Winners and Nominees
1986 - 1989

1989 · Philadelphia, PA

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BEST NOVEL

Winner:

 

The Silence Of The Lambs – Thomas Harris - St. Martin’s

Nominees:

 

The Widows Club – Dorothy Cannell - Bantam

“E” Is For Evidence – Sue Grafton - Henry Holt

A Thief of Time – Tony Hillerman - Harper & Row

Blood Shot – Sara Paretsky - Delacorte

Dead Crazy – Nancy Picard - Scribner

Shackles – Bill Pronzini - St. Martin’s

Pepper Pike – Les Roberts - St. Martin’s

The Silence Of The Lambs – Thomas Harris - St. Martin’s

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BEST FIRST NOVEL

Winner:

 

A Great Deliverance – Elizabeth George - Bantam

Nominees:

 

Murder Once Done – Mary Lou Bennett - Perseverance

The Killings at Badger’s Drift – Caroline Graham - Adler and Adler

Random Access Murder – Linda Grant - Avon

Fear of the Dark – Gar Anthony Haywood - St. Martin’s

Carolina Skeletons – David Stout - Mysterious

A Great Deliverance – Elizabeth George - Bantam

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BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL

Winner:

 

Something Wicked – Carolyn G. Hart - Bantam

Nominees:

 

High Noon at Midnight – Michael Avallone - PaperJacks

Murder Unrenovated – P.M. Carlson - Bantam

The Man Who Died Laughing – David Handler - Bantam

A Radical Departure – Lia Matera [Bantam]; Paying the Piper – Sharyn McCrumb - Ballantine

Murder By Impulse – D.R. Meredith - Ballantine

Primary Target – Marilyn Wallace -Bantam

Something Wicked – Carolyn G. Hart - Bantam

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1988 · San Diego, CA

BEST NOVEL

Winner:

 

Skinwalkers – Tony Hillerman - Harper & Row (1st pub Nov’86)

Nominees:

 

A Trouble Of Fools – Linda Barnes - St. Martin’s

Old Bones – Aaron Elkins  Mysterious

 Trojan Gold – Elizabeth Peters - Atheneum

Marriage Is Murder – Nancy Pickard - Scribner

Skinwalkers – Tony Hillerman - Harper & Row (1st pub Nov’86)

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BEST FIRST NOVEL

Winner:

 

Caught Dead In Philadelphia – Gillian Roberts - Scribner

Nominees:

 

Death on the Rocks – Michael Allegretto - Scribner

The House Of Blue Lights – Robert J. Bowman - St. Martin’s

Murder at the War: A Modern-Day Mystery With a Medieval Setting – Mary Monica Pulver - St. Martin’s

An Infinite Number Of Monkeys – Les Roberts - St. Martin’s

Caught Dead In Philadelphia – Gillian Roberts - Scribner

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BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL

Winner:

 

The Monkey’s Raincoat – Robert Crais - Bantam

Nominees:

 

 The Cat Who Played Brahms – Lilian Jackson Braun - Jove

Death On Demand – Carolyn G. Hart [Crimeline]; Bishop’s Gambit, Declined – Conrad Haynes - Bantam

Where Lawyers Fear To Tread – Lia Matera - Bantam

Bimbos Of The Death Sun – Sharyn McCrumb - TSR

The Monkey’s Raincoat – Robert Crais - Bantam

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BEST SHORT STORY

Winner:

 

“Breakfast Television” – Robert Barnard, EQMM Jan’87, pp.34-43

Nominees:

 

“Scrap” – Max Allan Collins, The Black Lizard Anthology of Crime Fiction, pp.161-173 - Black Lizard

“Soft Monkey” – Harlan Ellison, Mystery Scene Reader: A Special Tribute to John D. MacDonald, pp.56-69 - Fedora

“Turn Away” – Ed Gorman, The Black Lizard Anthology of Crime Fiction, pp.313-323 - Black Lizard

“The Au Pair Girl” – Joyce Harrington, A Matter Of Crime, Vol 1, pp.39-70 - HBJ

“Breakfast Television” – Robert Barnard, EQMM Jan’87, pp.34-43

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BEST MOVIE

Winner:

 

The Big Easy – Jim McBride, dir; Daniel Petrie, Jr., writer

Nominees:

 

Black Widow – Bob Rafelson, dirRonald Bass, writer

Fatal Attraction – Adrien Lyne, dir; James Dearden, writer

No Way Out – Roger Donaldson, dir; Robert Garland, writer

Robocop – Paul Verhoeven, dir; Edward Neumeir, Michael Miner, writers

Stakeout – John Badham, dir; Jim Kouf, writer

The Big Easy – Jim McBride, dir; Daniel Petrie, Jr., writer

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BEST TELEVISION SERIES

Winner:

 

Mystery! – PBS, WGBH/Boston, prod

Nominees:

 

The Equalizer – CBS, James MacAdams, prod

Murder She Wrote – CBS, Richard Levinson, William Link, Peter Fisher, prods

Private Eye – NBC, Anthony Yerkovich, pro

Wiseguy – CBS, Stephen J. Cannell, prod

Mystery! – PBS, WGBH/Boston, prod

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1987 · Minneapolis, MN

BEST NOVEL

Winner:

 

“C” Is For Corpse – Sue Grafton - Henry Holt

Nominees:

 

When The Sacred Ginmill Closes – Lawrence Block - Arbor House

Tropical Heat – John Lutz - Henry Holt

No Body – Nancy Pickard - Scribner

Life’s Work – Jonathan Valin - Delacorte

“C” Is For Corpse – Sue Grafton - Henry Holt

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BEST FIRST NOVEL

Winner:

 

Too Late To Die – Bill Crider - Walker

Nominees:

 

Strangled Prose – Joan Hess - St. Martin’s

The Ritual Bath – Faye Kellerman - Arbor House

Floater – Joseph Koenig - Mysterious

Dead Air – Mike Lupica - Villard

Too Late To Die – Bill Crider - Walker

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BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL

Winner:

 

The Junkyard Dog – Robert Campbell - Signet

Nominees:

 

The Cat Who Saw Red – Lilian Jackson Braun - Jove

Trial By Fury – J.A. Jance - Avon

The Back-Door Man – Rob Kantner - Bantam

Trace: Too Old a Cat – Warren Murphy - Signet

The Junkyard Dog – Robert Campbell - Signet

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BEST SHORT STORY

Winner:

 

“The Parker Shotgun” – Sue Grafton, Mean streets: The Second Private Eye Writers of America Anthology pp.81-101 - Mysterious

Nominees:

 

“Body Count” – Wayne D. Dundee, Mean streets: The Second Private Eye Writers of America Anthology, pp.25-46 - Mysterious

“Scalplock” – Clark Howard, EQMM Jul’86, pp.134-153

“The Parker Shotgun” – Sue Grafton, Mean streets: The Second Private Eye Writers of America Anthology pp.81-101 - Mysterious

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1986 · Baltimore, MD

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BEST NOVEL

Winner:

 

“B” Is For Burglar – Sue Grafton - Henry Holt

Nominees:

 

The Shortest Way to Hades – Sarah Caudwell - Scribner

The Lonely Silver Rain – John D. MacDonald - Knopf

The Plain Old Man – Charlotte MacLeod - Doubleday

Killing Orders – Sara Paretsky - Morrow

“B” Is For Burglar – Sue Grafton - Henry Holt

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BEST FIRST NOVEL

Winner:

 

When The Bough Breaks – Jonathan Kellerman - Atheneum

Nominees:

 

The Gemini Man – Susan Kelly - Walker

Sleeping Dog – Dick Lochte - Arbor House

Doubting Thomas – Robert Reeves - Crown

Flood – Andrew Vachss - Donald I. Fine

When The Bough Breaks – Jonathan Kellerman - Atheneum

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BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL

Winner:

 

Say No To Murder – Nancy Pickard - Avon

Nominees:

 

Murder is Academic – P.M. Carlson - Avon

Poverty Bay – Earl Emerson - Avon

Shattered Moon – Kate Green - Dell

Sleightly Murder – Patrick A. Kelley -Avon

Say No To Murder – Nancy Pickard - Avon

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BEST SHORT STORY

Winner:

 

“Lucky Penny” – Linda Barnes, New Black Mask Quarterly No. 3, pp.85-11- HBJ

Nominees:

 

“Eight Mile and Dequindre” – Loren Estleman, AHMM May’85, pp.76-94

“Vandals” – Peter Lovesey, EQMM Dec’85, pp.99-107
(1st pub Woman’s Own Dec 29,’84; pp.12,13(man’s image w/title),14,55

“Ride the Lightening” – John Lutz, AHMM Jan’85, pp.88-107

“The Convolvulus Clock” – Ruth Rendell, EQMM Aug’85, pp.108-119

“Lucky Penny” – Linda Barnes, New Black Mask Quarterly No. 3, pp.85-11- HBJ

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BEST TELEVISION SERIES

Winner:

 

Murder, She Wrote

Nominees:

 

Hill Street Blues

Moonlighting

Mystery

Spenser For Hire

Murder, She Wrote

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BEST MOVIE

Winner: Witness

Nominees:

 

Blood Simple

Fletch

Jagged Edge

Young Sherlock Holmes

Winner: Witness

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GRAND MASTER

Winner: Barbara Mertz (Barbara Michaels/Elizabeth Peters)