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21
Jul 2024
First-time novelist wins major award at Harrogate's Crime-Writing Festival
A new author's very first book has been announced as the winner of the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year 2024 at a special ceremony on the opening night of the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival in Harrogate.
In the Blink of An Eye by Jo Callaghan introduces a detective double act as bereaved DCS Kat Frank is chosen to lead a pilot programme that sees her paired with AI colleague Lock, as human experience combines with logic to solve a complex missing persons case.
Ms Callaghan started the novel, which explores grief and learning to live with loss, after losing her husband to cancer in 2019, and also used her background as a strategist specialising in the future of work to write the novel, which also examines the role of AI in criminal investigation.
Ms Callaghan received a £3,000 prize presented by Harrogate International Festivals, as well as an engraved beer cask handcrafted by one of Britain’s last coopers from Theakston’s Brewery.
She said:
I am so honoured to have won this award – this time last year I sat on the debut panel and I never imagined this is where I'd be now!
Huge thank you to everyone on the judging panel, my fellow shortlistees and my biggest thanks go to all the wonderful readers who have taken Kat and Lock to their hearts.
Also announced at the ceremony was the winner of the inaugural McDermid Debut Award, named in recognition of world-famous crime writer Val McDermid.
The award was scopped by Marie Tierney for Deadly Animals, a tale about road-kill obsessed teenager Ava Bonney, who discovers the mauled body of a schoolmate and embarks on a daring quest to unravel the truth behind the string of chilling deaths plaguing her Birmingham community.
Ms Tierney received a £500 cash prize, presented by Nicola Sturgeon on behalf of Val McDermid, who is chair of judges.
Bestselling author Martina Cole received the Theakston Old Peculier Outstanding Contribution Award in recognition of her impressive writing career. Headline’s publishing director, Jennifer Doyle, accepted the award on her behalf.
Widely regarded as the 'queen of British crime thrillers', Martina Cole has written 27 novels and sold over 18 million copies worldwide.
Previous winners of the award include Sir Ian Rankin, Lynda La Plante, James Patterson, John Grisham, Lee Child, Val McDermid, PD James, Michael Connelly and last year’s recipient, Ann Cleeves.
Sharon Canavar, chief executive of Harrogate International Festivals, said:
Awards night is always a special way to open the Festival and we are thrilled to celebrate the work of three extraordinary women crime writers this year.
Jo Callaghan’s In the Blink of An Eye is a truly ground-breaking novel that changes the way we think about policing forever.
We are delighted to reveal Marie Tierney as our first McDermid Debut Award winner. Her novel Deadly Animals impressed all the judges with the calibre of the writing and the assured handling of a harrowing story.
We are thrilled to celebrate the work of the phenomenal Martina Cole with the Theakston Old Peculier Outstanding Contribution Award. Truly a crime fiction legend, Martina has amassed a legion of devoted fans over the course of her career, captivating readers with her extraordinary characters and compelling plots.
The award winners were revealed at the Old Swan Hotel in Harrogate, during the festival's opening ceremony.
The four-day Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, which closes today (July 21), is the largest festival of its kind in the world, and this year features bestselling authors including Richard Osman, Mick Herron, Elly Griffiths, Vaseem Khan, MW Craven, James Comey, Femi Kayode, Saima Mir, Peter James, Dorothy Koomson and Abir Mukherjee.
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