Cover of Edgar Allan Poe

The Mystery Writers of America announced today the Nominees for the 2014 Edgar Allan Poe Awards, honoring the best works in the Mystery genre published or produced in 2013. The final awards will be presented at MWA’s 68th Gala Banquet, May 1, 2014, at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in New York City.

This announcement is made during the week of Edgar Allan Poe’s 205th birthday. The full list of Nominees in every category can be found in MWA’s online announcement HERE, which includes, among others, the following:

BEST NOVEL

• Sandrine’s Case by Thomas H. Cook (Grove Atlantic – The Mysterious Press)
  • “Cook offers one of his most compelling novels in which a college professor falls in love with his wife all over again…while on trial for her murder.”
• The Humans by Matt Haig (Simon & Schuster)
  • “The critically acclaimed author of The Radleys shares a clever, heartwarming, and darkly insightful novel about an alien who comes to Earth to save humans from themselves.”
• Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger (Simon & Schuster – Atria Books)
  • “The New York Times bestselling author offers a brilliant new novel about a young man, a small town, and murder in the summer of 1961.”
• How the Light Gets In by Louise Penny (Minotaur Books)
  • “The stunning, ingenious and sinister new novel in the internationally bestselling Inspector Gamache series.”
• Standing in Another Man’s Grave by Ian Rankin (Hachette Book Group – Reagan Arthur Books)
  • “John Rebus returns to investigate the disappearances of three women from the same road over ten years.”
• Until She Comes Home by Lori Roy (Penguin Group USA – Dutton Books)
  • “Winner of the Best First Novel Edgar Award (Bent Road), Roy returns with a tale of spellbinding suspense in which a pair of seemingly unrelated murders crumbles the facade of a changing Detroit neighborhood.”

BEST FIRST NOVEL BY AN AMERICAN AUTHOR

• The Resurrectionist by Matthew Guinn (W.W. Norton)
  • “A young doctor wrestles with the legacy of a slave “resurrectionist” owned by his South Carolina medical school.”
• Ghostman by Roger Hobbs (Alfred A. Knopf)
  • “Stunningly dark, hugely intelligent and thoroughly addictive, Ghostman announces the arrival of an exciting and highly distinctive novelist.”
• Rage Against the Dying by Becky Masterman (Minotaur Books)
  • “A gutsy, gory, startlingly original serial killer thriller with a heroine who’ll blow a hole in the American crime landscape.”
• Red Sparrow by Jason Matthews (Simon & Schuster – Scribner)
  • “In today’s Russia, dominated by Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, state intelligence officer Dominika Egorova struggles to survive in the cast-iron bureaucracy of post-Soviet intelligence.” 
• Reconstructing Amelia by Kimberly McCreight (HarperCollins Publishers)
  • “A stunning debut novel in which a single mother reconstructs her teenaged daughter’s life, sifting through her emails, texts, and social media to piece together the shocking truth about the last days of her life.”

BEST SHORT STORY

• “The Terminal” – Kwik Krimes by Reed Farrel Coleman (Amazon Publishing – Thomas & Mercer)
• “So Long, Chief” – Strand Magazine by Max Allan Collins & Mickey Spillane (The Strand)
• “The Caston Private Lending Library & Book Depository” – Bibliomysteries by John Connolly (Mysterious)
• “There are Roads in the Water” – Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine by Tina Corey (Dell Magazines)
• “There That Morning Sun Does Down” – Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine by Tim L. Williams (Dell Magazines)

BEST TELEVISION EPISODE TELEPLAY

• “Episode 3” – Luther, Teleplay by Neil Cross (BBC Worldwide)
• “Episode 1” – The Fall, Teleplay by Allan Cubitt (Netflix)
• “Legitimate Rape” – Law & Order: SVU, Teleplay by Kevin Fox & Peter Blauner (NBC Universal)
• “Variations Under Domestication” – Orphan Black, Teleplay by Will Pascoe (BBC Worldwide)
• “Pilot” – The Following Teleplay by Kevin Williamson (Fox/Warner Bros. Television)

MWA also announced the Grand Masters as Robert Crais and Carolyn Hart.

In its Mission Statement, MWA describes itself as “the premier organization for mystery writers, professionals allied to the crime writing field, aspiring crime writers, and those who are devoted to the genre.” Among other things, it provides scholarships for writers, sponsors a youth literacy program, and presents the Edgar® Awards. “MWA also works to educate writers and those who aspire to write regarding their rights and interests, and to make writers and readers aware of matters which may affect crime writing through legislation, publishing industry practices, judicial decisions, or in other ways.” Its members include aspiring and published writers, publishers, editors, agents, librarians, booksellers, and others in allied fields and/or devoted to crime writing.