Crime Writers' Association's Cartier Diamond Dagger Award to Val McDermid

The Crime Writers' Association has awarded Scottish crime novelist Val McDermid this year's Cartier Diamond Daggar Award. This award acknowledges the work of an author who has made an outstanding contribution to the genre. McDermid describes her work as "Tartan Noir." Her characters/series are: journalist Lindsay Gordon, private investigator Kate Brannigan, psychologist Dr. Tony Hill and Detective Chief Inspector Carol Jordan. The show Wire in the Blood is based on McDermid's work.
In an interview, McDermid talks about mysteries and readers: "One should play fair with the reader, and give them the opportunity to figure it out for themselves. But in my experience, most crime fiction readers aren't just in it for the puzzle - they`re interested in the unfolding of the story. The more mysteries you read, of course, the more likely you are to guess what the ending will be, but if the book is well enough written, that isn't always a problem. However, I do like to think that I usually manage to provide a twist in the tail that will give my readers that gasp of shock or surprise at the end."

Winners of the Agatha Awards Announced

Malice Domestic has announced the winners of the Agatha Awards, honoring the books best typified by the works of Agatha Christie and published during 2009.The winners are:

Best Mystery Novel: A Brutal Telling by Louise Penny
Best First Mystery Novel: The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley
Best Children's/Young Adult: The Hanging Hill by Chris Grabenstein
Best Short Story: "On the House" by Hank Phillippi Ryan (which appeared in Quarry: Crime Stories by New England Writers)
Best Non-Fiction: Dame Agatha's Shorts by Elena Santangelo

2010 Edgar Award Winners Announced

The Mystery Writers of America named the following winners:
Best novel: The Last Child by John Hart
Best First Novel: In the Shadow of Gotham by Stepfanie Pintoff
Best Paperback Original: Body Blows by Marc Strange
Best Critical/Biographical: The Lineup: The World's Greatest Crime Writers Tell the Inside Stories of Their Greatest Detectives ed. by Otto Penzler.
Grand Master: Dorothy Gilman, the creator of the Mrs. Pollifax gentle mystery series.