Mystery Writers of America (of whom I am a member) has announced the nominees for the 2024 Edgar Allan Poe Awards (the Edgars). The awards honor the best in mystery fiction, nonfiction, ands television produced in 2023. In other words, if you’re looking for a new mystery, this is a great list to start with.
The winners will be announced on May 1, 2024, at the New York Marriott Marquis Times Square.
Best Novel
Flags on the Bayou by James Lee Burke (Grove Atlantic – Atlantic Monthly Press)
All the Sinners Bleed by S. A. Cosby (Flatiron Books)
The Madwomen of Paris by Jennifer Cody Epstein (Penguin Random House – Ballantine Books)
Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll (Simon & Schuster – Simon Element – Marysue Rucci Books)
An Honest Man by Michael Koryta (Hachette Book Group – Little, Brown and Company – Mulholland Books)
The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger (Simon & Schuster – Atria Books)
Crook Manifesto by Colson Whitehead (Penguin Random House – Doubleday)
Best Novel by an American Author
The Peacock and the Sparrow by I.S. Berry (Simon & Schuster – Atria Books)
The Golden Gate by Amy Chua (Macmillan Publishing – Minotaur Books)
Small Town Sins by Ken Jaworowski (Macmillan Publishing – Henry Holt and Co.)
The Last Russian Doll by Kristen Loesch (Penguin Random House – Berkley)
Murder by Degrees by Ritu Mukerji (Simon & Schuster)
Best Paperback Original
Boomtown by A.F. Carter (Penzler Publishers – Mysterious Press)
Hide by Tracy Clark (Amazon Publishing – Thomas & Mercer)
The Taken Ones by Jess Lourey (Amazon Publishing – Thomas & Mercer)
Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers by Jesse Q. Sutanto (Penguin Random House – Berkley)
Lowdown Road by Scott von Doviak (Hard Case Crime)
Best Fact Crime
In Light of All Darkness: Inside the Polly Klaas Kidnapping and the Search for America’s Child by Kim Cross (Hachette Book Group – Grand Central Publishing)
Number Go Up: Inside Crypto’s Wild Rise and Staggering Fall by Zeke Faux (Penguin Random House – Crown Currency)
Tangled Vines: Power, Privilege, and the Murdaugh Family Murders by John Glatt (Macmillan Publishers – St. Martin’s Press)
Crooked: The Roaring ‘20s Tale of a Corrupt Attorney General, a Crusading Senator, and the Birth of the American Political Scandal by Nathan Masters (Hachette Book Group – Hachette Books)
I Know Who You Are: How an Amateur DNA Sleuth Unmasked the Golden State Killer and Changed Crime Fighting Forever by Barbara Rae-Venter (Penguin Random House – Ballantine Books)
The Lost Sons of Omaha: Two Young Men in an American Tragedy by Joe Sexton (Simon & Schuster – Scribner)
Best Critical/Biographical
Perplexing Plots: Popular Storytelling and the Poetics of Murder by David Bordwell (Columbia University Press)
Spillane: King of the Pulp Fiction by Max Allan Collins & James L. Traylor (Penzler Publishers – Mysterious Press)
A Mystery of Mysteries: The Death and Life of Edgar Allan Poe by Mark Dawidziac (Macmillan Publishing – St. Martin’s Press)
Fallen Angel: The Life of Edgar Allan Poe by Robert Morgan (LSU Press)
Love Me Fierce in Danger – The Life of James Ellroy by Steven Powell (Bloomsbury Publishing – Bloomsbury Academic)
Best Short Story
“Hallowed Ground,” by Linda Castillo (Macmillan Publishers – Minotaur Books)
“Thriller,” Thriller by Heather Graham (Blackstone Publishing)
“Miss Direction,” Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, September-October 2023 by Rob Osler (Dell Magazines)
“The Rise,” Amazon Original Stories by Ian Rankin (Amazon Publishing)
“Pigeon Tony’s Last Stand,” Amazon Original Stories by Lisa Scottoline (Amazon Publishing)
Best Juvenile
Myrtle, Means, and Opportunity by Elizabeth C. Bunce (Hachette Book Group – Workman Publishing – Algonquin Young Readers)
The Ghosts of Rancho Espanto by Adrianna Cuevas (Macmillan Publishers – Farrar, Straus and Giroux BFYR)
Epic Ellisons: Cosmos Camp by Lamar Giles (HarperCollins Publishers – Versify)
The Jules Verne Prophecy by Larry Schwarz & Iva-Marie Palmer (Hachette Book Group – Little, Brown Books for Young Readers – Christy Ottaviano Books)
What Happened to Rachel Riley? by Claire Swinarski (HarperCollins Publishers – Quill Tree Books)
Best Young Adult
Girl Forgotten by April Henry (Hachette Book Group – Little, Brown Books for Young Readers – Christy Ottaviano Books)
Star Splitter by Matthew J. Kirby (Penguin Young Readers – Dutton Books for Young Readers)
The Sharp Edge of Silence by Cameron Kelly Rosenblum (HarperCollins Publishers – Quill Tree Books)
My Flawless Life by Yvonne Woon (HarperCollins Publishers – Katherine Tegen Books)
Just Do This One Thing for Me by Laura Zimmerman (Penguin Young Readers – Dutton Books for Young Readers)
Best Television Episode Teleplay
“Time of the Monkey” – Poker Face, Written by Wyatt Cain & Charlie Peppers (Peacock)
“I’m a Pretty Observant Guy” – Will Trent, Written by Liz Heldens (ABC)
“Dead Man’s Hand” – Poker Face, Written by Rian Johnson (Peacock)
“Hozho Nahasdii (Beauty is Restored)” – Dark Winds, Written by Graham Roland & John Wirth (AMC)
“Escape from Shit Mountain” – Poker Face, Written by Nora Zuckerman and Lilla Zuckerman (Peacock)
Other Awards
Robert L. Fish Memorial Award –
Endowed by the family of Robert L. Fish.
(For the Best First Short Story)
“Errand for a Neighbor,” Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, January-February 2023 by Bill Bassman (Dell Magazine)
“The Body in Cell Two,” Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, May-June 2023 by Kate Hohl (Dell Magazine)
“The Soiled Dove of Shallow Hollow,” Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, January-February 2023 by Sean McCluskey (Dell Magazine)
“It’s Half Your Fault,” Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, July-August 2023 by Meghan Leigh Paulk (Dell Magazine)
“Two Hours West of Nothing,” Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, September-October 2023 by Gabriela Stiteler (Dell Magazine)
The Simon & Schuster Mary Higgins Clark Award –
Presented on behalf of Simon & Schuster.
(For the book “written in the Mary Higgins Clark style.)
Play the Fool by Lina Chern (Penguin Random House – Bantam)
The Bones of the Story by Carol Goodman (HarperCollins Publishers – William Morrow)
Of Manners and Murder by Anastasia Hastings (Macmillan Publishers – Minotaur Books)
The Three Deaths of Willa Stannard by Kate Robards (Crooked Lane Books)
Murder in Postscript by Mary Winters (Penguin Random House – Berkley)
The G.P. Putnam’s Sons Sue Grafton Memorial Award –
Presented on behalf of G.P. Putnam’s Sons.
(For works that have “the hallmarks of Sue’s writing” as well as those of her character, Kinsey Millhone)
Hard Rain by Samantha Jayne Allen (Macmillan Publishers – Minotaur Books)
An Evil Heart by Linda Castillo (Macmillan Publishers – Minotaur Books)
Bad, Bad Seymour Brown by Susan Isaacs (Grove Atlantic – Atlantic Monthly Press)
Past Lying by Val McDermid (Grove Atlantic – Atlantic Monthly Press)
A Stolen Child by Sarah Stewart Taylor (Macmillan Publishers – Minotaur Books)
The Lillian Jackson Braun Memorial Award –
Endowed by the estate of Lillian Jackson Braun.
(For the best full-length, contemporary cozy mystery)
Glory Be by Danielle Arceneaux (Pegasus Books – Pegasus Crime)
Misfortune Cookie by Vivien Chein (Macmillan – St. Martin’s Paperback)
Hot Pot Murder by Jennifer J. Chow (Penguin Random House – Berkley)
Murder of an Amish Bride by Patricia Johns (Crooked Lane Books)
The Body in the Back Garden by Mark Waddell (Crooked Lane Books)
Special Awards – Previously announced on January 11, 2024
Grand Masters
Katherine Hall Page
R.L. Stine
Ellery Queen Award
(For outstanding writing teams and outstanding people in the mystery-publishing industry)
Michaela Hamilton, Kensington Books