Richardson
  Malfeasance Occasional: Girl Trouble
  °  “The Care and Feeding of Houseplants” by Art Taylor
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, March-April 2013

Best Critical or Non-Fiction Work
  *  The Hour of Peril: The Secret Plot To Murder Lincoln Before the Civil War by Daniel Stashower
  °  Mastermind: How To Think Like Sherlock Holmes by Maria Konnikova
  °  The Secret Rescue: An Untold Story of American Nurses and Medics Behind Nazi Lines by Cate Lineberry
  °  All the Wild Children by Josh Stallings
  °  Troubled Daughters, Twisted Wives edited by Sarah Weinman

Best Children’s or Young Adult Novel
  *  The Testing by Joelle Charbonneau [review]
  °  Escape Theory by Margaux Froley [review]
  °  Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library by Chris Grabenstein [review]
  °  Dancer, Daughter, Traitor, Spy by Elizabeth Kiem
  °  The Code Busters Club: The Mystery of the Pirate’s Treasure by Penny Warner

Best Television Episode Teleplay First Aired in 2013
  *  The Blacklist, Pilot, by Jon Bokenkamp
  °  Breaking Bad, “Felina,” by Vince Gilligan
  °  The Fall, “Dark Descent,” by Allan Cubitt
  °  The Following, Pilot, by Kevin Williamson
  °  Justified, “Hole in the Wall,” by Graham Yost

Best Audio Book
  *  The Cuckoo’s Calling by Robert Galbraith, read by Robert Glenister
  °  Crescendo by Deborah J Ledford, read by Christina Cox
  °  Death and the Lit Chick by G.M. Malliet, read by Davina Porte
  °  Hour of the Rat by Lisa Brackmann, read by Tracy Sallows
  °  Man in the Empty Suit by Sean Ferrell, read by Mauro Hantman
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2013

Best Mystery Novel
  *  The Beautiful Mystery by Louise Penny [review]
  °  Dare Me by Megan Abbott
  °  Trinity Game by Sean Chercover
  °  Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn [review]
  °  The Other Woman by Hank Phillippi Ryan [review]

Best First Mystery
  *  The Expats by Chris Pavone [review]
  °  Don’t Ever Get Old by Daniel Friedman [review]
  °  The Professionals by Owen Laukkanen [review]
  °  The 500 by Matthew Quirk [review]
  °  Black Fridays by Michael Sears [review]

Best Paperback Original
  *  Big Maria by Johnny Shaw [review]
  °  Whiplash River by Lou Berney [review]
  °  Murder for Choir by Joelle Charbonneau [review]
  °  And She Was by Alison Gaylin [review]
  °  Blessed Are the Dead by Malla Nunn [review]

Best Short Story
  *  “Mischief in Mesopotamia” by Dana Cameron
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, November 2012
  °  “Kept in the Dark” by Shelia Connolly
  Best New England Crime Stories: Blood Moon
  °  “The Lord is My Shamus” by Barb Goffman
  Chesapeake Crimes: This Job is Murder
  °  “Peaches” by Todd Robinson
  Grift, Spring 2012
  °  “The Unremarkable Heart” by Karin Slaughter
  MWA Presents: Vengeance

Best Critical Nonfiction Work
  *  Books To Die For: The World’s Greatest Mystery Writers on the World’s Greatest Mystery Novels edited by John Connolly and Declan Burke
  °  Blood Relations: The Selected Letters of Ellery Queen, 1947-1950 edited by Joseph Goodrich
  °  More Forensics and Fiction: Crime Writers Morbidly Curious Questions Expertly Answered by D.P. Lyle
  °  The Grand Tour: Around the World with the Queen of Mystery edited by Mathew Prichard
  °  In Pursuit of Spenser: Mystery Writers on Robert B. Parker and the Creation of an American Hero edited by Otto Penzler
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2012

Best Mystery Novel
  *  A Trick of the Light by Louise Penny [review]
  °  The End of Everything by Megan Abbott [review]
  °  Hurt Machine by Reed Farrel Coleman [review]
  °  The Drop by Michael Connelly
  °  One Was a Soldier by Julia Spencer-Fleming [review]

Best First Mystery
  *  Learning To Swim by Sara J. Henry [review]
  °  Nazareth Child by Darrell James [review]
  °  All Cry Chaos by Leonard Rosen [review]
  °  Who Do, Voodoo? by Rochelle Staab
  °  The Informationist by Taylor Stevens [review]
  °  Purgatory Chasm by Steve Ulfelder [review]
  °  Before I Go To Sleep by S.J. Watson [review]

Best Paperback Original
  *  Buffalo West Wing by Julie Hyzy
  °  The Company Man by Robert Jackson Bennett
  °  Choke Hold by Christa Faust
  °  The Death of the Mantis by Michael Stanley [review]
  °  Fun & Games by Duane Swierczynski [review]
  °  Vienna Twilight by Frank Tallis [review]

Best Short Story
  *  “Disarming” by Dana Cameron
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, June 2011
  °  “The Case of Death and Honey” by Neil Gaiman
  A Study in Sherlock
  °  “Palace by the Lake” by Daryl Wood Gerber
  Fish Tales: The Guppy Anthology
  °  “Truth and Consequences” by Barb Goffman
  Mystery Times Ten
  °  “The Itinerary” by Roberta Isleib
  MWA Presents The Rich and The Dead
  °  “Happine$$” by Twist Phelan
  MWA Presents The Rich and The Dead

Best Critical Nonfiction Work
  *  The Sookie Stackhouse Companion by Charlaine Harris, ed.
  °  Books, Crooks and Counselors: How to Write Accurately About Criminal Law and Courtroom Procedure by Leslie Budewitz
  °  Agatha Christie: Murder in the Making: More Stories and Secrets from Her Notebooks by John Curran
  °  On Conan Doyle: Or, the Whole Art of Storytelling by Michael Dirda
  °  Detecting Women: Gender and the Hollywood Detective Film by Philippa Gates
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2011

Best Mystery Novel
  *  Bury Your Dead by Louise Penny [review]
  °  Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin [review]
  °  Faithful Place by Tana French [review]
  °  The Lock Artist by Steve Hamilton [review]
  °  I’d Know You Anywhere by Laura Lippman [review]

Best First Mystery
  *  The Damage Done by Hilary Davidson [review]
  °  Rogue Island by Bruce DeSilva [review]
  °  The Poacher’s Son by Paul Doiron [review]
  °  The Sherlockian by Graham Moore [review]
  °  Snow Angels by James Thompson [review]

Best Paperback Original
  *  Expiration Date by Duane Swierczynski [review]
  °  Long Time Coming by Robert Goddard [review]
  °  The Hanging Tree by Bryan Gruley [review]
  °  Drive Timeby Hank Phillippi Ryan [review]
  °  Vienna Secrets by Frank Tallis [review]

Best Short Story
  *  “Swing Shift” by Dana Cameron
  Crimes by Moonlight
  °  “Scent of Lilacs” by Doug Allyn
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, September/October 2010
  °  “The Hitter” by Chris Holm
  Needle
  °  “So Much in Common” by Mary Jane Maffini
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, September/October 2010
  °  “Homeless” by Patricia Morin
  Mystery Montage
  °  “The Frame Maker” by Simon Wood
  The Back Alley

Best Graphic Novel
  *  The Chill by Jason Starr & Mick Bertilorenzi
  °  Scalped Vol 6: The Gnawing by Jason Aaron & Jock
  °  Richard Stark’s Parker: The Outfit by Darwyn Cooke
  °  Beasts of Burden by Evan Dorkin & Jill Thompson
  °  Tumor by Joshua Hale Fialkov & Noel Tuazon
  °  A Sickness in the Family by Denise Mina & Antonio Fuso

Best Critical /Non-Fiction
  *  Agatha Christie’s Secret Notebooks: 50 Years of Mysteries in the Making by John Curran
  °  The Wire: Truth Be Told by Rafael Alvarez
  °  Sherlock Holmes for Dummies by Stephen Doyle & David A. Crowder
  °  Thrillers: 100 Must Reads edited by David Morrell and Hank Wagner
  °  Charlie Chan: The Untold Story of the Honorable Detective and His Rendezvous with American History by Yunte Huang

Best Website/Blog
  *  Stop, You’re Killing Me! by Lucinda Surber & Stan Ulrich (us!)
  °  Jen’s Book Thoughts by Jen Forbus
  °  The Rap Sheet by J. Kingston Pierce
  °  Sirens of Suspense by Chantelle Aimée Osman
  °  Spinetingler by Sandra Ruttan
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2010

Best Mystery Novel
  *  The Brutal Telling by Louise Penny [review]
  °  The Last Child by John Hart [review]
  °  The Mystic Arts of Erasing All Signs of Death by Charlie Huston [review]
  °  The Girl Who Played with Fire by Stieg Larsson
  °  The Shanghai Moon by S.J. Rozan [review]

Best First Mystery
  *  A Bad Day for Sorry by Sophie Littlefield [review]
  °  The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley [review]
  °  Starvation Lake by Bryan Gruley [review]
  •  The Ghosts of Belfast (The Twelve) by Stuart Neville [review]
  °  In the Shadow of Gotham by Stefanie Pintoff [review]

Best Paperback Original
  *  Starvation Lake by Bryan Gruley [review]
  °  Bury Me Deep by Megan Abbott
  °  Tower by Ken Bruen and Reed Farrel Coleman
  °  Quarry in the Middle by Max Allan Collins
  °  Death and the Lit Chick by G.M. Malliet [review]
  °  Air Time by Hank Phillippi Ryan [review]

Best Short Story
  *  “On the House” by Hank Phillippi Ryan
  Quarry: Crime Stories by New England Writers
  °  “Last Fair Deal Gone Down” by Ace Atkins
  Crossroad Blues
  °  “Femme Sole” by Dana Cameron
  Boston Noir
  °  “Animal Rescue” by Dennis Lehane
  Boston Noir
  °  “Amapola” by Luis Alberto Urrea
  Phoenix Noir

Best Critical Nonfiction Work
  *  Talking About Detective Fiction by P.D. James
  °  The Lineup: The World’s Greatest Crime Writers Tell the Inside Story of Their Greatest Detectives edited by Otto Penzler
  °  Haunted Heart: The Life and Times of Stephen King by Lisa Rogak
  °  Dame Agatha’s Shorts by Elena Santangelo
  °  The Talented Miss Highsmith: The Secret Life and Serious Art of Patricia Highsmith by Joan Schenkar
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2009

Best Mystery Novel
  *  The Brass Verdict by Michael Connelly [review]
  °  Trigger City by Sean Chercover
  °  Red Knife by William Kent Krueger
  °  The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson [review]
  °  The Cruelest Month by Louise Penny

Best First Mystery
  *  The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson [review]
  °  Pushing Up Daisies by Rosemary Harris [review]
  °  Stalking Susan by Julie Kramer [review]
  •  Death of a Cozy Writer by G.M. Malliet [review]
  °  Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith

Best Paperback Original
  *  State of the Onion by Julie Hyzy [review]
  °  The First Quarry by Max Allan Collins
  °  Money Shot by Christa Faust [review]
  °  In a Dark Season by Vicki Lane
  °  South of Hell by P.J. Parrish

Best Short Story
  *  “A Sleep Not Unlike Death” by Sean Chercover
  Hardcore Hardboiled
  °  “The Night Things Changed” by Dana Cameron
  Wolfsbane & Mistletoe
  °  “Killing Time” by Jane K. Cleland
  Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, November 2008
  °  “Skull and Cross Examination” by Toni L.P. Kelner
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, February 2008
  °  “Scratch a Woman” by Laura Lippman
  Hardly Knew Her
  °  “The Secret Lives of Cats” by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, July 2008

Best Children’s/Young Adult Mystery
  *  The Crossroads by Chris Grabenstein
  °  Paper Towns by John Green
  °  Kiss Me, Kill Me by Lauren Henderson
  °  The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey by Trenton Lee Stewart
  °  Sammy Keyes and the Cold Hard Cash by Wendelin Van Draanen
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2008

Best Mystery Novel
  *  What the Dead Know by Laura Lippman
  °  The Tin Roof Blowdown by James Lee Burke
  °  Bad Luck and Trouble by Lee Child
  °  The Watchman by Robert Crais
  °  Thunder Bay by William Kent Krueger

Best First Mystery
  *  In the Woods by Tana French [review]
  °  Big City, Bad Blood by Sean Chercover
  °  The Spellman Files by Lisa Lutz [review]
  •  Head Games by Craig McDonald [review]
  °  The Blade Itself by Marcus Sakey

Best Paperback Original
  *  A Thousand Bones by P.J. Parrish
  °  Queenpin by Megan Abbott [review]
  °  Slide by Ken Bruen and Jason Starr
  °  Blood of Paradise by David Corbett
  °  Baby Shark’s Beaumont Blues by Robert Fate

Best Short Story
  *  “Hardly Knew Her” by Laura Lippman
  Dead Man’s Hand
  °  “Please Watch Your Step” by Rhys Bowen
  The Strand Magazine, Spring 2007
  °  “Dear Dr. Watson” by Steve Hockensmith
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, 2007
  °  “How Stella Got her Grave Back” by Toni L.P. Kelner
  Many Bloody Returns
  °  “Uncle” by Daniel Woodrell
  A Hell of a Woman

Best Website
  *  Stop, You’re Killing Me! by Lucinda Surber & Stan Ulrich (us!)
  °  Confessions of an Idiosyncratic Mind by Sarah Weinman
  °  The Rap Sheet/January Magazine by J Kingston Pierce
  °  Murderati by A Writer’s Blog
  °  Crime Fiction Dossier by David Montgomery
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2007

Best Mystery Novel
  *  No Good Deeds by Laura Lippman
  °  Kidnapped by Jan Burke
  °  The Dead Hour by Denise Mina
  °  The Virgin of Small Plains by Nancy Pickard
  °  All Mortal Flesh by Julia Spencer-Fleming

Best First Mystery
  *  Still Life by Louise Penny
  °  King of Lies by John Hart
  °  Holmes on the Range by Steve Hockensmith
  •  A Field of Darkness by Cornelia Read
  °  The Harrowing by Alexandra Sokoloff

Best Paperback Original
  *  Ashes and Bones by Dana Cameron
  °  47 Rules of Highly Effective Bank Robbers by Troy Cook
  °  The Cleanup by Sean Doolittle
  °  Baby Shark by Robert Fate
  °  Shotgun Opera by Victor Gischler
  °  Snakeskin Shamisen by Naomi Hirahara
  °  A Dangerous Man by Charlie Huston

Best Short Story
  *  “My Father’s Secret” by Simon Wood
  Crimespree Magazine, Bouchercon Special Issue 2006
  °  “Policy” by Megan Abbott
  Damn Near Dead
  °  “The Lords of Misrule” by Dana Cameron
  Sugarplums and Scandal
  °  “Cranked” by Bill Crider
  Damn Near Dead
  °  “Sleeping with the Plush” by Toni Kelner
  Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, May 2006
  °  “After the Fall” by Elaine Viets
  Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, January/February 2006
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2006

Best Mystery Novel
  *  Mercy Falls by William Kent Krueger
  °  Bloodlines by Jan Burke
  °  The Lincoln Lawyer by Michael Connelly
  °  Red Leaves by Thomas H. Cook
  °  To the Power of Three by Laura Lippman

Best First Mystery
  *  Tilt-a-Whirl by Chris Grabenstein
  °  Die a Little by Megan Abbott
  °  Immoral by Brian Freeman
  °  The Baby Game by Randall Hicks
  °  Officer Down by Theresa Schwegel

Best Paperback Original
  *  The James Deans by Reed Farrell Coleman
  °  Kiss Her Goodbye by Allan Guthrie
  °  Six Bad Things by Charlie Huston
  °  The Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Susan McBride
  °  A Killing Rain by P.J. Parrish

Best Short Story
  *  “Misdirection” by Barbara Seranella
  Greatest Hits
  °  “House Rules” by Libby Fischer Hellmann
  Murder in Vegas
  °  “There Is No Crime On Easter Island” by Nancy Pickard
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, September/October 2005
  °  “Driven To Distraction” by Marcia Talley
  Chesapeake Crimes I
  °  “Killer Blonde” by Elaine Viets
  Drop-Dead Blonde
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2005

Best Mystery Novel
  *  Blood Hollow by William Kent Krueger
  °  The Killing of the Tinkers by Ken Bruen
  °  The Madman’s Tale by John Katzenbach
  °  By a Spider’s Thread by Laura Lippman
  °  California Girl by T. Jefferson Parker
  °  Out of the Deep I Cry by Julia Spencer-Fleming

Best First Mystery
  *  Dating Dead Men by Harley Jane Kozak
  °  Uncommon Grounds by Sandra Balzo
  °  Till the Cows Come Home by Judy Clemens
  °  Retribution by Juliane Hoffman
  °  Whiskey Sour by J.A. Konrath

Best Paperback Original
  *  Twisted City by Jason Starr
  °  Cold Case by Robin Burcell
  °  Putt to Death by Roberta Isleib
  °  Blue Blood by Susan McBride [review]
  °  The Halo Effect by M.J. Rose

Best Short Story
  *  “Wedding Knife” by Elaine Viets
  Chesapeake Crimes
  °  Bowen, Rhys“Voodoo” by Rhys Bowen
   Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, November 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
  °  “Hunter Trapper” by Arthur Nersesian
  Brooklyn Noir
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2004

Best Mystery Novel
  *  Every Secret Thing by Laura Lippman
  °  The Delicate Storm by Giles Blunt
  °  Blood Is the Sky by Steve Hamilton
  °  Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane
  °  Close to Home by Peter Robinson

Best First Mystery
  *  Monkeewrench/Want To Play? by P.J. Tracy [review]
  °  Haunted Ground by Erin Hart [review]
  °  Death of a Nationalist by Rebecca Pawel
  °  Wiley’s Lament by Lono Waiwaiole
  °  Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear

Best Paperback Original
  *  Deadly Legacy by Robin Burcell
  °  Dealing in Murder by Elaine Flinn
  °  Thicker Than Water by P.J. Parrish
  °  Tough Luck by Jason Starr
  °  Find Me Again by Sylvia Maultash Warsh

Best Historical Mystery
  *  For the Love of Mike by Rhys Bowen
  °  Let Loose the Dogs by Maureen Jennings
  °  The Bridge of Sighs by Olen Steinhauer
  °  Find Me Again by Sylvia Maultash Warsh
  °  Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear

Best Short Story
  *  “Doppelganger” by Rhys Bowen
  Blood On Their Hands
  °  “The Grass Is Always Greener” by Sandy Balzo
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, March 2003
  °  “Munchies” by Jack Bludis
  Hardbroiled
  °  “Wanda Wilcox Is Trapped” by Eddie Muller
  Plots With Guns, September/October 2003
  °  “Red Meat” by Elaine Viets
  Blood On Their Hands
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2003

Best Mystery Novel
  *  City of Bones by Michael Connelly
  °  Murder in the Sentier by Cara Black
  °  North of Nowhere by Steve Hamilton
  °  Hell to Pay by George Pelecanos
  °  Winter and Night by S.J. Rozan

Best First Mystery
  *  In the Bleak Midwinter by Julia Spencer-Fleming
  °  The Devil’s Redhead by David Corbett
  °  An Eye for Murder by Libby Fischer Hellmann
  °  The Blue Edge of Midnight by Jonathon King
  °  The Distance by Eddie Muller

Best Paperback Original
  *  Fatal Truth by Robin Burcell
  °  Black Jack Point by Jeff Abbott
  °  Six Strokes Under by Roberta Isleib
  °  Paint It Black by P.J. Parrish
  °  A Killing Sky by Andy Straka

Best Short Story
  *  “Too Many Cooks” by Marcia Talley
  Much Ado About Murder
  °  “Murder In The Land Of Wawat” by Lauren Haney
  The Mammoth Book Of Egyptian Whodunnits
  °  “To Live and Die in Midland, Texas” by Clark Howard
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, September/October 2002
  °  “Bible Belt” by Toni Kelner
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, June 2002
  °  “A Man Called Ready” by Bob Truluck,
  Measures of Poison
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2002

Best Mystery Novel
  *  Mystic River by Dennis Lehane [review]
  °  Flight by Jan Burke
  °  Tell No One by Harlan Coben
  °  The Devil Went Down to Austin by Rick Riordan
  °  Reflecting the Sky by S.J. Rozan

Best First Mystery
  *  Open Season by C.J. Box [review]
  °  Third Person Singular by K.J. Erikson
  °  Austin City Blue by Jan Grape
  °  The Jasmine Trade by Denise Hamilton
  °  A Witness Above by Andy Straka

Best Paperback Original
  *  Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris
  °  A Kiss Gone Bad by Jeff Abbott
  °  Dim Sum Dead by Jerrilyn Farmer
  °  Dead of Winter by P.J. Parrish
  °  The Houdini Specter by Daniel Stashower

Best Short Story
  *  “Chocolate Moose” by Bill and Judy Crider
  Death Dines at 8:30
  °  “My Bonnie Lies…” by Ted Hertel, Jr.
  Mammoth Book of Legal Thrillers
  °  “Bitter Waters” by Rochelle Krich
  Criminal Kabbalah
  °  “Virgo in Sapphires” by Margaret Maron
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, December 2001
  °  “Double-Crossing Delancy” by S.J. Rozan
  Mystery Street
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2001

Best Mystery Novel
  *  A Place of Execution by Val McDermid
  °  Deep South by Nevada Barr
  °  The Bottoms by Joe R. Lansdale
  °  Listen to the Silence by Marcia Muller
  °  He Shall Thunder in the Sky by Elizabeth Peters
  °  Legacy of the Dead by Charles Todd

Best First Mystery
  *  Death of a Red Heroine by Qiu Xiaolong
  °  Black Dog by Stephen Booth [review]
  °  A Conspiracy of Paper by David Liss
  °  The Ice Harvest by Scott Philllips
  °  Street Level by Bob Truluck
  °  Run by Douglas E. Winter

Best Paperback Original
  *  Death Dances to a Reggae Beat by Kate Grilley
  °  Bad to the Bone by Katy Munger
  °  The Floating Lady Murder by Daniel Stashower
  °  Killing Kin by Chassie West
  °  A Little Death by Laura Wilson
  °  The Kidnapping of Rosie Dawn by Eric Wright

Best Short Story
  *  “The Problem of the Potting Shed” by Edward D. Hoch
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, July 2000
  °  “The Seal of the Confessional” by Rhys Bowen
  Unholy Orders
  °  “Widow’s Peak” by Rochelle Krich
  Unholy Orders
  °  “Don’t Go Upstaris” by Donald Olson
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, August 2000
  °  “Missing in Action” by Peter Robinson
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, November 2000
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

2000

Best Mystery Novel
  *  In a Dry Season by Peter Robinson
  °  River of Darkness by Rennie Airth [review]
  °  Bones by Jan Burke
  °  L.A. Requiem by Robert Crais
  °  High Five by Janet Evanovich

Best First Mystery
  *  Murder With Peacocks by Donna Andrews
  °  Murder in the Marais by Cara Black [review]
  °  Circles of Confusion by April Henry
  °  Revenge of the Gypsy Queen by Kris Neri
  °  Inner City Blues by Paula L. Woods

Best Paperback Original
  *  In Big Trouble by Laura Lippman
  °  Every Move She Makes by Robin Burcell
  °  Lucky Man by Anthony P. Dunbar
  °  Outcast by José Latour
  °  Antidote for Avarice by Caroline Roe

Best Short Story
  *  “Noir Lite” by Margaret Chittenden
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, January 1999
  °  “A Bit of a Treat” by Barry Baldwin
  Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, September 1999
  °  “At The Hop” by Bill and Judy Crider
  Till Death Do Us Part
  °  “Triangle” by Jeffrey Deaver
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, March 1999
  °  “Paleta Man” by Laurie R. King
  Irreconcilable Differences

Best Mystery of the Century
  *  Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
  °  The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler
  °  The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie
  °  The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett
  °  Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

1999

Best Mystery Novel
  *  Blood Work by Michael Connelly
  °  Blind Descent by Nevada Barr
  °  On Beulah Height by Reginald Hill
  °  Gone, Baby, Gone by Dennis Lehane
  °  Framework for Death by Aileen Schumacher

Best First Mystery
  *  Iron Lake by William Kent Krueger
  °  Sympathy for the Devil by Jerrilyn Farmer
  °  Tiger’s Palette by Jacqueline Fielder
  °  A Cold Day in Paradise by Steve Hamilton [review]
  °  Eleven Days by Donald Harstad

Best Paperback Original
  *  Butchers Hill by Laura Lippman
  °  Zen Attitude by Sujata Massey
  °  The Widower’s Two Step by Rick Riordan
  °  Remedy for Treason by Caroline Roe
  °  Murder Manual by Steven Womack

Best Short Story
  *  “Of Course You Know that Chocolate Is a Vegetable?” by Barbara D’Amato Chittenden
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, November 1998
  °  “Two Bits” by Jan Burke
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, May 1998
  °  “A Simple Philosophy” by Harlan Coben
  Malice Domestic 7
  °  “A Small Silver Gun” by Rick Riordan
  MSCMM, Summer 1998
  °  “The Two Ladies of Rose Cottage” by Peter Robinson
  Malice Domestic 7
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

1998

Best Mystery Novel
  *  No Colder Place by S.J. Rozan
  °  Devil’s Food by Anthony Bruno
  °  Deception Pass by Earl Emerson
  °  The Club Dumas by Arturo Perez-Reverte
  °  Eye of the Cricket by James Sallis

Best First Mystery
  *  Killing Floor by Lee Child
  °  If I Should Die by Grace Edwards
  °  Except the Dying by Maureen Jennings
  °  Bird Dog by Philip Reed
  °  Skin Deep, Blood Red by Robert E. Skinner

Best Paperback Original
  *  Big Red Tequila by Rick Riordan [review]
  °  Charm City by Laura Lippman
  °  The Salaryman’s Wife by Sujata Massey
  °  Time Release by Martin J. Smith
  °  23 Shades of Black by K.J.A. Wishnia

Best Short Story
  *  “A Front-Row Seat” by Jan Grape (tie)
  Vengeance Is Hers
  *  “One Bag of Coconuts” by Edward D. Hoch (tie)
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, November 1997
  °  “Ways to Kill a Cat” by Simon Brett
  Malice Domestic 6
  °  “A Fog of Many Colors” by James DeFilippi
  New Mystery
  °  “Paperboxing Art” by James Dorr
  New Mystery
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

1997

Best Mystery Novel
  *  The Poet by Michael Connelly
  °  Firestorm by Nevada Barr
  °  Lethal Genes by Linda Grant
  °  Hearts and Bones by Margaret Lawrence
  °  Multiple Wounds by Alan Russell

Best First Mystery (tie)
  *  Death in Little Tokyo by Dale Furutani
  *  Somebody Else’s Child by Terris McMahan Grimes
  °  Tularosa by Michael McGarrity
  °  A Test of Wills by Charles Todd [review]
  °  A Brother’s Blood by Michael C. White

Best Paperback Original
  *  Somebody Else’s Child by Terris McMahan Grimes
  °  Fade Away by Harlan Coben
  °  The Grass Widow by Teri Holbrook
  °  Walking Rain by Susan Wade
  °  Chain of Fools by Steven Womack

Best Short Story
  *  “Accidents Will Happen” by Carolyn Wheat
  Malice Domestic 5
  °  “The Dark Snow” by Brendan DuBois
  Playboy, November 1996
  °  “Luminarias Make it Christmas-y” by Janet LaPierre
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, February 1996
  °  “Bugged” by Eve K. Sandstrom
  Malice Domestic 5
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

1996

Best Mystery Novel
  *  Under the Beetle’s Cellar by Mary Willis Walker
  °  The Last Coyote by Michael Connelly
  °  Hard Christmas by Barbara D’Amato
  °  True Crime by Andrew Klavan
  °  Blue Lonesome by Bill Pronzini

Best First Mystery
  *  Death in Bloodhound Red by Virginia Lanier
  °  The Innocents by Richard Barre
  °  Who in Hell Is Wanda Fuca? by G.M. Ford [review]
  °  Hammurabi’s Code by Charles Kenney
  °  Murder in Scorpio by Martha C. Lawrence

Best Paperback Original
  *  Deal Breaker by Harlan Coben
  °  Bad Medicine by Eileen Dreyer
  °  A Far and Deadly Cry by Teri Holbrook
  °  Charged with Guilt by Gloria White
  °  Closet by R.D. Zimmerman

Best Short Story
  *  “And Pray Nobody Sees You” by Gar Anthony Haywood
  Spooks, Spies & Private Eyes
  °  “Rule of Law” by K.K. Beck
  Malice Domestic 4
  °  “The Judge’s Boy” by Jean B. Cooper
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, August 1995
  °  “How I Found a Cat, Lost True Love, and Broke the Bank at Monte Carlo” by Bill Crider
  Cat Crimes Takes a Vacation
  °  “The Dog Who Remembered too Much” by Elizabeth Daniels Squire
  Malice Domestic 4
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

1995

Best Mystery Novel
  *  She Walks These Hills by Sharon McCrumb
  °  The Concrete Blonde by Michael Connelly
  °  Kolymsky Heights by Lionel Davidson
  °  One for the Money by Janet Evanovich
  °  K Is for Killer by Sue Grafton
  °  Murder on the Kibbutz by Bayta Gur
  °  Pictures of Perfection by Reginald Hill
  °  Cold Shoulder by Lynda La Plante
  °  The 13th Juror by John Lescroart
  °  Crack Down by Val McDermid
  °  Black Betty by Walter Mosley
  °  Not Till the Red Fog Rises by Derek Raymond
  °  Just a Corpse at Twilight by Janwillem van de Wetering

Best First Mystery
  *  The Alienist by Caleb Carr
  °  Snow Falling on Cedars by David Guterson
  °  Cuckoo by Alex Keegan
  °  A Drink Before the War by Dennis Lehane
  °  Mallory’s Oracle by Carol O’Connell [review]
  °  Shinju by Laura Joh Rowland
  °  Every Breath You Take by Michelle Spring
  °  Big Town by Doug J. Swanson
  °  Death of a Blue Lantern by Christopher West

Best Short Story
  *  “The Monster of Glarnis” by Sharyn McCrumb
  Royal Crimes
  °  “The Gentleman in the Lake” by Robert Barnard
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, June 1994
  °  “One of Those Days, One of Those Nights” by Ed Gorman
  Crime Yellow
  °  “A Deep Hole” by Ian Rankin
  London Noir
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

1994

Best Mystery Novel
  *  Wolf in the Shadows by Marcia Muller
  °  The Black Ice by Michael Connelly
  °  Morons and Madmen by Earl Emerson
  °  O Little Town of Maggody by Joan Hess
  °  Sacred Clowns by Tony Hillerman
  °  Old Enemies by Janet LaPierre
  °  Southern Discomfort by Margaret Maron
  °  To Live and Die in Dixie by Kathy Hogan Trocheck
  °  The Sculptress by Minette Walters
  °  Consider the Crows by Charlene Weir

Best First Mystery
  *  Track of the Cat by Nevada Barr
  °  Goodnight, Irene by Jan Burke
  °  A Grave Talent by Laurie R. King
  °  Death Comes as Epiphany by Sharan Newman
  °  Child of Silence by Abigail Padgett

Best Short Story
  *  “Checkout” by Susan Dunlap
  Malice Domestic 2
  °  “A Romance in the Rockies” by K.K. Beck
  Malice Domestic 2
  °  “Kim’s Game” by M.D. Lake
  Malice Domestic 2
  °  “Crow’s Feat” by Robert Lopresti
  Constable New Crimes 2
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

1993

Best Mystery Novel
  *  Bootlegger’s Daughter by Margaret Maron
  °  Lullaby Town by Robert Crais
  °  Booked To Die by John Dunning
  °  Southern Ghost by Carloyn G. Hart
  °  The Hangman’s Beautiful Daughter by Sharyn McCrumb

Best First Mystery
  *  Blanche on the Lam by Barbara Neely
  °  Thyme of Death by Susan Wittig Albert
  °  Decked by Carol Higgins Clark
  °  The Black Echo by Michael Connelly [review]
  °  The Winter Widow by Charlene Weir

Best Short Story
  *  “Cold Turkey” by Diane Mott Davidson
  Sisters in Crime 5
  °  “Candles in the Rain” by Doug Allyn
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, November 1992
  °  “The Summer of our Discontent” by Edward D. Hoch
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, November 1992
  °  “One Hit Wonder” by Gabrielle Kraft
  Sisters in Crime 5
  °  “A Golden Opportunity” by Rochelle Krich
  Sisters in Crime 5
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

1992

Best Mystery Novel
  *  The Last Detective by Peter Lovesey
  °  Rogue Wave by Susan Dunlap
  °  Love Nor Money by Linda Grant
  °  Hour of the Hunter by J.A. Jance
  °  I.O.U. by Nancy Pickard
  °  A Single Stone by Marilyn Wallace

Best First Mystery
  *  Murder on the Iditarod Trail by Sue Henry
  °  Carpool by Mary Cahill
  °  A Relative Stranger by Margaret Lucke
  °  The Bulrush Murders by Rebecca Rothenberg
  °  The Chocolate Box by Leslie Elizabeth Watts
  °  Murder on the Run by Gloria White

Best Short Story
  *  “Lucky Dip” by Liza Cody
  A Woman’s Eye
  °  “Last Rites” by Linda Grant
  Sisters in Crime 4
  °  “Nine Sons” by Wendy Hornsby
  Sisters in Crime 4
  °  “Deborah’s Judgment” by Margaret Maron
  A Woman’s Eye
  °  “The Crime of Miss Oyster Brown” by Peter Lovesey
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, February 1996
  °  “Wolf Winter” by Maxine O’Callahan
  Sisters in Crime 4
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

1991

Best Mystery Novel
  *  G Is for Gumshoe by Sue Grafton
  °  A Ticket to the Boneyard by Lawrence Block
  °  The Good Fight by Lia Matera
  °  If Ever I Return, Pretty Peggy-O by Sharyn McCrumb
  °  New Orleans Mourning by Julie Smith

Best First Mystery
  *  Postmortem by Patricia Cornwell
  °  Catering to Nobody by Diane Mott Davidson
  °  Kindred Crimes by Janet Dawson
  °  Where’s Mommy Now? by Rochelle Krich
  °  Grave Undertaking by James McCahery

Best Paperback Original (tie)
  *  Where’s Mommy Now? by Rochelle Krich
  *  Grave Undertaking by James McCahery
  °  Not a Creature Was Stirring by Jane Haddam
  °  Dead in the Scrub by B.J. Oliphant
  °  Sisters in Crime 2 edited by Marilyn Wallace

Best Short Story
  *  “The Celestial Buffet” by Susan Dunlap
  Sisters in Crime 2
  °  “The Luncheon” by Sharyn McCrumb
  Sisters in Crime 2
  °  “Remains to Be Seen” by Sharyn McCrumb
  Mummy Stories
  °  “Say You’re Sorry” by Sarah Shankman
  Sisters in Crime 3
  °  “A Tale of Two Pretties” by Marilyn Wallace
  Sisters in Crime 3
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

1990

Best Mystery Novel
  *  The Sirens Sang of Murder by Sarah Caudwell
  °  Pious Deception by Susan Dunlap
  °  A Little Class on Murder by Carolyn G. Hart
  °  Corpus Christmas by Margaret Maron

Best First Mystery
  *  Katwalk by Karen Kijewski
  °  Grime & Punishment by Jill Churchill
  °  The Mother Shadow by Melodie Johnson Howe [review]
  °  The Mark Twain Murders by Edith Skom
  °  The Last Billable Hour by Susan Wolfe

Best Paperback Original
  *  Honeymoon with Murder by Carolyn G. Hart
  °  On My Honor by Malacai Black
  °  Murder by Deception by D.R. Meredith
  °  Rough Justice by Keith Peterson
  °  A Collector of Photographs by Deborah Valentine

Best Short Story
  *  “Afraid All the Time” by Nincy Pickard
  Sisters in Crime
  °  “No Safety” by Susan Dunlap
  Sisters in Crime
  °  “A Wee Doch and Doris” by Sharyn McCrumb
  Mistletoe Mysteries
  °  “A Terrible Thing” by Shelley Singer
  Sisters in Crime
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

1989

Best Mystery Novel
  *  The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris
  °  The Widow’s Club by Dorothy Cannell
  °  E Is for Evidence by Sue Grafton
  °  Thief of Time by Tony Hillerman
  °  Blood Shot by Sara Paretsky
  °  Dead Crazy by Nancy Pickard
  °  Shackles by Bill Pronzini
  °  Pepper Pike by Les Roberts

Best First Mystery
  *  A Great Deliverance by Elizabeth George
  °  Murder Once Done by Mary Lou Bennett
  °  The Killings at Badger’s Drift by Caroline Graham
  °  Random Access Murder by Linda Grant
  °  Fear of the Dark by Gar Anthony Haywood
  °  Carolina Skeletons by David Stout

Best Paperback Original
  *  Something Wicked by Carolin G. Hart
  °  High Noon at Midnight by Michael Avallone
  °  Murder Unrenovated by P.M. Carlson
  °  The Man Who Died Laughing by David Handler
  °  A Radical Departure by Lia Matera
  °  Paying the Piper by Sharyn McCrumb
  °  Murder by Impulse by D.R. Meredith
  °  Primary Target by Marilyn Wallace
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

1988

Best Mystery Novel
  *  Skinwalkers by Tony Hillerman
  °  A Trouble of Fools by Linda Barnes [review]
  °  Old Bones by Aaron Elkins
  °  Trojan Gold by Elizabeth Peters
  °  Marriage is Murder by Nancy Pickard

Best First Mystery
  *  Caught Dead in Philadelphia by Gillian Roberts
  °  Death on the Rocks by Michael Allegretto
  °  The House of Blue Lights by Robert Bowman
  °  Murder at the War by Mary Monica Pulver
  °  An Infinite Number of Monkeys by Les Roberts

Best Paperback Original
  *  The Monkey’s Raincoat by Robert Crais
  °  The Cat Who Played Brahms by Lilian Jackson Braun
  °  Death on Demand by Carolyn G. Hart [review]
  °  Bishop’s Gambit, Declined by Conrad Haynes
  °  Where Lawyers Fear To Tread by Lia Matera
  °  Bimbos of the Death Sun by Sharyn McCrumb

Best Short Story
  *  “Breakfast Television” by Robert Barnard
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, January 1987
  °  “Scrap” by Max Allan Collins
  Black Lizard Anthology of Crime Fiction
  °  “Soft Monkey” by Harlan Ellison
  Mystery Scene Reader #1
  °  “Turn Away” by Ed Groman
  Black Lizard Anthology of Crime Fiction
  °  “The Au Pair Girl” by Joyce Harrington
  Matter of Crime #1
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

1987

Best Mystery Novel
  *  C Is for Corpse by Sue Grafton
  °  When the Sacred Ginmill Closes by Lawrence Block
  °  Tropical Heat by John Lutz
  °  No Body by Nancy Pickard
  °  Life’s Work by Jonathan Valin

Best First Mystery
  *  Too Late To Die by Bill Crider
  °  Strangled Prose by Joan Hess
  °  The Ritual Bath by Faye Kellerman
  °  Floater by Joseph Koenig
  °  Dead Air by Mike Lupica

Best Paperback Original
  *  The Junkyard Dog by Robert Campbell
  °  The Cat Who Saw Red by Lilian Jackson Braun
  °  Trial by Fury by J.A. Jance
  °  The Back-Door Man by Rob Kantner
  °  Too Old a Cat by Warren Murphy

Best Short Story
  *  “The Parker Shotgun” by Sue Grafton
  Mean Streets
  °  “Body Count” by Wayne D. Dundee
  Mean Streets
  °  “Scalplock” by Clark Howard
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, July 1986
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986

1986

Best Mystery Novel
  *  B Is for Burglar by Sue Grafton
  °  The Shortest Way to Hades by Sarah Caudwell
  °  The Lonely Silver Rain by John D. MacDonald
  °  The Plain Old Man by Charlotte MacLeod
  °  Killing Orders by Sara Paretsky

Best First Mystery
  *  When the Bough Breaks by Jonathan Kellerman
  °  The Gemini Man by Susan Kelly
  °  Sleeping Dog by Dick Lochte
  °  Doubting Thomas by Robert Reeves
  °  Flood by Andrew Vachss

Best Paperback Original
  *  Say No to Murder by Nancy Pickard
  °  Murder Is Academic by P.M. Carlson
  °  Poverty Bay by Earl Emerson
  °  Shattered Moon by Kate Green
  °  Sleightly Murder by Patrick A. Kelley

Best Short Story
  *  “Lucky Penny” by Linda Barnes
  New Black Mask #3
  °  “Eight Mile and Dequindre” by Loren D. Estleman
  Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, May 1985
  °  “Vandals” by Peter Lovesey
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, December 1985
  °  “Ride the Lightning” by John Lutz
  Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, January 1985
  °  “The Convolvulus Clock” by Ruth Rendell
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, August 1985
Top | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | 1992 | 1991 | 1990 | 1989 | 1988 | 1987 | 1986
 

Home | Facebook | SYKM Store | SYKM Amazon | SYKM Kindle

Contact Lucinda Surber or Stan Ulrich
Copyright © 1998–2025 Stop, You’re Killing Me!