Sisters in Crime Australia last night presented the 14th Davitt Awards for the best crime books by Australian women. Although my shortlisted novel The Dying Beach didn’t win Best Adult Novel, I was delighted to see the prize go to one of my favourite Australian authors, Honey Brown, for her novel Dark Horse.
Davitt Award winners. Photo: Carmel Shute.
The complete results are:
Best Adult Novel: Honey Brown, Dark Horse (Penguin Books Australia)
Best Young Adult Novel: Karen Foxlee, The Midnight Dress (UQP)
Highly commended in this category were:
Ellie Marney, Every Breath (Allen & Unwin)
Felicity Pulman, A Ring Through Time (Harper Collins)
Best Children’s Novel: Jen Storer, Truly Tan: Spooked! (Harper Collins)
Best True Crime Book: Anna Krien, Night Games: Sex, Power and Sport (Black Inc)
Best Debut Book (Any category): Hannah Kent, Burial Rites (Picador Books)
Readers Choice: Hannah Kent, Burial Rites (Picador Books)
Me & fellow femme fatale Leigh Redhead
Guest of honour South African writer Lauren Beukes presented the awards. Earlier in the evening, Lauren was interviewed by Sue Turnbull about her writing career. I also had the pleasure of interviewing Lauren, together with Australian author Terry Hayes, on the panel Licence to Thrill, as part of the Melbourne Writers Festival. Lauren is an intelligent and engaging speaker and has become for me a writer to watch. I will be reviewing her latest novel, Broken Monsters, on Radio National Books & Arts Daily on Wednesday 10 September.
Congratulations to all winning authors of this year’s Davitts. And bravo Sisters in Crime for another stellar evening.
Read the Sisters in Crime media release here.
Angela Savage 
Aw, too bad you didn’t win, but it looks like you had a great night anyway! 🙂
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You’re a winner in my book! Well, so many good women writers in Oz, am glad to see so many women submitted books and so many are publishing. That’s a big step forward. And the fact that The Dying Beach was on the Shortlist means that Jayne Keeney is known among many more crime fiction readers. All good!
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Thanks Kathy. Your words mean a lot to me. I was disappointed not to win, but I can hardly object to one of my favourite local authors winning instead 😉
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well done one and all……….. no independent writers among the winners………. all books from publishers? Interesting
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Yes, Terry, a few small publishers among the shortlisted books; and, for the first time, books published as e-books only. Not sure if the longlist included any independent writers…
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Yes, it is disappointing. But think of all the new readers Jayne has and will continue to accumulate. And you — chairing and participating in all these festivals and panels. A celebrity in the making! That helps your books, too.
Seeing the picture of you with Leigh Redhead reminds me of that hilarious “Dicks and Dames” panel. The three women on that panel have “lethal” senses of humor! Absolutely brilliant. I
must save that video and whenever I need to fall over laughing, I’ll watch it.
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Am late to this news (blame pneumonia) but had to stop by and congratulations for being on the short list and commiserations for missing out on the top prize but you ought not feel too bad to be pipped by such a quality book – that’s some great company you’re in and the collective list says great things about the state of crime writing by Aussie women.
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Bernadette, aren’t you lovely, rising from your sick bed to leave me such a lovely message! Seriously, though, very sorry to hear about the pneumonia and I do hope you make a speedy recovery. And I agree with you about being in such fine company on that Davitt shortlist — indeed, on the Ned Kelly shortlist, too. It’s a pleasure and a privilege to have my work talked about in the same breath as those Sisters in Crime and Brothers in Law.
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Am almost back to normal health thanks Angela but don’t recommend pneumonia – for one thing I haven’t been able to read a word for a month 🙂 Are you going to the Neds this weekend? Enjoy yourself if so…it should be a grand evening whatever the outcome – another top notch field of books and writers
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No Neds for me this year, Bernadette. There will be a slew of shortlisted authors at Brisbane Writers Festival so it’s still anyone’s guess as to who will win.
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Wish they would live stream them – but hopefully someone will at least live tweet
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