Fiction Review

You might have missed the national book launch of Stephen Hunter’s latest Bob Lee Swagger Targeted. Barbara Peters, owner of the Poisoned Pen, and guest host Jack Carr led the conversation. You can order signed copies of Targeted through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/3FQ2icT

Here’s the description of Targeted.

Pulitzer Prize winner and New York Times bestselling author Stephen Hunter returns with a taut, white-knuckled thriller featuring master sniper Bob Lee Swagger as he protects a group of political hostages during a perilous standoff and once again proves his title of “true American literary icon” (Mark Greaney, author of Mission Critical).

After his successful takedown of a dangerous terrorist, Bob Lee Swagger learns that no good deed goes unpunished. Summoned to court by the United States Congress, Swagger is accused of reckless endangerment by a hardheaded anti-gun congresswoman. But what begins as political posturing soon turns deadly when the auditorium where the committee is being held is attacked.

Swagger, the congresswoman, and numerous bystanders and reporters are taken hostage by a group of violent operatives. Soon, the very people who had accused him are depending on him to save their lives. Trapped in the auditorium and still struggling with injuries from his last assignment, Swagger must rely on his instincts, his shooting skills, and the help of a mysterious rogue sniper on the outside in order to ensure that everyone makes it out alive.

A heart-pounding and crackling action-packed novel, Targeted proves that Stephen Hunter is “a true master at the pinnacle of his craft. No one does it better” (Jack Carr, Former Navy SEAL Sniper and author of The Terminal List).

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Stephen Hunter has written over twenty novels. The retired chief film critic for The Washington Post, where he won the 2003 Pulitzer Prize for Distinguished Criticism, he has also published two collections of film criticism and a nonfiction work, American Gunfight. He lives in Baltimore, Maryland.

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Enjoy the recent discussion with Stephen Hunter, Jack Carr, and Barbara Peters.

Nick Petrie recently appeared at The Poisoned Pen for his seventh Peter Ash thriller, The Runaway. He’s appeared at the bookstore since his first book, The Drifter. You can still order The Drifter through the Web Store, along with signed copies of The Runaway. https://bit.ly/3fH6QaO

Here’s the summary of The Runaway.

“Petrie has a preternatural talent for ratcheting up suspense.”–New York Times Book Review
 
When Peter Ash rescues a stranded woman, he finds she‘s in far deeper trouble than he could ever imagine in the powerful new thriller in this bestselling and award-winning series.

War veteran Peter Ash is driving through northern Nebraska when he encounters a young pregnant woman alone on a gravel road, her car dead. Peter offers her a lift, but what begins as an act of kindness soon turns into a deadly cat-and-mouse chase across the lonely highways with the woman’s vicious ex-cop husband hot on their trail. The pregnant woman has seen something she was never meant to see . . . but protecting her might prove to be more than Peter can handle.

In order to save the woman and himself, Peter must use everything he has learned during his time as a Marine, including his knowledge of human nature, in order to escape a ruthless killer with instincts and skills that match—and perhaps exceed—Peter’s own.

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Nick Petrie is the author of six novels in the Peter Ash series, most recently The Breaker. His debut, The Drifter, won both the ITW Thriller award and the Barry Award for Best First Novel, and was a finalist for the Edgar and the Hammett Awards. A husband and father, he lives in the Milwaukee area.

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If you’re a fan of this series, you’ll really enjoy the story of Peter Ash’s changes through the series. If you haven’t yet read the books, enjoy the conversation with Nick Petrie and Barbara Peters, owner of the bookstore.

Congratulations to all of the Edgar Award nominees! For readers, it’s a good time to check for unfamiliar titles or your favorite authors in the Web Store. https://store.poisonedpen.com/

Mystery Writers of America Announces 2022 Edgar Allan Poe Award Nominations

January 19, 2022, New York, NY ““ Mystery Writers of America is proud to announce, as we celebrate the 213^th anniversary of the birth of Edgar Allan Poe, the nominees for the 2022 Edgar Allan Poe Awards, honoring the best in mystery fiction, non-fiction and television published or produced in 2021. The 76^th Annual Edgar® Awards will be celebrated on April 28, 2022 at the New York Marriott Marquis Times Square.

BEST NOVEL

The Venice Sketchbook by Rhys Bowen (Amazon Publishing ““ Lake Union)
Razorblade Tears by S.A. Cosby (Macmillan Publishers ““ Flatiron Books)
Five Decembers by James Kestrel (Hard Case Crime)
How Lucky by Will Leitch (HarperCollins ““ Harper)
No One Will Miss Her by Kat Rosenfield (HarperCollins ““ William Morrow)

BEST FIRST NOVEL BY AN AMERICAN AUTHOR

Deer Season by Erin Flanagan (University of Nebraska Press)
Never Saw Me Coming by Vera Kurian (Harlequin Trade Publishing ““ Park Row)
Suburban Dicks by Fabian Nicieza (Penguin Random House ““ G.P. Putnam’s Sons)
What Comes After by JoAnne Tompkins (Penguin Random House ““ Riverhead Books)
The Damage by Caitlin Wahrer (Penguin Random House ““ Viking Books/Pamela Dorman Books)

BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL

Kill All Your Darlings by David Bell (Penguin Random House ““ Berkley)
The Lighthouse Witches by C.J. Cooke (Penguin Random House ““ Berkley)
The Album of Dr. Moreau by Daryl Gregory (Tom Doherty Associates ““ Tordotcom)
Starr Sign by C.S. O’Cinneide (Dundurn Press)
Bobby March Will Live Forever by Alan Parks (Europa Editions ““ World Noir)
The Shape of Darkness by Laura Purcell (Penguin Random House ““ Penguin Books)

BEST FACT CRIME

The Confidence Men: How Two Prisoners of War Engineered the Most Remarkable Escape in History by Margalit Fox (Random House Publishing Group ““ Random House)
Last Call: A True Story of Love, Lust, and Murder in Queer New York by Elon Green (Celadon Books)
Sleeper Agent: The Atomic Spy in America Who Got Away by Ann Hagedorn (Simon & Schuster)
Two Truths and a Lie: A Murder, a Private Investigator, and Her Search for Justice by Ellen McGarrahan (Penguin Random House ““ Random House)
The Dope: The Real History of the Mexican Drug Trade by Benjamin T. Smith (W.W. Norton & Company)
When Evil Lived in Laurel:  The “White Knights” and the Murder of Vernon Dahmer by Curtis Wilkie (W.W. Norton & Company

BEST CRITICAL/BIOGRAPHICAL

Agatha Christie’s Poirot: The Greatest Detective in the World by Mark Aldridge (HarperCollins Publishers ““ Harper360)
The Unquiet Englishman: A Life of Graham Greene by Richard Greene (W.W. Norton & Company)
Tony Hillerman: A Life by James McGrath Morris (University of Oklahoma Press)
The Reason for the Darkness of the Night: Edgar Allan Poe and the Forging of American Science by John Tresch (Farrar, Straus and Giroux)
The Twelve Lives of Alfred Hitchcock: An Anatomy of the Master of Suspense by Edward White (W.W. Norton & Company)

 BEST SHORT STORY

“Blindsided,” Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine by Michael Bracken & James A. Hearn (Dell Magazines)
“The Vermeer Conspiracy,” Midnight Hour by V.M. Burns (Crooked Lane Books)
“Lucky Thirteen,” Midnight Hour by Tracy Clark (Crooked Lane Books)
“The Road to Hana,” Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine by R.T. Lawton (Dell Magazines)
“The Locked Room Library,” Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine by Gigi Pandian (Dell Magazines)
“The Dark Oblivion,” Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine by Cornell Woolrich (Dell Magazines)

BEST JUVENILE

Cold-Blooded Myrtle by Elizabeth C. Bunce (Workman Publishing ““ Algonquin Young Readers)
Concealed by Christina Diaz Gonzalez (Scholastic ““ Scholastic Press)
Aggie Morton Mystery Queen: The Dead Man in the Garden by Marthe Jocelyn (Penguin Random House Canada ““ Tundra Books)
Kidnap on the California Comet: Adventures on Trains #2 by M.G. Leonard & Sam Sedgman (Macmillan Children’s Publishing ““ Feiwel & Friends)
Rescue by Jennifer A. Nielsen (Scholastic ““ Scholastic Press)

BEST YOUNG ADULT

Ace of Spades by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé (Macmillan Children’s Publishing ““ Feiwel & Friends)
Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley (Macmillan Children’s Publishing ““ Henry Holt and Company BFYR)
When You Look Like Us by Pamela N. Harris (HarperCollins ““ Quill Tree Books)
The Forest of Stolen Girls by June Hur (Macmillan Children’s Books ““ Feiwel & Friends)
The Girls I’ve Been by Tess Sharpe (Penguin Young Readers ““ G.P. Putnam’s Sons BFYR)

BEST TELEVISION EPISODE TELEPLAY

“Dog Day Morning” ““ The Brokenword Mysteries, Written by Tim Balme (Acorn TV)
“Episode 1″ ““ The Beast Must Die, Written by Gaby Chiappe (AMC+)
“The Men Are Wretched Things” ““ The North Water Written by Andrew Haigh (AMC+)
“Happy Families” ““ Midsomer Murders, Written by Nicholas Hicks-Beach (Acorn TV)
“Boots on the Ground” ““ Narcos: Mexico, Written by Iturri Sosa (Netflix)

ROBERT L. FISH MEMORIAL AWARD

“Analogue,” Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine by Rob Osler (Dell Magazines)

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THE SIMON & SCHUSTER MARY HIGGINS CLARK AWARD

The Secret Life of Miss Mary Bennet by Katherine Cowley (Tule Publishing ““ Tule Mystery)
Ruby Red Herring by Tracy Gardner (Crooked Lane Books)
Clark and Division by Naomi Hirahara (Soho Press ““ Soho Crime)
The Sign of Death by Callie Hutton (Crooked Lane Books)
Chapter and Curse by Elizabeth Penney (St. Martin’s Paperbacks)

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THE G.P. PUTNAM’S SONS SUE GRAFTON MEMORIAL AWARD

Double Take by Elizabeth Breck (Crooked Lane Books)
Runner by Tracy Clark (Kensington Books)
Shadow Hill by Thomas Kies (Sourcebooks ““ Poisoned Pen Press)
Sleep Well, My Lady by Kwei Quartey (Soho Press ““ Soho Crime)
Family Business by S.J. Rozan (Pegasus Books ““ Pegasus Crime)

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SPECIAL AWARDS

GRAND MASTER

Laurie R. King

RAVEN AWARD

 Lesa Holstine ““ Lesa’s Book Critiques; Library Journal Reviewer

ELLERY QUEEN AWARD

Juliet Grames ““ Soho Books

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The Edgar Awards, or “Edgars,” as they are commonly known, are named after MWA’s patron saint Edgar Allan Poe and are presented to authors of distinguished work in various categories. MWA is the premier organization for mystery writers, professionals allied to the crime-writing field, aspiring crime writers, and those who are devoted to the genre. The organization encompasses some 3,000 members including authors of fiction and non-fiction books, screen and television writers, as well as publishers, editors, and literary agents.

Mystery Writers of America would like to emphasize our commitment to diversity and fairness in the judging of the Edgar Awards. Judges are selected from every region of the country, from every sub-category of our genre, and from every demographic to ensure fairness and impartiality.

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The EDGAR (and logo) are Registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office by the Mystery Writers of America, Inc.

Lisa Gardner’s One Step Too Far is the current Hot Book of the Week at The Poisoned Pen. It also tops holds lists in public libraries, so you might want to order your own signed copy of it through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/32bD6Ql

Here’s the description of One Step Too Far.

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Lisa Gardner, a thrilling new novel that sends missing persons expert Frankie Elkin into a national forest in Wyoming looking for a young man who disappeared without a trace.  But when the search team encounters immediate threats to their survival, Frankie realizes she’s up against something very dark—and she’s running out of time

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Lisa Gardner is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of twenty-one suspense novels, including The Neighbor, which won Thriller of the Year from the International Thriller Writers. An avid hiker, traveler, and cribbage player, she lives in the mountains of New Hampshire with her family.

Congratulations to all of the Left Coast Crime “Lefty” nominees.

If you’re looking for any of these titles, please check the Web Store. https://store.poisonedpen.com/

2022 Left Coast Crime “Lefty” Award Nominations Announced

January 17, 2022 — Albuquerque — Left Coast Crime 2022 will be presenting four Lefty Awards at our 32nd annual convention, to be held in Albuquerque in April: humorous, historical, debut, and best. The awards will be voted on at the convention and presented at a banquet on Saturday, April 9, at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Albuquerque. The award nominees have been selected by the convention registrants. LCC is delighted to announce the 2022 Lefty nominees for books published in 2021:

Lefty for Best Humorous Mystery Novel. The nominees are:
 “¢ Ellen Byron, Cajun Kiss of Death (Crooked Lane Books)
 “¢ Jennifer Chow, Mimi Lee Cracks the Code (Berkley Prime Crime)
 “¢ Elle Cosimano, Finlay Donovan Is Killing It (Minotaur Books)
 “¢ Cynthia Kuhn, How To Book a Murder (Crooked Lane Books)
 “¢ Raquel V. Reyes, Mango, Mambo, and Murder (Crooked Lane Books)
 “¢ Wendall Thomas, Fogged Off (Beyond the Page Books)

Lefty for Best Historical Mystery Novel for books set before 1970. The nominees are:
 “¢ Susanna Calkins, The Cry of the Hangman (Severn House)
 “¢ John Copenhaver, The Savage Kind (Pegasus Crime)
 “¢ Naomi Hirahara, Clark and Division (Soho Crime)
 “¢ Sujata Massey, The Bombay Prince (Soho Crime)
 “¢ Catriona McPherson, The Mirror Dance (Hodder & Stoughton)
 “¢ Lori Rader-Day, Death at Greenway (William Morrow)

Lefty for Best Debut Mystery Novel. The nominees are:
 “¢ Alexandra Andrews, Who Is Maud Dixon (Little, Brown and Company)
 “¢ Marco Carocari, Blackout (Level Best Books)
 “¢ Zakiya Dalila Harris, The Other Black Girl (Atria Books)
 “¢ Mia P. Manansala, Arsenic and Adobo (Berkley Prime Crime)
 “¢ Wanda M. Morris, All Her Little Secrets (William Morrow)

Lefty for Best Mystery Novel (not in other categories). The nominees are:
 “¢ Tracy Clark, Runner (Kensington Books)
 “¢ S.A. Cosby, Razorblade Tears (Flatiron Press)
 “¢ Matt Coyle, Last Redemption (Oceanview Publishing)
 “¢ William Kent Krueger, Lightning Strike (Atria Books)
 “¢ P.J. Vernon, Bath Haus (Doubleday)

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The Left Coast Crime Convention is an annual event sponsored by mystery fans, both readers and authors. Usually held in the western half of North America, LCC’s intent is to host an event where readers, authors, critics, librarians, publishers, and other fans can gather in convivial surroundings to pursue their mutual interests. Lefty Awards have been given since 1996.

In 2020, Left Coast Crime received the Raven Award from Mystery Writers of America, for “outstanding achievement in the mystery field outside the realm of creative writing.”

The 32nd annual Left Coast Crime Convention will take place in Albuquerque, New Mexico, April 7″“10, 2022. This year’s Guests of Honor are authors Mick Herron and Catriona McPherson. Kristopher Zgorski is the Fan Guest of Honor, and author Kellye Garrett will serve as Toastmaster.

Left Coast Crime is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation holding annual mystery conventions in the West. Each LCC convention raises money to support a local literary organization and is staffed entirely by volunteers.

For more information on Left Coast Crime 2022, please visit https://leftcoastcrime.org/2022/

Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, recently hosted Dana Stabenow in person for the national book launch of the second in her Eye of Isis series, Disappearance of a Scribe. You can order a signed copy through the Web Store. https://tinyurl.com/2p837zhb

Here’s the summary of Disappearance of a Scribe.

The second in the trilogy of Ancient Egyptian crime novels that began with Death of an Eye.

Two Alexandrian fishermen come across a horrifying sight ““ the body of a skeleton floating upright at the bottom of the sea, anchored in place by a cement weight around his feet. In Alexandria’s rough-and-tumble construction trade they call that ‘being fitted with a pair of Rhakotis sandals’ and what’s worse, he’s the second such victim in two years.

Queen Cleopatra is busy rebuilding her city after the Alexandrian War and these murders are not to be allowed to interfere with this primary task, so she charges Tetisheri, her new Eye of Isis, with the task of finding out who these men were, when they were murdered, and, above all, why.

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Dana Stabenow was born in Anchorage, Alaska and raised on a 75-foot fishing tender. She knew there was a warmer, drier job out there somewhere and found it in writing. Her first Kate Shugak book, A Cold Day for Murder, received an Edgar Award from the Crime Writers of America. She lives in Homer, Alaska. Find her online at stabenow.com.

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Dana Stabenow and Barbara Peters have been to Egypt together, so they can discuss that along with Stabenow’s new book.

Brad Taylor’s recent event at The Poisoned Pen was in-person as well as virtual. He appeared to discuss his latest book, End of Days. There are signed copies available through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2FFEJad

Here’s the description of End of Days.

Pike Logan must stop a deranged killer hell-bent on igniting an international conflagration in this explosive, action-packed thriller from New York Times bestselling author and former special forces officer, Brad Taylor.

When a paragliding trip over the picturesque mountains of Switzerland results in the brutal murder of the former head of Israeli intelligence, Mossad brings in terrorist hunters Aaron and Shoshana to investigate. But they’ll need help to find out who was behind the attack and what they’re planning next. Luckily, Aaron and Shoshana know exactly who to call.

Taskforce operators Pike Logan and Jennifer Cahill have been trapped in Charleston, South Carolina during COVID-19, so when Aaron and Shoshana show up on their doorstep with Israeli passports and a new mission, they jump at the chance to assist their friends. Some suspect that Keta’ib Hezbollah, an Iranian-funded militia group operating in Iraq, might be responsible for the “accidental” deaths of key members of the American and Israeli governments. But something isn’t adding up, and Pike, Jennifer, and the two Mossad operators are determined to find the real assassins before more people are cut down.

As they stumble upon the trail of a serial killer loose on the streets of Rome connected to the deaths and follow evidence leading to the exalted Knights of Malta, they must wade deep into the contentious religious and political fractures of Israel and the greater Middle East. It’s a dangerous world where fanatics and legitimate organizations exist side by side, and it’s up to the Taskforce to determine who is really pulling the strings. What they find could have disastrous consequences not only for them, but for the entire world… 

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Brad Taylor, Lieutenant Colonel (Ret.), is a twenty-one-year veteran of the U.S. Army Infantry and Special Forces, includ­ing eight years with Delta Force. Taylor retired in 2010 after serving more than two decades and participating in Oper­ation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. He has written fourteen New York Times bestsellers and is a security consultant on asymmetric threats for various agencies. He lives in Charleston, South Carolina, with his wife and two daughters.

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Enjoy the recent event featuring Brad Taylor.

Alafair Burke is the author of fourteen books, plus the six books she wrote with Mary Higgins Clark. She and Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, had wonderful stories to tell about Mary Higgins Clark and her commitment to her readers. The event was really featuring Burke’s Find Me, but anyone who watches the virtual event will enjoy the discussion of Clark. You can find signed copies of Find Me in the Web Store. https://bit.ly/3GJqzmt

Here’s the description of Find Me.

“Alafair Burke’s latest propulsive thrill-ride is a suspenseful, twisty mystery about memory, friendship and secrets. A page-turner of the highest order.” -Laura Dave, author of The Last Thing He Told Me

The disappearance of a young woman leaves her best friend reeling and an NYPD homicide detective digging into her own past in this twisty mystery about the power of female friendships. From the New York Times bestselling author of The Better Sister and The Wife.

Some pasts won’t stay forgotten . . .

She calls herself Hope Miller, but she has no idea who she actually is. Fifteen years ago, she was found in a small New Jersey town thrown from an overturned vehicle, with no clue to her identity. Doctors assumed her amnesia was a temporary side effect of her injuries, but she never regained her memory. Hope eventually started a new life with a new name in a new town that welcomed her, yet always wondered what she may have left behind—or been running from. Now, she’s leaving New Jersey to start over once again.

Manhattan defense lawyer Lindsay Kelly, Hope’s best friend and the one who found her after the accident, understands why Hope wants a new beginning. But she worries how her friend will fare in her new East Hampton home, far away from everything familiar. Lindsay’s worst fears are confirmed when she discovers Hope has vanished without a trace—the only lead a drop of blood found where she was last seen. Even more ominously, the blood matches a DNA sample with a connection to a notorious Kansas murderer.

With nowhere else to turn, Lindsay calls NYPD homicide detective Ellie Hatcher, the daughter of the cop who dedicated his life to hunting the Kansas killer. Ellie has always believed there was more to the story of her father’s death twenty years earlier—and she now fears that Hope’s recent disappearance could be related.

In pursuit of answers, the women search for the truth beneath long-buried secrets. And when their searches converge, what they find will upend everything they’ve ever known. 

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Alafair Burke is a New York Times bestselling author whose most recent novels include The Wife and The Ex, which was nominated for the Edgar Award for best novel. She also co-authors the bestselling Under Suspicion series with Mary Higgins Clark. A former prosecutor, she now teaches criminal law and lives in Manhattan and East Hampton.

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Enjoy the virtual event featuring Alafair Burke.

Although Charles Cumming was the primary author for the recent Poisoned Pen virtual event to talk about his latest book, Box 88, Joseph Kanon joined the event for a discussion. Kanon and Cumming could talk about spy novels. Kanon will be back in late February to talk about his new book, The Berlin Exchange. You can order both books through the Web Store. https://store.poisonedpen.com/

Here’s the description of Box 88.

One of Parade‘s Most Anticipated Books of 2022!

A secret agent comes of age—and reckons with the legacy of his first mission—in this thriller by New York Times-bestseller Charles Cumming, “the best of the new generation of British spy writers” (The Observer)

Lachlan Kite is a member of BOX 88, an elite transatlantic black ops outfit so covert that not even MI6 and the CIA are certain of its existence — but even the best spy can’t anticipate every potential threat in a world where dangerous actors lurk around every corner. At the funeral of his childhood best friend, Lachlan falls into a trap that drops him into the hands of a potentially deadly interrogation, with his pregnant wife, also abducted, being held as collateral for the information he’s sworn on his own life to protect.

Thirty years earlier Lachlan, then just out of the upper class boarding school where he was reared, was BOX 88’s newest recruit. In the haze of a gap year summer, in which the study of spycraft was intertwined with a journey of self-discovery, he cut his teeth on a special assignment on the coast of France, where a friendship allowed him special access to one of Iran’s most dangerous men. Today, Lachlan’s nostalgia for the trip is corrupted by recollection of the deceit that accompanied it but, in order to save his family, he’ll be forced to revisit those painful memories one last time.

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Charles Cumming is a British writer of spy fiction. He was educated at Eton College (1985-1989) and the University of Edinburgh (1990-1994), where he graduated with 1st Class Honors in English Literature. He’s been described him as “the best of the new generation of British spy writers who are taking over where John le Carré and Len Deighton left off”.

BOX 88 is his tenth novel, the start of a new series featuring Lachlan Kite.

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Here’s the description of the forthcoming The Berlin Exchange.

From “master of the genre” (The Washington Post) Joseph Kanon, an espionage thriller set at the height of the Cold War, when a captured American who has spied for the KGB is swapped by the British and returns to East Berlin needing to know who arranged his release and what they want from him.

Berlin. 1963. The height of the Cold War. An early morning spy swap, not at the familiar setting for such exchanges, or at Checkpoint Charlie, where international visitors cross into the East, but at a more discreet border crossing, usually reserved for East German VIPs. The Communists are trading two American students caught helping people to escape over the wall and an aging MI6 operative. On the other side of the trade: Martin Keller, a physicist who once made headlines, but who then disappeared into the English prison system. Keller’s most critical possession: his American passport. Keller’s most ardent desire: to see his ex-wife Sabine and their young son.

The exchange is made with the formality characteristic of these swaps. But Martin has other questions: who asked for him? Who negotiated the deal? The KGB? He has worked for the service long enough to know that nothing happens by chance. They want him for something. Not physics—his expertise is out of date. Something else, which he cannot learn until he arrives in East Berlin, when suddenly the game is afoot.

Filled with intriguing characters, atmospheric detail, and plenty of action Kanon’s latest espionage thriller is one you won’t soon forget.

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Joseph Kanon is the Edgar Award”“winning author of The Accomplice, Defectors, Leaving Berlin, Istanbul Passage, Los Alamos, The Prodigal Spy, Alibi, Stardust, and The Good German, which was made into a major motion picture starring George Clooney and Cate Blanchett. He lives in New York City.

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Enjoy Barbara Peters’ discussion with Charles Cumming and Joseph Kanon.

Mystery Writers of America recently announced the 2022 Grand Master, Raven and Ellery Queen Award recipients, and all three are friends of The Poisoned Pen.

BY MWA · JANUARY 12, 2022

MWA Announces 2022 Grand Master, Raven and Ellery Queen Award Recipients

January 12, 2022 —New York, NY—Today Mystery Writers of America (MWA) announces the recipients of its special awards. The board chose Laurie R. King as the 2022 Grand Master, the 2022 Raven Award recipient is Lesa Holstine, and Juliet Grames will receive the Ellery Queen Award. They will accept their awards at the 76^th Annual Edgar Awards Ceremony, which will be held April 28, 2022, at the Marriott Marquis Times Square in New York City.

“Mystery Writers of America is thrilled to honor Laurie R. King as MWA’s 2022 Grand Master,” said MWA President Alafair Burke. “For more than a quarter century, King has entertained readers around the world with her writings, which range from historical fiction to contemporary police procedurals to gripping standalones and scores of anthology contributions. She is also a generous supporter of readers and fellow writers and a leader within the literary community. She exemplifies the excellence that defines the Grand Master Award, and we are delighted to recognize her achievements.

MWA’s Grand Master Award represents the pinnacle of achievement in mystery writing and was established to acknowledge important contributions to this genre, as well as for a body of work that is both significant and of consistent high quality. Laurie R. King is thebestselling author of 30 novels and other works, including the Mary Russell-Sherlock Holmes stories, beginning with The Beekeeper’s Apprentice (named “One of the 20th Century’s Best Crime Novels” by the IMBA.)  She has won the Agatha, Anthony, Edgar, Lambda, Wolfe, Macavity, Creasey dagger, and Romantic Times Career Achievement awards, has an honorary doctorate in theology, and is a Baker Street Irregular.  Her recent books include Castle Shade and How to Write a Mystery (co-edited with Lee Child.) She has been a member of Mystery Writers of America since 1993 and served on the NorCal and National boards.

On being notified of the honor, King said, “I am sure I’m not the only person who greeted the announcement that they had been given this extreme honor of the mystery world first with silence, then with, “Really?  Me??”  I mean, any list that begins with Agatha Christie and touches on such gods as Ross MacDonald and Daphne du Maurier, Ngaio Marsh and John Le Carré, Tony Hillerman and—well, you get the idea. “˜I am honored’ is an inadequate response (You are sure you counted the votes, right?) when what I mean is, “˜I am stunned, dumbfounded, gobsmacked.’ And honored too, of course—intensely, humbly, and gratefully.”

Previous Grand Masters include Charlaine Harris, Jeffery Deaver, Barbara Neely, Martin Cruz Smith, William Link, Peter Lovesey, Walter Mosley, Lois Duncan, James Ellroy, Robert Crais, Ken Follett, Martha Grimes, Sara Paretsky, James Lee Burke, Sue Grafton, Stephen King, Mary Higgins Clark, Lawrence Block, P.D. James, Ellery Queen, Daphne du Maurier, Alfred Hitchcock, Graham Greene, and Agatha Christie, to name a few.

The Raven Award recognizes outstanding achievement in the mystery field outside the realm of creative writing. For 2022, Mystery Writers of America selected librarian, a blogger, and book reviewer Lesa Holstine.

Upon learning she would receive the Raven Award, Lesa Holstine reacted with disbelief, “You’re kidding!” Holstine said, “I’m grateful to the MWA Board, and to mystery writers everywhere who have provided so much enjoyment over the years.”

Previous Raven Award recipients includeMalice Domestic, Left Coast Crime, Marilyn Stasio, The Raven Bookstore, Sisters in Crime, and Oline Cogdill.

Holstine has worked in public libraries since she was 16. For almost 50 years, she’s shared her love of books, especially mysteries, with library patrons, and is presently the Collections Manager at the Evansville Vanderburgh Public Library in Evansville, Indiana. She is in the 18^th  year of writing her award-winning blog, Lesa’s Book Critiques, has been the blogger for Poisoned Pen Bookstore for over four years, and reviews mysteries for Mystery Readers’ Journal and Library Journal, where she was named Reviewer of the Year in 2018. She has received the 2011 Arizona Library Association Outstanding Library Service Award and the David S. Thompson Special Service Memorial Award. She is a member of Sisters in Crime and serves on the Left Coast Crime Standing Committee.

The Ellery Queen Award was established in 1983 to honor “outstanding writing teams and outstanding people in the mystery-publishing industry.” This year the Board chose to honor Juliet Grames, SVP, Associate Publisher at Soho Press, where she has curated the award-winning Soho Crime imprint since 2011. Her debut novel, The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna, was published by Ecco/HarperCollins and has been translated into ten languages.

On learning she would receive the Ellery Queen Award, Grames said, “I am astonished and moved by this great honor. There is no community I could be prouder to work in: the creators in our genre are not only artists but activists and thoroughly good people. It is a great privilege to nurture and amplify their voices, and I humbly thank every author who has ever trusted me with that privilege. It is also a great privilege to work for a publisher, Bronwen Hruska, whose values—both literary and philosophical—align so perfectly with mine. This recognition belongs to them, although I am honored to be their representative.”

Previous Ellery Queen Award winners include Reagan Arthur, Kelley Ragland, Linda Landrigan, Neil Nyren, Charles Ardai, and Janet Hutchings.

The Edgar Awards, or “Edgars,” as they are commonly known, are named after MWA’s patron saint Edgar Allan Poe and are presented to authors of distinguished work in various categories. MWA is the premier organization for mystery writers, professionals allied to the crime-writing field, aspiring crime writers, and those who are devoted to the genre. The organization encompasses some 3,000 members including authors of fiction and non-fiction books, screen and television writers, as well as publishers, editors, and literary agents. For more information on Mystery Writers of America, please visit the website: www.mysterywriters.org

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