The Independent Book Publishers Association announced the finalists for their annual Ben Franklin Awards, which recognizes excellence in book editorial and design. This year's nods in the Mystery & Thriller category include False Light: A Novel by Eric Dezenhall (Greenleaf Book Group Press); Jove Brand Is Near Death by J. A. Crawford (CamCat Books); and The Wayward Spy by Susan Ouellette (CamCat Books).
On April 6, the London Book Fair is featuring a panel titled "From Book to Screen: Crime and Thrillers." Ayo Onatade, crime fiction critic, blogger, and reviewer for Shots Magazine, will moderate the discussion, with participating authors to include Peter James, best known for his Detective Superintendent Roy Grace series, now a hit ITV drama; Kate Ruby, a producer and screenwriter as well as author of the debut psychological thriller, Tell Me Your Lies, currently in development for a major TV show; and Louise Candlish, author of The Other Passenger, currently in development for the screen in the US.
Mystery author Amy Patricia Meade has organized an auction of signed and dedicated books from more than 170 different authors, with proceeds going to CARE's Ukraine Crisis Fund. As you might expect, there are a lot of crime fiction books involved, but horror, romance, fantasy, and children's fiction are also represented. The campaign originally had a goal of $5,000, but after beating that the first day, it’s been increased to $50,000.You can find out more and bid on items here.
It's good to see a lot of crime fiction conferences gearing up for in-person events again this year following pandemic cancellations. There's even a brand-new event coming up June 23 to 25, Lyme Crime, to be held in Dorset, England. Panelists will include Nicci French, Erin Kelly, Fiona Cummins, Heidi Perks, Laura Shepherd-Robinson, Harriet Tyce, Antonia Hodgson, Abir Mukherjee, Laurence Anholt, Charlotte Philby, former Home Secretary Alan Johnson, who’ll be chatting about his first foray into crime writing, and also forensic scientist, Angela Gallop. There will also be a Noir at the Bar, with readings, signings, and conversation.
It's also good to see that "community reads" programs have survived the pandemic, with Siouxland Libraries highlighting David Heska Wanbli Weiden's crime thriller, Winter Counts. Winter Counts won the 2021 Anthony, Barry, Macavity, and Thriller Awards for Best First Novel and has been shortlisted for many others. The library noted that Weiden being a Sicangu Oyate citizen, he adds a voice that may not be traditionally heard in popular media. Weiden also teaches Native American Studies at Metropolitan State University of Denver in Colorado.
A new biography of the life of Agatha Christie from celebrated literary and cultural historian, Lucy Worsley, is on the way. Coming via Pegasus Crime in September is Agatha Christie: An Elusive Woman, in which Worsley set out to determine why Agatha Christie spent her career pretending that she was "just" an ordinary housewife, when clearly she wasn’t. Worsley draws upon personal letters and papers that have rarely been seen to show how Dame Agatha was "was thrillingly, scintillatingly modern." (HT to EuroCrime)
DETECt – Detecting Transcultural Identity in European Popular Crime Narratives – is an interesting project funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 program and coordinated by the University of Bologna with the assistance of other academic institutions and industry partners. Over a three-year period, the DETECt project has provided Social Science and Humanities scholars and students with opportunities to appreciate and critically examine the way in which crime narratives in fiction, film, and television are produced, distributed and consumed all over the continent. You can read more about the project and some of the research via the project's website.
Aintree Racecourse (home of the Grand National), is honoring Dick Francis, former wartime RAF pilot, champion jump jockey, and bestselling mystery author, with the installation of a life-size bronze statue by renowned sculptor William Newton. Francis's first thriller, Dead Cert, was published in 1962, and he went on to publish more than 40 international best-sellers. (HT to Shots Magazine)
Janet Rudolph, proprietor of the Mystery Fanfare blog, celebrated her birthday yesterday with a list of birthday-themed crime fiction (and Happy Birthday to Janet!).
This week's crime poem at the 5-2 weekly is "Sheriff's Seizures" by James Hamill.
In the Q&A roundup, Deborah Kalb spoke with Lisa Scottoline, author of the new novel, What Happened to the Bennetts; thriller author, Joe R. Lansdale, chatted with The San Antonio Current about his latest novel (Born for Trouble: The Further Adventures of Hap and Leonard), and the evil inside us all; and Steve Weddle interviewed Nick Kolakowski about his new novel, Payback Is Forever.
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