Yay...copy edits are in!!!

YAY - Copy edits are in, and yes, I'm about THIS happy.....lovely feedback too from copy editor....so I may just treat myself to a chocolate donut!!

"Another stupendous novel….and what a tangled web of lies and deceit Louise has woven, and indeed, what a marvellous and talented storyteller she is - Gripping, compelling, absorbing, and so much more."

Phew!

6 Weeks Crime Writing Course with Louise Phillips!!!

This is going to book up like hot cakes.....

Louise Phillips' 6 week Crime Fiction course for residents of South Dublin County

FREE

Register your interest NOW!

Limited Places.....

BOOK HERE

Mystery Writers of America Announces 2021 Edgar Allan Poe Award Nominations!

Mystery Writers of America, as they celebrate the 212^th anniversary of the birth of Edgar Allan Poe, announce the nominees for the 2021 Edgar Allan Poe Awards, honouring the best in mystery fiction, non-fiction and television published or produced in 2020.

The 75^th Annual Edgar® Award Winners will be celebrated on April 29, 2021.

And of course I'm delighted to see "Guilt Rules All" - Irish Mystery, Detective, and Crime Fiction by Elizabeth Mannion & Brian Cliff being on the shortlist for Best Critical/Biographical, in which Rosemary Johnsen has written a critical piece on my fictional character Dr. Kate Pearson.

Congrats to all the nominees!

M.W.A. SHORTLIST

BEST NOVEL

Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line by Deepa Anappara
Before She Was Helen by Caroline B. Cooney
Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
These Women by Ivy Pochoda
The Missing American by Kwei Quartey
The Distant Dead by Heather Young

BEST FIRST NOVEL BY AN AMERICAN AUTHOR
 
Murder in Old Bombay by Nev March
Please See Us by Caitlin Mullen
Catherine House by Elisabeth Thomas
Winter Counts by David Heska Wanbli Weiden
Darling Rose Gold by Stephanie Wrobel


BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL
 
When No One is Watching by Alyssa Cole
The Deep, Deep Snow by Brian Freeman
Unspeakable Things by Jess Lourey
The Keeper by Jessica Moor
East of Hounslow by Khurrum Rahman

BEST FACT CRIME

Blood Runs Coal: The Yablonski Murders and the Battle for the United Mine Workers of America by Mark A. Bradley

The Third Rainbow Girl: The Long Life of a Double Murder in Appalachia by Emma Copley Eisenberg

Death in Mud Lick: A Coal Country Fight Against the Drug Companies that Delivered the Opioid Epidemic by Eric Eyre

Yellow Bird: Oil, Murder, and a Woman's Search for Justice in Indian Country by Sierra Crane Murdoch

Veritas: A Harvard Professor, a Con Man, and the Gospel of Jesus's Wife by Ariel Sabar
 

BEST CRITICAL/BIOGRAPHICAL
 
Howdunit: A Masterclass in Crime Writing by Members of the Detection Club edited by Martin Edwards
Phantom Lady: Hollywood Producer Joan Harrison, the Forgotten Woman Behind Hitchcock by Christina Lane
Ian Rankin: A Companion to the Mystery & Fiction by Erin E. MacDonald
Guilt Rules All:  Irish Mystery, Detective, and Crime Fiction by Elizabeth Mannion & Brian Cliff 
This Time Next Year We'll be Laughing by Jacqueline Winspear
 

BEST SHORT STORY

"The Summer Uncle Cat Came to Stay," Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine by Leslie Elman
"Dust, Ash, Flight," Addis Ababa Noir by Maaza Mengiste
"Fearless," California Schemin' by Walter Mosley
"Etta at the End of the World," Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine by Joseph S. Walker 
"The Twenty-Five Year Engagement," In League with Sherlock Holmes by James W. Ziskin

 

BEST JUVENILE

Premeditated Myrtle by Elizabeth C. Bunce
Me and Banksy by Tanya Lloyd Kyi
From the Desk of Zoe Washington by Janae Marks
Ikenga by Nnedi Okorafor
Nessie Quest by Melissa Savage

Coop Knows the Scoop by Taryn Souders
 
 
BEST YOUNG ADULT
 
The Companion by Katie Alender
The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
They Went Left by Monica Hesse
Silence of Bones by June Hur
The Cousins by Karen M. McManus

BEST TELEVISION EPISODE TELEPLAY

"Episode 1, The Stranger" – Harlan Coben's The Stranger
"Episode 1, Open Water" – The Sounds
"Episode 1, Photochemistry" – Dead Still
"Episode 1" - Des
"What I Know" – The Boys
 
 ROBERT L. FISH MEMORIAL AWARD

"The Bite," Tampa Bay Noir by Colette Bancroft

 

THE SIMON & SCHUSTER MARY HIGGINS CLARK AWARD 

Death of an American Beauty by Mariah Fredericks

The Cabinets of Barnaby Mayne by Elsa Hart
The Lucky One by Lori Rader-Day
The First to Lie by Hank Phillippi Ryan
Cold Wind by Paige Shelton

 

THE G.P. PUTNAM'S SONS SUE GRAFTON MEMORIAL AWARD
 
The Burn by Kathleen Kent
Riviera Gold by Laurie R. King
Vera Kelly is Not a Mystery by Rosalie Knecht
Dead Land by Sara Paretsky
The Sleeping Nymph by Ilaria Tuti
Turn to Stone by James W. Ziskin

SPECIAL AWARDS

GRAND MASTER
Jeffery Deaver
Charlaine Harris

ELLERY QUEEN AWARD
Reagan Arthur, Publisher – Alfred A. Knopf

The Edgar Awards, or "Edgars," as they are commonly known, are named after MWA's patron saint Edgar Allan Poe and are presented to authors of distinguished work in various categories. The organization encompasses some 3,000 members including authors of fiction and non-fiction books, screen and television writers, as well as publishers, editors, and literary agents.

CrimeFest has announced the shortlists for its annual awards!

The awards were due to be presented at a Gala Dinner during the convention at the Bristol Grand Mercure Hotel this June, but in light of Covid-19, the winners will be announced online at www.crimefest.com and via its social media pages on Tuesday 7 July.
CrimeFest was created following the hugely successful one-off visit to Bristol in 2006 of the American Left Coast Crime convention. It was established over ten years ago in 2008. It follows the egalitarian format of most US conventions, making it open to all authors and readers alike.
The convention has grown to become not only one of the biggest crime fiction events in Europe, but also one of the most popular dates in the international crime fiction calendar, with circa 60 panel events and 150 authors over four days.

The Shortlists

SPECSAVERS DEBUT CRIME NOVEL AWARD
- Fiona Erskine for The Chemical Detective (Point Blank)
- Katja Ivar for Evil Things (Bitter Lemon Press)
- Carolyn Kirby for The Conviction of Cora Burns (No Exit Press)
- Alex Michaelides for The Silent Patient (Orion Fiction)
- Laura Shepherd-Robinson for Blood & Sugar (Mantle)
- Holly Watt for To The Lions (Raven Books)

AUDIBLE SOUNDS OF CRIME AWARD
- Kate Atkinson for Big Sky narrated by Jason Isaacs (Penguin Random House Audio)
- Oyinkan Braithwaite for My Sister, the Serial Killer narrated by Weruche Opia (W F Howes)
- Alex Callister for Winter Dark narrated by Ell Potter (Audible Studios)
- Lee Child for Blue Moon narrated by Jeff Harding (Penguin Random House Audio)
- Lisa Jewell for The Family Upstairs narrated by Tamaryn Payne, Bea Holland, Dominic Thorburn (Penguin Random House Audio)
- T.M. Logan for The Holiday narrated by Laura Kirman (Zaffre)
- Peter May for The Man with No Face narrated by Peter Forbes (Quercus, Fiction)
- Alex Michaelides for The Silent Patient narrated by Louise Brealey, Jack Hawkins (Orion)

H.R.F. KEATING AWARD
- Ursula Buchan for Beyond The Thirty-Nine Steps (Bloomsbury Publishing)
- John Curran for The Hooded Gunman (HarperCollins Crime Club)
- Barry Forshaw for Crime Fiction: A Reader's Guide (No Exit Press)

LAST LAUGH AWARD
- William Boyle for A Friend is a Gift you Give Yourself (No Exit Press)
- Hannah Dennison for Tidings of Death at Honeychurch Hall (Constable)
- Helen FitzGerald for Worst Case Scenario (Orenda Books)
- Christopher Fowler for Bryant & May - The Lonely Hour (Transworld)
- Antti Tuomainen for Little Siberia (Orenda Books)
- L.C. Tyler for The Maltese Herring (Allison & Busby)


eDUNNIT AWARD
- Helen FitzGerald for Worst Case Scenario (Orenda Books)
- Sarah Hilary for Never Be Broken (Headline)
- Andrew Taylor for The King's Evil (HarperFiction)
- L.C. Tyler for The Maltese Herring (Allison & Busby)
- Holly Watt for To The Lions (Raven Books)
- Don Winslow for The Border (HarperFiction)

BEST CRIME FICTION NOVEL FOR CHILDREN (ages 8-12)
- P.G. Bell for The Great Brain Robbery (Usborne Publishing)
- Vivian French for The Steam Whistle Theatre Company (Walker Books)
- Sophie Green for Potkin and Stubbs (Bonnier Books)
- A.M. Howell for The Garden of Lost Secrets (Usborne Publishing)
- Simon Lelic for The Haven (Hodder Children's Books)
- Thomas Taylor for Malamander (Walker Books)

BEST CRIME FICTION NOVEL FOR YOUNG ADULTS (ages 12-16)
- Kathryn Evans for Beauty Sleep (Usborne Publishing)
- John Grisham for Theodore Boone: The Accomplice (Hodder & Stoughton)
- Samuel J. Halpin for The Peculiar Peggs of Riddling Woods (Usborne Publishing)
- Simon Mason for Hey Sherlock! (David Fickling Books)
- Tom Pollock for Heartstream (Walker Books)
- Nikesh Shukla for The Boxer (Hodder Children's Books)

UNLEASH YOUR DARK SIDE!!

Ahem....

Bestselling author, Louise Phillips, is holding an 8-week course on successful Crime Fiction writing, commencing March 2020 IRISH WRITERS CENTRE

UNLEASH YOUR DARK SIDE

ABOUT THE COURSE:

Learn the secrets of successful crime-fiction writing with bestselling and award-winning crime author, Louise Phillips.

On this course, participants will receive in-depth analysis of all aspects of great crime fiction, including the creation of memorable characters, planning, pace, dialogue, and narration.

Many of Louise’s students have achieved great publication success, with some becoming International Bestsellers.

ABOUT LOUISE

Louise Phillips is the bestselling author of five psychological crime thrillers. All five novels have been nominated for Best Crime Novel of the Year in the prestigious Irish Book Awards. Her second novel, The Doll's House, won the award. Louise’s work has formed part of many literary anthologies, and she has won both the Jonathan Swift Award and the Irish Writers’ Centre Lonely Voice platform, along with being shortlisted for the Molly Keane Memorial Award, Bridport UK, and many others. In 2015, she was awarded a writing residency at Cill Rialaig Artist Retreat, and she was also a judge on the Irish panel for the EU Literary Award. In 2016, she was longlisted for the prestigious CWA Dagger in the Library Award in the UK, and her first two novels, Red Ribbons and The Doll's House, were published in the US. Her latest novel, The Hiding Game, was published in September 2019 to critical acclaim, and was nominated in the An Post Irish Book Awards for Best Crime Novel of the Year 2019. 

For Booking Details etc click HERE

Lynda La Plante, Laura Lippman and Robert Goddard to headline 2020 CrimeFest!

Lynda La Plante, Laura Lippman and Robert Goddard to headline 2020 CrimeFest.

Headline authors for CrimeFest - one of Europe’s biggest crime fiction conventions - have been announced. 

The 2020 convention sponsored by Specsavers is hosted from 4 to 7 June at the Mercure Bristol Grand Hotel and will feature icon of the genre, Lynda La Plante, the award-winning author of more than 30 internationally bestselling novels.

La Plante was a pioneer with her 1980’s series, Widows. The show received the Hollywood treatment with a movie adaptation by director Steve McQueen in 2018.

The BAFTA award winning screenwriter and former RADA trained actress went on to create one of television’s greatest characters, DI Jane Tennison in Prime Suspect. Played by Helen Mirren in a career-defining performance, the hugely influential character transformed the TV landscape.

She’ll be discussing her career in her debut appearance at CrimeFest alongside Buried - the first novel in her much-anticipated new series featuring DC Jack Warr.

Laura Lippman is one of America’s most admired crime writers. The New York Times bestselling author of acclaimed standalones and the award-winning Tess Monaghan series, is lauded by readers, critics and writers alike.

A reporter for twenty years, Laura worked with the Baltimore Sun before becoming a novelist, hailed by the Washington Post as, “one of the best novelists around, period.” Along with her fiction, Lippman will be discussing her latest book of essays, My Life As A Villainess.

Robert Goddard will also feature after the author was awarded the Crime Writers’ Association’s highest accolade in 2019, the Diamond Dagger, for a lifetime achievement in crime writing.

Goddard's first novel, Past Caring, was an instant bestseller and his books went on to captivate readers worldwide with their edge-of-the-seat pace and their labyrinthine plotting. His books have been translated into over thirty languages. His 28th novel, One False Move, was published last year.

Specsavers co-founder, Dame Mary Perkins, said: “As a personal fan of the crime genre and with my own personal connection to Bristol, it’s fantastic to be involved in this annual showcase of world-class crime fiction. It’s also great to see CrimeFest developing its community activity to help make reading accessible to everyone.”

CrimeFest, now in its 11^th year, is a hotbed for readers who dip into the occasional crime novel alongside die-hard fans, as well as drawing top crime novelists, editors, publishers and reviewers from around the world. It runs a series of educational and community outreach events alongside the convention.

Director and co-founder of CrimeFest, Adrian Muller, said: “CrimeFest is the most democratic of crime conventions as it’s open to all authors to take part. As such, it’s not just established names but offers an exciting and fertile ground for aspiring and new talent. There’s a friendly energy for readers and attendees, fitting the independent, vibrant spirit of our host town, Bristol.”

Up to 150 authors will descend on Bristol appearing in over 50 panels delving into diverse topics from politics to historical crime, the Golden Age of crime fiction to police procedurals, serial killers to cosy crime. There’ll also be a panel on crime fiction reviewers, honouring the late Marcel Berlins, and a ‘Ghost of Honour’ remembering Dick Francis.

Highlights include the coveted ‘Pitch an Agent’ for aspiring writers and the annual CrimeFest Awards featuring the inaugural Specsavers Debut Crime Novel Award.

Other big names include award-winning bestselling crime writer and broadcaster Dreda Say Mitchell, and Sarah Pinborough, the New York Times bestselling author of Behind Her Eyes, adapted by Netflix for broadcast this year.

The no. 1 bestselling Icelandic writer, Yrsa Sigurðardóttir also features with an appearance by the writer, broadcaster, dramatist and journalist Lynne Truss, famed for Eats, Shoots and Leaves alongside her comic crime novel, A Shot in the Dark.

Joining them as the Toastrix at the Gala Dinner is Zoë Sharp, creator of the Charlie Fox series of crime thrillers.

www.crimefest.com

Writer's Block ....THE GLOSS MAGAZINE!

Thank you so much Sophie Grenham, of THE GLOSS magazine,for this lovely feature today 'Writer's Block with Louise Phillips', and her absolutely stunning review of THE HIDING GAME!
“With sleek, effortless transitions, including heartfelt vignettes from Elizabeth, The Hiding Game is a page-turner right from the start. The narrative is taut as a drum, with an abundance of gripping dialogue and genuinely chilling moments. Phillips’s unique ability to pull the reader inside her head and absorb the emotions she pours onto the page is just one of her many powers.”

You can read full article HERE, but this is a short extract.....

"I have beautiful memories too. I loved watching the throngs of seagulls swoop down early morning in the washing yard, and how later, the washing yard was still a magical place, as I ran through the lines and lines of large white sheets. I think it’s partly why I became a writer, that early escape to fantasy in order to survive reality."   

Big Happy Smile Today!!

Big Happy Smile on my face today to let you know that the utterly amazing, all round great guy, and friend, COLM HAYES will be launching THE HIDING GAME at THE GUTTER BOOKSHOP on the 10th September 2019 at 6.30 p.m.

Many of you will know Colm very well, but below is a small flavour of the man, with some fab questions via Radio Nova and a small intro…..

Q. Someone or something that strikes you as beautiful?

A. I’m an early bird, so the miracle of sunrise always gets me.It’s like we get re-invented every day.

Q. You’re on Death Row, what’s your last meal?

A. Chicken wing with blue cheese dressing from Elephant and Castle and chips.

Q. Which words do you overuse?

A. “Stay where you are”. I use it a lot on-air.

Q. The worst job you’ve ever done?

A. While in college I worked as a part-time grave digger.

Q. What keeps you awake at night?

A. The whispering voices of doubt and the stifled screams of lost opportunity. Well, you did ask!

Q. Your idea of hell on earth?

A. Trumpland, The Theme Park.

Q. What do some people think about you that isn’t true?

A. That I don’t care, but I do, I really do and that I’m French – which I’m not.

Colm Hayes, co-presents the Colm & Lucy show with Lucy Kennedy on Radio Nova weekdays 6am to 10am. He had a 10-year partnership with James ‘Jim-Jim’ Nugent on the FM104’s Strawberry Alarm Clock and on the 2fm breakfast show. He officially joined Radio Nova in 2017 as programme director.

(PLEASE PUT DATE AND TIME IN DIARY, AS YE ARE ALL INVITED TO PARTAKE IN THE FREE VINO/BOOK FUN etc)

Advance Review Copies of The Hiding Game DOWNLOAD FOR FREE

Lovely Bloggers/Reviewers/Netgalley folk...

If you're on NetGalley....You can NOW download THE HIDING GAME Pre-Publication via this link -  Here


Yes, you can...

PLEASE do...

Crossing fingers, toes, eyes, and everything else that you like it!! 😎##

Exciting News!!

I am THRILLED to announce that THE HIDING GAME will be available very soon in Audio....more details to follow!!

Sprinkled with Fairy Dust!!

What a lovely sight... 

Beautiful early copies for booksellers...

All signed and sprinkled with fairy dust!!...

#Magic

Drum Roll...Cover Reveal!!!

DRUM ROLL...

Or something like that....

SO EXCITED to REVEAL the cover of THE HIDING GAME...Publication Date September 5th....

Now off to light candles, bite fingernails, or generally panic that you like it!!...

#TheHidingGame

"A young girl on trial, a twenty-five-year-old murder, and a small town willing to do anything to keep its secrets safe..."

LIZ NUGENT

“Phillips is back with a most intriguing and compelling story of grief, loss, memory and the quest for the truth. With rich characterisation and a lively setting, this story will enthral you to the end.”

PATRICIA GIBNEY

“The Hiding Game is filled with characters who will grab you by the throat from beginning to end. Absolutely gripping storyline, expertly crafted, an addictive page turner. I loved it.”

KAREN PERRY

“The Hiding Game has everything you would expect from a Phillips novel – a pacy crime procedural full of twists and turns, with poignant insights into the emotional bond between mother and child. A cracking good read.” 

CATHERINE RYAN HOWARD

“A riveting, ripped-from-the-headlines legal thriller set in A Small Town in the USA with dark secrets and murky lies…which Phillips has pulled it off not only with authenticity, but aplomb.

ARLENE HUNT

“Phillips is at the top of her game. The Hiding Game is riveting, thought provoking and compulsive. A five-star read.”

ANDREA CARTER

“A gripping courtroom drama with a courageous new heroine in Heather Baxter. Pacy, tightly plotted and full of suspense. The Hiding Game was worth the wait!”

CORMAC O KEEFFE

“Phillips sends us down into a rabbit hole of buried trauma, disjointed memories, fractured relationships and ruptured lives in the search for justice and redemption. An undoubted master of the psychological thriller.”

SINEAD CROWLEY

“Phillips makes a very successful trip Stateside with ‘The Hiding Game’. The oppressive nature of life in a small town adds tension as Phillips draws together the strands of this tightly plotted family thriller.”