AGATHA AWARD NOMINEES: Malice Domestic 2025

Malice Domestic 2025 announced the Nominees for the Agatha Awards. Congratulations to all! 

Cartoon of the Day: A Chair for Readers

 

INAUGURAL DERRINGER AWARD FOR BEST ANTHOLOGY FINALISTS

The Short Mystery Fiction Society has announced the Finalists for the Inaugural Derringer Award for Best Anthology. Congratulations to all!

Devil's Snare: Best New England Crime Stories 2024, edited by Susan Oleksiw, Ang Pompano, and Leslie Wheeler — with Leslie Wheeler and 3 others. 

Friend of the Devil: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of the Grateful Dead, edited by Josh Pachter 

Larceny & Last Chances: 22 Stories of Mystery & Suspense, edited by Judy Penz Sheluk 

Murder, Neat: A SleuthSayers Anthology, edited by Michael Bracken and Barb Goffman 

New York State of Crime: Murder New York Style 6, edited by D.M. Barr and Joseph R.G. De Marco 

The 13th Letter, edited by Donna Carrick

DEATH IN PARADISE: Season 14 news!

If you caught the Christmas episode of Death in Paradise last December, you know there's a new detective on Ste. Marie. Don Gilet plays Londoner Detective Inspector Mervin Wilson. Now we have a date for the new season here in the U.S. Death in Paradise will release on BritBox on February 19. The series will air and stream weekly.  

Following DI Mervin Wilson's introduction in last year’s Christmas special, the holidaying Mervin was recruited to Honoré’s Police Station to help solve the case of a serial killer targeting Santas. His brusque manner and impatience to be back in busy London didn’t endear him to his colleagues. But, as he eventually confided to Commissioner Patterson (Don Warrington), he’d come to Saint Marie to reconcile with his estranged mother – a woman who he later found out had died some months ago…and was possibly even murdered. 

Season 14 begins with Mervin resolved to remain on the island. The recovery of a body from a ravine rattles his colleagues, and there's the case of a game show contestant fatally stabbed while on a zip line to solve. His fellow officers have their own share of personal dramas, too. DS Naomi Thomas (Shantol Jackson) is shaken when an ex unexpectedly arrives from St Barnabas, and Darlene (Ginny Holder) decides to mentor the fresh-faced new Officer Benjamin Brice (Anthony J Abraham). But she’s not sure if she’s up to the task.

Cartoon of the Day: Cats

 Happy Caturday!

BOSCH: LEGACY - Final Season

The third and final season of Bosch: Legacy will begin streaming on March 27 on Prime Video. Starring Titus Welliver as Harry Bosch, Madison Lintz as Maddie Bosch, and Mimi Rogers as Honey Chandler. 

Season 3 will use plot elements from author Michael Connelly's DESERT STAR (2022) and THE BLACK ICE (1993). The first four episodes will be streaming on March 27, then Prime Video will drop two episodes a week the following three Thursdays, with the series finale landing on April 17.

Cartoon of the Day: Bedside Reading

 

MARBLE HALL MURDERS: MASTERPIECE PBS

MASTERPIECE on PBS announced the commissioning of Marble Hall Murders, an adaptation of the third and final installment in best-selling novelist Anthony Horowitz’s Susan Ryeland series. This is a follow-up to the critically acclaimed Magpie Murders and Moonflower Murders, which premiered on MASTERPIECE in 2022 and 2024, respectively. Lesley Manville (The Crown, Phantom Thread) and Tim McMullan (The Crown, Patrick Melrose) will reprise their roles. 

Anthony Horowitz said: “I’m so happy to bring the team back – stars, director, producers and crew – for a third instalment of what has been a fantastically successful TV series. I have a feeling this could be the best yet.” 

This series sees Lesley Manville (The Crown, Phantom Thread) return as Susan Ryeland, a book editor who all too often finds herself involved in baffling murders. Returning to England, she is reluctantly drawn into a new Atticus Pünd mystery, this time written by a new, young writer. “Pünd’s Last Case” is a story set in 1955, in an exotic villa in Corfu – but the identity of a real killer is hidden in the book and once again Susan is going to find herself in grave danger. 

Tim McMullan (Patrick Melrose, The Crown) reprises his role as Atticus Pünd, the literary detective who steps out of the books to help Susan unravel the real-life mystery. Who killed Miriam Crace, the most famous children's author in the world? 

The series will begin filming in March in Dublin, Corfu and London. Additional cast to be announced at a later date. Marble Hall Murders is a co-production of Eleventh Hour Films for MASTERPIECE and the BBC in association with Salt Films, and distributed worldwide by Sony Pictures Television and by PBS Distribution in North America.

Cartoon of the Day: Golden Retriever

Cartoon of the Day: The Writer's Dog

The Lincoln Lawyer: Season 4 News!

Good News: The Lincoln Lawyer, based on Michael Connelly's The Lincoln Lawyer mystery series, will return for Season 4.  

From Deadline:

Netflix has greenlighted a fourth season of its popular legal drama series The Lincoln Lawyer. The formal renewal comes three months after the release of Season 3. The 10-episode new season had been in the works for awhile, with production set to begin next month. 

Manuel Garcia-Rulfo will return as Mickey Haller in Season 4, based on the sixth book in The Lincoln Lawyer series by Michael Connelly, The Law of Innocence. 

Also coming back are Becki Newton (Lorna), Jazz Raycole (Izzy), and Angus Sampson (Cisco) as well as Neve Campbell (Maggie McPherson). After appearing in just two episodes of Season 3 as a guest star, Campbell will be in all episodes of the new season. 

Created for television by David E. Kelley and developed for television by Ted Humphrey based on Connelly’s book series, The Lincoln Lawyer follows Mickey Haller (Garcia-Rulfo), an iconoclastic idealist who runs his law practice out of the back seat of his Lincoln as he takes on cases big and small across Los Angeles. 

Like the first three seasons before it, Season 4 is set to film in Los Angeles.

CHINESE NEW YEAR CRIME FICTION

恭賀發財 Gung Hay Fat Choy! This is the Year of the Snake.

To celebrate the Chinese New Year, I've updated my list of mysteries that take place during Lunar New Year Celebrations. As always, I welcome any additions. I'd like to include more Asian New Year Crime Fiction, so please send author/titles.

CHINESE NEW YEAR MYSTERIES

The Corpses Hanging Over Paris by Cathy Ace

The Chinese Parrot by Earl Derr Biggers
Between a Wok and a Hard Place by Leslie Budewitz

Year of the Dog by Henry Chang 
Peking Duck and Cover by Vivien Chien

Year of the Dragon by Robert Daley 
Serpent's Doom by Connie di Marco

Neon Dragon by John Dobbyn
Dim Sum Dead by Jerrilyn Farmer 
The Silent Girl by Tess Gerritsen
Murder on Bamboo Lane by Naomi Hirahara

Chop Suey by Ty Hutchison 
The Skull Cage Key by Michael Marriott
The Shanghai Moon by S.J. Rozan
City of Dragons by Kelli Stanley

Breezy Friends and Bodies: A Raina Sun Mystery by Anne R. Tan
The Celebrated Cases of Judge Dee by Robert Van Gulik (7th Century China) "New Year's Eve in Lan-Fang"

 Children and Young Adult:

The Nancy Drew Notebooks: The Chinese New Year Mystery by Carolyn Keene
The New Year Dragon Dilemma by Ron Roy 
Red Envelope Mystery: The Secret of the Chinese New Year. 

Short stories:

 "The Lady Fish Mystery" by Mary Reed and Eric Mayer, EQMM, September/October 1996.
"Murder Keeps No Calendar" by Cathy Ace.
 

Mystery Readers Journal LA Wildfire Donation: Join us!

Mystery Readers International is supporting the victims of and responders to the devastating LA Wildfires by donating Mystery Readers Journal funds from the sale of PDFs of our Southern California and two Los Angeles issues. Buy the Southern California and/or Los Angeles issues of MRJ for $5/each, and the money  (including PayPal fees) will be donated to World Central Kitchen and Pasadena Humane. Both charities are on the ground helping victims and responders of the Los Angeles area fires. Support these great charities with us. 

Mystery Readers Journal has reduced the cost of the following 3 PDF issues.  

Southern California (40:1) 
and 
Los Angeles Mysteries I (25: 2 )
and
Los Angeles Mysteries II (35:3)

You can download these issues for $5 each. 

All money including PayPal fees collected for these three issues will be donated by Mystery Readers International and split between World Central Kitchen and Pasadena Humane. You will receive the PDF of the issue (s) you order. 

***

Following are the Table of Contents of these issues.

Southern California Mysteries

Buy the PDF version of this issue for only $5. All proceeds will be donated to World Central Kitchen and Pasadena Humane Society.

Volume 40, No. 1, Spring 2024

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ARTICLES

• Vintage Hollywood Crime by Aubrey Ney Hamilton

AUTHOR! AUTHOR!

• Why I Love Writing About L.A. by Anne Louise Bannon
• The Mysteries of True Crime by James T. Bartlett
• California, the Origins of Reckoning, and the Ty Dawson Series by Baron Birtcher
• The Lighter Side of SoCal Mysteries by Sally Carpenter
• Where Rick Cahill Lives by Matt Coyle
• Technology, AI and Murder Collide in L.A. by Art Chester
• A Mystery in More Ways than One: A Fascination with Southern California by Elizabeth Crowens
• Los Angeles Ninja Lily Wong by Tori Eldridge
• San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter—Come for the History, Stay for the Mystery by Sara Driscoll
• California in Black and White by Terence Faherty
• A Different Perspective on Southern California by Earlene Fowler
• Los Angeles: City of Dreams by Lee Goldberg
• Kesey & Me by Chuck Greaves
• The Monkey in Venice by Russell Hill
• Wendy Stays Home by Wendy Hornsby
• L.A.’s Mr. Goodbar by Georgia Jeffries
• San Diego: Where Paradise and Crime Meet by Curtis Ippolito
• Sand, Surf, Murder by Sybil Johnson
• Changing Coast Changed My Life by John Lansing
• The OC, Baby by D. P. Lyle
• Like So Many Before Me by Larry Maness
• Mysteries of Southern California by T. Jefferson Parker
• You’re Right— That’s Exactly What Southern California is Like by Thomas Perry
• Finding Your Place When You’re Writing About Place by Eugenia Parrish
• Through a Lens Brightly by Gary Phillips
• Beach Noir by James Preston
• Beached by D. R. Ransdell
• Don’t Give Up the Day Job by Clive Rosengren
• That Screwy, Ballyhooey SoCal by Robert Rotstein
• Los Angeles: Boundless, Disturbing, Inspiring by Elizabeth Sims
• After-Hours by Lida Sideris
• If At First You Don’t Succeed… by Jennifer Slee
• Limitless Los Angeles by Patricia Smiley
• Location, Location, Location by Elena E. Smith
• Dwelling in the Southern Region of the Soul by David Unger
• Hollywood, My Exuberant Muse by Halley Sutton
• The Lair of the Bear by Duane Swierczynski
• Making a Reader Feel the Character of a Setting by Carl Vonderau
• What Do You Know? by Pamela Samuels Young
• Safe, Hope, and Always by Mark Zubro

COLUMNS

• Mystery in Retrospect: Reviews by Jay Gertzman, Aubrey Hamilton, Lesa Holstine, Dru Ann Love, Lucinda Surber, and Kristopher Zgorski
• Children’s Hour: Southern California Mysteries by Gay Toltl Kinman
• The Trunk Murderess by Cathy Pickens
• Crime Seen: Southern California Noir by Kate Derie
• From the Editor’s Desk by Janet A. Rudolph

***

Los Angeles Mysteries I

Buy the PDF version of this issue for only $5. All proceeds will be donated to World Central Kitchen and Pasadena Humane Society.

Volume 25, No. 2, Summer 2009

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• Angels in the Desert: The Landscape of Raymond Chandler by Kelli Stanley
• Harlem With Palm Trees: Jazz & Crime On Central Avenue by Nancy-Stephanie Stone
• Guardin’ Angels by Jim Doherty

AUTHOR! AUTHOR!

• L.A.—Where Anything Can Happen by Mark Bouton
• The Darker Side of Glittertown by P.A. Brown
• Tinseltown Meets Sin City by Bruce Cook, a.k.a. Brant Randall
• The Possibility City by Michael Craven
• L.A. in a Heartbeat by Robert Ellis
• My Los Angeles by Lee Goldberg
• I Love L.A. by Gemma Halliday
• Writing about Los Angeles by Wendy Hornsby
• A Drive Through the City by Gregg Hurwitz
• Los Angeles, Mysteries and Me by Linda O. Johnston
• An Evangelist and Other Tycoons by Ken Kuhlken
• If You Get Shorty, You’ll Get Me… Hollywood and Satire by Michael P. Naughton
• L.A., the Wacky Place by Kris Neri
• The Library of Los Angeles by Linda Reid
• A Journey into the Past by Linda L. Richards
• Dark Knights on the Boulevard… by Stephen Jay Schwartz
• A Notebook, a PT Cruiser, and a Week In L.A. by Elizabeth Sims
• I Heart Los Angeles by Kit Sloane
• Seventy-Two Suburbs in Search of a Murder by Robert Weibezahl
• London as My Los Angeles by Jeri Westerson

COLUMNS

• Mystery in Retrospect: Reviews by Randal Brandt, Lesa Holstine, and Verna Suit
• The Children’s Hour by Gay
  Toltl Kinman
• The Best of L.A.’s Real Mysteries by Cathy Pickens
• Letters to the Editor
• From the Editor’s Desk by Janet A. Rudolph

***

Los Angeles Mysteries II

Buy the PDF version of this issue for only $5. All proceeds will be donated to World Central Kitchen and Pasadena Humane Society.

Volume 25, No. 3, Fall 2009

Available as a downloadable PDF.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• Crime and Jazz in L.A. by Nancy-Stephanie Stone
• Ross Macdonald by Tobias Jones
• Guardin’ Angels – Part Two by Jim Doherty

AUTHOR! AUTHOR!

• Los Angeles Dreamland by Megan Abbott
• Killing Time in L.A. by Victor Banis
• Ross Macdonald: An Appreciation by Linwood Barclay
• Hollywood, Crime, and the Roman à Clef by Jack Bludis
• Los Angeles Chose Me by Kent Braithwaite
• Anthrax, the Angel City, and L.A. Noir by John Buntin
• Go Ahead and Laugh: I Love L.A. by Jan Burke
• Los Angeles and The Snatch by David Champion
• Hotline to Los Angeles by Alan Cook
• Creating the Hollywood Crime Novel by Shelly Frome
• Found In Translation: L.A. As Mystery Muse by Denise Hamilton
• Who Polices Los Angeles? by Gay Toltl Kinman
• A Novel Approach to the Truth by Robert S. Levinson
• Holy Death and Other Hollywood Mysteries by Harol Marshall
• Ross Macdonald: Where The Past Is Present by Tom Nolan
• Excavating Los Angeles by Gary Phillips
• Want a Makeover? L.A.’s the Place by Penny Rudolph
• Which L.A.? by Alexandra Sokoloff
• Crime Writer’s Paradise by Steven M. Thomas

COLUMNS

• In Short: L.A. by Marvin Lachman
• Just The Facts: The First Suicide Bomber by Jim Doherty
• At Home Online: Michael Connelly interviewed by Laurie R. King
• Mystery in Retrospect: Reviews by Lesa Holstine and Verna Suit
• From the Editor’s Desk by Janet A. Rudolph

CWA Cartier Diamond Dagger 2025

The British Crime Writers’ Association awarded the 2025 Cartier Diamond Dagger to Mick Herron. Congratulations, Mick!

Mick Herron is the author of the Slough House series and other mystery and thriller novels.

A CWA press release explains that this prize “recognises authors whose crime writing careers have been marked by sustained excellence, and who have made a significant contribution to the genre.” Herron is quoted as saying: “I’ve spent the best part of my life—not the majority of it; just the best part—in the crime writers’ community, and to receive this accolade from these friends and colleagues is both a career highlight and a personal joy. I’m touched and thrilled beyond measure, and will try to live up to the honour.” 

Past Diamond Dagger honorees include Ian Rankin, Lynda La Plante, Walter Mosley, Ann Cleeves, Andrew Taylor, Lindsey Davis, Michael Connelly, Val McDermid, and John le Carré.

HT: The Rap Sheet

Father Brown New Season

Father Brown, Series 12, was released today in the U.S. on BritBox. There will be weekly episodes of 45 minutes (ten episodes in Season 12). In other news,  there will be a Season 13 (2026). 

Season 12 will see Mark Williams return to the fan-favorite role, which he recently raved about saying: "The best thing about playing the character is that I am never, ever bored by him." 

Father Brown is a British period detective television series based on the iconic titular character, created by GK Chesterton who made the character popular with compelling short stories.

Returning alongside Mark Williams as Father Brown are Claudie Blakley as Mrs. Devine, Tom Chambers as Chief Inspector Sullivan, John Burton as Sergeant Goodfellow, Ruby-May Martinwood as Brenda, and John Light as Flambeau. 

I really miss Mrs McCarthy, Bundy, Lady Felicia Montague, and Sid Carter. The new characters just don't do it for me. What's your opinion?

Cartoon of the Day: Dogs

This is definitely my scenario with Reign at 5 p.m.!! 

 

MWA Edgar Allan Poe Award Nominations: Edgars 2025

Mystery Writers of America - 2025 Edgar Allan Poe Award Nominations

 

Mystery Writers of America announced the nominees for the 2025 Edgar Allan Poe Awards, honoring the best in mystery fiction, nonfiction and television published or produced in 2024. The 79^th Annual Edgar® Awards will be celebrated on May 1, 2025, at the New York Marriott Marquis Times Square.

 

BEST NOVEL

The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett (Penguin Random House – Random House Worlds/Del Rey

Rough Trade by Katrina Carrasco (Farrar, Straus and Giroux - MCD)
Things Don’t Break on Their Own by Sarah Easter Collins (Penguin Random House – Crown)
My Favorite Scar by Nicolás Ferraro (Soho Press – Soho Crime)

The God of the Woods by Liz Moore (Penguin Random House – Riverhead Books)

Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera (Macmillan Publishers – Celadon Books)

The In Crowd by Charlotte Vassell (Penguin Random House – Doubleday)

BEST FIRST NOVEL BY AN AMERICAN AUTHOR
 
Twice the Trouble by Ash Clifton (Crooked Lane Books)
Cold to the Touch by Kerri Hakoda (Crooked Lane Books)
The Mechanics of Memory by Audrey Lee (CamCat Books)
A Jewel in the Crown by David Lewis (Kensington Books – A John Scognamiglio Book)
The President’s Lawyer by Lawrence Robbins (Simon & Schuster – Atria Books)

Holy City by Henry Wise (Grove Atlantic – Atlantic Monthly Press)

BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL
 
The Paris Widow by Kimberly Belle (Harlequin Trade Publishing – Park Row Books)

The Vacancy in Room 10 by Seraphina Nova Glass (Harlequin Trade Publishing – Graydon House)

Shell Games by Bonnie Kistler (HarperCollins – Harper Paperbacks)

A Forgotten Kill by Isabella Maldonado (Amazon Publishing – Thomas & Mercer)

The Road to Heaven by Alexis Stefanovich-Thomson (Dundurn Press Ltd.)

 

BEST FACT CRIME

Long Haul: Hunting the Highway Serial Killers by Frank Figliuzzi (HarperCollins – Mariner Books)
The Infernal Machine: A True Story of Dynamite, Terror, and the Rise of the Modern Detective by Steven Johnson (Penguin Random House – Crown)

A Devil Went Down to Georgia: Race, Power, Privilege, and the Murder of Lita McClinton by Deb Miller Landau (Pegasus Books – Pegasus Crime)

The Amish Wife: Unraveling the Lies, Secrets, and Conspiracy that Let a Killer Go Free by Gregg Olsen (Amazon Publishing – Thomas & Mercer)

Hell Put to Shame: The 1921 Murder Farm Massacre and the Horror of America's Second Slavery by Earl Swift (HarperCollins – Mariner Books)

The Bishop and the Butterfly: Murder, Politics, and the End of the Jazz Age by Michael Wolraich (Union Square & Co.)

 

BEST CRITICAL/BIOGRAPHICAL
 
James Sallis: A Companion to the Mystery Fiction by Nathan Ashman (McFarland Publishing)

American Noir Film: From The Maltese Falcon to Gone Girl by M. Keith Booker (Rowman & Littlefield Publishers)

Organized Crime on Page and Screen: Portrayals in Hit Novels, Films, and Television Shows by David Geherin (McFarland Publishing)

On Edge: Gender and Genre in the Work of Shirley Jackson, Patricia Highsmith, and Leigh Brackett by Ashley Lawson (The Ohio State University Press)

Ian Fleming; The Complete Man by Nicholas Shakespeare (HarperCollins – Harper)
 
 BEST SHORT STORY

“Cut and Thirst,” Amazon Original Stories by Margaret Atwood (Amazon Publishing)
“Everywhere You Look,” Amazon Original Stories by Liv Constantine (Amazon Publishing)
“Eat My Moose,” Conjunctions: 82, Works & Days by Erika Krouse (Bard College)
“Barriers to Entry,” Amazon Original Stories by Ariel Lawhon (Amazon Publishing)

“The Art of Cruel Embroidery,” Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine – July-August 2024 by Steven Sheil (Dell Magazine)

BEST JUVENILE

The Beanstalk Murder by P.G. Bell (Macmillan Publishers – Feiwel & Friends)

Mystery of Mystic Mountain by Janet Fox (Simon & Schuster BFYR)
Mysteries of Trash and Treasure: The Stolen Key by Margaret Peterson Haddix (HarperCollins – Quill Tree Books)

The Spindle of Fate by Aimee Lim (Macmillan Publishers – Feiwel & Friends)
Find Her by Ginger Reno (Holiday House)
 
BEST YOUNG ADULT
 
Looking for Smoke by K.A. Cobell (HarperCollins – Heartdrum)
The Bitter End by Alexa Donne (Random House Books for Young Readers)
A Crane Among Wolves by June Hur (Macmillan Publishers – Feiwel & Friends)
Death at Morning House by Maureen Johnson (HarperCollins Publishers – Harper Teen)
49 Miles Alone by Natalie D. Richards (Sourcebooks – Sourcebooks Fire)

BEST TELEVISION EPISODE TELEPLAY

“Episode Five” – Rebus, Written by Gregory Burke (Viaplay)
“Episode One” – Monsieur Spade, Written by Tom Fontana & Scott Frank (AMC)
“Episode One” – Moonflower Murders, Written by Anthony Horowitz (Masterpiece PBS)
“Mirror” – Murderesses, Written by Wiktor Piatkowski, Joanna Kozłowska, Katarzyna Kaczmarek (Viaplay)
“Episode Two” – The Marlow Murder Club, Written by Robert Thorogood (Masterpiece PBS)

 
* * * 

 

OTHER AWARDS

  

ROBERT L. FISH MEMORIAL AWARD – Endowed by the family of Robert L. Fish.

“The Legend of Penny and the Luck of the Draw Casino,” Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, May-June 2024 by Pat Gaudet (Dell Magazines)

“Head Start,” Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, September-October 2024 by Kai Lovelace (Dell Magazines)

“Murder Under Sedation,” Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, March-April 2024 by Lawrence Ong (Dell Magazines)

“The Jews on Elm Street,” Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, September-October 2024 by Anna Stolley Persky (Dell Magazines)

“Sparrow Maker,” Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, November-December 2024 by Jake Stein (Dell Magazines)

 

THE SIMON & SCHUSTER MARY HIGGINS CLARK AWARD – Presented on behalf of Simon & Schuster.
 
The Rose Arbor by Rhys Bowen (Amazon Publishing – Lake Union)

The Serial Killer Guide to San Francisco by Michelle Chouinard (Macmillan Publishers – Minotaur Books)
The Mystery Writer by Sulari Gentill (Sourcebooks – Poisoned Pen Press)
Return to Wyldcliffe Heights by Carol Goodman (HarperCollins – William Morrow Paperbacks)
Death in the Details by Katie Tietjen (Crooked Lane Books)
 

THE G.P. PUTNAM’S SONS SUE GRAFTON MEMORIAL AWARD – Presented on behalf of G.P. Putnam’s Sons.
 
Disturbing the Dead by Kelley Armstrong (Macmillan Publishers – Minotaur Books)

A Game of Lies by Clare Mackintosh (Sourcebooks – Sourcebooks Landmark)

Proof by Beverly McLachlin (Simon & Schuster Canada – Simon & Schuster)

A World of Hurt by Mindy Mejia (Grove Atlantic – Atlantic Monthly Press)

All the Way Gone by Joanna Schaffhausen (Macmillan Publishers – Minotaur Books)

The Comfort of Ghosts by Jacqueline Winspear (Soho Press – Soho Crime)

 

THE LILIAN JACKSON BRAUN MEMORIAL AWARD – Endowed by the estate of Lilian Jackson Braun.

 

The Murders in Great Diddling by Katarina Bivald (Sourcebooks – Poisoned Pen Press)

Death and Fromage by Ian Moore (Sourcebooks – Poisoned Pen Press)

Booked for Murder by P.J. Nelson (Macmillan Publishers – Minotaur Books)

Murder on Devil’s Pond by Ayla Rose (Crooked Lane Books)

The Treasure Hunters Club by Tom Ryan (Grove Atlantic – Atlantic Monthly Press)

 

SPECIAL AWARDS

PREVIOUSLY ANNOUNCED ON JANUARY 15, 2025 

GRAND MASTER

 

Laura Lippman

John Sandford

 

RAVEN AWARD

 

Face in a Book Bookstore & Gifts, El Dorado Hills, CA

 

ELLERY QUEEN AWARD

 

Peter Wolverton, St. Martin’s Press

 

 

* * * * * *

The Edgar Awards, or "Edgars," as they are commonly known, are named after MWA’s patron saint Edgar Allan Poe and are presented to authors of distinguished work in various categories. MWA is the premier organization for mystery writers, professionals allied to the crime-writing field, aspiring crime writers, and those who are devoted to the genre. The organization encompasses some 3,000 members including authors of fiction and non-fiction books, screen and television writers, as well as publishers, editors, and literary agents.

  

Cartoon of the Day: Behind Every Great Writer

 

McDonald & Dodds News!

I can't believe it! McDonald and Dodds, one of my favorite mystery shows, has been cancelled after only four (short) seasons! This popular (yes!!) series starred Jason Watkins as DS Dodds and Tala Gouveia as DCI Lauren McDonald. ITV has cancelled the show due to falling ratings. Fans, me included, are devastated. The show aired on BritBox in the U.S. 

McDonald & Dodds is set in Bath, England. It's about a pair of unlikely cops thrown together. They have built a great relationship and crime solving success. It's clever and fun!

Fans are not taking this lying down. A petition has been started at Change.org. 

"ITV says the show just doesn't have the viewers. Let's show them who's watching! If ITV won't have it back, some other platform. If it worked for Shakespeare & Hathaway, it could work for M&D!"

What do you think?

10 WEIRD THINGS ABOUT EDGAR ALLAN POE: Happy Birthday, Edgar!

Happy Birthday, Edgar Allan Poe, born January 19, 1809

For all the Poe-aholics out there comes this wonderful post from Matthew Mercier at the Tor website.    

10 Weird Things about Edgar Allan Poe.  Check them all out, including #1-his love of cats.

He loved Cats. Really.
Contrary to the famous and nasty depiction of a man gouging the eye of a poor feline in “The Black Cat,” Poe adored animals. His own kitty’s name was Catterina.

So raise a glass of Absinthe.. Nevermore..

Cartoon of the Day: Cats

 Happy Caturday!

SHAKESPEARE & HATHAWAY NEWS

I mentioned this when I first saw it in September, but the fun British mystery show Shakespeare & Hathaway has begun (maybe finished?) filming a new season. It's been three years since Season 4. Now it's back--and I'm pretty sure by popular demand! 

Jo Joyner and Mark Benton reprise their roles for series 5 of Shakespeare & Hathaway, alongside Patrick Walshe McBride (my favorite!), who plays aspiring actor and understudy Sebastian Brudenell. Filming is underway in the streets of Stratford-Upon-Avon. 

Shakespeare & Hathaway started 7 years ago, and there have been 4 seasons and 40 episodes. The show features ex-Detective Inspector Frank Hathaway turned private investigator who meets ex-hairdresser Luella Shakespeare when she employs him to investigate the fiancé she met online. Together they form a private detective agency. 

Series 5 of Shakespeare & Hathaway will premiere on UKTV’s specialist crime drama channel, Alibi, shortly with a later launch on the BBC and iPlayer. U.S. airing? No news, but the first four seasons are available on BritBox, so possibly Shakespeare & Hathaway, Season 5,  will air on Britbox later this year. Stay tuned!!

Cartoon of the Day: Movies

 

AUTHORS FOR LA

From Daniel Palmer: 

Ok, Authors...the time has come. It has been quite an undertaking to put together a live charity auction in such a short period, but with the help of many, we've got all the pieces in place. The American Red Cross has signed on as our charity because they LOVE authors, and together, we can make a difference in the lives of those who have lost so much. Here's how to start helping. 

1. PLEASE VISIT the Authors for LA Facebook Page, and our ONLINE DONATION form and register for a donation: 

https://docs.google.com/.../1FAIpQLSfBZGokGVsE1O.../viewform 

2. Please share the donation form link with ANY author you think will want to help, and like and share the Authors4LA FB page. Tag authors...HELP US SPREAD THE WORD. 

We will host a live simulcast with our celebrity authors and other special guests on Wednesday, January 22, from 6PM-10PM EST. Stay tuned for the schedule of appearances. 

Any questions please email: admin@authorsforLA.com 

IF YOU TRULY WANT TO HELP...PLEASE FILL OUT THE DONATION FORM, GIVE GENEROUSLY so people will want to bid and bid high for your great work, AND SHARE, SHARE, SHARE to show that you CARE! 🙂 

Thanks for your amazing support! Let's do this! #bettertogether 

https://authorsforla.com/

Cartoon of the Day: Password Crossword Puzzle

 

MWA 2025 Grand Masters, Raven, & Ellery Queen Award Recipients

Mystery Writers of America (MWA) announced the recipients of its special awards. 

2025 Grand Masters: Laura Lippman and John Sandford 

2025 Raven Award: Face in a Book Bookstore & Gifts

2025 Ellery Queen Award: Peter Wolverton of St. Martin’s Publishing Group 

They will accept their awards at the 79th Annual Edgar Awards Ceremony, which will be held May 1, 2025, at the Marriott Marquis Times Square in New York City.

MWA’s Grand Master Award represents the pinnacle of achievement in mystery writing and was established to acknowledge important contributions to this genre, as well as for a body of work that is both significant and of consistent high quality. 

The Raven Award recognizes outstanding achievement in the mystery field outside the realm of creative writing. 

The Ellery Queen Award was established in 1983 to honor “outstanding writing teams and outstanding people in the mystery-publishing industry.” 

Cartoon of the Day

 

Cartoon of the Day: The Copycat Killer's Last Meal

From Rhymes with Orange:

 

THE LEFTY AWARD NOMINEES: 2025 Left Coast Crime

The Lefty Awards will be voted on at Left Coast Crime 2025 and presented at a banquet on Saturday, March 15, at the Westin Denver Downtown. Congratulations to all! 

Lefty Nominees for Best Humorous Mystery Novel

• Ellen Byron, A Very Woodsy Murder (Kensington Books)

• Jennifer J. Chow, Ill-Fated Fortune (St. Martin’s Paperbacks)

• A.J. Devlin, Bronco Buster (NeWest Press)

• Catriona McPherson, Scotzilla (Severn House)

• Rob Osler, Cirque du Slay (Crooked Lane Books)

• Richard Osman, We Solve Murders (Pamela Dorman Books / Viking)

Lefty Nominees for Best Historical Mystery Novel
(Bill Gottfried Memorial) for books covering events before 1970

• John Copenhaver, Hall of Mirrors (Pegasus Crime)

• Robert Dugoni, A Killing on the Hill (Thomas & Mercer)

• Dianne Freeman, An Art Lover’s Guide to Paris and Murder (Kensington Books)

• Laurie R. King, The Lantern’s Dance (Bantam Books)

• Laura Jensen Walker, Death of a Flying Nightingale (Level Best Books / Historia)

Lefty Nominees for Best Debut Mystery Novel

• Peter Malone Elliott, Blue Ridge (Level Best Books)

• Cindy Goyette, Obey All Laws (Level Best Books)

• Audrey Lee, The Mechanics of Memory (CamCat Books)

• Jennifer K. Morita, Ghosts of Waikiki (Crooked Lane Books)

• K.T. Nguyen, You Know What You Did (Dutton)

Lefty Nominees for Best Mystery Novel
(not in other categories)

• Claire Booth, Home Fires (Severn House)

• Margot Douaihy, Blessed Water (Zando, Gillian Flynn Books)

• Rob Hart, Assassins Anonymous (G.P. Putnam’s Sons)

• Leslie Karst, Molten Death (Severn House)

• James L’Etoile, Served Cold (Level Best Books)

• Duane Swierczynski, California Bear (Mulholland Books)