# Crime Writers of Canada Awards of Excellence

The Crime Writers of Canada Awards of Excellence, formerly known as the Arthur Ellis Awards, are a group of Canadian literary awards, presented annually by the Crime Writers of Canada for the best Canadian crime and mystery writing published in the previous year. The award is presented during May in the year following publication.
Originally, the awards were named for Arthur Ellis, the pseudonym of several of Canada's official hangmen, the first and most famous being Arthur B. English. The award statuette was designed by actor and theatre designer Peter Blais.
In 2021 the Crime Writers of Canada announced that they were retiring Arthur Ellis's name from the awards, renaming them to their current name.

## Best Novel

Best Novel Award winners :
| Year | Author | Title |
| 1984 | Eric Wright | The Night the Gods Smiled |
| 1985 | Howard Engel | Murder Sees the Light |
| 1986 | Eric Wright | Death in the Old Country |
| 1987 | Edward O. Phillips | Buried on Sunday |
| 1988 | Carol Shields | Swann |
| 1989 | Chris Scott | Jack |
| 1990 | Laurence Gough | Hot Shots |
| 1991 | L. R. Wright | A Chill Rain in January |
| 1992 | Peter Robinson | Past Reason Hated |
| 1993 | Carsten Stroud | Lizardskin |
| 1994 | John Lawrence Reynolds | Gypsy Sins |
| 1995 | Gail Bowen | A Colder Kind of Death |
| 1996 | L. R. Wright | Mother Love |
| 1997 | Peter Robinson | Innocent Graves |
| 1998 | William Deverell | Trial of Passion |
| 1999 | Nora Kelly | Old Wounds |
| 2000 | Rosemary Aubert | The Feast of Stephen |
| 2001 | Peter Robinson | Cold is the Grave |
| 2002 | Michelle Spring | In the Midnight Hour |
| 2003 | Rick Mofina | Blood of Others |
| 2004 | Giles Blunt | The Delicate Storm |
| 2005 | Barbara Fradkin | Fifth Son |
| 2006 | William Deverell | April Fool |
| 2007 | Barbara Fradkin | Honour Among Men |
| 2008 | Jon Redfern | Trumpets Sound No More |
| 2009 | Linwood Barclay | Too Close to Home |
| 2010 | Howard Shrier | High Chicago |
| 2011 | Louise Penny | Bury Your Dead |
| 2012 | Peter Robinson | Before the Poison |
| 2013 | Giles Blunt | Until the Night |
| 2014 | Seán Haldane | The Devil's Making |
| 2015 | C. C. Humphreys | Plague: Murder Has a New Friend |
| 2016 | Peter Kirby | Open Season |
| 2017 | Donna Morrissey | The Fortunate Brother |
| 2018 | Peter Robinson | Sleeping in the Ground |
| 2019 | Anne Emery | Though the Heavens Fall |
| 2020 | Michael Christie | Greenwood |
| 2021 | Will Ferguson | The Finder |
| 2022 | Dietrich Kalteis | Under an Outlaw Moon |
| 2023 | Anthony Bidulka | Going to Beautiful |
| 2024 | Loreth Anne White | The Maid's Diary |

## Best First Novel

Best First Novel Award winners :
| Year | Author | Title |
| 1987 | Medora Sale | Murder on the Run |
| 1988 | Laurence Gough | The Goldfish Bowl |
| 1989 | John Brady | A Stone of the Heart |
| 1990 | John Lawrence Reynolds | The Man Who Murdered God |
| 1991 | Carsten Stroud | Sniper's Moon |
| 1992 | Paul Grescoe | Flesh Wound |
| 1993 | Sean Stewart | Passion Play |
| 1994 | Gavin Scott | Memory Trace |
| 1995 | Sparkle Hayter | What's A Girl Gotta Do? |
| 1996 | John Spencer Hill | The Last Castrato |
| 1996 | D.H. Toole | Moonlit Days and Nights |
| 1997 | C. C. Benison | Death At Buckingham Palace |
| 1998 | Kathy Reichs | Déja Dead |
| 1999 | Liz Brady | Sudden Blow |
| 2000 | Andrew Pyper | Lost Girls |
| 2001 | Mark Zuehlke | Hands Like Clouds |
| 2002 | Jon Redfern | The Boy Must Die |
| 2003 | James W. Nichol | Midnight Cab |
| 2004 | Jan Rehner | Just Murder |
| 2005 | Jon Evans | Dark Places |
| 2006 | Louise Penny | Still Life |
| 2007 | Anne Emery | Sign of the Cross |
| 2008 | Liam Durcan | Garcia's Heart |
| 2009 | Howard Shrier | Buffalo Jump |
| 2010 | Alan Bradley | The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie |
| 2011 | Avner Mandelman | The Debba |
| 2012 | Ian Hamilton | Water Rat of Wanchai |
| 2013 | Simone St. James | The Haunting of Maddy Clare |
| 2014 | J. Kent Messum | Bait |
| 2015 | Steve Burrows | A Siege of Bitterns |
| 2016 | Ausma Zehanat Khan | Unquiet Dead |
| 2017 | Elle Wild | Strange Things Done |
| 2018 | Dave Butler | Full Curl |
| 2019 | A.J. Devlin | Cobra Clutch |
| 2020 | Philip Elliott | Nobody Move |
| 2021 | Guglielmo D'Izzia | The Transaction |
| 2022 | Ashley Audrain | The Push |
| 2023 | Sam Shelstad | Citizens of Light |
| 2024 | Amanda Peters | The Berry Pickers |

## Best Novella

Best Novella Award winners :
| Year | Author | Title |
| 2013 | Lou Allin | Contingency Plan |
| 2014 | Melodie Campbell | The Goddaughter's Revenge |
| 2015 | Jas R. Petrin | A Knock on the Door |
| 2016 | Jeremy Bates | Black Canyon |
| 2017 | Rick Blechta | Rundown |
| 2018 | Mike Culpepper | How Lon Pruitt Was Found Murdered in an Open Field with No Footprints Around |
| 2019 | John Lawrence Reynolds | Murder Among the Pines |
| 2020 | Wayne Arthurson | The Red Chesterfield |
| 2021 | Sam Wiebe | Never Going Back |
| 2022 | Wayne Ng | Letters from Johnny |

## Best Crime Book in French

Best Crime Book in French Award winners :
| Year | Author | Title |
| 2000 | Lionel Noël | Louna |
| 2001 | Norbert Spehner | Le roman policier en Amérique française |
| 2002 | Anne-Michèle Lévesque | Fleur invitait au troisième |
| 2003 | Jacques Côté | Le rouge ideal |
| 2004 | Jean Lemieux | On finit toujours par payer |
| 2005 | Ann Lamontagne | Les douze pierres |
| 2006 | Gérard Galarneau | Motel Riviera |
| 2007 | No award presented | No award presented |
| 2008 | Mario Bolduc | Tsiganes |
| 2009 | Jacques Côté | Le Chemin des brumes |
| 2010 | Jean Lemieux | Le mort du chemin des Arsene |
| 2011 | Jacques Côté | Dans le quartier des agités |
| 2012 | Martin Michaud | La chorale du diable |
| 2013 | Mario Bolduc | La Nuit des albinos: Sur les traces de Max O'Brien |
| 2014 | Maureen Martineau | L’enfant promis |
| 2015 | Andrée A. Michaud | Bondrée |
| 2016 | Luc Chartrand | L'Affaire Myosotis |
| 2017 | Marie-Ève Bourassa | Red Light: Adieu, Mignonne |
| 2018 | Marie Saur | Les Tricoteuses |
| 2019 | Hervé Gagnon | Adolphus - Une enquête de Joseph Laflamme |
| 2020 | Andrée A. Michaud | Tempêtes |
| 2021 | Roxanne Bouchard | La mariée de corail |
| 2022 | Patrick Senécal | Flots |

## Best Juvenile or Young Adult Crime Book

Best Juvenile or Young Adult Crime Book Award winners :
| Year | Author | Title |
| 1994 | John Dowd | Abalone Summer |
| 1995 | James Heneghan | Torn Away |
| 1996 | Norah McClintock | Mistaken Identity |
| 1997 | Linda Bailey | How Can a Frozen Detective Stay Hot on the Trail? |
| 1998 | Norah McClintock | The Body in the Basement |
| 1999 | Norah McClintock | Sins of the Father |
| 2000 | Linda Bailey | How Can a Brilliant Detective Shine in the Dark? |
| 2001 | Tim Wynne-Jones | The Boy in the Burning House |
| 2002 | Norah McClintock | Scared to Death |
| 2003 | Norah McClintock | Break and Enter |
| 2004 | Graham McNamee | Acceleration |
| 2005 | Carrie Mac | The Beckoners |
| 2006 | Vicki Grant | Quid Pro Quo |
| 2007 | Sean Cullen | Hamish X and the Cheese Pirates |
| 2008 | Shane Peacock | Eye of the Crow |
| 2009 | Sharon E. McKay | War Brothers |
| 2010 | Barbara Haworth-Attard | Haunted |
| 2011 | Alice Kuipers | The Worst Thing She Ever Did |
| 2012 | Tim Wynne-Jones | Blink & Caution |
| 2013 | Shane Peacock | Becoming Holmes |
| 2014 | Elizabeth MacLeod | Bones Never Lie |
| 2015 | Sigmund Brouwer | Dead Man's Switch |
| 2016 | Stephanie Tromly | Trouble Is a Friend of Mine |
| 2017 | Gordon Korman | Masterminds |
| 2018 | Linwood Barclay | Chase: Get Ready to Run |
| 2019 | Linwood Barclay | Escape |
| 2020 | Tom Ryan | Keep This to Yourself |
| 2021 | Frances Greenslade | Red Fox Road |
| 2022 | Kevin Sands | The Traitor's Blade |
| 2023 | Jo Treggiari | Heartbreak Homes |
| 2024 | Cherie Dimaline | Funeral Songs for Dying Girls |

## Best Crime Nonfiction

Best Crime Nonfiction Award winners :
| Year | Author | Title |
| 1985 | Martin Friedland | The Trials of Israel Lipsky |
| 1986 | Maggie Siggins | A Canadian Tragedy |
| 1987 | Elliott Leyton | Hunting Humans |
| 1988 | Gary Ross | Stung |
| 1989 | Mick Lowe | Conspiracy of Brothers |
| 1990 | Lisa Priest | Conspiracy of Silence |
| 1991 | Susan Mayse | Ginger: The Life and Death of Albert Goodwin |
| 1992 | William Lowther | Arms and the Man |
| 1993 | Kirk Makin | Redrum the Innocent |
| 1994 | David R. Williams | With Malice Aforethought |
| 1995 | Michael Harris | The Prodigal Husband |
| 1996 | Lois Simmie | The Secret Lives of Sgt. John Wilson |
| 1997 | Jean Monet | The Cassock and the Crown |
| 1998 | Patricia Pearson | When She Was Bad |
| 1999 | Derek Finkle | No Claim to Mercy |
| 2000 | Gordon Sinclair, Jr. | Cowboys and Indians |
| 2001 | A.B. McKillop | The Spinster and the Prophet |
| 2002 | Stevie Cameron and Harvey Cashore | The Last Amigo |
| 2002 | Andrew Nikiforuk | Saboteurs |
| 2003 | Andrew Mitrovica | Covert Entry |
| 2004 | Julian Sher and William Marsden | The Road to Hell |
| 2005 | Matthew Hart | The Irish Game |
| 2006 | Rebecca Godfrey | Under the Bridge |
| 2007 | Brian O'Dea | High |
| 2008 | Julian Sher | One Child at a Time |
| 2009 | Michael Calce and Craig Silverman | Mafiaboy |
| 2010 | Terry Gould | Murder Without Borders |
| 2011 | Stevie Cameron | On the Farm |
| 2012 | Joshua Knelman | Hot Art |
| 2013 | Steve Lillebuen | The Devil's Cinema |
| 2014 | No award presented | No award presented |
| 2015 | Charlotte Gray | The Massey Murder |
| 2016 | Dean Jobb | Empire of Deception: The Incredible Story of a Master Swindler Who Seduced a City and Captivated the Nation |
| 2017 | Jeremy Grimaldi | A Daughter's Deadly Deception: The Jennifer Pan Story |
| 2018 | Trevor Cole | The Whisky King: remarkable true story of Canada's most infamous bootlegger and the undercover Mountie on his trail |
| 2019 | Sarah Weinman | The Real Lolita: Kidnapping of Sally Horner and the Novel that Scandalized the World |
| 2020 | Charlotte Gray | Murdered Midas: A Millionaire, His Gold Mine, and a Strange Death on an Island Paradise |
| 2021 | Justin Ling | Missing from the Village |
| 2022 | Nate Hendley | The Beatle Bandit |

## Best Crime Short Story

Best Crime Short Story Award winners :
| Year | Author | Story | Publication |
| 1988 | Eric Wright | Looking for an Honest Man | Cold Blood: Murder in Canada |
| 1989 | Jas. R. Petrin | Killer in the House | Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, December 1988 |
| 1990 | Josef Skvorecky | Humbug | The End of Lieutenant Boruvka |
| 1991 | Peter Robinson | Innocence | Cold Blood III |
| 1992 | Eric Wright | Two in the Bush | Christmas Stalkings |
| 1993 | Nancy Kilpatrick | Mantrap | Murder, Mayhem, and the Macabre |
| 1994 | Robert J. Sawyer | Just Like Old Times | On Spec, Summer 1993 |
| 1995 | Rosemary Aubert | The Midnight Boat to Palermo | Cold Blood IV |
| 1996 | Mary Jane Maffini | Cotton Armour | Ladies Killing Circle |
| 1997 | Richard K. Bercuson | Dead Run | Story Teller, Winter 1996–97 |
| 1998 | Sue Pike | Widow's Weeds | Cottage Country Killers |
| 1999 | Scott Mackay | Last Inning | Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, February 1998 |
| 2000 | Matt Hughes | One More Kill | Blue Murder Magazine, December 1999 |
| 2001 | Peter Robinson | Murder in Utopia | Crime Through Time III |
| 2002 | Mary Jane Maffini | Sign of the Times | Fit to Die |
| 2003 | James Powell | Bottom Walker | Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, May 2002 |
| 2004 | Gregory Ward | Dead Wood | Hard Boiled Love |
| 2005 | Leslie Watts | Crocodile Tears | Revenge: A Noir Anthology |
| 2006 | Rick Mofina | Lightning Rider | Murder in Vegas |
| 2007 | Dennis Richard Murphy | Fuzzy Wuzzy | Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, August 2006 |
| 2008 | Leslie Watts | Turners | Kingston Whig-Standard, July 7, 2007 |
| 2009 | Pasha Malla | Filmsong | Toronto Noir |
| 2010 | Dennis Richard Murphy | Prisoner in Paradise | Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine |
| 2011 | Mary Jane Maffini | So Much in Common | Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine |
| 2012 | Catherine Astolfo | What Kelly Did | |
| 2013 | Yasuko Thanh | Spring-blade Knife | Floating Like The Dead |
| 2014 | Twist Phelan | Footprints in Water | |
| 2015 | Margaret Atwood | Stone Mattress | |
| 2016 | Jeremy Bates | Black Canyon | |
| 2017 | Susan Daly | A Death at the Parsonage | |
| 2018 | Catherine Astolfo | The Outlier | |
| 2019 | Linda L. Richards | Terminal City | |
| 2020 | Peter Sellers | Closing Doors | |
| 2021 | Marcelle Dubé | Cold Wave, Sisters in Crime | |
| 2022 | Elizabeth Elwood | Number 10 Marlborough Place | |

## Best Unpublished First Novel - "Unhanged Arthur"

First awarded in 2007 as part of the CWC mandate to recognize and promote the careers of promising new crime writers.
Best Unpublished First Novel Award winners :
| Year | Author | Title |
| 2007 | Phyllis Smallman | Margarita Nights |
| 2008 | D.J. McIntosh | The Witch of Babylon |
| 2009 | Douglas A. Moles | Louder |
| 2010 | Gloria Ferris | The Corpse Flower |
| 2011 | John Jeneroux | Better Off Dead |
| 2012 | Sam Wiebe | Last of the Independents |
| 2013 | Coleen Steele | Sins Revisited |
| 2014 | Rachel Greenaway | Cold Girl |
| 2015 | Elle Wilde | Strange Things Done |
| 2016 | Jayne Barnard | When the Flood Falls |
| 2017 | S. J. Jennings | The Golkonda Project |
| 2018 | Dianne Scott | Destruction in Paradise |
| 2019 | Liv McFarlane | The Scarlet Cross |
| 2020 | Liz Rachel Walker | The Dieppe Letters |
| 2021 | Raymond Bazowski | The Future |
| 2022 | Renee Lehnen | Elmington |

## Howard Engel Award

Howard Engel Award winners :
| Year | Author | Title | Ref. |
| 2007 | Katrina Onstad | Stay Where I Can See You | |
| 2008 | C. S. Porter | Beneath Her Skin | |

## Derrick Murdoch Award

This is a special achievement award for contributions to the genre of crime and mystery writing, awarded at the discretion of the president of the Crime Writers of Canada. When first presented in 1984, it was known as the Chairman's Award; it was later renamed in honour of its first recipient, Derrick Murdoch. Since 2013, it has only been presented in years when the new biennial Grand Master Award, listed below, is not presented.
* 1984 - Derrick Murdoch
* 1985 - Tony Aspler
* 1986 - Margaret Millar
* 1987 - The CBC Drama Department
* 1988 - J.D. Singh and Jim Reicker
* 1989 - not presented
* 1990 - Eric Wilson
* 1991 - not presented
* 1992 - William Bankier, James Powell and Peter Sellers
* 1993 - not presented
* 1994 - not presented
* 1995 - Jim and Margaret McBride
* 1996 - not presented
* 1997 - not presented
* 1998 - Howard Engel and Eric Wright
* 1999 - Ted Wood
* 2000 - Eddie Barber, Rick Blechta, John North and David Skene-Melvin
* 2001 - L. R. Wright
* 2002 - James Dubro and Caro Soles
* 2003 - Margaret Cannon
* 2004 - Cheryl Freedman
* 2005 - Max Haines
* 2006 - Mary Jane Maffini
* 2007 - not presented
* 2008 - Edward D. Hoch
* 2009 - Gail Bowen
* 2010 - Peter Robinson
* 2011 - Louise Allin and N.A.T. Grant
* 2012 - Don Graves and Catherine Astolfo
* 2013 - Lyn Hamilton
* 2014 - not presented
* 2015 - Sylvia McConnell
* 2016 - not presented
* 2017 - Christina Jennings
* 2018 - not presented
* 2019 - Vicki Delany

## Grand Master Award

The Grand Master Award is presented every two years as a lifetime achievement award, to a crime writer with a distinguished and successful national and international career.
* 2014 - Howard Engel
* 2016 - Eric Wright
* 2018 - Gail Bowen
* 2020 - Peter Robinson
* 2022 - Louise Penny

## Best Genre Criticism/Reference

The award for Best Genre Criticism or Reference has only been presented twice.
* 1991 - Donald A. Redmond, Sherlock Holmes Among the Pirates
* 1992 - Wesley A. Wark, Spy Fiction, Spy Films and Real Intelligence

## Best Play

The award for Best Play has only been presented once.
* 1994 - Timothy Findley, The Stillborn Lover