2023 Ngaio Marsh Awards Finalists: New Zealand Crime Writers

“When we first launched New Zealand’s own annual prizes for crime, mystery, and thriller writing in 2010, we modelled our Ngaio Marsh Awards on the Hammett Prize in North America, which celebrates literary excellence in crime writing,” says Ngaio Marsh Awards founder Craig Sisterson. “The Ngaios have never been solely about detective fiction; instead highlighting and celebrating outstanding Kiwi storytellers whose tales, fictional and factual, explore the investigation of crime or the impact or effects of crime on people and society.” 

Finalists for the 2023 Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Non-Fiction

        •     A NEW DAWN by Emeli Sione (Mila’s Books)

• •     THE DEVIL YOU KNOW by Dr Gwen Adshead & Eileen Horne (Faber)
  •     DOWNFALL: THE DESTRUCTION OF CHARLES MACKAY by Paul Diamond (Massey University Press)
  •     THE FIX by Scott Bainbridge (Bateman Books)
  •     MISSING PERSONS by Steve Braunias (HarperCollins)

Finalists for the 2023 Ngaio Marsh Award for Best First Novel

•     ONE HEART ONE SPADE by Alistair Luke

•     TOO FAR FROM ANTIBES by Bede Scott (Penguin SEA)

•     BETTER THE BLOOD by Michael Bennett (Simon & Schuster)

•     SURVEILLANCE by Riley Chance (CopyPress Books)

•     THE SLOW ROLL by Simon Lendrum (Upstart Press)

•     PAPER CAGE by Tom Baragwanath (Text Publishing)

Finalists for the 2023 Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Novel

•     EXIT .45 by Ben Sanders (Allen & Unwin)

•     BLUE HOTEL by Chad Taylor (Brio Books)

•     REMEMBER ME by Charity Norman (Allen & Unwin)

•     THE DOCTOR’S WIFE by Fiona Sussman (Bateman Books)

•     BETTER THE BLOOD by Michael Bennett (Simon & Schuster)

•     BLOOD MATTERS by Renée (The Cuba Press)

•     THE SLOW ROLL by Simon Lendrum (Upstart Press)

The winners of the 2023 Ngaio Marsh Awards will be announced at a special event held in association with WORD Christchurch in Spring (Fall in the Northern hemisphere), details and date to be confirmed soon.

For more information on any or all of our 2023 Ngaio Marsh Awards finalists, or the Ngaios in general, please contact ngaiomarshaward@gmail.com, or founder Craig Sisterson, craigsisterson@hotmail.com     

Happy Book Lovers Day!

Cartoon of the Day: Book Banning

 

ONLY MURDERS IN THE BUILDING, Season 3, starts today on Hulu!

Only Murders in the Building, Season 3, starts today. I'm so excited. Unfortunately they are only dropping two episodes today and then only one episode a week! There will be 10 episodes. I may have to wait and binge. We'll see if I have the willpower.

Only Murders in the Building is a unique show with quirky story lines, great performances, and an amazing cast. The past two seasons have included wonderful actors such as Tina Fey, Jane Lynch, Sting, and Amy Schumer.  This season, Meryl Streep and Paul Rudd join the returning trio of Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez. And there will be other surprise performances .. not to mention storyline!

2023 PETRONA AWARD LONGLIST: Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year

OUTSTANDING CRIME FICTION FROM DENMARK, FINLAND, ICELAND, NORWAY, SWEDEN, AND SWITZERLAND 

2023 PETRONA AWARD LONGLIST

 
Twelve crime novels from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland have made the longlist for the 2023 Petrona Award for the Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year. The shortlist will be announced on 7 September 2023.


Jussi Adler-Olsen - The Shadow Murders tr. William Frost  (Denmark, Quercus) 
Lina Areklew - Death in Summer tr. Tara F Chace (Sweden, Canelo Crime)
Kjell Ola Dahl - Little Drummer tr. Don Bartlett (Norway,  Orenda Books)
Pascal Engman -  Femicide tr. Michael Gallagher (Sweden, Legend Press)
Anne Mette Hancock - The Corpse Flower tr. Tara F Chace (Denmark, Swift Press)
Susanne Jansson - Winter Water tr. Rachel Willson-Broyles (Sweden, Hodder & Stoughton)
Håkan  Nesser - The Axe Woman tr. Sarah Death (Sweden, Mantle)
Petra Rautiainen - Land of Snow and Ashes tr. David Hackston (Finland, Pushkin Press)
Joachim B Schmidt -  Kalmann tr. Jamie Lee Searle (Switzerland, Bitter Lemon Press)
Lilja Sigurðardóttir - Red as Blood tr. Quentin Bates (Iceland, Orenda Books)
Gustaf Skördeman - Codename Faust tr. Ian Giles (Sweden, Zaffre)
Gunnar Staalesen - Bitter Flowers tr. Don Bartlett (Norway, Orenda Books)

***

 
The Petrona Award 2023 judging panel comprises Jackie Farrant, the creator of RAVEN CRIME READS and a bookseller/Area Commercial Support for a major book chain in the UK; Miriam Owen, founder of the NORDIC NOIR blog, passionate about the arts, she moderates author panels and provides support at crime fiction festivals, and Ewa Sherman, translator and writer, and blogger at NORDIC LIGHTHOUSE. The Award administrator is Karen Meek, owner of the EURO CRIME blog and website.
 

***

 
The Petrona Award was established to celebrate the work of Maxine Clarke, one of the first online crime fiction reviewers and bloggers, who died in December 2012. Maxine, whose online persona and blog was called Petrona, was passionate about translated crime fiction but in particular that from the Scandinavian countries. 
 
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.

HITCHCON '23: International Alfred Hitchcock Conference

HITCHCON '23: HITCHCOCK UNBOUND Reimagining the Art of the Story 

October 7 & 8, 2023 

Online & In person at Mercy College, Dobbs Ferry Campus, Dobbs Ferry, NY (and online!) 

To Register: https://www.hitchcon.org/

HITCHCOCK UNBOUND: Reimagining the Art of the Story 

No one knew better than Alfred Hitchcock when to obey the rules of cinema and when to smash them to bits. HitchCon ‘23 will explore the ways in which he pushed the boundaries of his craft, thrilling audiences and blazing new trails for storytellers today. Get ready to unbind your mind with groundbreaking critical insights and inspiration to improve your own creative skills! Special film screening 2023 marks the 80th anniversary of Shadow of a Doubt (1943). To celebrate,  there will be a screening of this iconic film, followed by the legendary “ice-box conversation” known to go late into the night. 

TRAVEL AND ACCOMMODATIONS 

HitchCon will be hosted in-person at: 

Mercy College, Dobbs Ferry Campus 555 Broadway Dobbs Ferry, NY 10522

A SIMULCAST EVENT 

Same activities, two ways to go 

Attend via online webinar or in person at Mercy College on the banks of the Hudson River, 45 minutes from New York City. 

Rub elbows with your favorite authors, filmmakers, artists, fans and, of course, the world's leading Hitchcock scholars for a weekend of: 

Talks & panels 

Film screenings 

Breakout groups 

Social events & networking—in person & online 

STELLAR LINEUPHitchCon ‘23 Keynote Speakers