Scene of the CrimeFest

If you include, as you probably should, the 2006 Left Coast Crime convention--which also took place in Bristol, England--as part of its history, then this weekend’s CrimeFest was the event’s ninth year. Through all that time, these gatherings have been organized by Adrian Muller and Myles Allfrey, and have been held at the four-star Bristol Marriott Royal Hotel. Ali Karim, The Rap Sheet’s tireless British correspondent, has long sung the praises of this convention, and his opinions on this weekend’s conference echo those he’s delivered in years past. He calls CrimeFest “excellent, just the right size,” held in a “fantastic hotel” in a town with hundreds of restaurants within a five-minute walk, for all budgets.” And he extols the fact that “no one [there] takes themselves too seriously.” Maybe it’s all the gin Ali imbibed during his three-plus days in southwest England, or the fact that he had the opportunity to hang around with some of the world’s most respected crime novelists, but he says he left Bristol on Sunday feeling “energized and with such warm thoughts. He adds that he’s “rarely laughed so much” as he did at CrimeFest.

Fortunately for those of us who weren’t able to attend the 2014 CrimeFest, Ali took a profusion of photographs there and uploaded them to his Facebook page. With his permission, I’ve culled more than a dozen of my favorites and posted them below.

Click on any of these photographs to open an enlargement.


Author Maureen Jennings with critic-novelist Peter Guttridge, snooping out fresh reads in the CrimeFest Book Room.


Severn House editor Kate Lyall Grant is the rose caught between two thorns--author James Oswald and Shots editor Michael Stotter.


Novelist Stephen Booth concentrates on his signing at CrimeFest.


The charming Ruth Dudley Edwards inks some bookplates.


Martin Walker ventured over from France for this convention.


CrimeFest Bristol co-chairs Myles Alfry and Adrian Muller enjoy a bite to eat during a short break from the convention.


Mick Herron, who won the 2013 Gold Dagger Award for Dead Lions, devotes a bit of downtime to signing books.


Ali Karim and critic-author Mike Ripley certainly seem to be enjoying themselves at the Severn House party.


Shots contributor Ayo Onatade and Sophia Isabelle Karim (Ali’s daughter) arrive for the CrimeFest “gala dinner.”


Julia Jones (left) of the Margery Allingham Society presents Martin Edwards with the inaugural CWA Margery Allingham Prize.


2014 Diamond Dagger Award recipient Simon Brett served ably as after-dinner speaker and CrimeFest toastmaster.


What better way to finish off an evening than in the Bristol Marriott Royal Hotel bar, where laughter echoes as if in a cave?


Fellow authors and longtime friends Robert Wilson and Paul Johnston sample some of the bar’s liquid treats.


Martin Edwards looks on while fellow author Kate Ellis signs bookplates for her fans.


Kevin Wignall’s Sunday morning interview with Icelandic novelist Yrsa Sigurðardóttir drew a standing-room-only crowd.


It’s time to say farewell, until next year’s CrimeFest. Left to right: Mason Cross, Sophia Isabelle Karim, Shots editor Michael Stotter, Kevin Wignall, and James Oswald.

(All photos © 2014 Ali Karim)

READ MORE: “CrimeFest--and a Magic Moment,” by Martin Edwards (‘Do You Write Under Your Own Name?’); “Thrillers at CrimeFest 2014,” by Ali Karim (Shotsmag Confidential); “CrimeFest 2014: Saturday’s Panels,” by Sarah Ward (Crimepieces); “Confessions from CrimeFest,” Parts One, Two, and Three (Crime Thriller Girl).

Prizes and Surprises in Bristol

Thanks to our British correspondent, Ali Karim, who’s on the scene at this year’s CrimeFest convention in Bristol, England, we have the winners of several commendations handed out during a ceremony there this evening. I’m particularly pleased to see one of my favorite crime novels from last year, Derek B. Miller’s Norwegian by Night, honored twice. Below are all of the prize recipients.

Petrona Award (for Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year): Linda, As in the Linda Murder, by Leif G.W. Persson, translated by Neil Smith (Doubleday)

Also nominated: Closed for Winter, by Jørn Lier Horst, translated by Anne Bruce (Sandstone Press); Strange Shores, by Arnaldur Indriðason, translated by Victoria Cribb (Harvill Secker); The Weeping Girl, by Håkan Nesser, translated by Laurie Thompson (Mantle); Someone to Watch Over Me, by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir, translated by Philip Roughton (Hodder & Stoughton); and Light in a Dark House, by Jan Costin Wagner, translated by Anthea Bell
(Harvill Secker)

eDunnit Award (honoring “the best crime fiction ebook first published in both hardcopy and in electronic format in the British Isles in 2013”): Norwegian by Night, by Derek B. Miller (Faber and Faber)

Also nominated: The Beauty of Murder, by A.K. Benedict (Orion); Sandrine, by Thomas H. Cook (Head of Zeus); Claire DeWitt and the Bohemian Highway, by Sara Gran (Faber and Faber); Under a Silent Moon, by Elizabeth Haynes (Sphere); Cross and Burn, by Val McDermid (Sphere); The Red Road, by Denise Mina (Orion); Sign of the Cross, by Thomas Mogford (Bloomsbury); and The Double, by George Pelecanos (Orion)

Goldsboro Last Laugh Award (honoring “the best humorous crime novel first published in the British Isles in 2013”): Norwegian by Night, by Derek B. Miller (Faber and Faber)

Also nominated: Fire and Brimstone, by Colin Bateman (Headline); Speaking from Among the Bones, by Alan Bradley (Orion); The Axe Factor, by Colin Cotterill (Quercus); Calamitous Chinese Killing, by Shamini Flint (Little, Brown); Bad Monkey, by Carl Hiaasen (Little, Brown); A Little Murder, by Suzette A. Hill (Allison & Busby); and The Sound of One Hand Killing, by Teresa Solona (Bitter Lemon Press)

Audible Sounds of Crime Award
(honoring “the best unabridged crime audiobook first published in the UK in 2013 in both printed and audio formats, and available for download from Audible UK”): The Cuckoo’s Calling, by Robert Galbraith, read by Robert Glenister (Hachette Audio)

Also nominated: Broken Homes, by Ben Aaronovitch, read by Kobna Holdbrook-Smith (Orion Audio); A Delicate Truth, by John le Carré, read by John le Carré (Penguin); Dead Man’s Time, by Peter James, read by Daniel Weyman (Macmillan Audio); The Chessmen, by Peter May, read by Peter Forbes (Quercus); and Natural Causes, by James Oswald, read by Ian Hanmore (Penguin)

Congratulations to all the winners and other nominees!

Readying the Launch of Daggers

Bristol is buzzing this weekend as mystery writers, editors, critics, and readers descend upon that city in southwest England to take part in CrimeFest. This annual convention began on Thursday, but last night brought its first headline event: the announcement of shortlisted nominees for a variety of awards to be presented by the British Crime Writers’ Association. The winners of these commendations will be announced on Monday, June 30, during the CWA Dagger Awards dinner.

The CWA Endeavour Historical Dagger:
• Devil in the Marshalsea, by Antonia Hodgson (Hodder & Stoughton)
• The Late Scholar, by Jill Paton Walsh (Hodder & Stoughton)
• Treachery, by S.J. Parris (HarperCollins)
• The City of Strangers, by Michael Russell (Avon)
• Kitty Peck and the Music Hall Murders, by Kate Griffin
(Faber & Faber)
• Theft of Life, by Imogen Robertson (Headline Review)
• The Dead Can Wait, by Robert Ryan (Simon & Schuster)

The CWA Non-Fiction Dagger:
• Did She Kill Him, by Kate Colquhoun (Little, Brown)
• Life After Death, by Damien Echols (Atlantic)
• Undercover, by Rob Evans & Paul Lewis (Faber & Faber/Guardian)
• The Girl, by Samantha Geimer (Simon & Schuster)
• Manson, by Jeff Guinn (Simon & Schuster)
• The Seige, by Adrian Levy & Cathy Scott-Clark (Viking)

The CWA International Dagger:
• Strange Shores, by Arnaldur Indridason; translated by Victoria Crib (Harvill Secker)
• Irène, by Pierre Lemaître; translated by Frank Wynne (Quercus/MacLehose)
• The Siege, by Arturo Perez-Reverte; translated by Frank Wynne (Weidenfeld)
• Forty Days Without Shadow, by Oliver Tru; translated by Louise Rogers LaLaurie (Little, Brown)
• Plan D, by Simon Urba; translated by Katy Derbyshire (Harvilll Secker)
• Dog Will Have His Day, by Fred Vargas; translated by Siân Reynolds (Harvill Secker)

The CWA Short Story Dagger:
• “Judge Surra,” by Andrea Camilleri (from Judges, by Andrea Camiller, Carlo Lucarelli, and Giancarlo De Cataldo; MacLehose Press)
• “Reconciliation,” by Jeffery Deaver (from Trouble in Mind, by Jeffery Deaver; Hodder & Stoughton)
• “In Our Darkened House,” by Inger Frimansson (from A Darker Shade: 17 Swedish Stories of Murder, Mystery, and Suspense, edited by John-Henri Holmberg; Head of Zeus)
• “Fedora,” by John Harvey (from Deadly Pleasures, edited by Martin Edwards; Severn House)
• “Night Nurse,” by Cath Staincliffe (from Deadly Pleasures)

The CWA Debut Dagger:
• The Long Oblivion, by Tim Baker
• A Convenient Ignorance, by Michael Baker
• Under the Hanging Tree, by Barb Ettridge
• The Father, by Tom Keenan
• Motherland, by Garry Abson
• The Allegory of Art and Science, by Graham Brack
• Convict, by Barb Ettridge
• The Dog of Erbill, by Peter Hayes
• Burnt, by Kristina Stanley
• Deviant Acts, by John J.White
• Seeds of a Demon, by Anastasia Tyler
• Colours, by Tim Emery
• The Movement, by Jody Sabral

In addition, Martin Edwards, the author of such novels as The Frozen Shroud (2013) and Dancing for the Hangman (2008), was honored with the inaugural CWA Margery Allingham Prize.

Still to come at CrimeFest: the proclamations of which authors and works will receive the 2014 Petrona Award and three other commendations.

(Hat tip to Shotsmag Confidential.)

READ MORE: “Friday’s Panels,” by Sarah Ward (Crimepieces).

Coming CrimeFest Commendations

A month in advance of this year’s CrimeFest (May 15-18), organizers have announced the shortlists of nominees for three prizes to be given out during that event in Bristol, England.

Audible Sounds of Crime Award
(honoring “the best unabridged crime audiobook first published in the UK in 2013 in both printed and audio formats, and available for download from Audible UK”):

• Broken Homes, by Ben Aaronovitch, read by Kobna Holdbrook-Smith (Orion Audio)
• A Delicate Truth, by John le Carré, read by John le Carré (Penguin)
• The Cuckoo’s Calling, by Robert Galbraith, read by Robert Glenister (Hachette Audio)
• Dead Man’s Time, by Peter James, read by Daniel Weyman (Macmillan Audio)
• The Chessmen, by Peter May, read by Peter Forbes (Quercus)
• Natural Causes, by James Oswald, read by Ian Hanmore (Penguin)

eDunnit Award
(honoring “the best crime fiction ebook first published in both hardcopy and in electronic format in the British Isles in 2013”):

• The Beauty of Murder, by A.K. Benedict (Orion)
• Sandrine, by Thomas H. Cook (Head of Zeus)
• Claire DeWitt and the Bohemian Highway, by Sara Gran (Faber and Faber)
• Under a Silent Moon, by Elizabeth Haynes (Sphere)
• Cross and Burn, by Val McDermid (Sphere)
• Norwegian by Night, by Derek B. Miller (Faber and Faber)
• The Red Road, by Denise Mina (Orion)
• Sign of the Cross, by Thomas Mogford (Bloomsbury)
• The Double, by George Pelecanos (Orion)
• The Feast of Artemis, by Anne Zouroudi (Bloomsbury)

Goldsboro Last Laugh Award
(honoring “the best humorous crime novel first published in the British Isles in 2013”):

• Fire and Brimstone, by Colin Bateman (Headline)
• Speaking from Among the Bones, by Alan Bradley (Orion)
• The Axe Factor, by Colin Cotterill (Quercus)
• Calamitous Chinese Killing, by Shamini Flint (Little, Brown)
• Bad Monkey, by Carl Hiaasen (Little, Brown)
• A Little Murder, by Suzette A. Hill (Allison & Busby)
• Norwegian by Night, by Derek B. Miller (Faber and Faber)
• The Sound of One Hand Killing, by Teresa Solona (Bitter Lemon Press)

“It is fantastic to see such a brilliant and diverse range of authors and publishers on this year’s shortlist,” says CrimeFest co-director Adrian Muller. “Amongst the names are past winners and nominees, but new novelists are also well represented.”

Winners will be announced during a “gala dinner” to be held at CrimeFest on Saturday, May 17.

(Hat tip to Shotsmag Confidential.)

Found in Translation

It was finally announced today which books and authors have been shortlisted to win the 2014 Petrona Award for Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year. They are as follows:

• Closed for Winter, by Jørn Lier Horst,
translated by Anne Bruce (Sandstone Press)
• Strange Shores, by Arnaldur Indriðason,
translated by Victoria Cribb (Harvill Secker)
• The Weeping Girl, by Håkan Nesser,
translated by Laurie Thompson (Mantle)
• Linda, As in the Linda Murder, by Leif G.W. Persson,
translated by Neil Smith (Doubleday)
• Someone to Watch Over Me, by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir,
translated by Philip Roughton (Hodder & Stoughton)
• Light in a Dark House, by Jan Costin Wagner,
translated by Anthea Bell (Harvill Secker)

This commendation memorializes Maxine Clarke, the British editor, crime-fiction blogger, and “champion of Scandinavian crime fiction” who died in December 2012; Petrona was the name of her long-running blog. It touts crime novels in translation, either penned by a Scandinavian author or set in Scandinavia and published in the UK.

The winner of this year’s Petrona Award will be named during CrimeFest, the annual international crime-fiction gathering in Bristol, England. The 2014 convention will take place from May 15 to 18. “The winning author’s prize,” explains a press release, “will include a full pass to and a guaranteed panel at the 2015 CrimeFest event.”

Three judges were responsible for selecting this year’s six nominees: Barry Forshaw, a specialist in crime fiction and film, and author of--among other books--Death in a Cold Climate: A Guide to Scandinavian Crime Fiction and the first biography of Stieg Larsson; Dr. Katharina Hall, an associate professor of German at Swansea University, who’s currently busy editing Crime Fiction in German for University of Wales Press; and Sarah Ward, an English language teacher in Manchester and the blogger at Crimepieces.

Click here for more information about the Petrona Award.