Edgar Award Winners Announced at Glittery Event

Last night, the Mystery Writers of America hosted The 79^th Annual Edgar® Awards at the Marriott Marquis in New York City. The literary star-studded evening encouraged attendees to be "dressed to kill," and many got the assignment, dazzling the audience with sequin gowns and tuxedos, even if it resulted in a "fight with a necktie" as thriller writer John Sandford noted (and then loosened his tie).

MWA Board President and bestselling novelist Lisa Scottoline began the evening's proceedings decked out in her Philadelphia Eagles collectors items to share an important message to the nominees. Using her beloved Eagles as an example, she highlighted that, though they may not always win the Super Bowl as they did this year, she loves them all the same because she's a fan.

To the nominees, "it doesn't matter if you win or lose, because fans love." Scottoline noted she has won the award, and lost out on the award, but, in the end, it doesn't matter because, she repeated, "fans love." 

Many winners highlighted what sparked their literary careers - the writing of other writers in the room, a beloved book, and many highlighted their local libraries or librarians for sparking their curiosity and love of books.

Peter Wolverton, VP and Executive Editor at St. Martin's Press and winner of this year's Ellery Queen Award, shared how he came to love reading and why he ultimately became an editor. "My mother let me explore the library when I was young, she put Encyclopedia Brown in my hands, and she ignored the flashlight under the covers when I was reading late at night."

Others highlighted the inclusiveness of the mystery writer community and what it means to them to be a part of it. They also noted what these writers strive for in their work - justice. Grand Master Laura Lippman noted "The crime novels is, perhaps counterintuitively, one of the most hopeful entertainments - every death matters." As a journalist who has seen violence and brutality in the world, Lippman celebrated the work of her peers for seeking an answer, accountability, and justice in a way that may not come in the larger world.

Full list of winners below:

BEST NOVEL - The In Crowd by Charlotte Vassell (Doubleday)

BEST FIRST NOVEL BY AN AMERICAN AUTHOR - Holy City by Henry Wise (Grove Atlantic)

BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL - The Paris Widow by Kimberly Belle (Park Row Books)

BEST FACT CRIME - The Infernal Machine: A True Story of Dynamite, Terror, and the Rise of the Modern Detective by Steven Johnson (Crown)

BEST CRITICAL/BIOGRAPHICAL - James Sallis: A Companion to the Mystery Fiction by Nathan Ashman (McFarland Publishing)

BEST SHORT STORY - "Eat My Moose," Conjunctions: 82, Works & Days by Erika Krouse (Bard College)

BEST JUVENILE - Mysteries of Trash and Treasure: The Stolen Key by Margaret Peterson Haddix (Quill Tree Books)

BEST YOUNG ADULT - 49 Miles Alone by Natalie D. Richards (Sourcebooks Fire)

BEST TELEVISION EPISODE TELEPLAY - “Episode One” – Monsieur Spade, Written by Tom Fontana & Scott Frank (AMC)

ROBERT L. FISH MEMORIAL AWARD – Endowed by the family of Robert L. Fish. - “The Jews on Elm Street,” Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, September-October 2024 by Anna Stolley Persky (Dell Magazines)

THE SIMON & SCHUSTER MARY HIGGINS CLARK AWARD, Presented on behalf of Simon & Schuster - The Mystery Writer by Sulari Gentill (Poisoned Pen Press)

THE G.P. PUTNAM’S SONS SUE GRAFTON MEMORIAL AWARD, Presented on behalf of G.P. Putnam’s Sons - The Comfort of Ghosts by Jacqueline Winspear (Soho Crime)

THE LILIAN JACKSON BRAUN MEMORIAL AWARD, Endowed by the estate of Lilian Jackson Braun - The Murders in Great Diddling by Katarina Bivald (Poisoned Pen Press

GRAND MASTERS - Laura Lippman and John Sandford

RAVEN AWARD - Face in a Book Bookstore & Gifts, El Dorado Hills, CA

 ELLERY QUEEN AWARD - Peter Wolverton, St. Martin’s Press