Mystery Book Awards

Agatha Awards
The Agatha Awards honor the traditional mystery—books best typified by the works of Agatha Christie—and are awarded annually by Malice Domestic, Ltd.

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 New York Times, who helped found the Mystery Writers of America.

Barry Awards
The Barry Awards, named for Barry Gardner, one of the most ardent and beloved ambassadors of mystery fiction, were first awarded in 1997 by Deadly Pleasures. The Barry Awards are now voted on by the readers of Deadly Pleasures and Mystery News and are presented at the annual Bouchercon World Mystery Convention.

Crime Writers of Canada Awards of Excellence
The Crime Writers of Canada present the Crime Writers of Canada Awards of Excellence (formerly the Arthur Ellis Awards) to recognize excellence in Canadian crime writing.

Dagger Awards
The Crime Writers’ Association awards the Daggers. Only British publishers can submit entries for the Dagger Awards, and the submissions must have been published in the English language in the United Kingdom within a limited period of time. The number of awards, as well as their names, have varied over the years.
Diamond Dagger Winners

Edgar^®Awards
Mystery Writers of America give these awards to honor the best in mystery fiction and nonfiction produced the previous year. (We list only the fiction awards.) The awards began in 1946 and are named in honor of Edgar Allan Poe.
Grand Master Winners

Left Coast Crime “Lefty” Awards
Two Lefty Awards are given at each annual Left Coast Crime Convention: Best Humorous Mystery, Best Historical Mystery (Bruce Alexander Memorial). Two other 2016 Lefty Awards are Best LCC Regional (for best mystery set within the LCC region) and Best Novel (for best mystery set anywhere in the world). Lefty Awards are voted on by Left Coast Crime attendees.

Macavity Awards
The Macavity Award is named for the “mystery cat” of T.S. Eliot (Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats). Each year the members of Mystery Readers International nominate and vote for their favorite mysteries.

Ned Kelly Awards
The Ned Kelly Awards (named for a notorious Australian outlaw of the 19th century) are presented by the Australian Crime Writers’ Association (ACWA) to promote greater recognition for crime, thriller and mystery writing in Australia.

Shamus Awards
The Shamus Award is given annually by the Private Eye Writers of America to honor excellent work in the Private Eye genre. Committee members of PWA select the winners.

Thriller Awards
The Thriller Awards are presented by the International Thriller Writers at the annual ThrillerFest conference.

Bony Blithe Awards
The Bloody Words Light Mystery Award (AKA The Bony Blithe) was an annual juried literary prize for a “book that makes us smile” by a Canadian citizen or permanent resident of Canada awarded from 2012–2121.

Dilys Award
The Dilys Award was given annually from 1993 until 2014 by the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association to the mystery titles of the year that the member booksellers most enjoyed selling.

Hammett Prize
The Hammett Prize is given annually by the North American Branch of the International Association of Crime Writers to honor literary excellence in the field of crime-writing (fiction or non-fiction), as reflected in a book published in the English language in the US and/or Canada. We have been unable to locate a complete list of nominees since 2020.

Hillerman Prize
The Hillerman Prize, honoring Tony Hillerman, was first awarded in 2007. The prize goes to an unpublished author for a first mystery novel set in the Southwest, and is selected by judges chosen by the editorial staff of St. Martin’s Press. The Hillerman Prize competition ended in 2012.