2021 Edgar Award Nominees

The Best Mystery and Crime Literature in 2021
Each year nominees for the Edgar Awards—named for Edgar Allan Poe—are announced on his birth day, January 19. Winners will be celebrated in a ceremony scheduled for April 28, 2022.

Nominated For Best Novel:

The Venice Sketchbook by Rhys Bowen
Caroline Grant is struggling to accept the end of her marriage when she receives an unexpected bequest. Her beloved great-aunt Lettie dies, leaving her a sketchbook, three keys, and a final whisper . . . Venice.

Razorblade Tears by S. A. Cosby
Ike and Buddy Lee are two men with little else in common other than a criminal past and a love for their murdered sons. To do better for their boys in death than they did in life means facing their own prejudices.

Five Decembers by James Kestrel
It's December 1941 in Honolulu, Hawaii. America teeters on the brink of war and police detective Joe McGrady receives the assignment to investigate a homicide that will change his life forever.

How Lucky by Will Leitch
Despite suffering from a debilitating physical disability, Daniel has a rich life, complete with a good job and close friends. Largely confined to his home, he finds himself caught up in a mystery unfolding right outside his front door.

No One Will Miss Her by Kat Rosenfield
Drawing comparisons to Gone Girl, this is a story of privilege, identity, and cunning. Two lonely women from opposite worlds navigate a relationship that cuts across class boundaries: transactional, complicated, and, finally, deadly.

For Best Debut Novel by an American Author

Deer Season by Erin Flanagan
When an intellectually disabled farmhand falls under suspicion for the disappearance of a local teenage girl, a small town farming community confronts complicated questions about family, loyalty, and love.

Never Saw Me Coming by Vera Kurian
In many ways, Chloe's just a typical freshman honor student. But she also happens to be a psychopath. When one of the other students from the clinical study she's enrolled in gets murdered, a dangerous game of cat and mouse begins.

Suburban Dicks by Fabian Nicieza
This hilariously entertaining murder mystery features two unlikely amateur sleuths. The engrossing social satire examines racial tensions exposed in a New Jersey suburb after the murder of a gas station attendant.

What Comes After by JoAnne Tompkins
After the shocking death of two teenage boys tears apart a community in the Pacific Northwest, a mysterious pregnant girl emerges out of the woods and into the lives of those same boys' families.

The Damage by Caitlin Wahrer
After a violent sexual assault, a small-town family is pushed to the brink. How far will they go to protect one of their own? This edgy, propulsive read explores elements of doubt, tragedy, suspense, and justice.

See more categories and nominees here: https://www.thriftbooks.com/blog/edgar-award-2022-nominees