2025 DAGGER AWARDS PRESENTED
The Dagger Awards, awarded by The Crime Writer’s Association to celebrate the best in crime and thriller writing, were presented on July 6, 2023 in London. Our congratulations to the winners (listed first in each category) and to all of the nominees.
| Diamond Dagger * | Mick Herron |
| Gold Dagger | |
|---|---|
| * | The Book of Secrets by Anna Mazzola |
| ° | A Divine Fury by D.V. Bishop |
| ° | I Died at Fallow Hall by Bonnie Burke-Patel |
| ° | The Bell Tower by R.J. Ellory |
| ° | The Hunter by Tana French [review] |
| ° | Guide Me Home by Attica Locke |
| Ian Fleming Steel Dagger | |
|---|---|
| * | Dark Ride by Lou Berney [review] |
| ° | Nobody’s Hero by M.W. Craven |
| ° | Sanctuary by Garry Disher |
| ° | Hunted by Abir Mukherjee [review] |
| ° | Blood Like Mine by Stuart Neville |
| ° | City in Ruins by Don Winslow |
| First Novel Dagger | |
|---|---|
| * | All Us Sinners by Katy Massey |
| ° | Miss Austen Investigates: The Hapless Milliner by Jessica Bull [review] |
| ° | Knife River by Justine Champine |
| ° | Three Burials by Anders Lustgarten |
| ° | A Curtain Twitcher’s Book of Murder by Gay Marris |
| ° | Deadly Animals by Marie Tierney [review] |
| Historical Dagger | |
|---|---|
| * | The Betrayal of Thomas True by A.J. West |
| ° | A Divine Fury by D.V. Bishop |
| ° | Banquet of Beggars by Chris Lloyd |
| ° | The Book of Secrets by Anna Mazzola |
| ° | Poor Girls by Clare Whitfield |
| Crime Fiction in Translation Dagger | |
|---|---|
| * | The Night of Baba Yaga by Akira Otani |
| ° | Dogs and Wolves by Hervé Le Corre |
| ° | Going to the Dogs by Pierre Lemaître |
| ° | The Clues in the Fjord by Satu Rämö |
| ° | Butter by Asako Yuzuki |
| ° | Clean by Alia Trabucco Zerán |
| Non-Fiction Dagger | |
|---|---|
| * | The Peepshow: The Murders at 10 Rillington Place by Kate Summerscale |
| ° | Unmasking Lucy Letby: The Untold Story of the Killer Nurse by Jonathan Coffey and Judith Moritz |
| ° | The Lady in the Lake: A Reporter’s Memoir of a Murder by Jeremy Craddock |
| ° | Framed: Astonishing True Stories of Wrongful Convictions by John Grisham and Jim McCloskey |
| ° | The Criminal Mind by Duncan Harding |
| ° | Four Shots in the Night: A True Story of Stakeknife, Murder, and Justice in Northern Ireland by Henry Hemming |
| Short Story | |
| * | “A Date on Yarmouth Pier” by J.C. Bernthal Midsummer Mysteries |
| ° | “The Glorious Twelfth” by S.J. Bennett Midsummer Mysteries |
| ° | “Why Harrogate?” by Janice Hallett Murder in Harrogate |
| ° | “City Without Shadows” by William Burton McCormick Midsummer Mysteries |
| ° | “A Ruby Su” by Meeti Shroff-Shah Midsummer Mysteries |
| ° | “Murder at the Turkish Baths” by Ruth Ware Murder in Harrogate |
| Whodunnit Dagger (cosy crime, traditional mysteries, and Golden Age crime) | |
|---|---|
| * | The Case of the Singer and the Showgirl by Lisa Hall |
| ° | A Death in Diamonds by S.J. Bennett [review] |
| ° | Murder at the Christmas Emporium by Andreina Cordani |
| ° | A Good Place to Hide a Body by Laura Marshall |
| ° | A Matrimonial Murder by Meeti Shroff-Shah |
| ° | Murder at the Matinee by Jamie West |
| Twisted Dagger (psychological and suspense thrillers) | |
|---|---|
| * | Nightwatching by Tracy Sierra [review] |
| ° | Emma, Disappeared by Andrew Hughes |
| ° | Beautiful People by Amanda Jennings |
| ° | The Stranger in Her House by John Marrs |
| ° | The Trials of Marjorie Crowe by C.S. Robertson |
| ° | Look in the Mirror by Catherine Steadman |
Joyce's mystery and fiction book reviews with some non-fiction too! 