Update: The winners were announced last night (25th October) and are in bold.
In addition an extra award was presented – Ali Karim, Mike Stotter, and Ayo Onatade of Shots Ezine and David Stuart Davies, editor of the CWA’s Red Herrings magazine all received a special Red Herring Award for services to the genre.
Following the announcement of the CWA Dagger longlists in May the shortlists have now been confirmed.
The only tips I can offer are for the Steel Dagger – Bluebird, Bluebird, it’s a book that featured on many reviewers’ ‘best of 2017’ lists and scooped ‘Best Novel’ at The Edgars earlier this year. Another book that was a winner at The Edgars was Killers of the Flower Moon which won in ‘Best Fact Crime’. Other than that I’m currently clueless!
The Diamond Dagger – selected from nominations provided by CWA members – 2018 winner is Michael Connelly and the award will be presented at the CWA Dagger Awards Dinner in October.
The shortlists for the following daggers were announced on 25 July with the winners being presented at the CWA dinner in October.
- Gold Dagger (best crime novel)
- Ian Fleming Steel (best thriller)
- John Creasey (New Blood)
- International
- Gold Dagger for Non-Fiction
- Short Story
- Debut (unpublished writers)
- Historical
- Dagger in the Library
Gold Dagger
The Liar by Steve Cavanagh
London Rules by Mick Herron
Since We Fell by Dennis Lehane
Bluebird, Bluebird by Attica Locke
A Necessary Evil by Abir Mukherjee
Resurrection Bay by Emma Viskic
Ian Fleming Steel Dagger
London Rules by Mick Herron
If I Die Before I Wake by Emily Koch
Bluebird, Bluebird by Attica Locke
An Act of Silence by Colette McBeth
The Chalk Man by C J Tudor
The Force by Don Winslow
John Creasey (New Blood)
Gravesend by William Boyle
I.Q. by Joe Ide
Girl In Snow by Danya Kukafka
Lola by Melissa Scrivner Love
East Of Hounslow by Khurrum Rahman
Resurrection Bay by Emma Viskic
International Dagger
Zen and the Art of Murder by Oliver Bottini Tr. Jamie Bulloch
Three Days and a Life by Pierre Lemaitre Tr. Frank Wynne
After the Fire by Henning Mankell Tr. Marlaine Delargy
The Frozen Woman by Jon Michelet Tr. Don Bartlett
Offering to the Storm by Dolores Redondo Tr. Nick Caistor & Lorenza Garzía
The Accordionist by Fred Vargas Tr. Sian Reynolds
Non-Fiction Dagger
Black Dahlia Red Rose by Piu Eatwell
Killers Of The Flower Moon by David Grann
Blood On The Page by Thomas Harding
The Fact Of A Body by Alexandria Mariano-Lesnevich
A False Report by T. Christian Miller & Ken Armstrong
Rex v Edith Thompson by Laura Thompson
CWA Short Story Dagger
The Last Siege of Bothwell Castle by Chris Brookmyre
from Bloody Scotland ( Historic Environment Scotland)
Second Son by Lee Child
from No Middle Name: The Complete Collected Jack Reacher Stories (Bantam Press)
Smoking Kills by Erin Kelly
from “The Body” Killer Women Crime Club Anthology 2 Edited by Susan Opie (Killer Women Ltd)
Nemo Me Impune Lacessit by Denise Mina
from Bloody Scotland (Historic Environment Scotland)
Accounting for Murder by Christine Poulson
from Mystery Tour: CWA Anthology of Short Stories Edited by Martin Edwards (Orenda Books)
Debut Dagger (unpublished writers)
Bill Crotty – The Eternal Life of Ezra Ben Simeon
Luke Melia – The Last Googling of Beth Bailly
Joseph James – Riverine Blood – highly commended
Linda McLaughlin – Original Sins
Sherryl Clark – Trust Me, I’m Dead
Historical Dagger
A Necessary Evil by Abir Mukherjee
Fire by L. C. Tyler
Lightning Men by Thomas Mullen
Money in the Morgue by Ngaio Marsh & Stella Duffy
Nine Lessons by Nicola Upson
Nucleus by Rory Clements
Dagger in the Library longlist
Martin Edwards
Nicci French
Simon Kernick
Edward Marston
Peter May
Rebecca Tope
So how’s your reading going – have read enough to judge a category for yourself? Any tips for the winners?
Novel Heights 
One comment