The Macavity Awards

2009 Macavity Award Nominees

On May 4th, 2009, the Mystery Writers International announced the nominees for this year's Macavity Awards, which celebrate the best of mystery writing published in the last year. The winners will be honored at the Bouchercon Festival in Indianapolis in October.

Best Mystery Novel
TRIGGER CITY by Sean Chercover (William Morrow)
WHERE MEMORIES LIE by Deborah Crombie (William Morrow)
THE DYING BREED (UK)/ THE PRICE OF BLOOD (US) by Declan Hughes (John Murray/ William Morrow)
THE DRAINING LAKE by Arnaldur Indridason (Minotaur)
CURSE OF THE SPELLMANS by Lisa Lutz (Simon & Schuster)
THE CRUELEST MONTH by Louise Penny (Minotaur)
THE FAULT TREE by Louise Ure (Minotaur)

Best First Mystery
FINDING NOUF by Zoe Ferraris (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO by Stieg Larsson (Knopf)
DEATH OF A COZY WRITER by G. M. Malliet (Midnight Ink)
CALUMET CITY by Charlie Newton (Simon & Schuster)
AN INNOCENT CLIENT by Scott Pratt (Onyx)
A CARRION DEATH by Michael Stanley (Harper; Headline)
THE BLOOD DETECTIVE by Dan Waddell (Minotaur)

Best Nonfiction/Critical
AFRICAN AMERICAN MYSTERY WRITERS: A Historical & Thematic Study by Frankie Y. Bailey (McFarland)
HARD-BOILED SENTIMENTALITY: The Secret History of American Crime Stories by Leonard Cassuto (Columbia Univ.)
HOW TO WRITE KILLER HISTORICAL MYSTERIES by Kathy Lynn Emerson (Perseverance Press)
SCECNE OF THE CRIME: The Importance of Place in Crime and Mystery Fiction by David Geherin (McFarland)
EDGAR ALLAN POE: An Illustrated Companion to His Tell-Tale Stories by Harry Lee Poe (Metro)
THE SUSPICIONS OF MR. WHICHER: A Shocking Murder and the Undoing of a Great Victorian Detective by Kate Summerscale (Walker)

Best Mystery Short Story
"The Night Things Changed" by Dana Cameron in WOLFSBANE AND MISTLETOE, ed. by Harris & Kelner (Penguin)
"A Sleep Not Unlike Death" by Sean Chercover in Hardcore Hardboiled, ed. by Todd Robinson (Kensington)
"Keeping Watch Over His Flock" by Toni L. P. Kelner in WOLFSBANE AND MISTLETOE, ed. by Harris & Kelner (Penguin)
"Scratch a Woman" by Laura Lippman in HARDLY KNEW HER (William Morrow)
"Between the Dark and the Daylight" by Tom Piccirilli in EQMM Sep/Oct 2008

Sue Feder Memorial Historical Mystery
A ROYAL PAIN by Rhys Bowen (Berkley)
STEALING TRINITY by Ward Larsen (Oceanview)
THE WHISKEY REBELS by David Liss (Thorndike/ Random House UK)
VEIL OF LIES by Jeri Westerson (Minotaur)
COMPANY OF LIARS by Karen Maitland (Michael Joseph/ Delacorte)
NOX DORMIENDA by Kelli Stanley (Five Star)

For more information and past winners go to MysteryReaders.org

2008 Winners

During the opening ceremonies of the 2008 Bouchercon World Mystery Convention, held in Baltimore, MD from October 9-12, the winners of this year's Macavity Awards were announced.

The winners are:

Best Mystery Novel
WHAT THE DEAD KNOW by Laura Lippman

Best First Mystery
IN THE WOODS by Tana French (Viking Adult)

Best Mystery Short Story
"Please Watch Your Step" by Rhys Bowen (The Strand Magazine, Spring 2007)

Best Mystery Non-Fiction
THE ESSENTIAL MYSTERY LISTS: For Readers, Collectors, and Librarians edited/compiled by Roger Sobin (Poisoned Pen Press)

Sue Feder Memorial Historical Mystery
MISTRESS OF THE ART OF DEATH by Ariana Franklin (Putnam)

For more information and past winners go to MysteryReaders.org

The 2007 Macavity Award Winners

The winners of this year's Macavity Awards were announced on September 27, 2007, during the Bouchercon Mystery Convention held in Anchorage, AK. Named for T. S. Elliot's "mystery cat", the Awards honor favorite mysteries published during the previous year, which are then voted upon by members of Mystery Readers International.

The 2007 Macavity Award winners are:

Best Novel
THE VIRGIN OF THE SMALL PLAINES by Nancy Pickard (Ballantine)

Best First Novel
MR. CLARINET by Nick Stone (Michael Joseph Ltd/Penguin-U.K./HarperCollins - U.S)

Best Nonfiction
MYSTERY MUSES: 100 Classics That Inspire Today's Mystery Writers edited by Jim Huang and Austin Lugar (Crum Creek)

Best Short Story
"Til Death Do Us Part" by Tim Maleeny, from MWA PRESENTS DEATH DO US PART: New Stories about Love, Lust, and Murder, edited by Harlan Coben (Little, Brown)

Sue Feder Historical Mystery
OH DANNY BOY by Rhys Bowen (Minotaur)

For more information and past winners go to MysteryReaders.org

The 2006 Macavity Award Winners

Members of the Mystery Readers International recently named the winners of this year's Macavity Awards. This honor, named after the "mystery cat" in T. S. Elliot's OLD POSSUM'S BOOK OF PRACTICAL CATS, is bestowed on mysteries published in the previous year, and is divided into four categories.

BEST NOVEL
THE LINCOLN LAWYER by Michael Connelly (Little, Brown)

BEST FIRST NOVEL
IMMORAL by Brian Freeman (St. Martin's Minotaur)

BEST NONFICTION
GIRL SLEUTH: NANCY DREW AND THE WOMEN WHO CREATED HER by Melanie Rehak (Harcourt)

BEST SHORT STORY
"There Is No Crime on Easter Island" by Nancy Pickard (EQMM, Sept-Oct 2005)

SUE FEDER HISTORICAL MYSTERY AWARD
PARDONABLE LIES by Jacqueline Winspear (Henry Holt)

For more information and past winners go to MysteryReaders.org

The 2006 Macavity Award Nominees

Members of the Mystery Readers International recently named the nominees of this year's Macavity Awards. This honor, named after the "mystery cat" in T. S. Elliot's OLD POSSUM'S BOOK OF PRACTICAL CATS, is bestowed on mysteries published in the previous year, and is divided into four categories.

BEST NOVEL
ONE SHOT by Lee Child (Delacorte Press)
THE JAMES DEANS by Reed Farrel Coleman (Plume)
THE LINCOLN LAWYER by Michael Connelly (Little, Brown)
VANISH by Tess Gerritsen (Ballantine Books)
STRANGE AFFAIR by Peter Robinson (William Morrow)
THE POWER OF THE DOG by Don Winslow (Knopf)
SOLOMON VS. LORD by Paul Levine (Bantam)

BEST FIRST NOVEL
IMMORAL by Brian Freeman (St. Martin's Minotaur)
ALL SHOOK UP by Mike Harrison (ECW Press)
BABY GAME by Randall Hicks (Wordslinger Press)
THE FIREMAKER by Peter May (St. Martin's Minotaur)

BEST NONFICTION
TRACKS TO MURDER by Jonathan Goodman (Kent State University)
BEHIND THE MYSTERY: TOP MYSTERY WRITERS INTERVIEWED by Stuart Kaminsky; photographed by Laurie Roberts (Hothouse Press)
NEW ANNOTATED SHERLOCK HOLMES: THE NOVELS edited by Leslie S. Klinger (Norton)
GIRL SLEUTH: NANCY DREW AND THE WOMEN WHO CREATED HER by Melanie Rehak (Harcourt)
SPOOK: SCIENCE TACKLES THE AFTERLIFE by Mary Roach (Norton)

BEST SHORT STORY
"It Can Happen" by David Corbett in San Francisco Noir (Akashic Books)
"Everybody's Girl" by Robert Barnard (EQMM, May 2005)
"The Big Road" by Steve Hockensmith (AHMM, May 2005)
"There Is No Crime on Easter Island" by Nancy Pickard (EQMM, Sept-Oct 2005)

SUE FEDER HISTORICAL MYSTERY AWARD
IN LIKE FLYNN by Rhys Bowen (St. Martin's Minotaur)
SPECTRES IN THE SMOKE by Tony Broadbent (St. Martin's)
THE WAR OF THE WORLD MURDERS by Max Allan Collins
NIGHT'S CHILD by Maureen Jennings (McClelland and Stewart)
PARDONABLE LIES by Jacqueline Winspear (Henry Holt)

For more information and past winners go to MysteryReaders.org

The 2005 Macavity Award Winners

The Macavity Award is named for the "mystery cat" of T.S. Eliot (OLD POSSUM'S BOOK OF PRACTICAL CATS). Each year the members of Mystery Readers International nominate and vote for their favorite mysteries in four categories.

During the 2005 Bouchercon World Mystery Convention, held in Chicago from September 1-4, Mystery Readers International presented the Macavity Awards to the best crime fiction writers of the past year.

BEST MYSTERY NOVEL
THE KILLING OF THE TINKERS by Ken Bruen (St. Martin's Minotaur)

BEST FIRST MYSTERY NOVEL
DATING DEAD MEN by Harley Jane Kozak (Doubleday)

BEST NONFICTION
FORENSICS FOR DUMMIES by D.P. Lyle, MD (Wiley Publishing)

BEST SHORT STORY
"The Widow of Slane" by Terence Faherty (EQMM, March/April 2004)

For more information and past winners go to MysteryReaders.org

2005 Nominees

The Macavity Award is named for the "mystery cat" of T.S. Eliot (OLD POSSUM'S BOOK OF PRACTICAL CATS). Each year the members of Mystery Readers International nominate and vote for their favorite mysteries in four categories. Winners will be announced at the Bouchercon World Mystery Convention, held this year in Chicago, September 1-4.

BEST MYSTERY NOVEL
THE KILLING OF THE TINKERS by Ken Bruen (St. Martin's Minotaur)
COLD CASE by Robin Burcell (Avon)
DARKLY DREAMING DEXTER by Jeff Lindsay (Doubleday)
HIGH COUNTRY FALL by Margaret Maron (Mysterious Press)
CALIFORNIA GIRL by T. Jefferson Parker (HarperCollins)
PLAYING WITH FIRE by Peter Robinson (William Morrow)

BEST FIRST MYSTERY NOVEL
UNCOMMON GROUNDS by Sandra Balzo (Five Star)
SUMMER OF THE BIG BACHI by Naomi Hirahara (Delta)
WHISKEY SOUR by J. A. Konrath (Hyperion)
DATING DEAD MEN by Harley Jane Kozak (Doubleday)
MISDEMEANOR MAN by Dylan Schaffer (Bloomsbury)

BEST NONFICTION
FAMOUS AMERICAN CRIMES & TRIALS, VOL. 1 by Frankie Y. Bailey & Steven Chermak (Praeger Publishers)
JUST THE FACTS: True Tales of Cops & Criminals, by Jim Doherty (Deadly Serious Press)
THE NEW ANNOTATED SHERLOCK HOLMES: The Complete Short Stories, edited by Leslie S. Klinger (W.W. Norton)
LATIN AMERICAN MYSTERY WRITERS: An A-to-Z Guide, by Darrell B. Lockhart (Greenwood Press)
FORENSICS FOR DUMMIES by D.P. Lyle, MD (Wiley Publishing)

BEST SHORT STORY
"Viscery" by Sandra Balzo (EQMM, December 2004)
"The Widow of Slane" by Terence Faherty (EQMM, March/April 2004)
"The Lady's Not for Dying" by Alana White (Futures Mystery Anthology Magazine, Winter 2004)

For more information and past winners go to MysteryReaders.org

2004 Macavity Award Winners

Mystery Readers International has announced the nominees for the Macavity Awards. The Macavity Award is named for the "mystery cat" of T.S. Eliot (OLD POSSUM'S BOOK OF PRACTICAL CATS). Awards are for works published in the US in 2003. Members of Mystery Readers International nominate and vote; the awards will be given at Bouchercon, the World Mystery Convention in Toronto this October.

BEST MYSTERY NOVEL
THE HOUSE SITTER, Peter Lovesey (Soho)

BEST FIRST MYSTERY NOVEL
MAISIE DOBBS, Jacqueline Winspear (Soho press)

BEST NON-FICTION
MAKE MINE A MYSTERY: A Reader's Guide to Mystery and Detective Fiction, Gary Warren Niebuhr (Libraries Unlimited)

BEST SHORT STORY
"The Grass Is Always Greener", Sandy Balzo (EQMM, March 2003)

More information about the Macavity Awards can be found at MysteryReaders.org and bouchercon2004.com

2004 Nominees

BEST MYSTERY NOVEL
THE DELICATE STORM, Giles Blunt (Putnam)
FOR THE LOVE OF MIKE, Rhys Bowen (St. Martin's)
THE GUARDS, Ken Bruen (St. Martin's Minotaur)
DONE FOR A DIME, David Corbett (Ballantine)
THE HOUSE SITTER, Peter Lovesey (Soho)

BEST FIRST MYSTERY NOVEL
NIGHT OF THE DANCE, James Hime, St. Martin's Minotaur
DEATH OF A NATIONALIST, Rebecca C. Pawel (Soho)
THE BRIDGE OF SIGHS, Olen Steinhauer (St. Martin's Minotaur)
MAISIE DOBBS, Jacqueline Winspear (Soho press)

BEST NON-FICTION
MYSTERY WOMEN: An Encyclopedia of Leading Women Characters in Mystery Fiction, Vol. 3, Colleen A Barnett (Poisoned Pen Press)
A SECOND HELPING OF MURDER: More Diabolically Delicious Recipes from Contemporary Mystery Writers, Jo Grossman & Robert Weibezahl (Poisoned Pen Press)
MAKE MINE A MYSTERY: A Reader's Guide to Mystery and Detective Fiction, Gary Warren Niebuhr (Libraries Unlimited)
BEAUTIFUL SHADOW: A Life of Patricia Highsmith by Andrew Wilson (Bloomsbury)

BEST SHORT STORY
"The Grass Is Always Greener", Sandy Balzo (EQMM, March 2003)
"Rogues Gallery", Robert Barnard (EQMM, March 2003)
"Texas Two-Step", Diana Deverell (AHMM, February 2003)
"No Man's Land", Beth Foxwell (BLOOD ON THEIR HANDS, ed. Lawrence Block, Berkley Prime Crime)
"War Crimes", G. Miki Hayden (A HOT AND SULTRY NIGHT FOR CRIME, ed. Jeffery Deaver, Berkley Prime Crime)
"Child Support", Ronnie Klaskin (A HOT AND SULTRY NIGHT FOR CRIME)
"Red Meat", Elaine Viets (BLOOD ON THEIR HANDS )

For more information and past winners go to MysteryReaders.org