# Lambda Literary Award for Mystery

The Lambda Literary Award for Mystery is an annual literary award, presented by the Lambda Literary Foundation, to a mystery novel by or about people in the LGBT community. Prior to 2021, the award was separated into separate categories for Gay and Lesbian Mystery.

## Recipients

| Official Category Title | Abbreviation | Award Year(s) |
| Lesbian Mystery/Science Fiction | Lesb. M/SF | 1989 |
| Gay Mystery/Science Fiction | Gay M/SF | 1989 |
| Lesbian Mystery | Lesbian Mys. | 1990-2020 |
| Gay Mystery | Gay Mys. | 1990-2020 |
| LGBTQ Mystery | LGBTQ | 2021 |
Lambda Literary Award for Mystery finalists and winners :
| Year | Category | Author | Title | Result |
| 1989 | Gay M/SF | Michael Nava | Goldenboy | Winner |
| 1989 | Gay M/SF | Donald Ward | Death Takes the Stage | Finalist |
| 1989 | Gay M/SF | Joseph Hansen | Obedience | Finalist |
| 1989 | Gay M/SF | Michael Bishop | Unicorn Mountain | Finalist |
| 1989 | Gay M/SF | George Baxt | Who’s Next | Finalist |
| 1989 | Lesb. M/SF | Antoinette Azolakov | Skiptrace | Winner |
| 1989 | Lesb. M/SF | Sandy Bayer | The Crystal Curtain | Finalist |
| 1989 | Lesb. M/SF | Dolores Klaich | Heavy Gilt | Finalist |
| 1989 | Lesb. M/SF | Claire McNab | Lessons In Murder | Finalist |
| 1989 | Lesb. M/SF | Judy Grahn | Mundane's World | Finalist |
| 1990 | Gay Mys. | Mark Richard Zubro | Simple Suburban Murder | Winner |
| 1990 | Gay Mys. | Samuel M. Steward | Caravaggio Shawl | Finalist |
| 1990 | Gay Mys. | Stan Leventhal | Faultlines: Stories of Suspense | Finalist |
| 1990 | Gay Mys. | Michael Nava | Finale edited | Finalist |
| 1990 | Gay Mys. | Jeffrey N. McMahan | Somewhere in the Night | Finalist |
| 1990 | Lesbian Mys. | Katherine V. Forrest | The Beverly Malibu | Winner |
| 1990 | Lesbian Mys. | Antoinette Azolakov | The Contactees Die Young | Finalist |
| 1990 | Lesbian Mys. | Barbara Wilson | Dog Collar Murders | Finalist |
| 1990 | Lesbian Mys. | Claire McNab | Fatal Reunion | Finalist |
| 1990 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | Hallowed Murder | Finalist |
| 1991 | Gay Mys. | Michael Nava | Howtown | Winner |
| 1991 | Gay Mys. | Stan Leventhal | Black Marble Pool | Finalist |
| 1991 | Gay Mys. | Grant Michaels | Body To Dye For | Finalist |
| 1991 | Gay Mys. | Joseph Hansen | Boy Who Was Buried This Morning | Finalist |
| 1991 | Gay Mys. | Mark Richard Zubro | Why Isn’t Becky Twitchell Dead? | Finalist |
| 1991 | Lesbian Mys. | Barbara Wilson | Gaudi Afternoon | Winner (tie) |
| 1991 | Lesbian Mys. | Lauren Wright Douglas | Ninth Life | Winner (tie) |
| 1991 | Lesbian Mys. | Sarah Dreher | A Captive In Time | Finalist |
| 1991 | Lesbian Mys. | Claire McNab | Death Down Under | Finalist |
| 1991 | Lesbian Mys. | Camarin Grae | Slick | Finalist |
| 1992 | Gay Mys. | Joseph Hansen | A Country of Old Men | Winner |
| 1992 | Gay Mys. | Stan Cutler | Best Performance by a Patsy | Finalist |
| 1992 | Gay Mys. | Larry Townsend | Master’s Counterpoints | Finalist |
| 1992 | Gay Mys. | Mark Richard Zubro | Sorry Now? | Finalist |
| 1992 | Gay Mys. | Stan Cutler | The Face on the Cutting Room Floor | Finalist |
| 1992 | Lesbian Mys. | Katherine V. Forrest | Murder by Tradition | Winner |
| 1992 | Lesbian Mys. | Claire McNab | Cop Out | Finalist |
| 1992 | Lesbian Mys. | Amanda Kyle Williams | The Providence File | Finalist |
| 1992 | Lesbian Mys. | Sandra Scoppetone | Everything You Have is Mine | Finalist |
| 1992 | Lesbian Mys. | Mary Morell | Final Session | Finalist |
| 1993 | Gay Mys. | Michael Nava | The Hidden Law | Winner |
| 1993 | Gay Mys. | Steve Johnson | Final Atonement | Finalist |
| 1993 | Gay Mys. | Grant Michaels | Love You to Death | Finalist |
| 1993 | Gay Mys. | Larry Townsend | One for the Master, Two for the Fool | Finalist |
| 1993 | Gay Mys. | Richard Stevenson | Third Man Out | Finalist |
| 1993 | Lesbian Mys. | Jaye Maiman | Crazy for Loving | Winner (tie) |
| 1993 | Lesbian Mys. | Elizabeth Pincus | Two-Bit Tango | Winner (tie) |
| 1993 | Lesbian Mys. | J. M. Redmann | Deaths of Jocasta | Finalist |
| 1993 | Lesbian Mys. | Nikki Baker | Lavender House Murder | Finalist |
| 1993 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | Stage Fright | Finalist |
| 1994 | Gay Mys. | Steven Saylor | Catilina’s Riddle | Winner |
| 1994 | Gay Mys. | Joseph Hansen | Bohannon’s Country | Finalist |
| 1994 | Gay Mys. | Grant Michaels | Dead On Your Feet | Finalist |
| 1994 | Gay Mys. | George Baxt | Mae West Murder Case | Finalist |
| 1994 | Gay Mys. | John Cooke | Torsos | Finalist |
| 1994 | Lesbian Mys. | Mary Wings | Divine Victim | Winner |
| 1994 | Lesbian Mys. | Mabel Maney | Case of the Not-So-Nice Nurse | Finalist |
| 1994 | Lesbian Mys. | Sandra Scoppetone | I'll Be Leaving You Always | Finalist |
| 1994 | Lesbian Mys. | Nikki Baker | Long Goodbyes | Finalist |
| 1994 | Lesbian Mys. | Barbara Wilson | Trouble In Transylvania | Finalist |
| 1995 | Gay Mys. | John Berendt | Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil | Winner |
| 1995 | Gay Mys. | Samuel Delaney | Mad Man | Finalist |
| 1995 | Gay Mys. | Grant Michaels | Mask for a Diva | Finalist |
| 1995 | Gay Mys. | George Baxt | Queer Kind of Love | Finalist |
| 1995 | Gay Mys. | Caleb Carr | The Alienist | Finalist |
| 1995 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | Small Sacrifice | Winner |
| 1995 | Lesbian Mys. | Claire McNab | Body Guard | Finalist |
| 1995 | Lesbian Mys. | Mabel Maney | Case of the Good-For-Nothing Girlfriend | Finalist |
| 1995 | Lesbian Mys. | Sandra Scoppetone | My Sweet Untraceable You | Finalist |
| 1995 | Lesbian Mys. | Randye Lordon | Sister's Keeper | Finalist |
| 1996 | Gay Mys. | R. D. Zimmerman | Closet | Winner |
| 1996 | Gay Mys. | Mark Richard Zubro | Another Dead Teenager | Finalist |
| 1996 | Gay Mys. | George Baxt | Queer Kind of Umbrella | Finalist |
| 1996 | Gay Mys. | Richard Stevenson | Shock to the System | Finalist |
| 1996 | Gay Mys. | Steven Saylor | The Venus Throw | Finalist |
| 1996 | Lesbian Mys. | J. M. Redmann | The Intersection of Law and Desire | Winner |
| 1996 | Lesbian Mys. | Jaye Maiman | Baby, It's Cold | Finalist |
| 1996 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | Faint Praise | Finalist |
| 1996 | Lesbian Mys. | Elizabeth Pincus | Hangdog Hustle | Finalist |
| 1996 | Lesbian Mys. | Penny Mickelbury | Night Songs | Finalist |
| 1996 | Lesbian Mys. | Jaye Maiman | Someone to Watch | Finalist |
| 1997 | Gay Mys. | Michael Nava | Death of Friends | Winner |
| 1997 | Gay Mys. | Steven Saylor | Murder on the Appian Way | Finalist |
| 1997 | Gay Mys. | John Morgan Wilson | Simple Justice | Finalist |
| 1997 | Gay Mys. | Grant Michaels | Time to Check Out | Finalist |
| 1997 | Gay Mys. | R. D. Zimmerman | Tribe | Finalist |
| 1997 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | Robber's Wine | Winner |
| 1997 | Lesbian Mys. | Jackie Manthorne | Final Take | Finalist |
| 1997 | Lesbian Mys. | Claire McNab | Inner Circle | Finalist |
| 1997 | Lesbian Mys. | Katherine V. Forrest | Liberty Square | Finalist |
| 1998 | Gay Mys. | David Hunt | The Magician’s Tale | Winner |
| 1998 | Gay Mys. | Christopher Bram | Gossip | Finalist |
| 1998 | Gay Mys. | R. D. Zimmerman | Hostage | Finalist |
| 1998 | Gay Mys. | John Morgan Wilson | Revision of Justice | Finalist |
| 1998 | Gay Mys. | Michael Nava | The Burning Plain | Finalist |
| 1998 | Lesbian Mys. | Randye Lordon | Father Forgive Me | Winner |
| 1998 | Lesbian Mys. | Katherine V. Forrest | Apparition Alley | Finalist |
| 1998 | Lesbian Mys. | Carole laFavor | Evil Dead Center | Finalist |
| 1998 | Lesbian Mys. | Cynthia Webb | No Daughter of the South | Finalist |
| 1998 | Lesbian Mys. | Jaye Maiman | Old Black Magic | Finalist |
| 1999 | Gay Mys. | R. D. Zimmerman | Outburst | Winner |
| 1999 | Gay Mys. | Grant Michaels | Dead as a Doornail | Finalist |
| 1999 | Gay Mys. | Fred Hunter | Federal Fag | Finalist |
| 1999 | Gay Mys. | Richard Stevenson | Strachey’s Folly | Finalist |
| 1999 | Gay Mys. | Randy Boyd | Uprising | Finalist |
| 1999 | Lesbian Mys. | Nicola Griffith | The Blue Place | Winner |
| 1999 | Lesbian Mys. | Randye Lordon | Mother May I | Finalist |
| 1999 | Lesbian Mys. | Claire McNab | Past Due | Finalist |
| 1999 | Lesbian Mys. | Sarah Dreher | Shaman's Moon | Finalist |
| 1999 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | Wicked Games | Finalist |
| 2000 | Gay Mys. | John Morgan Wilson | Justice at Risk | Winner |
| 2000 | Gay Mys. | Mark Zubro | Drop Dead | Finalist |
| 2000 | Gay Mys. | R. D. Zimmerman | Innuendo | Finalist |
| 2000 | Gay Mys. | Lev Raphael | The Death of a Constant Lover | Finalist |
| 2000 | Gay Mys. | Keith Hartman | The Gumshoe, the Witch, and the Virtual Corpse | Finalist |
| 2000 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | Hunting the Witch | Winner |
| 2000 | Lesbian Mys. | J. M. Redmann | Lost Daughters | Finalist |
| 2000 | Lesbian Mys. | Clair McNab | Murder Undercover | Finalist |
| 2000 | Lesbian Mys. | Mary Wings | She Came in Drag | Finalist |
| 2000 | Lesbian Mys. | Katherine V. Forrest | Sleeping Bones | Finalist |
| 2001 | Gay Mys. | John Morgan Wilson | The Limits of Justice | Winner |
| 2001 | Gay Mys. | Christopher Rice | A Density of Souls | Finalist |
| 2001 | Gay Mys. | Krandall Kraus | Love’s Last Chance | Finalist |
| 2001 | Gay Mys. | Michael Craft | Name Games | Finalist |
| 2001 | Gay Mys. | Casey Nelson | Nothing Gold Can Stay | Finalist |
| 2001 | Lesbian Mys. | Jean Marcy | Mommy Deadest | Winner |
| 2001 | Lesbian Mys. | Val McDermid | Booked for Murder | Finalist |
| 2001 | Lesbian Mys. | Barbara Wilson | The Case of the Orphanned Bassoonists | Finalist |
| 2001 | Lesbian Mys. | Claire McNab | Death Understood | Finalist |
| 2001 | Lesbian Mys. | Therese Szymanski | When Evil Changes Face | Finalist |
| 2002 | Gay Mys. | Michael Nava | Rag and Bone | Winner |
| 2002 | Gay Mys. | Michael Craft | Boy Toy | Finalist |
| 2002 | Gay Mys. | Warren Dunford | Making a Killing | Finalist |
| 2002 | Gay Mys. | Mark Richard Zubro | Sex and Murder.Com | Finalist |
| 2002 | Gay Mys. | Dorien Grey | The Butcher’s Son | Finalist |
| 2002 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | Merchant of Venus | Winner |
| 2002 | Lesbian Mys. | Alex Marcoux | Back to Salem | Finalist |
| 2002 | Lesbian Mys. | Mabel Maney | Kiss the Girls and Make Them Spy | Finalist |
| 2002 | Lesbian Mys. | Pat Welch | Moving Targets | Finalist |
| 2002 | Lesbian Mys. | Lauren Maddison | Witchfire | Finalist |
| 2003 | Gay Mys. | Christopher Rice | The Snow Garden | Winner |
| 2003 | Gay Mys. | Michael Craft | Hot Spot | Finalist |
| 2003 | Gay Mys. | Greg Herren | Murder in the Rue Dauphine | Finalist |
| 2003 | Gay Mys. | Dorien Grey | The Hired Man | Finalist |
| 2003 | Gay Mys. | Drew Gummerson | The Lodger | Finalist |
| 2003 | Lesbian Mys. | Elizabeth Woodcraft | Good Bad Woman | Winner (tie) |
| 2003 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | Immaculate Midnight | Winner (tie) |
| 2003 | Lesbian Mys. | Claire McNab | Accidental Murder | Finalist |
| 2003 | Lesbian Mys. | Heather Dune Macadam | The Weeping Buddha | Finalist |
| 2003 | Lesbian Mys. | Lauren Maddison | Death by Prophecy | Finalist |
| 2004 | Gay Mys. | John Morgan Wilson | Blind Eye | Winner |
| 2004 | Gay Mys. | Greg Herren | Bourbon Street Blues | Finalist |
| 2004 | Gay Mys. | Mark Richard Zubro | Dead Egotistical Morons | Finalist |
| 2004 | Gay Mys. | Elliott Mackle | It Takes Two | Finalist |
| 2004 | Gay Mys. | David Stukas | Wearing Black to the White Party | Finalist |
| 2004 | Lesbian Mys. | Elizabeth Sims | Damn Straight | Winner |
| 2004 | Lesbian Mys. | Baxter Clare | Cry Havoc | Finalist |
| 2004 | Lesbian Mys. | Bett Reece Johnson | The Woman Who Found Grace | Finalist |
| 2004 | Lesbian Mys. | Lauren Maddison | Epitaph for an Angel | Finalist |
| 2004 | Lesbian Mys. | Ida Swearingen | Owl of the Desert | Finalist |
| 2005 | Gay Mys. | Anthony Bidulka | Flight of Aquavit | Winner |
| 2005 | Gay Mys. | Greg Herren | Jackson Square Jazz | Finalist |
| 2005 | Gay Mys. | John Morgan Wilson | Moth and Flame | Finalist |
| 2005 | Gay Mys. | Gary Zebrun | Someone You Know | Finalist |
| 2005 | Gay Mys. | Dorien Grey | The Role Players | Finalist |
| 2005 | Lesbian Mys. | Katherine V. Forrest | Hancock Park | Winner |
| 2005 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | An Intimate Ghost | Finalist |
| 2005 | Lesbian Mys. | Jennifer L. Jordan | Commitment to Die | Finalist |
| 2005 | Lesbian Mys. | Claire McNab | The Wombat Strategy | Finalist |
| 2005 | Lesbian Mys. | Mary Vermillion | Death by Discount | Finalist |
| 2006 | Gay Mys. | D. Travers Scott | One of These Things is Not Like the Other | Winner |
| 2006 | Gay Mys. | W. Randy Haynes | Cajun Snuff | Finalist |
| 2006 | Gay Mys. | Rick Copp | The Actor’s Guide to Greed | Finalist |
| 2006 | Gay Mys. | Dorien Grey | The Paper Mirror | Finalist |
| 2006 | Gay Mys. | Michael Allen Dymmoch | White Tiger | Finalist |
| 2006 | Lesbian Mys. | Alicia Gaspar De Alba | Desert Blood: The Juarez Murders | Winner |
| 2006 | Lesbian Mys. | Penny Mickelbury | Darkness Descending | Finalist |
| 2006 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | The Iron Girl | Finalist |
| 2006 | Lesbian Mys. | Radclyffe | Justice Served | Finalist |
| 2006 | Lesbian Mys. | Katherine V. Forrest | Women of Mystery | Finalist |
| 2007 | Gay Mys. | Garry Ryan | The Lucky Elephant Restaurant | Winner |
| 2007 | Gay Mys. | Greg Herren | Mardi Gras Mambo | Finalist |
| 2007 | Gay Mys. | Randall Peffer | Provincetown Follies, Bangkok Blues | Finalist |
| 2007 | Gay Mys. | James Lear | The Back Passage | Finalist |
| 2007 | Gay Mys. | Josh Lanyon | The Hell You Say | Finalist |
| 2007 | Lesbian Mys. | Laurie R. King | The Art of Detection | Winner |
| 2007 | Lesbian Mys. | Jessica Thomas | The Weekend Visitor | Finalist |
| 2007 | Lesbian Mys. | Joan Opyr | Idaho Code | Finalist |
| 2007 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | Night Vision | Finalist |
| 2007 | Lesbian Mys. | Rose Beecham | Sleep of Reason | Finalist |
| 2008 | Gay Mys. | Greg Herren | Murder in the Rue Chartres | Winner |
| 2008 | Gay Mys. | Chris Beakey | Double Abduction | Finalist |
| 2008 | Gay Mys. | Caro Soles | Drag Queen in the Court of Death | Finalist |
| 2008 | Gay Mys. | Neil Plakcy | Mahu Surfer | Finalist |
| 2008 | Gay Mys. | Roberto Ferrari | Pierce | Finalist |
| 2008 | Gay Mys. | Anthony Bidulka | Stain of the Berry | Finalist |
| 2008 | Lesbian Mys. | Gabrielle Goldsby | Wall of Silence | Winner |
| 2008 | Lesbian Mys. | Gerri Hill | In the Name of the Father | Finalist |
| 2008 | Lesbian Mys. | Ursula Steck | Laura's War | Finalist |
| 2008 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | Mortal Groove | Finalist |
| 2008 | Lesbian Mys. | Jennifer L. Jordan | Selective Memory | Finalist |
| 2009 | Gay Mys. | Scott Sherman | First You Fall | Winner |
| 2009 | Gay Mys. | Neil Plakcy | Mahu Fire | Finalist |
| 2009 | Gay Mys. | John Morgan Wilson | Spider Season | Finalist |
| 2009 | Gay Mys. | Anthony Bidulka | Sundowner Ubuntu | Finalist |
| 2009 | Gay Mys. | Stephen Anable | The Fisher Boy | Finalist |
| 2009 | Lesbian Mys. | Josie Gordon | Whacked | Winner |
| 2009 | Lesbian Mys. | Diane Anderson-Minshall | Blind Faith | Finalist |
| 2009 | Lesbian Mys. | Ali Vali | Calling the Dead | Finalist |
| 2009 | Lesbian Mys. | Jessica Thomas | Losers Weepers | Finalist |
| 2009 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | Sweet Poison | Finalist |
| 2010 | Gay Mys. | Michael Thomas Ford | What We Remember | Winner |
| 2010 | Gay Mys. | Josh Aterovis | All Lost Things | Finalist |
| 2010 | Gay Mys. | Ralph Ashworth | Killer of Orchids | Finalist |
| 2010 | Gay Mys. | Greg Herren | Murder in the Garden District | Finalist |
| 2010 | Gay Mys. | Rob Byrnes | Straight Lies | Finalist |
| 2010 | Lesbian Mys. | J. M. Redmann | Death of a Dying Man | Winner |
| 2010 | Lesbian Mys. | Paulette Callen | Command of Silence | Finalist |
| 2010 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | The Mirror and the Mask | Finalist |
| 2010 | Lesbian Mys. | Joan Opyr | From Hell to Breakfast | Finalist |
| 2010 | Lesbian Mys. | Josie Gordon | Toasted | Finalist |
| 2011 | Gay Mys. | David Lennon | Echoes | Winner |
| 2011 | Gay Mys. | Richard Stevenson | Cockeyed | Finalist |
| 2011 | Gay Mys. | I.E. Woodward | Rubber Baby Buggy Bumpers | Finalist |
| 2011 | Gay Mys. | Garry Ryan | Smoked | Finalist |
| 2011 | Gay Mys. | Greg Herren | Vieux Carre Voodoo | Finalist |
| 2011 | Lesbian Mys. | Val McDermid | Fever of the Bone | Winner |
| 2011 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | The Cruel Ever After | Finalist |
| 2011 | Lesbian Mys. | Kim Baldwin | Missing Lynx | Finalist |
| 2011 | Lesbian Mys. | Stella Duffy | Parallel Lies | Finalist |
| 2011 | Lesbian Mys. | J. M. Redmann | Water Mark | Finalist |
| 2012 | Gay Mys. | Richard Stevenson | Red White Black and Blue | Winner |
| 2012 | Gay Mys. | David Lennon | Blue’s Bayou | Finalist |
| 2012 | Gay Mys. | Marshall Thornton | Boystown: Three Nick Nowak Mysteries | Finalist |
| 2012 | Gay Mys. | Garry Ryan | Malabarista | Finalist |
| 2012 | Gay Mys. | Jess Faraday | The Affair of the Porcelain Dog | Finalist |
| 2012 | Lesbian Mys. | Kim Baldwin | Dying to Live | Winner |
| 2012 | Lesbian Mys. | AJ Quinn | Hostage Moon | Finalist |
| 2012 | Lesbian Mys. | R. E. Bradshaw | Rainey Nights: A Rainey Bell Thriller | Finalist |
| 2012 | Lesbian Mys. | Martha Miller | Retirement Plan | Finalist |
| 2012 | Lesbian Mys. | Val McDermid | Trick of the Dark | Finalist |
| 2013 | Gay Mys. | Jeffrey Round | Lake on the Mountain: A Dan Sharp Mystery | Winner |
| 2013 | Gay Mys. | Rod Shelton | Bokassa’s Last Apostle | Finalist |
| 2013 | Gay Mys. | Anthony Bidulka | Dos Equis | Finalist |
| 2013 | Gay Mys. | Janice Law | Fires of London | Finalist |
| 2013 | Gay Mys. | Steve Neil Johnson | The Yellow Canary | Finalist |
| 2013 | Lesbian Mys. | J. M. Redmann | Ill Will | Winner |
| 2013 | Lesbian Mys. | C.P. Rowlands | Jacob's War | Finalist |
| 2013 | Lesbian Mys. | Robin Silverman | Lemon Reef | Finalist |
| 2013 | Lesbian Mys. | R. E. Bradshaw | Molly: House on Fire | Finalist |
| 2013 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | Rest for the Wicked | Finalist |
| 2014 | Gay Mys. | Janice Law | The Prisoner of the Riviera: A Francis Bacon Mystery | Winner |
| 2014 | Gay Mys. | Greg Herren | Baton Rouge Bingo | Finalist |
| 2014 | Gay Mys. | Marshall Thornton | Boystown 5: Murder Book | Finalist |
| 2014 | Gay Mys. | David Lennon | Fierce | Finalist |
| 2014 | Gay Mys. | Garry Ryan | Foxed | Finalist |
| 2014 | Gay Mys. | Jonathan Gregory | In Real Life, The 3rd Gemini & Flowers Mystery | Finalist |
| 2014 | Gay Mys. | Mark Zubro | Pawn of Satan | Finalist |
| 2014 | Gay Mys. | Jon Michaelsen | Pretty Boy Dead | Finalist |
| 2014 | Gay Mys. | Sarah Black | The General and the Elephant Clock of Al-Jazari | Finalist |
| 2014 | Lesbian Mys. | Katherine V. Forrest | High Desert | Winner |
| 2014 | Lesbian Mys. | Val McDermid | Cross and Burn | Finalist |
| 2014 | Lesbian Mys. | Anne Holt | Death of the Demon | Finalist |
| 2014 | Lesbian Mys. | Laura Antoniou | The Killer Wore Leather: A Mystery | Finalist |
| 2014 | Lesbian Mys. | Ann Roberts | Point of Betrayal | Finalist |
| 2014 | Lesbian Mys. | R. E. Bradshaw | The Rainey Season | Finalist |
| 2014 | Lesbian Mys. | Jean Sheldon | She Overheard Murder | Finalist |
| 2014 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | Taken by the Wind | Finalist |
| 2014 | Lesbian Mys. | Jenna Rae | Turning on the Tide | Finalist |
| 2014 | Lesbian Mys. | Diane Wood | Web of Obsessions | Finalist |
| 2014 | Lesbian Mys. | Ian Hamilton | The Wild Beasts of Wuhan: An Ava Lee Novel | Finalist |
| 2015 | Gay Mys. | Katie Gilmartin | Blackmail, My Love: A Murder Mystery | Winner |
| 2015 | Gay Mys. | Jameson Currier | A Gathering Storm | Finalist |
| 2015 | Gay Mys. | Marshall Thornton | Boystown 6: From the Ashes | Finalist |
| 2015 | Gay Mys. | David Swatling | Calvin’s Head | Finalist |
| 2015 | Gay Mys. | David Lennon | DeadFall | Finalist |
| 2015 | Gay Mys. | Josh Lanyon | Fair Game | Finalist |
| 2015 | Gay Mys. | Janice Law | Moon Over Tangier | Finalist |
| 2015 | Gay Mys. | Rafe Haze | The Next | Finalist |
| 2015 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | The Old Deep and Dark | Winner |
| 2015 | Lesbian Mys. | Anne Laughlin | The Acquittal | Finalist |
| 2015 | Lesbian Mys. | Charles Atkins | Done to Death | Finalist |
| 2015 | Lesbian Mys. | Valerie Bronwen | Slash and Burn | Finalist |
| 2015 | Lesbian Mys. | Stevie Mikayne | UnCatholic Conduct | Finalist |
| 2016 | Gay Mys. | Marshall Thornton | Boystown 7: Bloodlines | Winner |
| 2016 | Gay Mys. | Jeffrey Round | After the Horses | Finalist |
| 2016 | Gay Mys. | Jon Wilson | Cheap as Beasts | Finalist |
| 2016 | Gay Mys. | Wallace Godfrey | Introducing Sunfish & Starfish: Tropical Drag Queen Detectives | Finalist |
| 2016 | Gay Mys. | Rhys Ford | Murder and Mayhem | Finalist |
| 2016 | Gay Mys. | Christopher Bollen | Orient | Finalist |
| 2016 | Gay Mys. | Tom Mendicino | The Boys from Eighth and Carpenter | Finalist |
| 2016 | Gay Mys. | Robert Karjel | The Swede | Finalist |
| 2016 | Lesbian Mys. | Victoria Brownworth | Ordinary Mayhem | Winner (tie) |
| 2016 | Lesbian Mys. | Ann Aptaker | Tarnished Gold | Winner (tie) |
| 2016 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | The Grave Soul | Finalist |
| 2016 | Lesbian Mys. | Lee Winter | The Red Files | Finalist |
| 2016 | Lesbian Mys. | Debra Hyde | The Tattered Heiress: Volume Two of the Charlotte Olmes Mystery Series | Finalist |
| 2016 | Lesbian Mys. | Stevie Mikayne | Illicit Artifacts | Finalist |
| 2016 | Lesbian Mys. | Cari Hunter | No Good Reason | Finalist |
| 2016 | Lesbian Mys. | R. E. Bradshaw | Relatively Rainey | Finalist |
| 2017 | Gay Mys. | J. Aaron Sanders | Speakers of the Dead: A Walt Whitman Mystery | Winner |
| 2017 | Gay Mys. | Dal Maclean | Bitter Legacy | Finalist |
| 2017 | Gay Mys. | L. A. Fields | Homo Superiors | Finalist |
| 2017 | Gay Mys. | Michael Nava | Lay Your Sleeping Head | Finalist |
| 2017 | Gay Mys. | Janice Law | Nights in Berlin | Finalist |
| 2017 | Lesbian Mys. | Jessica L. Webb | Pathogen | Winner |
| 2017 | Lesbian Mys. | Jessie Chandler | Blood Money Murder | Finalist |
| 2017 | Lesbian Mys. | Cheryl A. Head | Bury Me When I'm Dead | Finalist |
| 2017 | Lesbian Mys. | Andrea Bramhall | Collide-O-Scope | Finalist |
| 2017 | Lesbian Mys. | Lynn Ames | Final Cut | Finalist |
| 2017 | Lesbian Mys. | Lee Winter | Requiem for Immortals | Finalist |
| 2017 | Lesbian Mys. | Jennifer L. Jordan | Under Contract | Finalist |
| 2017 | Lesbian Mys. | T. L. Hart | Walk-in | Finalist |
| 2018 | Gay Mys. | Marshall Thornton | Night Drop | Winner |
| 2018 | Gay Mys. | Marshall Thornton | Boystown 10: Gifts Given | Finalist |
| 2018 | Gay Mys. | Kim Fielding | Love is Heartless | Finalist |
| 2018 | Gay Mys. | Mark Zubro | Ring of Silence | Finalist |
| 2018 | Gay Mys. | Michael Nava | Street People | Finalist |
| 2018 | Gay Mys. | C. S. Poe | The Mystery of the Curiosities | Finalist |
| 2018 | Gay Mys. | Rhys Ford | Tramps and Thieves | Finalist |
| 2018 | Gay Mys. | Kate Sherwood | Long Shadows | Finalist |
| 2018 | Lesbian Mys. | A. E. Radley | Huntress | Winner |
| 2018 | Lesbian Mys. | J. M. Redmann | The Girl on the Edge of Summer | Finalist |
| 2018 | Lesbian Mys. | Andrea Bramhall | The Last First Time | Finalist |
| 2018 | Lesbian Mys. | Cari Hunter | A Quiet Death | Finalist |
| 2018 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | Fever in the Dark | Finalist |
| 2018 | Lesbian Mys. | Kate Jessica Raphael | Murder Under the Fig Tree: A Palestine Mystery | Finalist |
| 2018 | Lesbian Mys. | Anne Holt | Odd Numbers | Finalist |
| 2018 | Lesbian Mys. | Jessica L. Webb | Repercussions | Finalist |
| 2019 | Gay Mys. | Marshall Thornton | Late Fees: A Pinx Video Mystery | Winner |
| 2019 | Gay Mys. | Joseph Olshan | Black Diamond Fall | Finalist |
| 2019 | Gay Mys. | Marshall Thornton | Boystown 11: Heart’s Desire | Finalist |
| 2019 | Gay Mys. | David S. Pederson | Death Checks In | Finalist |
| 2019 | Gay Mys. | John Copenhaver | Dodging and Burning: A Mystery | Finalist |
| 2019 | Gay Mys. | Bud Gundy | Somewhere Over Lorain Road | Finalist |
| 2019 | Gay Mys. | Neil S. Plakcy | Survival Is a Dying Art: An Angus Green Novel | Finalist |
| 2019 | Gay Mys. | Jeffrey Round | The God Game: A Dan Sharp Mystery | Finalist |
| 2019 | Lesbian Mys. | Claire O'Dell | A Study in Honor: A Novel | Winner |
| 2019 | Lesbian Mys. | Joseph Fink | Alice Isn't Dead: A Novel | Finalist |
| 2019 | Lesbian Mys. | Gerri Hill | The Locket | Finalist |
| 2019 | Lesbian Mys. | Catherine Maiorisi | A Matter of Blood | Finalist |
| 2019 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | A Whisper of Bones | Finalist |
| 2019 | Lesbian Mys. | A. Rose Mathieu | Secrets of the Last Castle | Finalist |
| 2019 | Lesbian Mys. | Linda J. Wright | Stolen: A Kieran Yeats Mystery | Finalist |
| 2020 | Gay Mys. | Michael Nava | Carved in Bone: A Henry Rios Novel | Winner |
| 2020 | Gay Mys. | Michael Craft | ChoirMaster: A Mister Puss Mystery | Finalist |
| 2020 | Gay Mys. | David S. Pederson | Death Takes a Bow | Finalist |
| 2020 | Gay Mys. | Marshall Thornton | Rewind | Finalist |
| 2020 | Gay Mys. | Greg Herren | Royal Street Reveillon | Finalist |
| 2020 | Gay Mys. | Timothy Jay Smith | The Fourth Courier | Finalist |
| 2020 | Gay Mys. | Chris Gill | The Nowhere | Finalist |
| 2020 | Gay Mys. | Liam McIlvanney | The Quaker | Finalist |
| 2020 | Lesbian Mys. | Ann McMan | Galileo | Winner |
| 2020 | Lesbian Mys. | Catherine Maiorisi | The Blood Runs Cold | Finalist |
| 2020 | Lesbian Mys. | Claire O'Dell | The Hound of Justice | Finalist |
| 2020 | Lesbian Mys. | Amelia Ellis | The Mirror of Muraro | Finalist |
| 2020 | Lesbian Mys. | Charlotte Greene | Gnarled Hollow | Finalist |
| 2020 | Lesbian Mys. | Ellen Hart | Twisted at the Root: A Jane Lawless Mystery | Finalist |
| 2021 | LGBTQ | Tom Ryan | I Hope You're Listening | Winner |
| 2021 | LGBTQ | A. E. Radley | Death Before Dessert | Finalist |
| 2021 | LGBTQ | Cheryl A. Head | Find Me When I'm Lost | Finalist |
| 2021 | LGBTQ | Stephen Spotswood | Fortune Favors the Dead | Finalist |
| 2021 | LGBTQ | Rosalie Knecht | Vera Kelly Is Not a Mystery | Finalist |
| 2022 | LGBTQ | John Copenhaver | The Savage Kind | Winner |
| 2022 | LGBTQ | P. J. Vernon | Bath Haus | Finalist |
| 2022 | LGBTQ | Jennifer Hanlon Wilde | Finding the Vein | Finalist |
| 2022 | LGBTQ | Michael Nava | Lies With Man | Finalist |
| 2022 | LGBTQ | Stephen Spotswood | Murder Under Her Skin | Finalist |
| 2023 | LGBTQ+ | Hayley Scrivenor | Dirt Creek: A Novel | Winner |
| 2023 | LGBTQ+ | David C Dawson | A Death in Berlin | Finalist |
| 2023 | LGBTQ+ | Joshua Moehling | And There He Kept Her | Finalist |
| 2023 | LGBTQ+ | Ann McMan | Dead Letters from Paradise | Finalist |
| 2023 | LGBTQ+ | Lev A. C. Rosen | Lavender House | Finalist |
| 2024 | LGBTQ+ | Cari Hunter | A Calculated Risk | Winner |
| 2024 | LGBTQ+ | Don't Forget the Girl | Rebecca McKanna | Finalist |
| 2024 | LGBTQ+ | The Good Ones | Polly Stewart | Finalist |
| 2024 | LGBTQ+ | Transitory | J. M. Redmann | Finalist |
| 2024 | LGBTQ+ | Where the Dead Sleep | Joshua Moehling | Finalist |