Making a Play for the Macavitys

Today has brought the announcement, from Mystery Readers International, of nominees for its 2020 Macavity Awards. The winners are set to be declared during opening ceremonies at the Virtual Sacramento Bouchercon (October 16-17).

Best Mystery Novel:
• Your House Will Pay, by Steph Cha (Ecco)
• This Tender Land, by William Kent Krueger (Atria)
• Lady in the Lake, by Laura Lippman (Morrow)
• The Chain, by Adrian McKinty (Mulholland)
• The Murder List, by Hank Philippi Ryan (Forge)
• Sarah Jane, by James Sallis (Soho Crime)

Best First Mystery:
• The Ninja Daughter, by Tori Eldridge (Agora)
• My Lovely Wife, by Samantha Downing (Penguin)
• Miracle Creek, by Angie Kim (Sarah Crichton)
• One Night Gone, by Tara Laskowski (Graydon House)
• Call Me Evie, by J.P. Pomare (Putnam)
• American Spy, by Lauren Wilkinson (Random House)

Best Mystery Short Story:
• “West Texas Barbecue,” by Michael Chandos (from The Eyes of Texas: Private Eyes from the Panhandle to the Piney Woods, edited by Michael Bracken; Down & Out Books)
• “Alex's Choice,” by Barb Goffman (from Crime Travel, edited by Barb Goffman; Wildside Press)
• “The Cardboard Box,” by Terence Faherty (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine [EQMM], January/February 2019)
• “Whiteout,” by G.M. Malliet (EQMM, January/February 2019)
• “Brother’s Keeper,” by Dave Zeltserman (EQMM, May/June 2019)
• “Better Days,” by Art Taylor (EQMM, May/June 2019)

Best Mystery Non-fiction/Critical:
• Hitchcock and the Censors, by John Billheimer (University
Press of Kentucky)
• Frederic Dannay, Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine and the Art of the Detective Short Story, by Laird R. Blackwell (McFarland)
• Beyond the Thirty-Nine Steps: A Life of John Buchan, by Ursula Buchan (Bloomsbury)
• Norco ’80: The True Story of the Most Spectacular Bank Robbery in American History, by Peter Houlahan (Counterpoint)
• The Mutual Admiration Society: How Dorothy L. Sayers and Her Oxford Circle Remade the World for Women, by Mo Moulton
(Basic Books)
• Indecent Advances: A Hidden History of True Crime and Prejudice Before Stonewall, by James Polchin (Counterpoint Press)

Sue Feder Memorial Award for Best Historical Mystery:
• Murder Knocks Twice, by Susanna Calkins (Minotaur)
• The Pearl Dagger, by L.A. Chandlar (Kensington)
• A Lady’s Guide to Gossip and Murder, by Dianne Freeman (Kensington)
• The Satapur Moonstone, by Sujata Massey (Soho Crime)
• Charity’s Burden, by Edith Maxwell (Midnight Ink)
• The Secrets We Kept, by Lara Prescott (Vintage)

The recipients of this year’s prizes will be selected by MRI members, subscribers to Mystery Readers Journal, and “friends of MRI.” All of those people should receive ballots by August 1.