The Dagger of Daggers was a special award given in 2005 by the

Crime Writers' Association The Crime Writers' Association (CWA) is a specialist authors’ organisation in the United Kingdom, most notable for its Dagger awards for the best crime writing of the year, and the Diamond Dagger awarded to an author for lifetime achievement. T ...

(CWA) to celebrate its 50th anniversary. All books that had previously won the CWA

Gold Dagger The Gold Dagger is an award given annually by the Crime Writers' Association of the United Kingdom since 1960 for the best crime novel of the year. From 1955 to 1959, the organization named their top honor as the Crossed Red Herring Award. From ...

for Best Crime Novel of the Year were eligible, and the purpose was to select "the best of the best". The shortlist was selected by a ballot of CWA members, with the winner decided by a second round of voting.

Winner

John le Carré David John Moore Cornwell (19 October 193112 December 2020), better known by his pen name John le Carré ( ), was a British and Irish author, best known for his espionage novels, many of which were successfully adapted for film or television. ...

- '' The Spy Who Came in from the Cold'' 1963

Shortlist

Anthony Price Alan Anthony Price (16 August 1928 – 30 May 2019) was an author of espionage thrillers. Price was born in Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, England. He attended The King's School, Canterbury and served in the British Army from 1947 to 1949, ...

- ''Other Paths to Glory'' 1974 *

Martin Cruz Smith Martin Cruz Smith (born November 3, 1942) is an American mystery novelist. He is best known for his nine-novel series (to date) on Russian investigator Arkady Renko, who was first introduced in 1981 with '' Gorky Park''. Early life and educat ...

- '' Gorky Park'' 1981 *

Peter Lovesey Peter (Harmer) Lovesey (born 1936), also known by his pen name Peter Lear, is a British writer of historical and contemporary detective novels and short stories. His best-known series characters are Sergeant Cribb, a Victorian-era police detec ...

- ''

The False Inspector Dew ''The False Inspector Dew'' is a humorous crime novel by Peter Lovesey. It won the Gold Dagger award by the Crime Writers' Association in 1982 and has featured on many "Best of" lists since. Plot introduction It is 1921, and Alma Webster, a re ...

'' 1982 *Barbara Vine (

Ruth Rendell Ruth Barbara Rendell, Baroness Rendell of Babergh, (; 17 February 1930 – 2 May 2015) was an English author of thrillers and psychological murder mysteries. Rendell is best known for creating Chief Inspector Wexford.The Oxford Companion ...

) - '' A Fatal Inversion'' 1987 *

Reginald Hill Reginald Charles Hill FRSL (3 April 193612 January 2012) was an English crime writer and the winner in 1995 of the Crime Writers' Association Cartier Diamond Dagger for Lifetime Achievement. Biography Hill was born to a "very ordinary" family ...

- ''

Bones and Silence ''Bones and Silence'' is a 1990 crime novel by Reginald Hill, the eleventh novel in the Dalziel and Pascoe series. The novel received the Gold Dagger The Gold Dagger is an award given annually by the Crime Writers' Association of the United K ...

'' 1990 *

Val McDermid Valarie "Val" McDermid, (born 4 June 1955) is a Scottish crime writer, best known for a series of novels featuring clinical psychologist Dr. Tony Hill in a grim sub-genre that McDermid and others have identified as Tartan Noir. Biography M ...

- '' The Mermaids Singing'' 1995

External links

CWA
Dagger of Daggers page Mystery and detective fiction awards {{lit-award-stub