The Glencairn Glass Crime Short Story Competition

 

The Glencairn Glass Crime Short Story Competition Returns in Association 

with Bloody Scotland

The official glass for whisky, the Glencairn Glass, is once again raising a toast to crime fiction with the return of its popular annual Crime Short Story Competition.

 Launched in partnership with the Bloody Scotland International Crime Writing Festival, the competition invites both experienced and novice writers from around the world to submit an original crime story of under 2,000 words. The criteria this year is that the protagonist must be from Scotland. Entries close on 31 March 2026.

The overall winner will receive £1,000, publication of their story on the Bloody Scotland website, and will be offered a guest appearance at the Bloody Scotland Festival in September 2026. The runner-up will be awarded £500, with both winning stories also published on the Glencairn Glass website (whiskyglass.com).

The Glencairn Glass is no stranger to the world of Scottish crime fiction. It is produced by the award-winning Scottish family glassware business Glencairn Crystal and the company has celebrated and supported the Bloody Scotland Crime Writing Festival since 2020 with its Glencairn Glass sponsorship of both the McIlvanney Prize for the Scottish Crime Book of the Year and the Bloody Scotland Debut Crime Novel of the Year awards.

 Previous winners:

Since its inception, the competition has drawn hundreds of entries from both established and emerging voices in crime fiction worldwide. For many writers, it has been a career springboard.

Allan Gaw, runner-up in 2022/23, has since achieved major success, winning the 2024 Bloody Scotland Debut Novel Prize and securing a seven-book publishing deal with Polygon. Frances Crawford, the 2022/23 winner, has signed a two-book publishing deal with Penguin and sees her first novel hit the shelves in 2026. The competition’s inaugural winner, Brid Cummings (2021), went on to sign with a UK literary agency after finishing her first psychological suspense novel which has since been published by Audible.

 The Judges

For the first time, this year’s judging panel includes six of the UK’s leading crime book influencers* alongside Kirsty Nicholson, Design and Marketing Manager at Glencairn Crystal.

Commenting on the competition, Kirsty said: “We’re thrilled to launch the fourth year of our short story competition with our official whisky glass, the Glencairn Glass, as we continue to support and celebrate the world of crime fiction. Each year the calibre and creativity of the entries exceed our expectations, and we’re excited to discover the new voices and gripping stories that this year’s competition will bring.”.

 How to enter:

All short story entries must be submitted at www.whiskyglass.com/crime-short-story-competition. The competition closes at midnight on Tuesday 31st March 2026. The winner and runner up will be announced in the summer. Bloody Scotland’s Festival Director, Bob McDevitt, said: “We are excited to read a new crop of stories, and hope that the competition provides a stepping stone in developing the careers of some talented new voices”.

 For further details about the competition please visit: www.whiskyglass.com/crime-short-story-competition  

The Glencairn Glass Crime Short Story Competition

 

Do you have a knack for conjuring up sinister plots, capturing the perfect crime, or documenting deadly deeds? If so, this is your chance to showcase your talent. Glencairn Crystal, the maker of the world’s favourite whisky glass – the Glencairn Glass, and sponsor of the McIlvanney and Bloody Scotland Debut crime writing awards, is seeking crime short stories in collaboration with Bloody Scotland and Scottish Field Magazine. This year’s theme is ‘A Crime Set In Scotland.’

CRITERIA FOR ENTRY

Short stories must be 2,000 words or less.

The competition is open to all writers worldwide, published and unpublished, who are over 16 years old by 23rd October 2023.

Stories entered for the competition should not have been previously published in any format, online or print, self-published or paid.

Theme

The short story must be based on the theme ‘A Crime Story Set In Scotland’

Prize

First prize – £1000 Runner Up – £500

Both winners will also receive a set of six bespoke engraved Glencairn Glasses.

The overall winning entry will be published in Scottish Field Magazine and online at www.whiskyglass.com

Judges

Callum McSorley, this year’s Bloody Scotland McIlvanney Prize winner for the Scottish Crime Book of the Year.

Kate Foster, this year’s Bloody Scotland Scottish Crime Debut of the Year winner.

Gordon Brown, who also writes under the name Morgan Cry, has had eleven crime and thriller books published to date.

Closing Date

All entries should be uploaded below by midnight on Sunday 31st December 2023. Please click here to see to terms and conditions.

McIlvanney Prize and Bloody Scotland Debut Prize announced!!

 

WINNERS REVEALED FOR THE McILVANNEY PRIZE 2023 & THE BLOODY SCOTLAND DEBUT PRIZE

Sponsored by The Glencairn Glass

We're thrilled to reveal the 2023 winners of The McIlvanney Prize and The Bloody Scotland Debut Prize. The finalists for both prizes led the iconic torchlit procession from Stirling Castle through the historic old town this evening accompanied by the pipes and drums of the Stirling and District Schools Pipe Band. On stage at The Albert Halls Kenny Tweeddale, from sponsors The Glencairn Glass, presented the winner of The Bloody Scotland Scottish Crime Debut of the Year to Kate Foster for The Maiden (Mantle) and The McIlvanney Prize Scottish Crime Book of the Year to another debut author, Callum McSorley for Squeaky Clean (Pushkin Press).

The judges for The McIlvanney Prize were unanimous in their praise for Squeaky Clean which beat off competition from previous McIlvanney Prize winners Craig Russell and Denise Mina and previous Bloody Scotland Debut winner, Robbie Morrison, to be named Scottish Crime Book of the Year.

Bryan Burnett from BBC Radio Scotland said:

‘A wonderfully rich and funny new voice in Scottish crime. McSorley has created characters you invest in and a plot that keeps you hooked right from the start. Although it’s dark and gruesome it’s full of laugh out loud lines that still bring you pleasure long after you’ve finished the book. A novel I couldn’t wait to recommend to friends. ‘Glasgow’s least popular detective’ is about to hit the big time.’ 

Jason Allardyce, former editor of Sunday Times Scotland described it as:

‘A fresh new voice brings a Brookmyre-esque beauty that sparkles like a motor straight out the car wash. Full of unforgettable, three-dimensional characters and laugh out loud moments in every chapter to offset the violence among the valets.’

Angie Crawford Category Manager for Waterstones called it:

‘A thoroughly astonishing brutally brilliant novel written with wit and verve and laced with a very black humour that betrays a vulnerability and gets right under the skin. Callum McSorley’s writing is fresh and exciting, I can’t wait to read more.’

Squeaky Clean (Pushkin) features DI Ally McCoist the least popular detective in the Glasgow police who has been demoted. It’s a contemporary thriller packed with black humour and hints of Breaking Bad. Like Tim in the book, Callum McSorley worked at a carwash to make money while he was a student which has informed some of the colourful characters.  He is from East Kilbride (as is the original footballing Ally McCoist) and graduated from the University of Strathclyde in 2013. His stories have appeared in Gutter magazine and New Writing Scotland.

The judges for the Bloody Scotland Debut Prize selected The Maiden by Kate Foster (Mantle) as the best Debut of the Year.

Pauline McLean from BBC Scotland said:

‘The Maiden is a finely crafted, multi layered story. I didn’t want it to end, and certainly not in the way I knew it did, being based on a true-life case. A rare and poignant female perspective in a decidedly male world, told with passion and humour. Much more than a crime novel, and apt that its own development began at Bloody Scotland in 2020.’

 Kenny Tweeddale, New Product Development Manager from The Glencairn Glass said:

‘I thought The Maiden was a terrific bodice ripping tale that kept you guessing till the end.  The fictional story was built around factual characters and a historical incident from the chequered past of Auld Reekie. Bouncing between two strong female characters it demonstrates how women had to strive to survive in a male orientated world.’

Journalist and Editor Arusa Qureshi said:

‘The Maiden is a fascinating and immersive debut, that places you in an imagined yet historically familiar time and space. Stories about women in history are so often lost or forgotten so it’s refreshing to read something based on a true case that is skilfully constructed and utterly gripping, with a woman’s voice front and centre.’

Kate Foster has come full circle at Bloody Scotland. She first appeared on the virtual stage at Pitch Perfect during lockdown in 2020. She won the pitching panel with an outline of The Maiden and went on to get an agent and publisher. The Maiden (Mantle) is set in the 17th Century and is a reimagining of true historical events in which Lady Christian Nimmo is charged with the murder of her lover - and uncle - James Forrester. Kate Foster is a journalist and lives in Edinburgh.

Kirsty Nicholson, Design and Marketing Manager at Glencairn Crystal, said:

‘We’re raising a celebratory dram in our Glencairn Glass to salute Callum McSorley and Kate Foster for winning this year’s awards. A massive congratulations to them both on their success. We’re very proud of our Scottish heritage and it has been a huge honour to sponsor the awards over the past few years that showcase the diverse array of talent that currently exists in the world of Scottish crime fiction.’

A huge congtulations to both winners!

2023 McIlvanney Prize Shortlist: Bloody Scotland

 

The Shortlist for the 2023 McIlvanney Prize for Scotland's prestigious annual crime writing award, was announced. The Prize is named in memory of the 'Godfather of Tartan Noir', the great William McIlvanney: 

Squeaky Clean by Callum McSorley (Pushkin): the judges said: "A wonderfully rich and funny new voice in Scottish crime. McSorley has created characters you invest in and plot that keeps you hooked right from the start."

The Second Murderer by Denise Mina (Vintage): the judges said: "Seriously stylish and oozing with attitude, this Philip Marlowe mystery is an exquisite read."

Cast a Cold Eye by Robbie Morrison (Macmillan): the judges said: "A story inhabited by brilliantly drawn characters. Not just a crime novel but a vivid and immersive account of life in Glasgow in the 1930s."

The Devil's Playground by Craig Russell (Little, Brown): the judges said: "Mesmerising from the start. Devilishly dark and dripping with menace. A breath-taking masterclass in twisty crime writing."

These events are part of a three-day annual showcase of crime writing at Bloody Scotland, which is Scotland's international crime writing festival. Both prizes are again sponsored by The Glencairn Glass, Kirsty Nicholson, Design and Marketing Manager at Glencairn Crystal, said: 

"Now in our third year of sponsoring these prestigious awards with the Glencairn Glass, we’re very proud to be a part of this amazing Scottish annual event in the world of crime fiction. We continue to be impressed and enthralled by the talented authors who enter and we wish everyone the very best of luck."

The 2023 Bloody Scotland festival begins at 1: 30pm on Friday, September 15 , with the final event concluding at 2pm on Sunday September 17. It takes place at various venues in the historic centre of Stirling, including the Albert Halls, Trinity Church, and the Golden Lion Hotel. 

Winner of Glencairn Glass inaugural short story competition winner announced

The Glencairn Glass announces the winners of its inaugural short story competition

The world’s favourite whisky glass – The Glencairn Glass – has been celebrating Scottish crime writing talent over the past two years as headline sponsor of the prestigious McIlvanney and Bloody Scotland Debut crime-writing prizes.

To support this creative collaboration, The Glencairn Glass launched its first very own crime short story competition, inviting all budding crime writers to curate their stories around the theme: ‘A Crystal-Clear Crime’ in no more than 2000 words. The competition has been in partnership with Scottish Field Magazine and Bloody Scotland.

The winner and runners up were selected by a panel of three judges including Deborah Masson, 2020 winner of the Bloody Scotland Debut Crime Novel of the Year with her book ‘Hold Your Tongue’ and Peter Ranscombe, Scottish Field’s drinks columnist and author of the historical thriller ‘Hare’, along with Glencairn’s marketing director Gordon Brown who is also an author, writing under the name Morgan Cry.

The competition attracted entries from all over the world and the judges can now reveal the winner and two runners up as follows:

Winner: (£1000 prize)

Halmeoni’s Wisdom – a dark tale of human trafficking, illegal trade and a desire for freedom. Written by Brid Cummings, a fiction writer and occupational therapist, based in South Australia.

Brid said; “When I heard I’d won the Glencairn Glass crime short story competition, I was absolutely delighted. With such an intriguing theme, I enjoyed the challenge of writing the story, but had no expectation of winning. The news has given me a huge confidence boost and the encouragement to complete my psychological suspense novel. Many thanks to Glencairn Crystal and the Bloody Scotland team for this fantastic opportunity.”

Runners up: (£250 prize for each runner up)

Teardrops – a story about a confession to murder and a need for retribution, born of revenge. Written by Jennifer Harvey, a Scottish author based in Denmark.

Jennifer said: "I am delighted to be a runner-up in the Glencairn Crystal crime short story competition. Many thanks to the judges for selecting my story 'Teardrops'. I will raise a glass to the winners and all the entrants in celebration. Cheers!"

Auld Bride – a story about a lost soul returning to the island of her birth, where more than a new job awaits her. Written by Judith O’Reilly, author and former political producer with BBC and ITN and correspondent with The Sunday Times, based in Northumberland. 

Judith was also a ‘Crime in the Spotlighter’ at the Bloody Scotland Crime Writing Festival in 2019.

Judith commented: "I'm thrilled to be named as a runner up in this great crime writing short story competition run by Glencairn Glass. The story itself is a cross between The Wicker Man and Kinky Boots, with a flash of Whisky Galore thrown in for good measure. I really wanted to add a touch of the supernatural to a story about whisky and the comeback of a ghost distillery. Whisky with all its history and traditions is a very evocative thing to write about. I hope readers enjoy it."

Judges’ comments:

Describing the winning story Halmeoni’s Wisdom by Brid Cummings, Peter Ranscombe commented: “I was gripped from the excellent start all the way through to the satisfying finish”. Peter selected Teardrops by Jennifer Harvey because; “the theme was very well chosen – a really ‘of-the moment’ story. The structure was interesting with a suitably unsettling ending too”. He described Auld Bride by Judith O’Reilly as: “an old-fashioned blend of suspense and mystery that led up to a chilling climax”.

Deborah Masson said: “Halmeoni’s Wisdom was unique. The imagery was expertly drawn and it had a satisfying end with redemption realised. Teardrops was a fascinating tale, and an all too real danger in today’s modern world. Then in Auld Bride - masterful descriptive writing is displayed in setting the scene in this tale and a surprise twist brings not only past and present together, but also good and evil.”

Glencairn’s marketing director Gordon Brown, who is also a founding director of the Bloody Scotland International Crime Writing Festival and has written eight crime novels with his latest, ‘Thirty-One Bones’, under the pseudonym Morgan Cry said: “The quality of entries was outstanding. With entries from all over the planet it demonstrates the continuing fascination with crime writing. This is why Glencairn is delighted to continue their sponsorship of both the McIlvanney and Bloody Scotland debut crime prizes which will be announced at this year’s Bloody Scotland Festival in September.

Prizes and where to read the stories:

Three prizes are awarded to the winning authors: the first prize winner, Brid Cummings, receives £1000, whilst the two runners up, Jennifer Harvey and Judith O’Reilly, each receive £250. All three winners also receive a set of six bespoke engraved Glencairn Glasses. The overall winning entry will be published in the May issue of Scottish Field Magazine (on shelf Friday 8th April). The runners’ up stories will also be published from 8th April online on Scottish Field Magazine’s website (www.scottishfield.co.uk).

You will also be able to read the winning story and the runners up stories on the Glencairn Glass website: www.whiskyglass.com from Monday 11th April.

Finally, for further information about this year’s McIlvanney and Bloody Scotland Debut crime-writing prizes, as well as the Bloody Scotland Crime Writing Festival taking place in Stirling, Scotland, for four days from the 15th to 18th September, please visit www.bloodyscotland.com

A Crystal Clear Crime - The Glencairn Glass Short Story Competition

 The Glencairn Glass launches its first ever crime short story competition with the theme:

“A Crystal Clear Crime”

For the past two years, the world’s favourite whisky glass – The Glencairn Glass – has featured as headline sponsor of the prestigious McIlvanney and Bloody Scotland Debut crime-writing prizes, celebrating the finest in Scottish crime writing talent. This week The Glencairn Glass is building on this creative collaboration by launching its very own crime short story competition, in partnership with Scottish Field Magazine.

The Glencairn Glass is looking to celebrate up-and-coming literary talent through this exclusive competition from October to December.

The competition opens for entries on 20th October and runs until 31st December, inviting all budding crime writers to build their stories around the theme: ‘A Crystal-Clear Crime’ in no more than 2000 words.

The judging panel for the inaugural competition will comprise Deborah Masson, 2020 winner of the Bloody Scotland Debut Crime Novel of the Year with her book ‘Hold Your Tongue’, Peter Ranscombe, Scottish Field’s drinks columnist and author of the historical thriller ‘Hare’, as well as Glencairn’s marketing director Gordon Brown, who has written eight crime novels with his latest, ‘Thirty-One Bones’, written under the pseudonym Morgan Cry. Gordon is also one of the founding directors of the Bloody Scotland International Crime Writing Festival.

Gordon Brown commented: “We’re very excited to be launching the Glencairn Glass crime short story competition, supported by the team at the Bloody Scotland International Crime Writing Festival along with the Culture and Business Fund Scotland, working with Scottish Field. We are delighted to invite both experienced and novice authors, alike, to take a stab at entering (excuse the pun!) and wish all entrants the best of luck.”

Three prizes will be available for the winning trio of authors: the first prize winner will receive £1000, whilst the two runners up will each receive £250. All three winners will also receive a set of six bespoke engraved Glencairn Glasses to enjoy their favourite dram with. The overall winning entry will be published by Scottish Field in spring 2022 as well as on The Glencairn Glass website.

All short story entries must be uploaded at www.whiskyglass.com/crime-short-story-competition with the competition closing at midnight on the Friday 31st December 2021. Details can also be found at www.scottishfield.co.uk. The winners will be announced in March 2022.

Bloody Scotland Announces winners of McIlVanney Prize and Debut Novel

BLOODY SCOTLAND INTERNATIONAL CRIME WRITING FESTIVAL REVEALS MORRISON AND RUSSELL AS THE WINNERS OF THE BLOODY SCOTLAND DEBUT PRIZE FOR CRIME FICTION AND THE McILVANNEY PRIZE 2021

sponsored by The Glencairn Glass with match funding from 

Culture & Business Fund Scotland

William McIlvanney famously said of Bloody Scotland International Crime Writing Festival:

‘I went to Bloody Scotland and I was just knocked out.... this event was so friendly, so supportive I was honestly overwhelmed’

William McIlvanney – speaking on BBC Scotland

The prize in his honour is even more poignant this year as his last book has just been published posthumously with the help of one of Scotland’s best known crime writers, Ian Rankin who completed The Dark Remains and will be on stage at Bloody Scotland at 7pm tonight to talk about it.

The 2021 Festival launched in Stirling with a Debut Panel featuring all of the authors shortlisted for the Bloody Scotland Debut Prize. At the prizegiving itself a specially commissioned film about Scottish crime fiction, produced in association with Publishing Scotland, was screened for the first time. It stars Val McDermid, Ian Rankin, Ambrose Parry, Denise Mina, Abir Mukherjee and Graham Macrae Burnet. It is presented by broadcaster and incoming Bloody Scotland chair, James Crawford who said:

‘Is there perhaps something in the water or the air or the landscape that makes Scotland’s crime writers so adept at this, so skilled at unpeeling these layers of personality to expose the raw nerve of identity and truth’

BBC Radio Scotland presenter and Debut Judge, Janice Forsyth revealed the winner of this year’s Bloody Scotland Debut Prize to be Robbie Morrison with Edge of the Grave (Macmillan) which she described as:‘ A terrific debut novel, with a memorable cast of characters, which impressed the judges with its ambitious, authentic, deep dive into the Glasgow gangland and class divides of the 1930s.’

Morrison was also a finalist for The McIlvanney Prize along with Emma Christie, Alan Parks and Stuart MacBride but McIlvanney judge and crime critic, Ayo Onatade revealed the judges chose the winner of The McIlvanney Prize to be Craig Russell with Hyde (Constable) describing it as:‘a fantastic book with a gothic background that draws you in and brings the reader back to the Scottish origins of Jekyll and Hyde’s creator, Robert Louis Stevenson. A dark tale that was a delight and a thoroughly entertaining read. It shows that Scottish crime writing is amongst the best in the world.

Russell is a local author who first won the award in 2015 with The Ghosts of Altona just before it was renamed The McIlvanney Prize. He is the first author to win the prize twice.

The Glencairn Glass, the world’s favourite whisky glass, has again sponsored both The McIlvanney Prize and The Bloody Scotland Debut Crime Novel of the Year. Culture & Business Fund Scotland have generously given matched funding. The winners were presented with a trophy by Raymond Davidson – CEO and Founder of Glencairn Crystal - who said:

‘We’d like to raise a toast to Robbie Morrison and Craig Russell and congratulate them on their success in winning the prizes. It is an honour to support the world of Scottish crime fiction with The Glencairn Glass and we wish all the participants well in the future.

Angie Crawford, Scottish Buying Manager for Waterstones who support the prizes with displays in their 27 shops across Scotland said:

‘We are utterly thrilled for Craig Russell that Hyde has won the McIlvanney Prize, it is one of our bookseller’s favourites across Scotland and we have loved recommending it to our customers. Edge of the Grave by Robbie Morrison is currently our Scottish Book of the Month – it is especially pleasing to see it win the Bloody Scotland Debut.’

Pre-Covid, celebrations would have progressed outside for the traditional torchlight procession from the Castle but this year the spectacle was brought inside the Albert Halls with a specially commissioned film of Stirling lit up red, a lone piper and volunteers recreating the Bloody Scotland logo – the map of Scotland – by torchlight.

Bloody Scotland McIlvanney Prize 2021 Finalists Revealed

 

Bloody Scotland International Crime Writing Festival reveals

five finalists for the McIlvanney Prize 2021 

sponsored by The Glencairn Glass with match funding from 

Culture & Business Fund Scotland

Five years ago the Scottish Crime Book of the Year Award was renamed the McIlvanney Prize in memory of William McIlvanney. This year his final book, The Dark Remains, completed with the help of Ian Rankin, was launched at the Edinburgh Book Festival immediately prior to the announcement of the McIlvanney Prize shortlist.

The McIlvanney Prize judges this year include Karen Robinson, formerly of The Times Crime Club and a CWA judge; Ayo Onatade, winner of the CWA Red Herring Award and freelance crime fiction critic and Ewan Wilson, crime fiction buyer from Waterstones Glasgow.

They selected five finalists from the longlist of thirteen. The list includes 2015 winner, Craig Russell; established names Stuart MacBride and Alan Parks and two debut authors, Emma Christie and Robbie Morrison who beat some of the biggest names in crime fiction to make the cut. Emma Christie was one of the up and coming authors selected to appear at Crime in the Spotlight as a support act for The Never Ending Panel last year.

The judges described Craig Russell as ‘an author who never disappoints and always gets to the heart of a story’ and they ‘loved the presentation of Victorian Edinburgh and Celtic myths’ in HYDE (Constable)

They praised THE APRIL DEAD by Alan Parks (Canongate) for ‘continuing to innovate’ and said they ‘enjoyed the well-drawn characters and cliffhanger ending’.

They called THE COFFIN MAKER’S GARDEN by Stuart MacBride (HarperCollins) ‘a dark, edgy and original novel, full of action and a great sense of place with just the right kind of humour'

They described THE SILENT DAUGHTER by Emma Christie (Welbeck) as ‘taking the domestic noir genre and offering something fresh and different with well controlled characters’ and called EDGE OF THE GRAVE by Robbie Morrison (Macmillan) ‘. They enjoyed the pace of the novel and the unforeseen twist at the end. Both are also on the shortlist for the Bloody Scotland Debut Prize.

The Glencairn Glass, the World’s Favourite Whisky Glass and the Official Glass for Whisky is again sponsoring both The McIlvanney Prize and The Bloody Scotland Debut Crime Novel of the Year. Culture & Business Fund Scotland have generously given matched funding.

The winners of both prizes will be revealed at the Albert Halls in Stirling at 5.15pm on Friday 17 September and broadcast live on-line.

Winners of the Bloody Scotland International Crime Fiction Prizes revealed!!

BLOODY SCOTLAND INTERNATIONAL CRIME FESTIVAL REVEALS THE WINNERS OF THE BLOODY SCOTLAND DEBUT PRIZE AND THE McILVANNEY PRIZE 2020 TO BE TWO DEBUT WOMEN WRITERS

Sponsored by The Glencairn Glass with match funding from Culture & Business Fund Scotland

It has been a rollercoaster year for debut writers. Closed bookshops meant that they could have sunk without trace but reviewers, innovative booksellers, established authors and the media have been incredibly supportive and at Bloody Scotland we have been hugely grateful for the enthusiasm shown for the finalists in our second Bloody Scotland Debut Prize – Francine Toon, Deborah Masson, Stephen O’Rourke and Marion Todd.

The prize was judged by Lin Anderson, author and co-founder of Bloody Scotland, Ewan Wilson from Waterstones and Kenny Tweedale from sponsors the Glencairn Glass, who at the opening of the Bloody Scotland International Crime Writing Festival on Friday evening revealed the winner of the Debut Prize to be Deborah Masson with Hold Your Tongue.

The judges described Hold Your Tongue as a 'well written, fast paced and gritty thriller with a strong female protagonist, who will stop at nothing to find the killer'.

The finalists of the prestigious McIlvanney Prize included established names Ambrose Parry and Doug Johnstone (both of whom were finalists last year) alongside relative newcomer Andrew James Greig and debut author Francine Toon who had also featured on the Bloody Scotland Debut shortlist.

Judges Karen Robinson (Times Crime Club) and James Crawford (author, TV presenter and chair of Publishing Scotland) were chaired by writer and broadcaster Stuart Cosgrove who revealed the winner of the McIlvanney Prize 2020 to be Francine Toon with Pine.

He described her book as‘an extraordinary novel which stood out because of the sheer quality of the writing and the dark brooding atmosphere of the remote rural Scottish village in which it is set. The book merges the supernatural with real crime in a very memorable way and brings an exciting new talent to Scottish crime writing.’            

Both winners are debuts. Both are published by Transworld, who coincidentally also published last year’s winner Manda Scott. It is the first year that the Glencairn Glass have sponsored the prizes. Kirsty Nicholson, Glencairn Crystal's Marketing Manager said:

‘First time authors winning both prizes this year highlights what a bright future the fantastic tradition of Scottish crime writing has.We are delighted and proud to sponsor such prestigious awards with the Glencairn Glass and would like to congratulate both Francine and Deborah, while wishing them all the best for the future.'

Francine Toon was brought up in Sutherland and Fife. She has lived in Dornoch, St Andrews, Edinburgh, Canterbury, London and Portugal.

Deborah Masson was born and bred in Aberdeen. She and her children now live in the family home where she grew up.