Of All the Kiwi Contenders

During a special video-streaming event held earlier today in association with New Zealand’s WORD Christchurch Festival, the winners of four 2021 Ngaio Marsh Awards for crime, mystery, and thriller fiction (and crime non-fiction) were announced. If you’re interested, you can watch the full 72-minute Zoom presentation—which includes appearances by 20 authors—by clicking here.

Best Novel: Sprigs, by Brannavan Gnanalingam (Lawrence & Gibson)

Also nominated: The Murder Club, by Nikki Crutchley (Oak House Press); The Tally Stick, by Carl Nixon (Penguin); The Secrets of Strangers, by Charity Norman (Allen & Unwin); and Tell Me Lies, by J.P. Pomare (Hachette)

Best First Novel: For Reasons of Their Own, by Chris Stuart
(Original Sin Press)

Also nominated: The Girl in the Mirror, by Rose Carlyle (Allen & Unwin); The Beautiful Dead, by Kim Hunt (Bloodhound); Where the Truth Lies, by Karina Kilmore (Simon & Schuster); and While the Fantail Lives, by Alan Titchall (Devon Media)

Best Non-fiction: Black Hands: Inside the Bain Family Murders,
by Martin van Beynen (Penguin)

Also nominated: Weed: A New Zealand Story, by James Borrowdale (Penguin); Rock College: An Unofficial History of Mount Eden Prison, by Mark Derby (Massey University Press); From Dog Collar to Dog Collar, by Bruce Howat (Rangitawa); and Gangland: New Zealand’s Underworld of Organised Crime, by Jared Savage (HarperCollins)

Best YA/Kids Book: Katipo Joe, by Brian Falkner (Scholastic)

Also nominated: Red Edge, by Des Hunt (Scholastic); A Trio of Sophies, by Eileen Merriman (Penguin); and Deadhead, by Glenn Wood
(One Tree House)

A hearty congratulations to all of this year’s nominees!