The Australian Crime Writers Association announced the 2026 Ned Kelly Awards Shortlist for Best Crime Fiction. The Australian Crime Writers Association recognizes and celebrates the achievements and continuing strength of Australian authors. Stay tuned for other category shortlists.
Lyrebird by Jane Caro
The Other Child by Susi Fox
Mad Mabel by Sally Hepworth
The Ghost Walk by Karen Herbert
Fire in the Head by Daniel Oakman
The White Crow by Michael Robotham
The Casino by Iain Ryan
⭐️: very good. ⭐️⭐️: worth a detour. ⭐️⭐️⭐️: worth the entire journey.
I've always loved the Michelin brothers’ idea of exploring and describing fine food — the unnamed observer, moving through a bistro unnoticed, tasting, assembling an opinion. It's basically a detective novel with a wine pairing.
Just as my character Pascal d’Onscon develops his skills as a connoisseur as he investigates wine fraud in the Bennett Sisters Mystery series, the general public, that is you —consumer, cook, gourmand — are an arbiter of something we all love: food. Some of us love it more than others. Some of us have finely-calibrated taste buds. Some of us don’t. Still we all eat.
The cuisine of France in particular, if you are French or a French tourist or just a lover of memorable meals, is something we can agree on: it’s marvelous. How do you rate food? Very satisfying, stimulating, surprising? Do you simply enjoy the taste, the texture, the flavors? One star? Three stars? Forget about stars?
My main character Merle Bennett contends that food tastes better in France and I must agree. Is it the expectation of something uniquely mouth-watering? Is it because we’re on vacation and have time to savor a meal? Is it because of the dedication of the chef and her demand for the freshest ingredients and the perfect presentation? Is it the wine, so well-matched?
Can we reproduce this mysterious wonder at home, ourselves? Reader, we can try.
Back in 1900, the brothers published their little free guide for French motorists — tire tips, gas stations, and a handful of places to eat along the way. Nobody involved was thinking about gastronomy. They were just hoping the automobile would catch on so they could sell tires.
Today the guide remains an essential handbook for foodies and a boon to chefs all over the world hungry for recognition. In the beginning was France. Because the guide began as literal road infrastructure — maps, fuel stops and more — French gastronomy got linked to travel. Eating well was folded into the idea of discovering France by car, which is part of why the guide leans heavily on region and provenance.
When I sat down to put together this new, expanded cookbook alongside the Bennett Sisters mysteries, I couldn't resist borrowing that structure. This isn't a guide in the Michelin sense — no inspectors, no stars, nothing official about it. But the spirit felt right for a series built on sisters, secrets, and travel around the French countryside: recipes worth a detour, dishes worth the whole trip, even if you only read about France. You can taste it, eat it, enjoy it, anywhere.
Many of the recipes in the new cookbook, updated to over 50 recipes, are grounded in Southwest France. That’s where Merle and Pascal make their homes and cook their ways through now 22 mysteries. Here you’ll find regional delights such as aligot, a creamy, cheesy potato dish served for centuries to pilgrims on their way to the Camino Santiago in Spain. They needed something warm and hearty to get them over the Averyon mountains. Or cassoulet with sausage and duck legs, never a bad choice anywhere but a specialty of Toulouse. Or magret de canard (duck breast) with raspberry coulis, a contender for favorite ever. You’ll find some of our Frenchman Pascal’s favorites: le tourin d'ail doux — creamy garlic soup, coq au vin like his grandmother’s, and learn about his favorite wine.
One reason I love this region is the abundance of specific food products that help define the Aquitaine: truffles, foie gras, duck in all its glory. Bold Bordeaux wine. Sunny Sancerres. Even a side journey into Provence, as the Bennett Sisters have done, for the perfect rosé.
Eight years ago I released the smaller (25 recipe) edition, inspired by the cuisine in the first of the mysteries. I am still giving that ebook away to readers who sign up for my newsletter. But there were only seven books in the series then. This second edition claims the 23 spot with many more photographs and a wider variety of recipes, available in e-book, paperback, and hardcover. (The hardcover has a color interior.) Thank you to so many lovely readers who asked for more stories.
Here is a bonus recipe, Raspberry Rosé Sorbet, a perfect end-of-summer dessert. I made this recently for my grandchildren with zero-alcohol rosé as requested by the 11 year old. (I’m pretty sure however the alcohol cooks off.) I used my own raspberries from the backyard, supplemented with some frozen ones from the grocery to make this very red deliciousness.
Raspberry Rosé Sorbet
It’s no mystery! Just berries, wine, and sugar.
2 cups dry rosé (Côtes de Provence is always a winner; nonalcoholic— Giesen from New Zealand is a favorite— works too)
2/3 cup granulated sugar
3 cups raspberries, fresh, frozen, or a mix
In a saucepan mix the wine and the sugar, bring to a boil and stir to dissolve. Remove from the heat and add the raspberries and stir.
When the mixture is cool, process it in a blender (preferably) or a food processor (a bit messy). You can then, optionally, press through a mesh strainer or food mill to remove the seeds.
NOTE: I love a little chocolate with any raspberry dish. A handful of dark chocolate chips perhaps! ⭐️: very good. Bon appetit.
To receive her newsletter sign up at https://www.subscribepage.com/lise-landing
Finalists for all the 2026 categories - Best Novel, Best First Novel, and Best Kids/YA - will be announced later in Spring (Fall in the Northern Hemisphere).
Mystery Readers Journal: (42:3) Cross-Genre Mysteries
Have a question? Send me an email at: Janet @ mystery readers.org
We had a past issue on Cross-Genre Mysteries in 1999: (Volume 15: No. 1). Available as a PDF. Check out the Table of Contents
Working on a few writing projects simultaneously has become second nature to me. When it comes to juggling projects, I love it. I seek it out. I crave it.
What I have to be careful of is not to take on too many projects at one time. The good news for me is that I’m also a finisher. I don’t tend to start projects and leave them dangling. I seek completion and to productize results. I also edit like mad but after maybe a dozen rounds of serious editing for each chapter, I’ll call it a day, hire a reasonably priced professional proofreader at least before I make the very final edits. For short stories, I rely on myself for editing and get feedback on my work from a weekly writers’ critique group and from a small group of trusted beta readers.
Should a writer focus on one project at a time or have 2-3 of them simultaneously in process?
The answer depends on personal style, how the individual writer prefers to work. The advantage of having at least a couple of projects going at a given time is that when you’re working on a big project (like a full-length novel or memoir), you can take a break, divert your attention and craft a short story (maybe in a completely different genre) or even write a poem or a personal essay. This foray into another arena may serve to stimulate your creativity and imagination on the bigger project. It does exactly that for me.
Putting energy into the second, smaller project frees my mind, and refreshes my writing. And often, the secondary project turns out to be a well-received high-quality product. When I get back to my bigger project (the novel or memoir) I’m more inventive and considerably more focused than when I left it.
Some authors work on multiple full -blown novels at one time. Danielle Steel sometimes had five books in progress at once. There are many other well-known authors doing the same. Kristin Harmel definitely cranks out a myriad of amazing novels each year. That would likely be overload for me because having to track so many complex plots and characters in my head at a given time may not produce my best work. Perhaps I’m under-rating myself here. In reality, I have written close to 60 short stories in the past 18 months while writing my memoir and also do a weekly blog for developing writers. So, I definitely mix it up! It’s fun and feels like my personal playground.
Along my writer’s journey, I’ve collected some tips for managing simultaneous writing projects:
An over-riding perk to having multiple projects going at the same time is that you will undoubtedly build your writing portfolio. Because I have ventured outside my comfort zone, I now have a diverse published body of work.
Of course, there are days when I work on only one project. I give it my undivided focus often because I am at a critical stage in the work.
Many authors also have day jobs and/or young children who depend on them so they must do conscious planning and management of their available time to write. I am a Human Resources consultant and teach classes on the subject so I am balancing those work tasks with my writing.
Most important, I need to take care of myself. There’s more to my life than writing stories but I know that writing makes me happy and feeds the creative soul inside me.
***
Happy Caturday!
Authors & their Cats: Chester Himes
2025 - Lucinda Surber and Stan Ulrich
2024 - Crime Writers of Color
2023 - Sara Paretsky
2022 - Les and Leslie Blatt
2021 – Janet Rudolph
2020 – Al Abramson
2019 – Don and Jenn Longmuir
2018 – Lesa Holstine
2017 – George Easter
2016 – Otto Penzler
2015 – Bill and Toby Gottfried
2014 – Judy Bobalik
2013 – Marv Lachman
2012 – Len and June Moffatt
2011 – Ali Karim
