Bloody Scotland McIlvanney Winners announced

 

Bloody Scotland International Crime Festival kicked off wth the prize announements; A Day of The Dead parade led by an Effigy of Sir Ian Rankin and the big reveal of the mystery crime writer. 

The winner of the McIlvanney Prize was revealed – in the ballroom with a giant crystal glass –  to be Tariq Ashkanani with The Midnight King.  It was presented to him on stage on the opening night of the Bloody Scotland International Crime Writing Festival by the winner of the 2024 McIlvanney Prize, Chris Brookmyre. Tariq, a solicitor from Edinburgh, appeared as a support act for Ian Rankin in Crime in the Spotlight at the 2021 festival and went on to win the Bloody Debut Prize in 2022. The McIlvanney Prize win brings the process of nurturing authors at Bloody Scotland full circle.

The judges who included broadcaster, Nicola Meighan, journalist and writer Arusa Qureshi and crime reviewer Gordon McGhie said

“Tariq Ashkanani manages to create an atmosphere of dread while uniquely exploring the theme of nature vs nurture...When we speak about thrillers being page turners (this) should be used an example of how it should be done”

The winner of the 2025 Bloody Scotland Debut Prize was revealed to be David Goodman with A Reluctant Spy (Headline). Like Tariq he was previously selected for Crime in the Spotlight. He appeared as a support act for thriller writer Frank Gardner at Bloody Scotland last year. This year it is he who takes centre stage.  He also won the inaugural Theakston Old Peculier McDermid Debut Award in July. He lives in East Lothian with his family. 

The 2025 prize was judged by crime writer and Bloody Scotland founder, Alex Gray; broadcaster Bryan Burnett and Kenny Tweeddale from The Glencairn Glass. They said:

‘Everything about this feels authentic. In fact, the only thing that’s not believable is that this could be a debut novel.'

Kirsty Nicholson, Design and Marketing Manager at the awards sponsor Glencairn Crystal, said

‘A huge congratulations to Tariq Ashkanani on winning the McIlvanney Prize with his page-turning thriller The Midnight King, and to David Goodman on receiving the Debut Prize for his gripping first novel A Reluctant Spy.  Being a Scottish family company, we are proud to sponsor these distinguished annual awards with the Glencairn Glass, the official glass for whisky - both of which are deeply rooted in Scotland. It is an honour to help celebrate and shine a spotlight on such exceptional authors in the wonderful world of crime fiction.

The prize giving was followed by the inaugural Bloody Scotland Day of the Deid procession with actors and local pipeband in full make up led by the two winners and an effigy of Sir Ian Rankin. It concluded at the Albert Halls where the ‘mystery authors’ behind Evelyn Clarke’s, The Ending Writes Itself, (HQ, 7 April 2026) were finally revealed to be #1 Sunday Times bestselling author, V.E. Schwaband longtime friend and screenwriter Cat Clarke. V.E. Schwab is best known for The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue and Bury Our Bones. HarperCollins acquired rights in a nine publisher auction and will be publishing simultaneously in the US and Australia.

Highlights on Saturday included Mick Herron (author behind TV series Slow Horses), broadcasters Steph McGovern, Jeremy Vine and The Reverend Richard Coles, bestselling writer Kate Atkinson, actor Richard Armitage and superstar of American crime fiction Kathy Reichs. The day concluded with a Bloody Scotland take on Crime Family Fortunes and the sold-out Karaoke at the Coo where famous authors took to the mic.