Crime books – from cosy to noir – are always a hit in public libraries. And the annual Dagger awards from the Crime Writers’ Association are a great way to find new authors. This year, lockdown has brought some rare good news. The awards gala evening will be online instead of being held at an exclusive event. That means YOU can attend – if you are quick enough. Tickets have just been made available – free, but in limited numbers. To book a place, visit: http://bit.ly/cwadaggers2021. The gala will be on 1 July, from 7.30pm.
Awards are made in categories to suit all tastes – including historical, non-fiction, short stories and crime in translation. Our favourite, of course, in the Dagger in the Library. This is chosen by librarians. It honours an author’s whole body of work, their support for libraries and the role of library users’ choices in developing the genre.
This year’s shortlisted authors are: C L Taylor, Peter May, Lisa Jewell, James Oswald, Denise Mina and LJ Ross.
The evening will be compered by book reviewer and writer Barry Forshaw, a leading expert on crime fiction. Guest speaker is Abir Mukherjee, bestselling author of the Sam Wyndham series, set in Raj era India. Abir has won two Historical Daggers. Queen of crime Martina Cole will also feature, as the recipient of the 2021 Diamond Dagger for lifetime achievement, the highest honour in British crime writing.
PLUS…
You can feast on a wealth of blogs celebrating June’s Crime Reading Month at
https://crimereadingmonth.co.uk/blog
