Elevating E-books

Three e-books have been identified as finalists for the inaugural Mysterious Press Award. As explained by a news release, this prize “was established as a contest for a mystery novel to be published as Best E-Book Original by MysteriousPress.com and distributed in the United States and Canada by Open Road Integrated Media and published world-wide.” Here’s the trio of contenders:

• Alibi, by Lee Goodman (represented by Janet Reid)
• The Downside, by Mike Cooper (represented by Janet Reid)
• Bright Like Blood, by Leigh C. Rourks (represented by
Larry Kirshbaum)

Otto Penzler, who serves as the president and CEO of MysteriousPress.com, is quoted in that same release as saying: “As electronic publishing has become a significant element of the publishing world, we decided to recognize an outstanding work of mystery fiction by offering a substantial advance and a great opportunity for world-wide recognition. We had an extraordinary array of outstanding crime novels submitted for the contest and will be thrilled to publish whichever one is chosen as the winner.”

The victorious entry will score its author $25,000, an advance against future royalties. And the announcement of a winner will be made during the 2016 Frankfurt Book Fair (October 19-23).