2015 Edgar Award Finalists for Mystery Writing Announced

The finalists for the Edgars awards have been announced. The awards, named after (it it wasn’t obvious) Edgar Allan Poe are given out by the Mystery Writers of America and are the major awards for mystery fiction. The Edgars cover everything from best novel and best short story to best biography and best TV episode teleplay. The winners will be announced in April. The 2015 Finalists include a mix of familiar names, like Stephen King and Gillian Flynn, alongside newer authors like Adam Sternbergh and Lacy M. Johnson.

Best Novel

This Dark Road to Mercy by Wiley Cash (HarperCollins Publishers — William Morrow)
Wolf by Mo Hayder (Grove/Atlantic — Atlantic Monthly Press)
Mr. Mercedes by Stephen King (Simon & Schuster — Scribner)
The Final Silence by Stuart Neville (Soho Press)
Saints of the Shadow Bible by Ian Rankin (Hachette Book Group — Little, Brown)
Coptown by Karin Slaughter (Penguin Randomhouse — Delacorte Press)

Best First Novel

Dry Bones in the Valley by Tom Bouman (W.W. Norton)
Invisible City by Julia Dahl (Minotaur Books)
The Life We Bury by Allen Eskens (Prometheus Books — Seventh Street Books)
Bad Country by C.B. McKenzie (Minotaur Books — A Thomas Dunne Book)
Shovel Ready by Adam Sternbergh (Crown Publishers)
Murder at the Brightwell by Ashley Weaver (Minotaur Books — A Thomas Dunne Book)

Best Paperback Original

The Secret History of Las Vegas by Chris Abani (Penguin Randomhouse — Penguin Books)
Stay With Me by Alison Gaylin (HarperCollins Publishers — William Morrow)
The Barkeep by William Lashner (Amazon Publishing — Thomas and Mercer)
The Day She Died by Catriona McPherson (Llewellyn Worldwide — Midnight Ink)
The Gone Dead Train by Lisa Turner (HarperCollins Publishers — William Morrow)
World of Trouble by Ben H. Winters (Quirk Books)

Best Fact Crime

Kitty Genovese: The Murder, the Bystanders, the Crime that Changed America
by Kevin Cook (W.W. Norton)
The Savage Harvest: A Tale of Cannibals, Colonialism, and Michael Rockefeller’s Tragic Quest for Primitive Art by Carl Hoffman (HarperCollins Publishers — William Morrow)
The Other Side: A Memoir by Lacy M. Johnson (Tin House Books)
Tinseltown: Murder, Morphine, and Madness at the Dawn of Hollywood
by William Mann (HarperCollins Publishers — Harper)
The Mad Sculptor: The Maniac, the Model, and the Murder that Shook the Nation
by Harold Schechter (Amazon Publishing — New Harvest)

Best Critical/Biographical

The Figure of the Detective: A Literary History and Analysis
by Charles Brownson (McFarland & Company)
James Ellroy: A Companion to the Mystery Fiction
by Jim Mancall (McFarland)
Kiss the Blood Off My Hands: Classic Film Noir by Robert Miklitsch (University of Illinois Press)
Judges & Justice & Lawyers & Law: Exploring the Legal Dimensions of Fiction and Film
by Francis M. Nevins (Perfect Crime Books)
Poe-Land: The Hallowed Haunts of Edgar Allan Poe
by J.W. Ocker (W.W. Norton — Countryman Press)

Best Short Story

“The Snow Angel” — Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine by Doug Allyn (Dell Magazines)
“200 Feet” — Strand Magazine by John Floyd (The Strand)
“What Do You Do?” — Rogues by Gillian Flynn
(Penguin Randomhouse Publishing –Bantam Books)
“Red Eye” — Faceoff by Dennis Lehane vs. Michael Connelly (Simon & Schuster)
“Teddy” — Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine by Brian Tobin (Dell Magazines)

Best Juvenile

Absolutely Truly by Heather Vogel Frederick (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers)
Space Case by Stuart Gibbs (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers)
Greenglass House by Kate Milford
(Clarion Books — Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Books for Young Readers)
Nick and Tesla’s Super-Cyborg Gadget Glove by “Science Bob” Pflugfelder
and Steve Hockensmith (Quirk Books)
Saving Kabul Corner by N.H. Senzai (Simon & Schuster — Paula Wiseman Books)
Eddie Red, Undercover: Mystery on Museum Mile by Marcia Wells
(Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Books for Young Readers)

Young Adult

The Doubt Factory by Paolo Bacigalupi (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)
Nearly Gone by Elle Cosimano (Penguin Young Readers Group — Kathy Dawson Books)
Fake ID by Lamar Giles (HarperCollins Children’s Books — Amistad)
The Art of Secrets by James Klise (Algonquin Young Readers)
The Prince of Venice Beach by Blake Nelson (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)

TV Episode Teleplay

“The Empty Hearse” — Sherlock, Teleplay by Mark Gatiss (Hartswood Films/Masterpiece)
“Unfinished Business” — Blue Bloods, Teleplay by Siobhan Byrne O’Connor (CBS)
“Episode 1” — Happy Valley, Teleplay by Sally Wainwright (Netflix)
“Dream Baby Dream” — The Killing, Teleplay by Sean Whitesell (Netflix)
“Episode 6” — The Game, Teleplay by Toby Whithouse (BBC America)

Robert L. Fish Memorial

“Getaway Girl” — Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine by Zoë Z. Dean (Dell Magazines)

Mary Higgins Clark

A Dark and Twisted Tide by Sharon Bolton (Minotaur Books)
The Stranger You Know by Jane Casey (Minotaur Books)
Invisible City by Julia Dahl (Minotaur Books)
Summer of the Dead by Julia Keller (Minotaur Books)
The Black Hour by Lori Rader-Day (Prometheus Books — Seventh Street Books)

Grand Master

Lois Duncan
James Ellroy

Raven Awards

Ruth & Jon Jordan, Crimespree Magazine
Kathryn Kennison, Magna Cum Murder

Ellery Queen Award

Charles Ardai, Editor & Founder, Hard Case Crime