Macavity Awards


The Macavity Awards, established in 1987, are a group of literary awards presented annually to mystery writers. Nominated and voted upon annually by the members of the Mystery Readers International, the award is named for the "mystery cat" of T. S. Eliot's Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats. The award is given in four categories—best novel, best first novel, best nonfiction, and best short story. The Sue Feder Historical Mystery has been given in conjunction with the Macavity Awards.

Best Mystery Novel

The Macavity Award for Best Mystery Novel was first awarded in 1987. To be eligible for the award, the mystery novel must have been published in the previous calendar year.
YearAuthorTitlePublisherResult
1987'Winner
1987When the Sacred Ginmill ClosesFinalist
1987The Million-Dollar WoundFinalist
1987Come MorningFinalist
1987Beyond BlameFinalist
1987SkinwalkersFinalist
1987The Perfect SpyFinalist
1987DeadfallFinalist
1987Lady KillerFinalist
1987Night GamesFinalist
1988Marriage Is MurderWinner
1988Primary TargetFinalist
1988Finalist
1988Venetian MaskFinalist
1988Finalist
1988Bitter MedicineFinalist
1988Finalist
1988Finalist
1989'Winner
1989Murder UnrenovatedFinalist
1989Finalist
1989E Is for EvidenceFinalist
1989Finalist
1989Blood ShotFinalist
1990'Winner
1990Black Cherry BluesFinalist
1990BoneFinalist
1990Finalist
1991If Ever I Return Pretty Peggy-OWinner
1991Well-Schooled in MurderFinalist
1991Deadly ValentineFinalist
1991Burn MarksFinalist
1991Finalist
1992I.O.U.Winner
1992Finalist
1992Finalist
1993Bootlegger's DaughterWinner
1993Booked To DieFinalist
1993Finalist
1993White ButterflyFinalist
1994'Winner
1994Missing JosephFinalist
1994Dead Man’s IslandFinalist
1994Old EnemiesFinalist
1994To Live and Die in DixieFinalist
1995She Walks These HillsWinner
1995Finalist
1995Playing for the AshesFinalist
1995Scandal in Fair HavenFinalist
1995Finalist
1996Under the Beetle's CellarDoubledayWinner
1996Hard ChristmasFinalist
1996Finalist
1996Bookman’s WakeFinalist
1996Finalist
1997BloodhoundsMysterious PressWinner
1997Finalist
1997Two for the DoughFinalist
1997Finalist
1997Hearts and BonesFinalist
1998Dreaming of the BonesScribnerWinner
1998HocusSimon & SchusterFinalist
1998Trunk MusicLittle Brown & Co.Finalist
1998'Harcourt BraceFinalist
1998'Mysterious PressFinalist
1999Blood WorkLittle Brown & Co.Winner
1999Blind DescentG. P. Putnam's SonsFinalist
1999Butchers HillAvonFinalist
1999Home FiresMysterious PressFinalist
1999BlueMysterious PressFinalist
2000'KnopfWinner
2000River of DarknessViking PressFinalist
2000L.A. RequiemDoubledayFinalist
2000In a Dry SeasonAvonFinalist
2001'Berkley BooksWinner
2001Guns and RosesPerseverance Press/John Daniel & Co.Finalist
2001'Mysterious PressFinalist
2001Half Moon StreetBallantine BooksFinalist
2001'Pocket BooksFinalist
2002FollyWileyWinner
2002Tell No OneDelacorte PressFinalist
2002'ScribnerFinalist
2002Mystic RiverWilliam Morrow & Co.Finalist
2002Silent JoeHyperionFinalist
2003Winter and NightIntrigueWinner
2003Savannah BluesHarperCollinsFinalist
2003Jolie Blon's BounceSimon & SchusterFinalist
2003NineSimon & SchusterFinalist
2003City of BonesLittle, Brown & Co.Finalist
2004'St. Martin's/Minotaur BooksWinner
2004'G. P. Putnam's SonsFinalist
2004For the Love of MikeSt. Martin'sFinalist
2004'St. Martin's/Minotaur BooksFinalist
2004Done for a DimeBallantine BooksFinalist
2005'Little, Brown & Co.Winner
2005Cold CaseAvonFinalist
2005Darkly Dreaming DexterDoubledayFinalist
2005High Country FallMysterious PressFinalist
2005California GirlHarperCollinsFinalist
2005Playing with FireWilliam Morrow & Co.Finalist
2006'Faber & Faber/Farrar, Straus and GirouxWinner
2006One ShotDelacorte PressFinalist
2006'PlumeFinalist
2006VanishBallantine BooksFinalist
2006Solomon vs. LordBantam BooksFinalist
2006Strange AffairWilliam Morrow & Co.Finalist
2006'KnopfFinalist
2007'Thorndike/ Random House UKWinner
2007Christine FallsHenry Holt/PicadorFinalist
2007'Farrar, Straus and GirouxFinalist
2007'Bantam BooksFinalist
2007Piece of My HeartMcClelland & StewartFinalist
2007All Mortal FleshMinotaur BooksFinalist
2008What the Dead KnowWilliam Morrow & Co.Winner
2008Soul PatchMidnight InkFinalist
2008'Ballantine BooksFinalist
2008Blood of ParadiseSimon & SchusterFinalist
2008Water Like a StoneWilliam Morrow & Co.Finalist
2009Where Memories LieSt. Martin's/Minotaur BooksWinner
2009Trigger CityMinotaur BooksFinalist
2009' /
The Price of Blood
John Murray/ William Morrow & Co.Finalist
2009'UK: The Price of BloodFinalist
2009Curse of the SpellmansDoubledayFinalist
2009'Minotaur BooksFinalist
2009'HarperCollinsFinalist
2010 and Reed Farrel ColemanTowerBusted Flush PressWinner
2010Bury Me DeepSimon & SchusterFinalist
2010Necessary as BloodWilliam Morrow & Co.Finalist
2010 with Don Bartlett NemesisHarperCollinsFinalist
2010'Minotaur BooksFinalist
2010'Minotaur BooksFinalist
2011Bury Your DeadMinotaur BooksWinner
2011'Simon & SchusterFinalist
2011Faithful PlaceViking PressFinalist
2011'HarperCollins/William Morrow & Co.Finalist
2011Thirteen HoursGrove AtlanticFinalist
2011'Ballantine BooksFinalist
2012Claire DeWitt and the City of the DeadHoughton Mifflin HarcourtWinner
2012 with Marlaine Delargy 1222ScribnerFinalist
2012'Mulholland BooksFinalist
2012'Little, Brown, & Co.Finalist
2012'Minotaur BooksFinalist
2012'DuttonFinalist
2012Hell & GoneMulholland BooksFinalist
2013'MinotaurWinner
2013Gone GirlCrownFinalist
2013'Silver OakFinalist
2013'Forge BooksFinalist
2013'Algonquin BooksFinalist
2013'Hard Case CrimeFinalist
2013'Quirk BooksFinalist
2014Ordinary GraceAtria BooksWinner
2014Sandrine's CaseMysterious PressFinalist
2014Dead LionsSoho CrimeFinalist
2014'Penguin BooksFinalist
2014How the Light Gets InMinotaur BooksFinalist
2014Standing in Another Man's GraveReagan Arthur BooksFinalist
2015'Penguin BooksWinner
2015'GalleryFinalist
2015'QuercusFinalist
2015'Midnight InkFinalist
2015'Minotaur BooksFinalist
2015'Seventh Street BooksFinalist
2016'William Morrow & Co.Winner
2016Little Black LiesMinotaur BooksFinalist
2016'Soho PressFinalist
2016'Midnight InkFinalist
2016Life or DeathMulholland BooksFinalist
2016'Alfred A. KnopfFinalist
2017'Minotaur BooksWinner
2017You Will Know MeLittle, Brown, & Co.Finalist
2017Dark FissuresOceanviewFinalist
2017Before the FallUK: Hodder & Stoughton
US: Grand Central Publishing
Finalist
2017Real TigersUK: John Murray
US: Soho Press
Finalist
2017Wilde LakeWilliam Morrow & Co.Finalist
2018Magpie MurdersHarperWinner
2018'Finalist
2018Bluebird, BluebirdMulholland BooksFinalist
2018Glass HousesMinotaurFinalist
2018'Mysterious PressFinalist
2018'William Morrow & Co.Finalist
2019November RoadWilliam Morrow & Co.Winner
2019If I Die TonightWilliam Morrow & Co.Finalist
2019'Flat Iron BooksFinalist
2019Jar of HeartsMinotaur BooksFinalist
2019Hiroshima BoyProspect Park BooksFinalist
2019Under My SkinHarlequinPark Row BooksFinalist
2020'Mulholland BooksWinner
2020Your House Will PayEcco PressFinalist
2020This Tender LandAtriaFinalist
2020Lady in the LakeWilliam Morrow & Co.Finalist
2020'Forge BooksFinalist
2020Sarah JaneSoho CrimeFinalist
2021Blacktop WastelandFlatiron BooksWinner
2021Before She Was HelenEcco PressFinalist
2021Blind VigilOceanview PublishingFinalist
2021All the Devils Are HereMinotaur BooksFinalist
2021These WomenPoisoned Pen PressFinalist
2021When She Was GoodScribnerFinalist
2022Razorblade TearsFlatiron BooksWinner
2022'Little, Brown, & Co.Finalist
20221979Atlantic MonthlyFinalist
2022Bobby March Will Live ForeverWorld NoirFinalist
2022We Begin at the EndHenry Holt & Co.Finalist
2022Harlem ShuffleDoubledayFinalist
2023'MinotaurWinner
2023Back to the GardenBantamFinalist
2023Two Nights in LisbonMCDFinalist
2023'Little, BrownFinalist
2023Killers of a Certain AgeBerkleyFinalist
2023Secret IdentityFlatiron BooksFinalist
2024All the Sinners BleedFlatiron BooksWinner
2024Dark RideWm. MorrowFinalist
2024HideThomas & MercerFinalist
2024Happiness FallsHogarthFinalist
2024Murder BookMysteriousFinalist
2024Crook ManifestoPenguin Random House - DoubledayFinalist

Best First Mystery (Novel)

The Macavity Award for the Best First Mystery Novel was awarded in 1987.
YearAuthorTitlePublisherResult
1987'Winner
1987'Winner
1987Too Late To DieFinalist
1987FloaterFinalist
1987Dead AirFinalist
1987From a High PlaceFinalist
1987Kiss Me OnceFinalist
1988'Winner
1988Death on the RocksFinalist
1988Death on DemandFinalist
1988FetishFinalist
1988Unquiet GraveFinalist
1988Where Lawyers Fear To TreadFinalist
1988Neon FlamingoFinalist
1988Finalist
1988Presumed InnocentFinalist
1989'Winner
1989Murder Once DoneFinalist
1990Grime and PunishmentWinner
1990Finalist
1990Finalist
1990Finalist
1990Finalist
1991PostmortemWinner
1991Catering to NobodyFinalist
1991Kindred CrimesFinalist
1991Finalist
1992Murder on the Iditarod TrailWinner
1992Zero at the BoneWinner
1992Finalist
1992Roman BloodFinalist
1992Flowers for the DeadFinalist
1993Blanche on the LamWinner
1993Aunt Dimity’s DeathFinalist
1993Every Crooked NannyFinalist
1994Death Comes as EpiphanyWinner
1994Track of the CatFinalist
1994Finalist
1994Finalist
1994Child of SilenceFinalist
1995Do Unto OthersWinner
1995One for the MoneyFinalist
1995Murder in the Place of AnubisFinalist
1995North of MontanaFinalist
1996'DoubledayWinner
1996Finalist
1996Finalist
1996Horse of a Different KillerFinalist
1996Death in Bloodhound RedFinalist
1997Death in Little TokyoSt. Martin'sWinner
1997Final JeopardyFinalist
1997Murder on a Girls’ Night OutFinalist
1997Finalist
1998Dead Body LanguageBantam BooksWinner
1998Killing FloorG. P. Putnam's SonsFinalist
1998Off the Face of the EarthScribnerFinalist
1998Charm CityAvonFinalist
1998'HarperPaperbacksFinalist
1999Sympathy for the DevilAvonWinner
1999Tiger's PalettePocket BooksFinalist
1999'St. Martin'sFinalist
2000Inner City BluesSoho PressWinner
2000Murder with PeacocksSt. Martin'sFinalist
2000Murder in the MaraisSoho PressFinalist
2000Revenge of the Gypsy QueenRainbow BooksFinalist
2001'St. Martin'sWinner
2001Death Dances to a Reggae BeatBerkley Prime CrimeFinalist
2001Crow in Stolen ColorsBerkley Prime CrimeFinalist
2001Three Dirty Women and the Garden of DeathSilver Dagger MysteriesFinalist
2002Open SeasonHenry Holt & Co.Winner
2002'ScribnerFinalist
2002Perhaps She'll DieIntrigueFinalist
2002BlindsightedWilliam Morrow & Co.Finalist
2003In the Bleak MidwinterHodder & Stoughton/VikingWinner
2003'DuttonFinalist
2003'ScribnerFinalist
2003'St. Kitts PressFinalist
2004Maisie DobbsLibraries UnlimitedWinner
2004Night of the DanceSt. Martin's/Minotaur BooksFinalist
2004Death of a NationalistSoho PressFinalist
2004'St. Martin's/Minotaur BooksFinalist
2005Dating Dead MenMidnight InkWinner
2005Uncommon GroundsFive StarFinalist
2005Summer of the Big BachiDeltaFinalist
2005Whiskey SourHyperionFinalist
2005Misdemeanor ManBloomsbury PublishingFinalist
2006ImmoralSt. Martin's/Minotaur BooksWinner
2006All Shook UpECW PressFinalist
2006Baby GameWordslinger PressFinalist
2007Mr. ClarinetCrum CreekWinner
2007Consigned to DeathMinotaur BooksFinalist
200747 Rules of Highly Effective Bank RobbersCapital Crime PressFinalist
2007King of LiesMinotaur BooksFinalist
2007'MysteriousFinalist
2008In the WoodsW. W. Norton & Co.Winner
2008'Minotaur BooksFinalist
2008Heart-Shaped BoxPenguinFinalist
2008'Hodder & Stoughton/AtriaFinalist
2008Stealing the DragonOceanviewFinalist
2009'HarperCollins / EccoWinner
2009Finding NoufBantam BooksFinalist
2009Death of a Cozy WriterMetroFinalist
2009Calumet CityMcFarland & CompanyFinalist
2009'Ballantine BooksFinalist
2009'Random HouseFinalist
2009'Soho PressFinalist
2010'Delacorte PublishingWinner
2010Running from the DevilWilliam Morrow & Co.Finalist
2010'Minotaur BooksFinalist
2010'Soho CrimeFinalist
2010'PicadorFinalist
2011Rogue IslandForge Books/Tom Doherty AssociatesWinner
2011'Forge BooksFinalist
2011'Minotaur BooksFinalist
2011Full MortalityWildside PressFinalist
2011'Viking PressFinalist
2012All Cry ChaosPermanent PressWinner
2012Learning to SwimCrownFinalist
2012Nazareth ChildMidnight InkFinalist
2012Turn of MindAtlantic MonthlyFinalist
2012'CrownFinalist
2012Before I Go to SleepHarperFinalist
2013Don't Ever Get OldMinotaur BooksThomas Dunne BooksWinner
2013Low Country BoilHenery PressFinalist
2013Mr. Churchill's SecretaryRandom HouseBantam BooksFinalist
2013'CrownFinalist
2014'Seventh Street BooksWinner
2014Yesterday's EchoOceanview PublishingFinalist
2014Rage Against the DyingMinotaur BooksFinalist
2014Cover of SnowBallantine BooksFinalist
2014Norwegian by NightHoughton Mifflin HarcourtFinalist
2015Invisible CityMinotaur BooksWinner
2015Blessed Are the DeadWitness ImpulseFinalist
2015Dry Bones in the ValleyW. W. Norton & Co.Finalist
2015Someone Else's SkinPenguin BooksFinalist
2015Dear DaughterViking PressFinalist
2015'Seventh Street BooksFinalist
2016Past CrimesWilliam Morrow & Co.Winner
2016Concrete AngelPolisFinalist
2016'Mulholland BooksFinalist
2016Where All Light Tends to GoG. P. Putnam's SonsFinalist
2016'Minotaur BooksFinalist
2016On the Road with Del and LouiseHeneryFinalist
2017IQMulholland BooksWinner
2017'UK: Bantam Books
US: NAL
Finalist
2017Under the HarrowPenguin BooksFinalist
2017DodgersNo Exit PressFinalist
2017Design for DyingForge BooksFinalist
2018'William Morrow & Co.Winner
2018Hollywood HomicideMidnight InkFinalist
2018'Flatiron BooksFinalist
2018She Rides ShotgunEcco PressFinalist
2018'Minotaur BooksFinalist
2018Lost LuggagePoisoned Pen PressFinalist
2019Dodging and BurningPegasus BooksWinner
2019My Sister, the Serial KillerDoubledayFinalist
2019Where the Crawdads SingG. P. Putnam's SonsFinalist
2019Something in the WaterBallantine BooksFinalist
2019'CrownFinalist
2020One Night GoneGraydon House BooksWinner
2020My Lovely WifePenguin BooksFinalist
2020'Agora BooksFinalist
2020Miracle CreekSarah Crichton BooksFinalist
2020Call Me EvieG. P. Putnam's SonsFinalist
2020American SpyRandom HouseFinalist
2021Winter CountsEcco PressWinner
2021Djinn Patrol on the Purple LineRandom HouseFinalist
2021Murder in Old BombayMinotaur BooksFinalist
2021'Pamela Dorman BooksFinalist
2021Darling Rose GoldBerkley BooksFinalist
2022Arsenic and AdoboBerkley BooksWinner
2022Who Is Maude Dixon?Little, Brown, & Co.Finalist
2022Girl AViking PressFinalist
2022Deer SeasonUniversity of Nebraska PressFinalist
2022All Her Little SecretsWilliam Morrow & Co.Finalist

Best Mystery Nonfiction/Critical

The Macavity Award for Best Mystery Non-fiction/Critical Book was established in 1987. This category has had multiple names since its inception and reviews the best mystery-related critical, biographical, and otherwise nonfiction titles.
YearAuthorTitlePublisherResult
1987 and Bill Pronzini1001 MidnightsWinner
1988Son of Gun in CheekWinner
1989 and Susan ThompsonSilk StalkingsWinner
1990'Winner
1991Agatha Christie: The Woman and Her MysteriesWinner
1992 and Ernie BulowTalking Mysteries: A Conversation with Tony HillermanWinner
1993Doubleday Crime Club CompendiumDoubledayWinner
1994 'Winner
1995 and Jean SwansonBy a Woman's HandWinner
1996Detecting WomenPurple MoonWinner
1997Detecting Women 2Purple Moon PressWinner
1998,, and Ellen NehrDeadly WomenCarroll & GrafWinner
1998: Life and Times of Adam Worth, Master ThiefFarrar, Straus & GirouxFinalist
1998 and Carol KayG Is for GraftonHenry Holt & Co.Finalist
1998Guilty Parties: A Mystery Lover's CompanionThames & HudsonFinalist
1999 and Killer BooksBerkley BooksWinner
1999Mystery Reader's Walking Guide to Washington, DCPassport BooksFinalist
1999 and Martin GreenbergSpeaking of MurderBerkley BooksFinalist
1999Dark City: The Lost World of Film NoirSt. Martin'sFinalist
1999 and Susan ThompsonSilk Stalkings IIScarecrowFinalist
2000Ross MacdonaldPenguin Rough GuidesWinner
2000 and Robert Weibezahl 'DellFinalist
2000Teller of Tales: The Life of Arthur Conan DoyleHenry Holt & Co.Finalist
2001'Minotaur BooksWinner
2001'Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin's/Minotaur BooksFinalist
2001essaysThomas Dunne Books/St. Martin's/Minotaur BooksFinalist
2001Women of Mystery: the Lives and Works of Notable Women Crime NovelistsEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, January 2000Finalist
2001 100 Favorite Mysteries of the CenturyCrum Creek PressFinalist
2002Writing the Mystery: A Start to Finish Guide for Both Novice and ProfessionalHowdunit Series, Writers Digest BooksWinner
2002'Collectors PressFinalist
2002My Name's Friday: The Unauthorized but True Story of Dragnet and the Films of Jack WebbCumberland HouseFinalist
2002Seldom Disappointed: A MemoirHarperCollinsFinalist
2002Who Was that Lady? Craig Rice: The Queen of Screwball MysteryDelphi BooksFinalist
2003 They Died in Vain: Overlooked, Underappreciated, and Forgotten Mystery NovelsWilliam Morrow & Co.Winner
2003'Carroll & GrafFinalist
2003Intent to Sell: Marketing the Genre NovelDeadly Alibi PressFinalist
2003'The Overlook PressFinalist
2004Make Mine a Mystery: A Reader's Guide to Mystery and Detective FictionG. P. Putnam's SonsWinner
2004Mystery Women: An Encyclopedia of Leading Women Characters in Mystery Fiction, Vol. 3Poisoned Pen PressFinalist
2004 and Robert Weibezahl'Poisoned Pen PressFinalist
2004Beautiful Shadow: A Life of Patricia HighsmithBloomsbury PublishingFinalist
2005, MDForensics for DummiesWilliam Morrow & Co.Winner
2005 and Steven ChermakFamous American Crimes & Trials, Vol. 1Praeger PublishersFinalist
2005Just the Facts: True Tales of Cops & CriminalsDeadly Serious PressFinalist
2005'W. W. NortonFinalist
2005Latin American Mystery Writers: An A-to-Z GuideGreenwood PressFinalist
2006Girl Sleuth: Nancy Drew and the Women Who Created HerColumbia University PressWinner
2006Tracks to MurderKent State University PressFinalist
2006 with Laurie Roberts Behind the Mystery: Top Mystery Writers InterviewedHothouse PressFinalist
2006 New Annotated Sherlock Holmes: The NovelsW. W. Norton & Co.Finalist
2006Spook: Science Tackles the AfterlifeW. W. Norton & Co.Finalist
2007 and Austin Lugar Mystery Muses: 100 Classics That Inspire Today's Mystery WritersFive StarWinner
2007Don't Murder Your Mystery: 24 Fiction Writing Techniques to Save Your Manuscript From Ending Up D.O.A.Bella Rosa BooksFinalist
2007'DuttonFinalist
2008 'HarcourtWinner
2008Rough Guide to Crime FictionMcFarland & Co.Finalist
2008Chester Gould: A Daughter's Biography of the Creator of Dick TracyMichael Joseph/ DelacorteFinalist
2008, Daniel Stashower, and Charles Foley Arthur Conan Doyle: A Life in LettersWalkerFinalist
2008Police Procedure and Investigation: A Guide for WritersHarperPress/PenguinFinalist
2009African American Mystery Writers: A Historical & Thematic StudyOnyxWinner
2009Hard-Boiled Sentimentality: The Secret History of American Crime StoriesFinalist
2009How to Write Killer Historical MysteriesSt. Martin'sFinalist
2009Scene of the Crime: The Importance of Place in Crime and Mystery FictionBleak House BooksFinalist
2009Edgar Allan Poe: An Illustrated Companion to His Tell-Tale StoriesHoughton Mifflin HarcourtFinalist
2009'Poisoned Pen PressFinalist
2010Talking About Detective FictionAlfred A. KnopfWinner
2010L.A. Noir: The Struggle for the Soul of America's Most Seductive CityRandom House: Harmony BooksFinalist
2010Rogue Males: Conversations & Confrontations About the Writing LifeBleak House BooksFinalist
2010 'Little, Brown, & Co.Finalist
2010 and Aly SujoProvenance: How a Con Man and a Forger Rewrote the History of Modern ArtPenguin BooksFinalist
2010Dame Agatha's Shorts: An Agatha Christie Short Story CompanionBella Rosa BooksFinalist
2011Agatha Christie's Secret Notebooks: Fifty Years of Mysteries in the MakingHarperCollinsWinner
2011'Penguin BooksFinalist
2011Charlie Chan: The Untold Story of the Honorable Detective and His Rendezvous with American HistoryW. W. Norton & Co.Finalist
2011 Following the Detectives: Real Locations in Crime FictionNew HollandFinalist
2011 and Hank W. Wagner Thrillers: 100 Must ReadsOceanview PublishingFinalist
2012'Ace BooksWinner
2012Books, Crooks and Counselors: How to Write Accurately About Criminal Law and Courtroom ProcedureLindenFinalist
2012Agatha Christie: Murder in the Making: More Stories and Secrets from Her NotebooksHarperCollinsFinalist
2012Wilkie Collins, Vera Caspary and the Evolution of the Casebook NovelMcFarland & CompanyFinalist
2012'William Morrow & Co.Finalist
2013 and Declan Burke Books to Die For: The World's Greatest Mystery Writers on the World's Greatest Mystery NovelsSimon & SchusterAtria/Emily BestlerWinner
2013Midnight in Peking: How the Murder of a Young Englishwoman Haunted the Last Days of Old ChinaPenguin BooksFinalist
2013 In Pursuit of Spenser: Mystery Writers on Robert B. Parker and the Creation of an American HeroBenBella/Smart PopFinalist
2014'Minotaur BooksWinner
2014'William Morrow & Co.Finalist
2014Being Cool: The Work of Elmore LeonardJohns Hopkins University PressFinalist
2015 Writes of Passage: Adventures on the Writer's JourneyHenery PressWinner
2015'McFarland & CompanyFinalist
2015Poe-Land: The Hallowed Haunts of Edgar Allan PoeCountrymanFinalist
2015400 Things Cops Know: Street Smart Lessons from a Veteran PatrolmanQuill DriverFinalist
2016'HarperCollinsWinner
2016'Bloomsbury SigmaFinalist
2016 and Tom Nolan Meanwhile There Are Letters: The Correspondence of Eudora Welty and Ross MacdonaldArcadeFinalist
2016Forensics: What Bugs, Burns, Prints, DNA, and More Tell Us About CrimeGrove PressFinalist
2016'Bloomsbury PublishingFinalist
2017Sara Paretsky: A Companion to the Mystery FictionMcFarland & CompanyWinner
2017Mastering Suspense, Structure, and Plot: How to Write Gripping Stories that Keep Readers on the Edge of Their SeatsWriter's Digest BooksFinalist
2017Shirley Jackson: A Rather Haunted LifeLiveright PublishingFinalist
2017Something in the Blood: The Untold Story of Bram Stoker, the Man Who Wrote DraculaLiveright PublishingFinalist
2017 The Mystery of a Victorian Child MurdererPenguin BooksFinalist
2018'Poisoned Pen Press/British LibraryWinner
2018From Holmes to Sherlock: The Story of the Men and Women Who Created an IconMysterious PressFinalist
2018Chester B. Himes: A BiographyW. W. Norton & Co.Finalist
2018 and Rachel McCarthy James'ScribnerFinalist
2018Arthur and Sherlock: Conan Doyle and the Creation of HolmesBloomsburyFinalist
2018Lady Killers: Deadly Women Throughout HistoryHarper PerennialFinalist
2019'HarperCollinsWinner
2019'McFarland & CompanyFinalist
2019Conan Doyle for the Defense: The True Story of a Sensational British Murder, a Quest for Justice, and the World's Most Famous Detective WriterRandom HouseFinalist
2019Classic American Crime Fiction of the 1920sPegasus BooksFinalist
2019I'll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman's Obsessive Search for the Golden State KillerHarperCollinsFinalist
2019Agatha Christie: A Mysterious LifePegasus BooksFinalist
2020Hitchcock and the CensorsUniversity Press of KentuckyWinner
2020Frederic DannayEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine and the Art of the Detective Short Story, McFarland & CompanyFinalist
2020Beyond the Thirty-Nine Steps: A Life of John BuchanBloomsbury PublishingFinalist
2020Norco '80: The True Story of the Most Spectacular Bank RobberyAmerican History, CounterpointFinalist
2020'Basic BooksFinalist
2020Indecent Advances: A Hidden History of True Crime and Prejudice Before StonewallCounterpointFinalist
2021H.R.F. Keating: A Life of CrimeLevel Best BooksWinner
2021Sometimes You Have to Lie: The Life and Times of Louise Fitzhugh, Renegade Author of Harriet the SpySeal PressFinalist
2021 Howdunit: A Masterclass in Crime Writing by Members of the Detection ClubHarperCollinsFinalist
2021Ian Rankin: A Companion to the Mystery FictionMcFarland & CompanyFinalist
2021Southern Cross Crime: The Pocket Essential Guide to the Crime Fiction, Film & TV of Australia and New ZealandOldcastle BooksFinalist
2022 with Laurie R. KingHow to Write a Mystery: A Handbook from Mystery Writers of AmericaScribnerWinner
2022Agatha Christie's Poirot: The Greatest Detective in the WorldHarperCollinsFinalist
2022'Random HouseFinalist
2022'W. W. Norton & Co.Finalist
2022Tony Hillerman: A LifeUniversity of Oklahoma PressFinalist
2022'Farrar, Straus and GirouxFinalist
2022'W. W. Norton & Co.Finalist

Best Mystery Short Story

The Macavity Award for Best Mystery Short Story was first awarded in 1987.
YearAuthorTitlePublicationResult
1987Mean StreetsWinner
1988Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, December 1987Winner
1989Deja VuAlfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, June 1988Winner
1989Fatherly LoveEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, July 1988Finalist
1990Afraid All the TimeSisters in CrimeWinner
1990Fire Burning BrightAlfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, Winter 1989Finalist
1990One Eye OpenEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, July 1989Finalist
1990Too Many CrooksPlayboy, August 1989Finalist
1991Too Much to BareSisters in Crime 2Winner
1992Deborah's JudgementWinner
1992Dance of the Dead, Spring 1991Finalist
1992Life, for ShortSisters in Crime 4Finalist
1993Henrie O's HolidayMalice Domestic 1Winner
1993Malice Domestic 1Finalist
1993, Fall 1992Finalist
1994CheckoutMalice Domestic 2Winner
1994Kim’s GameMalice Domestic 2Finalist
1995Cast Your Fate to the WindMalice Domestic 3Winner
1995UnharmedEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Mid-December 1994Winner
1996Evans Tries an O-LevelMorse's Greatest Mystery Winner
1996Rule of LawMalice Domestic 4Finalist
1996Cupid’s ArrowCrimes of the HeartFinalist
1997Cruel & UnusualGuilty As Charged Winner
1997TakeoutMalice Domestic 5Finalist
1997Malice Domestic 5Finalist
1997Red ClayMurder for LoveFinalist
1997New Mystery, Number 9, 1996Finalist
1998Two Ladies of Rose CottageMalice Domestic 6 Winner
1998Real Bullets This TimeEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, July 1997Finalist
1998Find MiriamNew Mystery Magazine, Summer 1997Finalist
1998 and Peter LoveseyMalice Domestic 6 Finalist
1998Etiquette LessonMurderous Intent Mystery MagazineFinalist
1999Of Course You Know That Chocolate Is a VegetableEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Nov. 98Winner
1999Sleeping Dogs LieCanine Crimes Finalist
1999Malice Domestic 7 Finalist
1999Malice Domestic 7 Finalist
2000Maubi and the JumbiesThe Strand Magazine, Spring 2007Winner
2000Paleta ManIrreconcilable Differences, edited by Lia Matera Finalist
2000HeroesMurder & Obsession, edited by Otto Penzler Finalist
2000Show Me the BonesDiagnosis Dead, edited by Jonathan Kellerman Finalist
2001Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Sep-Oct 2007Winner
2001Malice Domestic 9 Finalist
2001Unholy Orders Finalist
2002The Abbey GhostsEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, March 2003Winner
2002Malice Domestic 10, edited by Nevada Barr Finalist
2002My Bonnie LiesThe Mammoth Book of Legal Thrillers, edited by Michael Hemmingson Finalist
2002Bitter WatersCriminal Kabbalah, edited by Lawrence W. Raphael Finalist
2003Voice MailHarper / HeadlineWinner
2003Boot ScootAlfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, October 2002Finalist
2003Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, November 2002Finalist
2003Bible BeltEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, June 2002Finalist
2003Too Many CooksMuch Ado About Murder, edited by Anne Perry Finalist
2003Murder, My Dear Watson, edited by Martin H. Greenberg, Jon Lellenberg, and Daniel Stashower Finalist
2004The Grass Is Always GreenerEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Feb 2007Winner
2004Rogues GalleryEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, March 2003Finalist
2004Texas Two-StepAlfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, February 2003Finalist
2004No Man's LandBlood On Their Hands, edited by Lawrence Block Finalist
2004War CrimesA Hot and Sultry Night for Crime, edited by Jeffery Deaver Finalist
2004Child SupportA Hot and Sultry Night for Crime, edited by Jeffery Deaver Finalist
2004Red MeatBlood On Their Hands, edited by Lawrence Block Finalist
2005The Widow of SlaneEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Sept-Oct 2005Winner
2005VisceryEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, December 2004Finalist
2005Futures Mystery Anthology Magazine, Winter 2004Finalist
2006There Is No Crime on Easter IslandScam and Eggs, Five StarWinner
2006Everybody's GirlEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, May 2005Finalist
2006It Can HappenSan Francisco Noir, Akashic BooksFinalist
2006Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, May 2005Finalist
2007Til Death Do Us PartMWA Presents Death Do Us Part: New Stories About Love, Lust, and Murder, edited by Harlan Coben Winner
2007ProvenanceEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Jul 2006Finalist
2007Disturbance in the FieldSeasmoke: Crime Stories by New England Writers, edited by Kate Flora, Ruth McCarty, and Susan Oleksiw Finalist
2008Please Watch Your StepHardly Knew Her Winner
2008Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Sept/Oct 2007Finalist
2008Wolfsbane & Mistletoe, edited by Harris & Kelner Finalist
2008Brimstone P.I.Wolfsbane & Mistletoe, edited by Harris & Kelner Finalist
2008Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, March/April 2004Finalist
2009Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Mar/Apr 2007Winner
2009Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Sep/Oct 2008Finalist
2009Keeping Watch Over His FlockMurderous Intent, Fall 1999Finalist
2009Scratch a WomanAlfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, Jan 2001Finalist
2009Between the Dark and the DaylightAlfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, May 2007Finalist
2010On the HouseQuarry: Crime Stories by New England Writers, Level Best BooksWinner
2010Last Fair Deal Gone DownCrossroad Blues, Busted Flush PressFinalist
2010Femme SoleBoston Noir, Akashic BooksFinalist
2010Digby, Attorney at LawAlfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, May 2009Finalist
2010Your TurnTwo of the Deadliest, HarperFinalist
2010Thriller 2: Stories You Just Can't Put Down, MiraFinalist
2010AmapolaPhoenix Noir, Akashic BooksFinalist
2011Swing ShiftCrimes by Moonlight: Mysteries from the Dark Side, Berkley BooksWinner
2011Ellery Queen's Mystery MagazineFinalist
2011Devil's PocketPhiladelphia Noir, Akashic BooksFinalist
2011Ellery Queen's Mystery MagazineFinalist
2011BookwormChesapeake Crimes: They Had It Comin, Wildside PressFinalist
2012DisarmingEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, June 2011Winner
2012Facts Exhibiting WantonnessEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Nov. 2011Finalist
2012Palace by the LakeFish Tales: The Guppy Anthology, Wildside PressFinalist
2012Truth and ConsequencesMystery Times Ten, Buddhapuss InkFinalist
2012Heat of PassionA Twist of Noir, Feb. 14, 2011Finalist
2012Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, March/April 2011Finalist
2013Chesapeake Crimes: This Job Is Murder, Wildside PressWinner
2013The Strand Magazine, November 2012-February 2013Finalist
2013Blind JusticeMystery Writers of America Presents Vengeance, Little, Brown, & Co.Mulholland BooksFinalist
2013Mystery Writers of America Presents Vengeance, Little, Brown, & Co.Mulholland BooksFinalist
2013Thea's First HusbandAlfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, June 2012Finalist
2013When Duty CallsChesapeake Crimes: This Job Is Murder, Wildside PressFinalist
2014Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, March/April 2013Winner
2014Kwik Krimes, edited by Otto Penzler, Thomas & MercerFinalist
2014Bibliomysteries: Short Tales About Deadly Books, edited by Otto Penzler, BookspanFinalist
2014Nightmare Range: The Collected Sueno and Bascom Short Stories, Soho BooksFinalist
2014Fish Nets: The Second Guppy Anthology, edited by Ramona DeFelice Long, Wildside PressFinalist
2014Incident on the 405The Malfeasance Occasional: Girl Trouble, edited by Clare Toohey, MacmillanFinalist
2015Honeymoon SweetMurder at the Beach: The Bouchercon Anthology 2014, edited by Dana Cameron, Down & OutWinner
2015Chesapeake Crimes: Homicidal Holidays, edited by Donna Andrews, Barb Goffman, and Marcia Talley, Wildside PressFinalist
2015Howling at the MoonEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Nov. 2014Finalist
2015Thuglit #13, Sept./Oct. 2014Finalist
2015Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Nov. 2014Finalist
2016MysteriousPress.com/Open RoadWinner
2016On Borrowed TimeEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, June 2015Finalist
2016Sob SisterDetroit Is Our Beat: Tales of the Four Horsemen, TyrusFinalist
2016Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, January/February 2015Finalist
2016Quack and DwightJewish Noir, edited by Kenneth Wishnia, PM PressFinalist
2016Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, March 2015Finalist
2017Parallel PlayChesapeake Crimes: Storm Warning, Wildside PressWinner
2017Autumn at the AutomatIn Sunlight or in Shadow, Pegasus BooksFinalist
2017Blank ShotBlack Coffee, Darkhouse BooksFinalist
2017Survivor's GuiltBlood on the Bayou: Bouchercon Anthology 2016, Down & Out BooksFinalist
2017Ghosts of Bunker HillEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Dec. 2016Finalist
2017Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Sept.-Oct. 2016Finalist
2018WindwardCoast to Coast: Private Eyes from Sea to Shining Sea, Down & Out BooksWinner
2018As Ye SowPassport to Murder: Bouchercon Anthology 2017, Down and Out BooksFinalist
2018Coast to Coast: Private Eyes from Sea to Shining Sea, Down & Out BooksFinalist
2018Infinite UticasEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, May/June 2017Finalist
2018Whose Wine Is it Anyway?50 Shades of Cabernet, Koehler BooksFinalist
2018Coast to Coast: Private Eyes from Sea to Shining Sea, Down & Out BooksFinalist
2019English 398: Fiction WorkshopEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Jul/Aug 2018Winner
2019Race to JudgmentEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Nov/Dec 2018Finalist
2019All God's SparrowsAlfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, May/Jun 2018Finalist
2019Bug AppétitEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Nov/Dec 2018Finalist
2019Three-Star SushiDown & Out: The Magazine, Vol.1, No. 3Finalist
2019The Cambodian Curse and Other StoriesFinalist
2020Better DaysEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, May/June 2019Winner
2020West Texas BarbecueThe Eyes of Texas, edited by Michael Bracken Finalist
2020Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Jan/Feb 2019Finalist
2020Alex's ChoiceCrime Travel, edited by Barb GoffmanFinalist
2020WhiteoutEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Jan/Feb 2019Finalist
2020Brother's KeeperEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, May/June 2019Finalist
2021Elysian FieldsCalifornia Schemin': The 2020 Bouchercon Anthology, edited by Art Taylor Winner
2021Dear Emily EtiquetteEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Sept/Oct 2020Finalist
2021Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, Jan/Feb 2020Finalist
2021Dog Eat Dog', edited by Josh Pachter Finalist
2021In League with Sherlock Holmes: Stories Inspired by the Sherlock Holmes Canon, edited by Laurie R. King Finalist
2022Sweeps WeekEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, July/August 2021Winner
2022Lucky ThirteenMidnight Hour Finalist
2022Curious IncidentsEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine, January/February 2021Finalist
2022Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, May/June 2021Finalist
2022Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, July/August 2021Finalist
2022Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, July/August 2021Finalist
2022Julius Katz and the Two CousinsEllery Queen's Mystery Magazine'', July/August 2021Finalist

Sue Feder Memorial Award for Best Historical Mystery

The Sue Feder Historical Mystery Award was established in 2006 to honor Sue Feder, "a reviewer, scholar and dedicated mystery fan, who had founded the Historical Mystery Appreciation Society."
YearAuthorTitlePublisherResultRef.
2006Pardonable LiesScribnerWinner
2006In Like FlynnSt. Martin's/Minotaur BooksFinalist
2006Spectres in the SmokeSt. Martin'sFinalist
2006'Finalist
2006Night's ChildMcClelland & StewartFinalist
2007Oh Danny BoyG. P. Putnam's SonsWinner
2007'William Morrow & Co.Finalist
2007'Constable & RobinsonFinalist
2007Dark AssassinBallantine BooksFinalist
2007Messenger of TruthHenry HoltFinalist
2008Mistress of the Art of DeathUK: Michael Joseph Ltd/Penguin Books
US: HarperCollins
Winner
2008Her Royal SpynessPerseverance PressFinalist
2008'Simon & SchusterFinalist
2008Consequences of SinSimon & SchusterFinalist
2008'Soho PressFinalist
2009'McFarland & Co.Winner
2009Stealing TrinityCrossover PressFinalist
2009'Crum Creek PressFinalist
2009Company of LiarsViking Press/PenguinFinalist
2009Nox DormiendaMinotaur BooksFinalist
2009Veil of LiesWilliam Morrow & Co.Finalist
2010'Forge BooksWinner
2010In the Shadow of GothamMinotaur BooksFinalist
2010'William Morrow & Co.Finalist
2010Serpent in the ThornsMinotaur BooksFinalist
2010Among the MadHenry Holt & Co.Finalist
2011City of DragonsMinotaur BooksWinner
2011'Berkley BooksFinalist
2011'Random HouseFinalist
2011'HarperCollins/William Morrow & Co.Finalist
2011'HarperCollins/William Morrow & Co.Finalist
2012Dandy Gilver and the Proper Treatment of BloodstainsThomas Dunne Books/MinotaurWinner
2012Naughty in NiceBerkley BooksFinalist
2012Narrows GateAmazonEncoreFinalist
2012Mercury's RisePoisoned Pen PressFinalist
2012Troubled BonesMinotaur BooksFinalist
2012'HarperFinalist
2013'HarperCollinsWinner
2013'Forge BooksFinalist
2013Princess Elizabeth's SpyRandom HouseBantam BooksFinalist
2013'HarperCollinsFinalist
2013Elegy for EddieHarperCollinsFinalist
2014Murder as a Fine ArtLittle, Brown, & Co.Winner
2014'Minotaur BooksFinalist
2014Saving LincolnABQ PressFinalist
2014Dandy Gilver and a Bothersome Number of CorpsesMinotaur BooksFinalist
2014RatlinesSoho CrimeFinalist
2015'Minotaur BooksWinner
2015Queen of HeartsBerkley Prime CrimeFinalist
2015Things Half in ShadowGalleryFinalist
2015'Alfred A. KnopfFinalist
2015Present DarknessAtriaFinalist
2015Hunting ShadowsWilliam Morrow & Co.Finalist
2016'Minotaur BooksWinner
2016'Berkley Prime CrimeFinalist
2016Tom & Lucky BloomsburyFinalist
2016'Marian Wood/G. P. Putnam's SonsFinalist
2016Secret Life of Anna BlancSeventh Street BooksFinalist
2016Dreaming SpiesBantam BooksFinalist
2017Heart of StoneSeventh Street BooksWinner
2017'Minotaur BooksFinalist
2017Jane SteeleUK: Headline Review
US: G. P. Putnam's Sons
Finalist
2017Delivering The TruthMidnight InkFinalist
2017'US: Minotaur
UK: Houghton Stodder
Finalist
2017What Gold BuysPoisoned Pen PressFinalist
2018In Farleigh FieldLake Union PublishingWinner
2018'Soho CrimeFinalist
2018'PegasusFinalist
2018Dangerous to KnowForge BooksFinalist
2018Racing the DevilWilliam Morrow & Co.Finalist
2018Cast the First StoneSeventh Street BooksFinalist
2019'Soho CrimeWinner
2019'Kensington BooksFinalist
2019City of InkMinotaur BooksFinalist
2019Island of the MadBantam BooksFinalist
2019'Poisoned PenFinalist
2019'William Morrow & Co.Finalist
2020'VintageWinner
2020Murder Knocks TwiceMinotaur BooksFinalist
2020'Kensington BooksFinalist
2020'Kensington BooksFinalist
2020'Soho CrimeFinalist
2020Charity's BurdenMidnight InkFinalist
2021Turn to StoneSeventh Street BooksWinner
2021'Berkley BooksFinalist
2021'Minotaur BooksFinalist
2021'QuercusFinalist
2021Mortal MusicPoisoned Pen PressFinalist
2021'Constable PressFinalist
2022Clark and DivisionSoho CrimeWinner
2022'Lake UnionFinalist
2022'Bantam BooksFinalist
2022'Soho CrimeFinalist
2022Velvet was the NightDel Rey BooksFinalist
2022Death at GreenwayWilliam Morrow & Co.Finalist