LAMBDA LITERARY AWARD NOMINEES

The Lambda Literary Foundation announced its finalists for the 26th annual Lambda Literary Awards (“Lammys”), honoring lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) books published in 2013. Winners will be announced on  June 2, 2014.

There are many categories, but here are the ones of interest to Mystery Fanfare:

Gay Mystery:
Baton Rouge Bingo by Greg Herren (Bold Strokes Books)
Boystown 5: Murder Book by Marshall Thornton (MLR Press)
Fierce by David Lennon (Blue Spike)
Foxed by Garry Ryan (NeWest Press)
The General and the Elephant Clock of Al-Jazari by Sarah Black (Dreamspinner Press)
How to Greet Strangers by Joyce Thompson (Lethe Press)
In Real Life by Jonathan Gregory (Amazon Digital)
Pawn of Satan by Mark Zubro (MLR Press)
Pretty Boy Dead by Jon Michaelsen (Wilde City Press)
The Prisoner of the Riviera by Janice Law (Mysterious Press/ Open Road)

Lesbian Mystery: 
Cross and Burn by Val McDermid (Atlantic Monthly Press)
Death of the Demon by Anne Holt (Scribner)
High Desert by Katherine V. Forrest (Spinsters Ink)
The Killer Wore Leather by Laura Antoniou (Cleis Press)
Point of Betrayal by Ann Roberts (Bella)
The Rainey Season by R.E. Bradshaw (R.E. Bradshaw)
She Overheard Murder by Jean Sheldon (Wellworth)
Taken by the Wind by Ellen Hart (Minotaur)
Turning on the Tide by Jenna Rae (Bella)
Web of Obsessions by Diane Wood (Bella)
The Wild Beasts of Wuhan by Ian Hamilton (Picador)

HT: The Rap Sheet

Pinckley Prizes for Crime Fiction

Laura Lippman and Gwen Florio are the recipients of the inaugural Pinckley Prizes for Crime Fiction, named to honor the memory of Diana Pinckley, longtime crime fiction columnist for The New Orleans Times-Picayune.

The prizes will be presented March 22, 2014, at the 28th annual Tennessee Williams/New Orleans Literary Festival. The presentation will take place at the historic Beauregard-Keyes House at 5 p.m.

The Prizes are presented by the Women’s National Book Association of New Orleans, of which Diana Pinckley was a founding member.

Exercise for the Reader: T-Shirt

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2014 Petrona Award: Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year

The 2014 Petrona Award for the Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year

The shortlist for the 2014 award, is as follows:

CLOSED FOR WINTER by Jørn Lier Horst tr. Anne Bruce (Sandstone Press)
STRANGE SHORES by Arnaldur Indriðason tr. Victoria Cribb (Harvill Secker)
THE WEEPING GIRL by Håkan Nesser tr. Laurie Thompson (Mantle)
LINDA, AS IN THE LINDA MURDER by Leif G W Persson tr. Neil Smith (Doubleday)
SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER ME by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir tr. Philip Roughton (Hodder & Stoughton)
LIGHT IN A DARK HOUSE by Jan Costin Wagner tr. Anthea Bell (Harvill Secker)

The winning title will be announced at the annual international crime fiction event CrimeFest, held in Bristol 15-18 May 2014. The winning author's prize will include a full pass to and a guaranteed panel at the 2015 CrimeFest.

The judges are:

Barry Forshaw – Writer and journalist specializing in crime fiction and film; author of four books covering Scandinavian crime fiction: NORDIC NOIR, DEATH IN A COLD CLIMATE, EURO NOIR and the first biography of Stieg Larsson.
Dr. Katharina Hall – Associate Professor of German at Swansea University; currently editing CRIME FICTION IN GERMAN for University of Wales Press; international crime fiction reviewer/blogger at MRS. PEABODY INVESTIGATES.
Sarah Ward – Online crime fiction reviewer and blogger at CRIMEPIECES; English language teacher based in Manchester.

The award is open to crime fiction in translation, either written by a Scandinavian author or set in Scandinavia and published in the UK in the previous calendar year.

More information can be found on the Petrona Award website (http://www.petronaaward.co.uk).

Cartoon of the Day: Writer

From the Archives:

Aimée Thurlo: R.I.P.

Just learned from Sara Sue Hoklotubbe that Aimee Thurlo has passed away from cancer. My heart and sympathy goes out to David, family, and friends.

From Aimee's editor at Harlequin, Denise Zaza:

Aimée Thurlo was an internationally known bestselling author of mystery and romantic suspense novels. She was the winner of a Career Achievement Award from RT Book Reviews, a New Mexico Book Award in contemporary fiction and a Willa Cather Award in the same category.

Aimée was born in Havana, Cuba, and lived with her husband and writing partner David in Corrales, New Mexico, in a rural neighborhood filled with horses, alpacas, camels and other assorted livestock. David, was raised on the Navajo Indian Nation. His background and cultural knowledge inspired many of the Aimee Thurlo stories for Harlequin Intrigue.

We at Harlequin Books are saddened by the loss of Aimee and collectively we send our deepest condolences to David. Aimee was a genuine and lovely woman who we, along with her many fans, will miss greatly.

Aimee Thurlo's last book for Intrigue will be published in late 2014, The title is EAGLE’S LAST STAND.

**
David and Aimee Thurlo have, together and separately, written more than seventy novels in a variety of genres. The Thurlos writing career began when Aimee was inspired to write a novel while David was teaching middle school. She sat down with legal pad and pencil, began a romantic intrigue, and soon found David looking over her shoulder whenever class was out. They quickly discovered that they could write with one voice, and their combined efforts resulted in books characterized by the unique stamp that defined their partnership in life and work.

In addition to many romantic suspense novels, the Thurlos have written three different mystery series, each featuring a very different primary investigator. In the Sister Agatha series, mysteries are solved by a nun; the Lee Nez series features a partnership between a Navajo vampire and an FBI agent. Their flagship series of Ella Clah police procedurals is set on the Navajo Reservation; Ella Clah is a Special Investigator for the Navajo Police Department.

The Thurlos have sold over one million Harlequins to date, and their novels have been translated and sold worldwide in more than 18 countries. The Thurlos have received the Romantic Times Career Achievement Award, a Willa Cather Award for Contemporary Fiction, and the New Mexico Book Award for Mystery and Suspense. Their Lee Nez vampire series has been optioned by a Hollywood production company.