The Australian Crime Writers Association announced the 2023 Ned Kelly Awards Shortlists

 

BEST CRIME FICTION 

Soulmate by Sally Hepworth 

When The Carnival is Over by Greg Woodland 

Exiles by Jane Harper 

When We Fall by Aoife Clifford 

The Tilt by Chris Hammer 

Those Who Perish by Emma Viskic 

Seven Sisters by Katherine Kovacic

Lying Beside You by Michael Robotham

BEST INTERNATIONAL CRIME FICTION 

(Published in Australia) 

The Lemon Man by Keith Bruton 

Paper Cage by Tom Baragwanath 

The Favour by Nicci French 

The Hitchhiker by Gerwin van der Werf 

BEST DEBUT CRIME FICTION 

Wake by Shelley Burr 

No Country for Girls by Emma Styles 

Dirt Town by Hayley Scrivenor 

Black River by Matthew Spencer 

How to Kill a Client by Joanna Jenkins 

The House of Now and Then by Jo Dixon 

Lenny Marks Gets Away with Murder by Kerryn Mayne 

Denizen by James McKenzie Watson 

BEST TRUE CRIME 

Tiger! Tiger! Tiger! by Officer 

A Death Row at Truro by Geoff Plunkett 

Rattled by Ellis Gunn 

Betrayed by Sandi Logan 

Out of the Ashes by Megan Norris 

Books to Look Forward to From Pushkin Press

 

January 2022

Detective Kosuke Kindaichi arrives on the remote Gokumon Island bearing tragic news–the son of one of the island’s most important families has died, on a troop transport ship bringing him back home after the Second World War. But Kindaichi has not come merely as a messenger–with his last words, the dying man warned that his three step-sisters’ lives would now be in danger. The scruffy detective is determined to get to the bottom of this mysterious prophesy, and to protect the three women if he can. As Kindaichi attempts to unravel the island’s secrets, a series of gruesome murders begins. He investigates, but soon finds himself in mortal danger from both the unknown killer and the clannish locals, who resent this outsider meddling in their affairs. Gokumon Island is by Seishi Yokomizo.

All Was Lost is by Steven Maxwell. The cash is gone. The hunt is on. How far would you go for your family? Orla McCabe has found a case of money. Willing to do almost anything to give her family a better life, she flees with her husband and baby daughter - and the money. Meanwhile, detectives Lynch and Carlin are investigating a botched human trafficking deal on the isolated northern moors. They find piles of bullet-riddled bodies, but no cash. The owners of the money are on the hunt, and soon a world of brutal violence envelops Orla and the detectives. To secure her daughter's future, Orla will never stop running. It's just a matter of who she drags into the dark with her. . .

April 2022

Caleb's addict brother, Anton, has been missing for months, still angry about Caleb's part in his downfall. After almost giving up hope of finding him, Caleb receives an anonymous message alerting him to Ant's whereabouts and warning him that Ant is in danger. A man has been shot and Ant might be next. Caleb reluctantly leaves his pregnant wife's side and tracks his brother to an isolated island where Ant has been seeking treatment. There, he finds a secretive community under threat from a sniper, and a cult-like doctor with a troubling background. Caleb must hunt for the sniper to save Ant, but any misstep may ruin their faltering reconciliation, and end in death. When body parts begin to wash up on shore, it looks like the sniper is growing more desperate... Those who Perish is by Emma Viskic.

June 2022

London in Black is by Jack Lutz. London 2027, terrorists deploy a highy sophistcated nerve agent called London Black at Waterloo station – for an unfortunate section of the population, what follows is agonising physical deterioration and usually death. London 2029, Dr Lucy Stone is called to investigate the gruesome murder of the scientist who developed an antidote to the nerve agent. It is a daily boost making life bearable for the 'Vulnerable' – but isn't a cure. Lucy suspects the scientist might have been working on a permanently end the bane of London Black for herself and the other Vulnerables. But is the antitdote real or a figment of Lucy's desperation. 

2020 Davitt Long List

Sisters in crime Australia have announced the long list for the 2020 Davitt award.  The short list will be announced in July.

Adult crime novels 

Kirsten Alexander, Half Moon Lake (Bantam Australia, an imprint of Penguin Random House Australia) Debut

Rachel Amphlett, Bridge to Burn (Detective Kay Hunter Murder Mystery #7) (Saxon Publishing)

Rachel Amphlett, Cradle to Grave (Detective Kay Hunter Murder Mystery #8) (Saxon Publishing)

Rachel Amphlett, The Friend Who Lied (Saxon Publishing)

Diane Armstrong, The Collaborator (HQ Fiction, an imprint of Harlequin Enterprises Australia)

Melissa Ashley, The Bee and the Orange Tree (Affirm Press) Debut

Sarah Bailey, Where the Dead Go (Allen & Unwin)

Sarah Barrie, Devil’s Lair (HQ Fiction, an imprint of Harlequin Enterprises Australia)

Susan Bennett, The Whack Club: Four women are about to start a mob war – and fingernails WILL be broken (Clever Pumpkin)

Violeta M Bagia, Jack of Hart: Wildcard (Hart of Darkness #4) (Violeta M Bagia)

Carmel Bird, Field of Poppies (Transit Lounge)

Isobel Blackthorn, A Prison in the Sun (Canary Islands Mysteries #3) (Next Chapter Publishing)

Ashley Kalagian Blunt, My Name Is Revenge (Spineless Wonders) Debut

Carline Bouilhet, The Samui Conspiracy (Austin Macauley Publishers)

Deborah Burrows, Ambulance Girls at War (Ebury Press, an imprint of Penguin Random House UK)

Suzanne Cass, Bound by Truth (Suzanne Cass)

Dianah Chorlton, The Vanishing of Venice (Austin Macauley Publishers) Debut

Phillipa Nefri Clark, The Christmas Tree Thief (Charlotte Dean Mysteries #1) (Phillipa Nefri Clark)

Sherryl Clark, Trust Me, I’m Dead (Verve Books) Debut

T M Clark, Cry of the Firebird (Mira, an imprint of Harlequin Enterprises Australia)

Natalie Conyer, Present Tense (Clan Destine Press) Debut

Tea Cooper, The Woman in the Green Dress (HQ Fiction, an imprint of Harlequin Enterprises Australia)

Cindy Davies, The Revolutionary’s Cousin (Odyssey Books) Debut

Livia Day, Keep Calm and Kill the Chef (Café la Femme #3) (Twelfth Planet Press)

Caroline de Costa, Blood Sisters (Wild Dingo Press)

Kaz Delaney, Chocolate and Old Lace (Rosie Hart Mystery #1) (Kerry Lane)

Kaz Delaney, Preserving the Evidence (Rosie Hart Mystery #2) (Kerry Lane)

Joy Dettman, Trails in the Dust (Woody Creek Novel #7) (Pan Macmillan Australia)

Sandie Docker, The Cottage at Rosella Cove (Penguin Random House Australia)

Pip Drysdale, The Strangers We Know (Simon & Schuster)

C M Elliot, Sibanda and the Rainbird (Constable, an imprint of Hachette Australia)

Helen FitzGerald, Worst Case Scenario (Orenda Books UK)

Sara Foster, You Don’t Know Me (Simon & Schuster)

Candice Fox, Gone by Midnight (Penguin Random House Australia)

Sulari Gentill, All the Tears in China (Rowland Sinclair Mysteries #9) (Pantera Press)

J M Green, Shoot Through (Scribe Publications)

Sally Hepworth, The Mother-in-Law (Pan Macmillan Australia) Debut

Diane Hester, Die for Me (Slender Thread Publishing)

Suzie Hindmarsh-Knights, Second Chance (Suzie Hindmarsh-Knights)

Rowena Holloway, From the Ashes (Ashes to Ashes #3) (Fractured Press)

Sarah Hopkins, The Subjects (Text Publishing)

Susan Hurley, Eight Lives (Affirm Press) Debut

Nicole Hurley-Moore, Lawson’s Bend (Allen & Unwin)

Wendy James, The Accusation (HarperCollins Publishers Australia)

Catherine Jinks, Shepherd (Text Publishing)

Maggie Joel, Unforgiving City (Allen & Unwin)

Dorothy Johnston, Gerard Hardy’s Misfortune (For Pity Sake)

Kylie Kaden, The Day the Lies Began (Pantera Press)

Julie Keys, The Artist’s Portrait (Hachette Australia) Debut

Lian Knight, Idle Lies (Hybrid Publishers) Debut

Katherine Kovacic, Painting in the Shadows (Echo Publishing)

C A Larmer, After the Ferry (Larmer Media)

Jess Lea, A Curious Woman (Ylva Publishing) Debut

Leisl Leighton, Climbing Fear (CoalCliff Stud #1) (Escape Publishing, an imprint of Harlequin Enterprises Australia)

Gabrielle Lord, Sisters (Wilkinson Publishing)

Rhonda Matheson-Browne, Bush (Olympia Publishers UK)

Fleur McDonald, Starting from Now (Allen & Unwin)

Fleur McDonald, Without a Doubt (Allen & Unwin)

Kerry McGinnis, The Roadhouse (Michael Joseph, an imprint of Penguin Random House Australia)

Petronella McGovern, Six Minutes (Allen & Unwin) Debut

Felicity McLean, The Van Apfel Girls Are Gone (4th Estate, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers Australia) Debut

Dervla McTiernan, The Scholar (HarperCollins Publishers Australia)

S J Morgan, Hide (MidnightSun Publishing) Debut  

Nicola Moriarty, The Ex (HarperCollins Publishers Australia) Debut

Tara Moss, Dead Man Switch (HarperCollins Publishers Australia)

Meg Mundell, The Trespassers (University of Queensland Press) Debut

Sonia Orchard, Into the Fire (Affirm Press) Debut

L J M Owen, The Great Divide (Echo Publishing)

Beth Prentice, Fatal Break (Aloha Lagoon Mysteries #15) (Gemma Halliday Publishing)

Leah Purcell, The Drover’s Wife (Hamish Hamilton, an imprint of Penguin Random House Australia) Debut

Carolyn Re and Loretta Re, Secrets of the IN-group (Resisters) Debut

Carmel Reilly, Life Before (Allen & Unwin) Debut

Kate Richards, Fusion (Hamish Hamilton, an imprint of Penguin Random House Australia) Debut

Anna Romer, Under the Midnight Sky (Simon & Schuster) Debut

Elisabeth Rose, The Secrets that Lie Within (Taylor’s Bend #1) (Escape Publishing, an imprint of Harlequin Enterprises Australia)

Elisabeth Rose, Where There Is Smoke(Taylor’s Bend #2) (Escape Publishing, an imprint of Harlequin Enterprises Australia)

Heather Rose, Bruny (Allen & Unwin)

Annie Seaton, Undara (Mira, an imprint of Harlequin Enterprises Australia)

Jennifer Spence, The Lost Girls (Simon & Schuster)

A M Stuart, Singapore Sapphire (Harriet Gordon Mystery #1) (Berkley, an imprint of Penguin Random House USA)

Sarah Thornton, Lapse (Text Publishing) Debut

M J Tjia, The Death of Me (Heloise Chancey Mystery #3) (Legend Press UK)

Emma Viskic, Darkness for Light (Caleb Zelic #3) (Echo Publishing)

Anna Willett, Cold Valley Nightmare (The Book Folks UK)

Anna Willett, The Woman Behind Her (The Book Folks UK)

Young Adult crime novels 

Joanna Baker, The Elsinore Vanish (Beechworth Trilogy #2) (Soren Press)

K H Canobi, Mindcull (Ford Street Publishing) Debut

Catherine Greer, Love Lie Repeat (Penguin Random House Australia) Debut

Anna Morgan, All That Impossible Space (Lothian Children’s Books, an imprint of Hachette Australia) Debut

Malla Nunn, When the Ground Is Hard (Allen & Unwin)

Tania Park, Stalked (Tania Park Publishing)

Tania Pennell, A Second Helping (Bush N Beach Australia)

Astrid Scholte, Four Dead Queens (Allen & Unwin) Debut

Children’s crime novels 

Sandra Bennett, A Lighthouse in Time (The Adamson Adventures #2) (Elephant Tree Publishing)

Jenny Blackford, The Girl in the Mirror (Eagle Books, an imprint of Christmas Press) Debut

Fiona Hardy, How to Make a Movie in 12 Days (Affirm Press)

Jacqueline Harvey, Kensy and Max: Undercover (#3) (Penguin Random House Australia)

Rebecca Lim, The Race for the Red Dragon (Children of the Dragon #2) (Allen & Unwin)

Rebecca McRitchie, Jinxed!: The curious curse of Cora Bell (Jinxed #1) (HarperCollins Publishers Australia)

Katrina Nannestad, The Girl, the Dog and the Writer in Lucerne (The Girl, the Dog and the Writer #3)(ABC Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers Australia)

Louise Park, Grace’s Secrets (Berbay Books)

Allison Rushby, The Seven Keys (Walker Books)

R A Spratt, Stuck in the Mud (The Peski Kids #3) (Puffin, an imprint of Penguin Random House Australia)

Renee Treml, Sherlock Bones and the Natural History Mystery (Allen & Unwin) Debut

Ailsa Wild, Squishy Taylor and the Secret Envelope (Hardie Grant Egmont)

Non-fiction crime books 

Samantha Battams, The Secret Art of Poisoning: The true crimes of Martha Needle, the Richmond Poisoner (Samantha Battams) Debut

Ava Benny-Morrison, The Lost Girls (ABC Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers Australia) Debut

Robin Bowles, Death on the Derwent: Sue Neill-Fraser’s story (Scribe Publications)

Tanya Bretherton The Suicide Bride: Mystery of tragedy and family secrets in Edwardian Sydney (Hachette Australia)

Adele Ferguson, Banking Bad: Whistleblowers. Corporate cover-ups. One journalist’s fight for the truth (ABC Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers Australia) Debut

Justine Ford, Unsolved Australia: Lost Boys,Gone Girls (Pan Macmillan Australia)

Catie Gilchrist, Murder, Misadventure and Miserable Ends: Tales from a Colonial Coroner’s Court (HarperCollins Publishers Australia) Debut

Jane Gilmore, Fixed It: Violence and the representation of women in the media (Viking, an imprint of Penguin Random House Australia)

Ginger Gorman, Troll Hunting: Inside the world of online hate and its human fallout (Hardie Grant Books) Debut

Jess Hill, See What You Made Me Do: Power, control and domestic abuse (Black Inc.) Debut

Sue Ingleton, Making Trouble – Tongued with Fire: An imagined history of Harriet Elphinstone Dick and Alice C Moon (Spinifex Press) Debut

Xanthé Mallett, Cold Case Investigations (Pan Macmillan Australia)

Kate McClymont (with Vanda Carson), Dead Man Walking: The murky world of Michael McGurk and Ron Medich (Vintage Australia, an imprint of Penguin Random House Australia) Debut

Lucie Morris-Marr, Fallen: The inside story of the secret trial and conviction of Cardinal George Pell (Allen & Unwin) Debut

Vikki Petraitis, Inside the Law: 25 years of true crime writing (Clan Destine Press)

Sue Smethurst and Margaret Harrod, Blood on the Rosary (Simon & Schuster)

Loretta Smith, A Spanner in the Works: The extraordinary story of Alice Anderson and Australia’s first all-girl garage (Hachette Australia) Debut

Leigh Straw, Angel of Death: Dulcie Markham, Australia’s most beautiful bad woman (ABC Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers Australia)

Helen Thomas, Murder on Easey Street: Melbourne’s most notorious cold case (Nero, a

More information can be found here.