Crime Writers of Canada 2026 Awards of Excellence

 

Crime Writers of Canada have announced the 

winners of the 2026 Awards of Excellence

The Peter Robinson Award for Best Crime Novel (With a $1000 prize)

The Black Wolf by Louise Penny,  Minotaur Books

Best Crime First Novel (Sponsored by Melodie Campbell with a $1000 prize)

The Beltane Massacre by Ray Critch, Breakwater Books

Best Crime Novel Set in Canada  (Sponsored by Shaftesbury with a $500 prize)

Salt on Her Tongue by C.S. Porter,  Vagrant Press

The Whodunit Award for Best Traditional Mystery (Sponsored by Jane Doe with a $500 prize)

The Cost of a Hostage by Iona Whishaw TouchWood Editions

Best Crime Short Story (Sponsored by Crime Writers of Canada with a $200 prize)

“Polly Wants a Freaking Cracker” by Sylvia Maultash Warsh, in Malice Domestic: Murder Most Humorous, Wildside Press

Best French Language Crime Book (Sponsored by Carrick Publishing with a $500 prize)

 Une nuit d’été à Littlebrook by Maureen Martineau, Héliotrope

Best Juvenile / YA Crime Book (Sponsored by Superior Shores Press with a $250 prize)

The Mystery of the Haunted Dance Hall by Charis Cotter, Tundra Books

The Brass Knuckles Award for Best Nonfiction Crime Book  (Sponsored by David Reid Simpson Law Firm (Hamilton) with a $300 prize)

Hitman: The Untold Story of Canada’s Deadliest Assassin, by Julian Sher & Lisa Fitterman,  HarperCollins Publishers Ltd

Best Unpublished Crime Novel manuscript written by an unpublished author  (Sponsored by ECW Press with a $500 prize)

Val's Story by Anne Burlakoff,