Genre giants including Val McDermid, Ian Rankin, Peter Robinson and Martina Cole were today announced as having made the longlist of this year's Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award, one of the most prestigious crime writing prizes in the country.
Now in its sixth year, the Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award was created to celebrate the very best in crime writing, and is open to British and Irish authors whose novels were published in paperback in 2009.
Other names to have made the longlist include: former winner Mark Billingham (who has won the award on two previous occasions); Susan Hill, most famous for her ghost story The Woman in Black, the stage adaptation of which has been running on the West End stage since 1989; and Tom Rob Smith, whose debut novel Child 44 caused a stir after being longlisted for the Man Booker Prize in 2008.
A major accolade in the crime writing field, the Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award is unique in that it is the only one of its kind which is largely voted for by the general public. As of today (Friday 21st May), the public will have three weeks to vote for their favourite title at www.theakstons.co.uk, and the result of this vote will determine the eight titles that make it onto the shortlist.
The longlist in full:
· In the Dark by Mark Billingham (Little, Brown)
· If It Bleeds by Duncan Campbell (Headline)
· The Surrogate by Tania Carver (Little, Brown)
· The Business by Martina Cole (Headline)
· A Simple Act of Violence by R.J. Ellory (Orion)
· Until It's Over by Nicci French (Penguin)
· The Crossing Places by Elly Griffiths (Quercus)
· Cold in Hand by John Harvey (Arrow)
· Skin by Mo Hayder (Transworld)
· Vows of Silence by Susan Hill (Vintage)
· The Dying Breed by Declan Hughes (John Murray)
· Dead Tomorrow by Peter James (Pan Books)
· Target by Simon Kernick (Transworld)
· A Darker Domain by Val McDermid (HarperCollins)
· Gallows Lane by Brian McGilloway (Pan Macmillan)
· Geezer Girls by Dreda Say Mitchell (Hodder)
· Singing to the Dead by Caro Ramsay (Penguin)
· Doors Open by Ian Rankin (Orion)
· All The Colours of Darkness by Peter Robinson (Hodder)
· Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith (Simon & Schuster)
The shortlist will be announced on Thursday 1st July 2010, at which point the public will be asked to cast their votes once again. The result of this second online vote will hold a 20% share within the all-new judging panel to decide on the eventual winner. The panel includes: Jenni Murray, BBC Radio 4 broadcaster and author; John Dugdale, Guardian Associate Media Editor; Natalie Haynes, comedian and journalist; and Simon Theakston, Executive Director of T&R Theakston Ltd.
The longlisted and shortlisted titles will feature in a nationwide library campaign encouraging readers to vote, and from 8th July, the eight shortlisted titles will be promoted in 350 Asda stores across the country.
The winner of the prize will be announced by radio broadcaster and festival regular Mark Lawson on the opening night of the Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival in Harrogate on Thursday 22nd July. The winner will receive a £3,000 cash prize, as well as a handmade, engraved beer barrel provided by Theakstons Old Peculier.
