Organizers of the Malice Domestic conference, which is set to take place this year in Bethesda, Maryland, from April 27 to 29, have announced their nominees for the 2017 Agatha Awards. The Agathas honor the "traditional mystery," i.e., books in the same vein as Agatha Christie. The finalists are divided into six categories including Best Contemporary Novel, Best Historical Novel, Best First Novel, Best Non-fiction, Best Short Story, and Best Children’s/Young Adult.
Finalists in nine categories have been chosen for the 2018 Minnesota Book Awards. The Genre Fiction category nominees include The Dark Net by Benjamin Percy; The End of Temperance Dare by Wendy Webb; Nothing Stays Buried by P. J. Tracy; and Sulfur Springs by William Kent Krueger. Winners will be announced on April 21.
Screenwriter Bridget Lawless has launched an award for a novel in the thriller genre in which no woman is beaten, stalked, sexually exploited, raped or murdered. The Staunch Book Prize, worth £2,000, was created because Lawless had grown "so fed up with the endless depictions of violence against women" in thrillers. She's currently funding it herself (and will begin a crowdfunding campaign to support running costs) and will judge the prize along with actress and writer Doon Mackichan. The Staunch Prize is open to female and male authors of any nationality over the age of 18 and may include traditionally or self-published print or e-books. Entries for the prize open on 22nd February and close at midnight on 15th July. Shortlisted novels will be announced in September and the winner will be revealed on 25th November coinciding with the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.
Via The Bunburyist (Elizabeth Foxwell): The Robert Lesser Collection of 200 pieces of pulp art, housed at the New Britain Museum of American Art, can now be viewed online. Pieces include artworks for Amazing Stories, Argosy, Detective Short Stories, Detective Tales, Dime Mystery Magazine, Doc Savage, Mystery Tales, The Shadow, Spicy Mystery, Weird Tales, and Wonder Stories.
Writing for LitHub, Paul French looks at Irish crime fiction and wonders "Is Belfast Still the Most Noir Place on Earth?"
Walmart, which has been exploring ways to sell e-books for years, has partnered with Japanese-based Rakuten's Kobo subsidiary to sell Kobo digital content and electronic reading devices through the giant retailer's U.S. stores. Under the agreement, Kobo e-readers, e-books, and audiobooks will be available at 4,000 Walmart stores and Walmart.com later this year. Walmart will also offer digital book cards through its physical outlets.
If you're an Edgar Allan Poe fan, you can tip back a brand new whiskey inspired by the author's psychological thriller, "The Cask of Amontillado." The New Liberty Distillery is creating the whiskey that takes its name from the unsuspecting victim in Edgar Allan Poe’s short story in which Fotunato, lured by the promise of fine Amontillado sherry, is entombed alive in the wine cellar of his friend. Labelled Fortunato’s Fate, the brand new spirit is a malted rye whiskey, finished in sherry casks all the way from Spain.
This week's crime poem at the 5-2 is "Out Into the Woods" by Susan Montag.
In the Q&A roundup, J. P. Delaney (a/k/a Tony Strong) chatted with The Bookish Bundle about the author's psychological thriller The Girl Before; Jack Getze spoke with My Central Jersey news about his New Jersey-set series featuring stockbroker Austin Carr; the Western Genre Musings blog interviewed Ace Atkins about his novels focused on former U.S. Army Ranger Quinn Colson and also his experiences continuing Robert B. Parker’s Spenser series; Crimespree Magazine grilled Dennis Palumbo about Head Wounds, the fifth novel in his series about psychologist Daniel Rinaldi, who consults with the Pittsburgh police; and the Mystery People snagged Meg Gardiner about her Unsub series featuring Caitlin Hendrix.
We were in Philly last weekend and picked up a bottle of Fortunato's Fate--despite the unexpected price tag of $90! It was beautifully delicious, though--and I hope our fate is ultimately better than the end of Poe's story....
Posted by: Art Taylor | February 01, 2018 at 09:53 AM
Ha! Yes, I do hope imbibers of these spirits don't end up as "spirits." Glad to hear you enjoyed it, Art!
Posted by: BV Lawson | February 01, 2018 at 11:48 AM