Anthony Award for Best First Novel

Last updated
Anthony Award for Best First Novel
Awarded forDebut mystery novel
Presented byBouchercon World Mystery Convention
First awarded1986
Website bouchercon.com

The Anthony Award for Best First Novel, established in 1986, is an annual award presented as part of the Anthony Awards on behalf of Mystery Writers of America. The Anthony Awards are among the most prestigious awards in the world of mystery writers and have helped boost the careers of many recipients. [1]

Recipients

Award winners and finalists [2] [3]
YearAuthorTitleResultRef.
1986 Jonathan Kellerman When the Bough Breaks Winner [4]
Susan KellyThe Gemini ManFinalist
Dick Lochte Sleeping DogFinalist
Robert Reeves Doubting ThomasFinalist
Andrew Vachss FloodFinalist
1987 Bill Crider Too Late To DieWinner [4]
Joan Hess Strangled ProseFinalist
Faye Kellerman The Ritual BathFinalist
Joseph KoenigFloaterFinalist
Mike Lupica Dead AirFinalist
1988 Gillian Roberts Caught Dead in Philadelphia Winner [4]
Michael Allegretto Death on the RocksFinalist
Robert BowmanThe House of Blue LightsFinalist
Mary Monica Pulver Murder at the WarFinalist
Les Roberts An Infinite Number of MonkeysFinalist
1989 Elizabeth George A Great Deliverance Winner [4]
Mary Lou Bennett Murder Once DoneFinalist
Caroline Graham The Killings at Badger's Drift Finalist
Linda Grant Random Access MurderFinalist
Gar Anthony Haywood Fear of the DarkFinalist
David Stout Carolina Skeletons Finalist
1990 Karen Kijewski Katwalk Winner [4]
Jill Churchill Grime & PunishmentFinalist
Melodie Johnson Howe The Mother ShadowFinalist
Edith Skom The Mark Twain MurdersFinalist
Susan Wolfe The Last Billable HourFinalist
1991 Patricia Cornwell Postmortem Winner [4]
Janet Dawson Kindred CrimesFinalist
Diane Mott Davidson Catering to NobodyFinalist
Rochelle Krich Where’s Mommy Now?Finalist
James McCahery Grave UndertakingFinalist
1992 Sue Henry Murder on the Iditarod Trail Winner [4]
Mary CahillCarpoolFinalist
Margaret Lucke A Relative StrangerFinalist
Rebecca Rothenberg The Bulrush MurdersFinalist
Leslie Elizabeth Watts The Chocolate BoxFinalist
Gloria White Murder on the RunFinalist
1993 Barbara Neely Blanche on the Lam Winner [4]
Susan Wittig Albert Thyme of DeathFinalist
Carol Higgins Clark DeckedFinalist
Michael Connelly The Black Echo Finalist
Charlene Weir The Winter WidowFinalist
1994 Nevada Barr Track of the Cat Winner [4]
Jan Burke Goodnight, IreneFinalist
Laurie R. King A Grave Talent Finalist
Sharan Newman Death Comes as EpiphanyFinalist
Abigail Padgett Child of SilenceFinalist
1995 Caleb Carr The Alienist Winner [4]
David Guterson Snow Falling on Cedars Finalist
Alex Keegan CuckooFinalist
Dennis Lehane A Drink Before the War Finalist
Carol O’Connell Mallory’s Oracle Finalist
Laura Joh Rowland Shinjū Finalist
Michelle Spring Every Breath You TakeFinalist
Doug J. Swanson Big TownFinalist
Christopher West Death of a Blue LanternFinalist
1996 Virginia Lanier Death in Bloodhound Red Winner [4]
Richard BarreThe InnocentsFinalist
G.M. Ford Who in Hell Is Wanda Fuca?Finalist
Charles Kenney Hammurabi’s CodeFinalist
Martha C. Lawrence Murder in ScorpioFinalist
1997 Dale Furutani Death in Little Tokyo Winner
Terris McMahan Grimes Somebody Else’s Child Winner [4]
Michael McGarrity TularosaFinalist
Charles Todd A Test of WillsFinalist
Michael C. White A Brother’s BloodFinalist
1998 Lee Child Killing Floor Winner [4]
Grace Edwards If I Should DieFinalist
Maureen Jennings Except the Dying Finalist
Philip ReedBird DogFinalist
Robert E. Skinner Skin Deep, Blood RedFinalist
1999 William Kent Krueger Iron LakeWinner [4]
Jerrilyn Farmer Sympathy for the DevilFinalist
Jacqueline Fielder Tiger’s PaletteFinalist
Steve Hamilton A Cold Day in ParadiseFinalist
Donald Harstad Eleven DaysFinalist
2000 Donna Andrews Murder With Peacocks Winner [4]
Cara Black Murder in the MaraisFinalist
April Henry Circles of ConfusionFinalist
Kris Neri Revenge of the Gypsy QueenFinalist
Paula L. Woods Inner City Blues Finalist
2001 Qiu Xiaolong Death of a Red Heroine Winner [4]
Stephen Booth Black DogFinalist
David Liss A Conspiracy of Paper Finalist
Scott Phillips The Ice Harvest Finalist
Bob Truluck Street LevelFinalist
Douglas E. Winter RunFinalist
2002 C.J. Box Open SeasonWinner [4]
K. J. Erikson Third Person SingularFinalist
Jan Grape Austin City BlueFinalist
Denise Hamilton The Jasmine TradeFinalist
Andy Straka A Witness AboveFinalist
2003 Julia Spencer-Fleming In the Bleak Midwinter Winner [4]
David CorbettThe Devil’s RedheadFinalist
Libby Fischer Hellmann An Eye for MurderFinalist
Jonathon KingThe Blue Edge of MidnightFinalist
Eddie Muller The DistanceFinalist
2004 P. J. Tracy Monkeewrench Winner [4]
Erin Hart Haunted GroundFinalist
Rebecca Pawel Death of a NationalistFinalist
Lono Waiwaiole Wiley’s LamentFinalist
Jacqueline Winspear Maisie Dobbs Finalist
2005 Harley Jane Kozak Dating Dead Men Winner [4]
Sandra Balzo Uncommon GroundsFinalist
Judy Clemens Till the Cows Come HomeFinalist
Jilliane Hoffman Retribution Finalist
J. A. Konrath Whiskey SourFinalist
2006 Chris Grabenstein Tilt-a-WhirlWinner [4]
Megan Abbott Die a LittleFinalist
Brian Freeman ImmoralFinalist
Randall Hicks The Baby GameFinalist
Theresa Schwegel Officer Down Finalist
2007 Louise Penny Still Life Winner [4]
John HartKing of LiesFinalist
Steve Hockensmith Holmes on the Range Finalist
Cornelia ReadA Field of DarknessFinalist
Alexandra Sokoloff The Harrowing Finalist
2008 Tana French In the Woods Winner [4]
Sean Chercover Big City, Bad BloodFinalist
Lisa Lutz The Spellman FilesFinalist
Craig McDonald Head GamesFinalist
Marcus Sakey The Blade Itself Finalist
2009 Stieg Larsson The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo Winner [4] [5]
Rosemary HarrisPushing Up DaisiesFinalist
Julie KramerStalking SusanFinalist
G. M. Malliet Death of a Cozy WriterFinalist
Tom Rob Smith Child 44 Finalist
2010 Sophie Littlefield A Bad Day for Sorry Winner [4]
Alan Bradley The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie Finalist
Bryan Gruley Starvation Lake Finalist
Stuart Neville The Ghosts of BelfastFinalist
Stefanie Pintoff In the Shadow of Gotham Finalist
2011 Hilary Davidson The Damage DoneWinner [4]
Bruce DeSilva Rogue IslandFinalist
Paul Doiron The Poacher’s SonFinalist
Graham Moore The SherlockianFinalist
James Thompson Snow AngelsFinalist
2012 Sara J. Henry Learning To Swim Winner [4]
Darrell James Nazareth ChildFinalist
Leonard Rosen All Cry ChaosFinalist
Rochelle Staab Who Do, Voodoo?Finalist
Taylor Stevens The Informationist Finalist
Steve Ulfelder Purgatory ChasmFinalist
S. J. Watson Before I Go To Sleep Finalist
2013 Chris Pavone The Expats Winner [4]
Daniel Friedman Don’t Ever Get OldFinalist
Owen Laukkanen The ProfessionalsFinalist
Matthew Quirk The 500Finalist
Michael SearsBlack FridaysFinalist
2014 Matt Coyle Yesterday’s Echo Winner [4]
Roger Hobbs GhostmanFinalist
Becky Masterman Rage Against the DyingFinalist
Kimberly McCreight Reconstructing Amelia Finalist
Todd RobinsonThe Hard BounceFinalist
2015 Lori Rader-Day The Black Hour Winner [4]
Kristi Belcamino Blessed Are the DeadFinalist
M. P. Cooley Ice ShearFinalist
Julia Dahl Invisible CityFinalist
Allen Eskens The Life We BuryFinalist
2016 Glen Erik Hamilton Past CrimesWinner [4]
Patricia Abbott Concrete AngelFinalist
Rob Hart New YorkedFinalist
Art Taylor On the Road with Del & LouiseFinalist
Brian Panowich Bull MountainFinalist
2017 Joe Ide IQWinner
Bill Beverly DodgersFinalist
Nadine Nettmann Decanting a MurderFinalist
Renee Patrick Design for DyingFinalist
Nicholas Petrie The DrifterFinalist
2018 Kellye Garrett Hollywood HomicideWinner [6]
Jane Harper The Dry Finalist [6]
Jordan Harper She Rides ShotgunFinalist [6]
Christopher Irvin Ragged; or, The Loveliest Lies of AllFinalist [6]
Kristen Lepionka The Last Place You LookFinalist [6]
2019 Oyinkan Braithwaite My Sister, the Serial Killer Winner [7] [8]
Tracy Clark Broken PlacesFinalist [7] [8]
John Copenhaver Dodging and BurningFinalist [7] [8]
Aimee Hix What Doesn’t Kill YouFinalist [7] [8]
James A. McLaughlin BearskinFinalist [7] [8]
2020 Tara Laskowski One Night GoneWinner [9]
Tori Eldridge The Ninja DaughterFinalist
Angie Kim Miracle CreekFinalist
John Vercher Three-FifthsFinalist
Lauren Wilkinson American Spy Finalist
2021 David Heska Wanbli Weiden Winter CountsWinner [10] [11] [12]
Mary Keliikoa DerailedFinalist [12]
Nev March Murder in Old BombayFinalist [12]
Erica Ruth Neubauer Murder at the Mena HouseFinalist [12]
Richard Osman The Thursday Murder Club Finalist [12]
2022 Mia P. Manansala Arsenic and AdoboWinner [13]
Yasmin Angoe Her Name Is KnightFinalist
Zakiya Dalila Harris The Other Black Girl Finalist
Heather Levy Walking Through NeedlesFinalist
Wanda M. Morris All Her Little SecretsFinalist
2023 Nita Prose The Maid Winner
Eli Cranor Don’t Know ToughFinalist
Ramona Emerson ShutterFinalist
Harini NagendraThe Bangalore Detectives ClubFinalist
Rob Osler Devil’s Chew ToyFinalist

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References

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