Plumping for Kiwi “Bests”

Organizers of New Zealand’s annual Ngaio Marsh Awards have released their longlist of 12 nominees for the 2024 Best Novel prize:

• Dice, by Claire Baylis (Allen & Unwin)
• The Caretaker, by Gabriel Bergmoser (HarperCollins)
• Ritual of Fire, by D.V. Bishop (Macmillan)
• Birnam Wood, by Eleanor Catton (Te Herenga Waka University Press)
• Pet, by Catherine Chidgey (Te Herenga Waka University Press)
• El Flamingo, by Nick Davies (YBK)
• Double Jeopardy, by Stef Harris (Quentin Wilson)
• The Quarry, by Kim Hunt (Spiral Collectives)
• Devil’s Breath, by Jill Johnson (Black & White/Bonnier)
• Going Zero, by Anthony Mccarten (Macmillan)
• Home Before Night, by J.P. Pomare (Hachette)
• Expectant, by Vanda Symon (Orenda)

Named in honor of Golden Age detective fictionist Ngaio Marsh, these prizes “celebrate Kiwi excellence in one of the world’s most popular storytelling forms,” says Ngaio Marsh Awards founder Craig Sisterson. Finalists in not only this category, but also Best First Novel and Best Kids/YA, are expected to be announced in early August. Winners are to be fêted during a special event held in association with WORD Christchurch in late August.