Barry Nominations 2009

The Hungry Detective's wife celebrated her Birthday over the weekend. WooHoo! My unfailing dedication to her meant that I missed posting the Barry nominations in a timely manner. Given the delay I had though I would forgo posting, but I changed my mind once I decided that I had a few things to say about them.

Best Novel:
• Trigger City - Sean Chercover
• The Draining Lake - Arnaldur Indridason
• Envy the Night - Michael Koryta
• Red Knife - William Kent Krueger
• The Cruelest Month - Louise Penny
• The Dawn Patrol - Don Winslow

The usual suspects as of late. Chercover, Krueger, Penny. The other three I know get a lot of love. As the lone woman in the group Louise Penny can rely on precedent. Last year's winner, Laura Lippman, was also the lone female. I know who I would like to see win, but I also have an idea of who might win.

Best First Novel:
• The Kind One - Tom Epperson
• Stalking Susan - Julie Kramer
• City of the Sun - David Levien
• Child 44 - Tom Rob Smith
• A Carrion Death - Michael Stanley
• Sweeping Up Glass - Carolyn D. Wall

Mr. Epperson also received a Best First Novel nom in this year's Edgar race. The Smith novel was widely applauded. The co-authored A CARRION DEATH has been on a slow simmer in the way that it both is and is not a surprise for showing up here on the list.

Best British Novel:
• A Simple Act of Violence - R.J. Ellory
• Ritual - Mo Hayder
• The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - Stieg Larsson
• Shatter - Michael Robotham
• Bleeding Heart Square - Andrew Taylor
• Bruno, Chief of Police - Martin Walker

On the Mystery News website this award is qualified with 'Published in the U.K. in 2008, not necessarily written by a British writer nor set in the U.K.' That's like me saying my favorite US cities are San Francisco, Milwaukee, and Toronto. That is not to say THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO is not a worthy book, just that this is a bit of a head scratcher.

Best Paperback Original:
• The First Quarry - Max Allan Collins
• Money Shot - Christa Faust
• State of the Onion - Julie Hyzy
• The Black Path - Åsa Larsson
• Severance Package - Duane Swierczynski
• Echoes from the Dead - Johan Theorin

Totally awesome that Mr. Swierczynski picked up this nomination. This is by far his best book. Here is hoping that he can tear himself away from the comics to write another one soon.

Best Thriller:
• Collision - Jeff Abbott
• The Deceived - Brett Battles
• The Survivor - Tom Cain
• Finder - Colin Harrison
• Night of Thunder - Stephen Hunter
• Good People - Marcus Sakey

Not sure if the Thriller category is a new one, but as someone who has read a lot of thrillers lately it is great to see these books and these authors recognized. My general concern here is that sub-genres of sub-genres can become ghettoized to the extent that they become excluded from the non-qualified Best Novel award.

Best Short Story:
• “The Drought,” by James O. Born (from The Blue Religion, edited by Michael Connelly; Little, Brown)
• “The Fallen,” by Jan Burke (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine [EQMM], August 2008)
• “A Trace of a Trace,” by Brendan DuBois (from At the Scene of the Crime, edited by Dana Stabenow; Running Press)
• “A Killing in Midtown,” by G. Miki Hayden (Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, January/February 2008)
• “Proof of Love,” by Mick Herron (EQMM, September/October 2008)
• “The Problem of the Secret Patient,” by Edward D. Hoch (EQMM, May 2008)