Charles Cumming – A Foreign Country
Craig Russell – Dead Men and Broken Hearts
Denise Mina – Gods and Beasts
Peter May – The Lewis Man
Philip Kerr – Prague Fatale
Will Jordan – Redemption
Judge’s comment: “Pacy, satisfyingly complex and convincing evocation of what happens when crime threatens personal and state security – and really well-written!”
Judge’s comment: “Laugh, weep, gasp with 50s Glasgow gumshoe, laconic Lennox, whose footprints are a cheerful addition to the genre.”
Judge’s comment: “Denise Mina writes as if Gods, Beasts, and People matter. I read this in one kneeling.”
Judge’s comment: “The child’s the father of the man and May proves this in a searing tale of childhood, exile, memory loss and identity.”
Judge’s comment: “More twists than a swastika in this Nazi country house murder madness and Gunther’s sardonic contempt might get him shot before solving a thing! A masterclass in crime writing.”
Judge’s comment: “Will Jordan’s special agents put the Man back into Mantini. This one has left me shaken And stirred.”
The judging panel is chaired by broadcaster and journalist Sheena McDonald. Her fellow judges are Waterstones’ crime fiction expert, Ewan Wilson, and Len Wanner, author of The Crime Interviews 1, 2, and 3.
The winner will be announced at Bloody Scotland on Sunday, the 16th of September 2012, and presented with a trophy as well as a cheque for £3,000.
The award is in association with Waterstones. It seeks to recognise and reward excellence in Scottish crime writing, first published between 1 August 2011 and 31 July 2012. Over 40 books of fiction and non-fiction were submitted by UK publishers. Eligible books were by writers born in Scotland, by writers living in Scotland, or books set in Scotland.
Congratulations to all six on the shortlist!



