The Ngaio Marsh Awards (formerly Ngaio Marsh Award), popularly called the Ngaios, are

literary award A literary award or literary prize is an award presented in recognition of a particularly lauded literary piece or body of work. It is normally presented to an author. Organizations Most literary awards come with a corresponding award ceremony. Ma ...

s presented annually in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

to recognise excellence in

crime fiction Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives that centre on criminal acts and especially on the investigation, either by an amateur or a professional detective, of a crime, ...

mystery Mystery, The Mystery, Mysteries or The Mysteries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters *Mystery, a cat character in ''Emily the Strange'' Films * ''Mystery'' (2012 film), a 2012 Chinese drama film * ''Mystery'' ( ...

, and thriller writing. The Awards were established by journalist and legal editor Craig Sisterson in 2010, and are named after Dame

Ngaio Marsh Dame Edith Ngaio Marsh (; 23 April 1895 – 18 February 1982) was a New Zealand mystery writer and theatre director. She was appointed a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1966. As a crime writer during the "Golden Age of Det ...

, one of the four Queens of Crime of the Golden Age of Detective Fiction. The Award is presented at the

WORD Christchurch Writers & Readers Festival WORD Christchurch is an organisation which presents a variety of literary events, most notably the annual WORD Christchurch Festival, also known as WORD Festival, established in 1997. Until 2014 the festival was run as the Press Christchurch Writ ...

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...

, the hometown of Dame Ngaio.

Beginnings

The Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Crime Novel was launched in 2010 by lawyer turned journalist Craig Sisterson, who wanted to create an opportunity for great New Zealand crime, mystery, and thriller writing to be recognised and celebrated. Local crime writers were often overlooked by festival organisers and books awards in New Zealand, despite international acclaim, and up until that point New Zealand, unlike most other English-speaking countries, did not have a specific award for crime, mystery, and thriller fiction. Sisterson had been writing reviews and features about crime writers for a number of magazines and newspapers in New Zealand and Australia and had set up a website about New Zealand crime writing. Earlier in 2010, he had written an opinion piece, "Kiwis love crime fiction, but what about our own?" for ''Booknotes'' magazine saying that New Zealand had great crime writers who were not being supported locally, by bookstores, literary festivals, or awards, and it was time that changed. After discussions with many people in the New Zealand book industry, Sisterson decided to launch the Ngaio Marsh Award at the Christchurch Writers Festival in 2010, honouring both contemporary crime writers and New Zealand's most famous mystery writer in her own hometown. He sought and received the blessing of Dame

's closest living relative to honour Dame Ngaio by using her name and an artistic impression of her likeness for New Zealand's first-ever

prize. The inaugural award was intended to be presented at the biennial Christchurch Writers Festival in September 2010, but had to be postponed due to a severe earthquake that struck the city that month, leading to the cancellation of the festival. The first Ngaio Marsh Award was presented at a special event in Christchurch in December 2010, and won by the pseudonymous author

Alix Bosco Greg McGee is a New Zealand writer and playwright, who also writes crime fiction under the pseudonym Alix Bosco. Biography McGee was born in 1950 in the South Island town of Oamaru. In his early 20s McGee played rugby as a Junior All Black and ...

for the thriller '' Cut & Run''. Bosco did not attend the presentation ceremony, but would later reveal 'herself' as New Zealand screenwriter and playwright

Greg McGee Greg McGee is a New Zealand writer and playwright, who also writes crime fiction under the pseudonym Alix Bosco. Biography McGee was born in 1950 in the South Island town of Oamaru. In his early 20s McGee played rugby as a Junior All Black and b ...

in the lead-up to the 2011 Award. The launch of the Award, and New Zealand crime writing in general, was featured in major newspapers and magazines in New Zealand, including the ''Sunday Star-Times'', the ''Herald on Sunday'', and the ''New Zealand Listener''.

The Award

For the first three years of the Award, the winner received a distinctive handcrafted trophy designed and created by New Zealand sculptor and Unitec art lecturer Gina Ferguson, a full set of

novels, and a cash prize provided by the Christchurch Writers Festival Trust. The trophy depicted an artistic rendering of Dame Ngaio's famous visage in mother-of-pearl on a black velvet covered partially open book. From 2013, the winners have received a framed plaque bearing the award logo, a selection of

novels, and a cash prize. In 2016, a second category was added for debut crime novels, the Ngaio Marsh Award for Best First Novel, and in 2017 a new award for true crime and other non fiction writing was added, the Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Non Fiction. 2021 saw the addition of a further award, the Ngaio Marsh Award for Younger Readers.

Award presentations

Following the postponement of the inaugural event when the biennial Christchurch Writers Festival was cancelled in 2010, the Award has been presented at a variety of events in association with the Christchurch Writers Festival, which has continued its support of the Award, each year. In 2011, the "Setting the Stage for Murder" event was held at the Christchurch Arts Festival, with all four finalists and internationally bestselling crime writers

Tess Gerritsen Tess Gerritsen (born Terry Tom; June 12, 1953) is the pseudonym of Terry Gerritsen, an American novelist and retired general physician. Early life Tess Gerritsen is the child of a Chinese immigrant and a Chinese-American seafood chef. While grow ...

and John Hart in attendance. In 2012, 2014, and 2016 the Ngaios were presented at events as part of the Christchurch Writers Festival programme, in each case following the popular 'Great New Zealand Crime Debate'. In 2012 Australian crime writer

Michael Robotham Michael Robotham (born 9 November 1960) is an Australian crime fiction writer who has twice won the CWA Gold Dagger award for best novel and twice been shortlisted for the Edgar Award for best novel. His eldest child is Alexandra Hope Robotham, ...

presented the Award, and in 2014 Icelandic crime writer Yrsa Sigurdardottir presented the Award. Sigurdardottir became a judge of the Ngaios from 2015.

Winners and finalists

2010

The inaugural presentation was made in Christchurch after a standalone crime panel featuring two of the three finalists,

Neil Cross Neil Cross ( Neil Claude Gadd; born 9 February 1969) is a British novelist and scriptwriter, best known as the creator of the drama series ''Luther'' and ''Hard Sun''. He is also the showrunner for the TV adaptation of '' The Mosquito Coast'', ...

and

Vanda Symon Vanda Symon (born 1969) is a crime writer and radio host from Dunedin, New Zealand, and the Chair of the Otago Southland Branch of the New Zealand Society of Authors. Three of her novels have been shortlisted for New Zealand's annual Ngaio Mar ...

, local crime writer

Paul Cleave Paul Cleave (born 10 December 1974) is a crime fiction author from New Zealand. Life Paul Cleave is an internationally bestselling author who is currently dividing his time between his home city of Christchurch, New Zealand, where all of his n ...

, and chaired by Sisterson. The third finalist,

, did not attend as it was a pseudonym for a "successful writer in other media" who wanted to keep their identity a secret. Bosco's debut thriller, CUT & RUN, was announced as the winner at the conclusion of the event, with representatives from publisher Penguin NZ accepting on the author's behalf. *''Cut & Run'' by

** ''Containment'' by

** ''Burial'' by

2011

The second presentation of the Ngaio Marsh Award was made following the "Setting the Stage for Murder" event held as part of the Christchurch Arts Festival in August 2011, which also included appearances by

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

bestselling authors

and John Hart. At the event, acclaimed television screenwriter and playwright

made his first appearance after revealing himself as

, the winner of the inaugural award, in a national newspaper in the lead-up to the 2011 Award. *''Blood Men'' by

** ''Hunting Blind'' by

Paddy Richardson Paddy Richardson is a writer who lives in Dunedin, New Zealand. She has published two collections of short stories, ''Choices'' (Hard Echo Press, 1986) and ''If We Were Lebanese'' (Steele Roberts, 2003), and three novels, ''The Company of a Dau ...

** ''Captured'' by

** ''Slaughter Falls'' by

2012

The third presentation was during an event at the 2012 Christchurch Writers Festival, which was held in temporary facilities as the city continued to recover from the devastating September 2010 and February 2011 earthquakes. Award-winning Australian

crime writer True crime is a nonfiction literary, podcast, and film genre in which the author examines an actual crime and details the actions of real people associated with and affected by criminal events. The crimes most commonly include murder; about 40 per ...

presented the Award to

following the sold-out Great New Zealand Crime Debate. Cross's winning novel was a prequel to his award-winning television series ''Luther'', starring

Idris Elba Idrissa Akuna Elba (; born 6 September 1972) is an English actor.

. *'' Luther: The Calling'' by

** ''Collecting Cooper'' by

** ''By Any Means'' by Ben Sanders ** ''Bound'' by

2013

In the fourth year of the Award, the presentation was made privately as logistical issues didn't allow for a public event. *'' Death on Demand'' by Paul Thomas ** ''The Laughterhouse'' by

** ''Little Sister'' by

Julian Novitz Julian may refer to: People * Julian (emperor) (331–363), Roman emperor from 361 to 363 * Julian (Rome), referring to the Roman gens Julia, with imperial dynasty offshoots * Saint Julian (disambiguation), several Christian saints * Julian (gi ...

** ''The Faceless'' by

2014

The 2014 presentation was made at the WORD Christchurch Writers Festival following the Great Crime Debate where finalist

competed in the negative team (rather ironically) debating the moot, 'Crime Doesn't Pay'. The negative team won in a landslide victory.

Liam McIlvanney Liam McIlvanney is a Scottish-born crime fiction writer and academic at the University of Otago, New Zealand, and the inaugural holder of the Stuart Chair in Scottish studies at Otago. He is the son of William McIlvanney. Works Fiction *''All t ...

was in attendance to receive the award from Icelandic crime writer Yrsa Sigurdardottir * ''Where The Dead Men Go'' -

** ''Joe Victim'' by

** ''Frederick's Coat'' by

Alan Duff Alan Duff (born 26 October 1950) is a New Zealand novelist and newspaper columnist. He is best known as the author of the novel '' Once Were Warriors'' (1990), which was made into a film of the same name in 1994. Biography Alan Duff was bo ...

** ''My Brother's Keeper'' by Donna Malane

2015

The sixth presentation of the award was made at a special "Murder in the Court" event held at the Court Theatre in

in October. * '' Five Minutes Alone'' -

** ''The Petticoat Men'' by

Barbara Ewing Barbara Ewing (born 14 January 1939) is a New Zealand actor, playwright and novelist based in the UK. In the 1980s Ewing played the character Agnes Fairchild in British comedy series ''Brass.'' Ewing's novel ''The Petticoat Men'' was shortlisted ...

** ''The Children's Pond'' by Tina Shaw ** ''Swimming in the Dark'' by

** ''Fallout'' by Paul Thomas

2016

The Seventh presentation of the award was at the Great New Zealand Crime Debate during WORD Christchurch Writers and Readers festival 2016, on 27 August 2016 at the Concert Hall of The Piano: Centre for Music and the Arts, Christchurch. This year there were two awards, one for best crime novel and one for best first novel.

Best Crime Novel

* ''Trust No One'' by

** ''Inside the Black Horse'' by Ray Berard ** ''Made to Kill'' by Adam Christopher ** ''The Legend of Winstone Blackhat'' by Tanya Moir ** ''American Blood'' by Ben Sanders

Best First Novel (new award)

* ''Inside the Black Horse'' by Ray Berard ** ''The Fixer'' by John Daniell ** ''The Gentlemen’s Club'' by Jen Shieff ** ''Twister'' by Jane Woodham

2017

The eighth presentation of the Ngaios was made at Scorpio Books in Christchurch on 28 October 2017, as part of a cocktail function followed by a literary pub quiz.

Best Crime Novel

*''The Last Time We Spoke'' by Fiona Sussman **''Pancake Money'' by Finn Bell **''Spare Me The Truth'' by C. J. Carver **''Red Herring'' by Jonothan Cullinane **''Marshall's Law'' by Ben Sanders

Best First Novel

* ''Dead Lemons'' by Finn Bell ** ''Red Herring'' by Jonothan Cullinane ** ''The Ice Shroud'' by Gordon Ell ** ''The Student Body'' by Simon Wyatt ** ''Days Are Like Grass'' by Sue Younger

Best Non Fiction (new award)

* ''In Dark Places'': ''The confessions of

Teina Pora Teina Pora is a New Zealander who was wrongfully convicted of murdering Susan Burdett when he was aged 17; he served time in Paremoremo prison from 1994 for the crime, until he received parole in 2014. In 1992, 39-year-old Burdett was raped an ...

and an ex-cops fight for justice'' by Michael Bennett ** ''The Scene of the Crime'' by Steve Braunias ** ''Double-Edged Sword'' by Simonne Butler with Andra Jenkin ** ''The Many Deaths of Mary Dobie'' by David Hastings ** ''Blockbuster!:

Fergus Hume Ferguson Wright Hume (8 July 1859 – 12 July 1932), known as Fergus Hume, was a prolific English novelist, known for his detective fiction, thrillers and mysteries. Early life Hume was born in Powick, Worcestershire, England, the second ...

and the Mystery of a Hansom Cab'' by

Lucy Sussex Lucy Sussex (born 1957 in New Zealand) is an author working in fantasy and science fiction, children's and teenage writing, non-fiction and true crime. She is also an editor, reviewer, academic and teacher, and currently resides in Melbourne, Aus ...

2018

The finalists were celebrated and winners announced at special event on 1 September 2018 as part of the 2018 WORD Christchurch Festival.

Best Crime Novel

* ''Marlborough Man'' by Alan Carter ** ''See You in September'' by Charity Norman ** ''Tess'' by Kirsten McDougall ** ''The Sound of Her Voice'' by Nathan Blackwell ** ''A Killer Harvest'' by

** ''The Hidden Room'' by Stella Duffy

Best First Novel

* ''All Our Secrets'' by Jennifer Lane **''The Floating Basin'' by Carolyn Hawes ** ''Broken Silence'' by Helen Vivienne Fletcher ** ''The Sound of Her Voice'' by Nathan Blackwell ** ''Nothing Bad Happens Here'' by Nikki Crutchley

2019

The shortlists were published on 2 August and the winners were announced on 14 September at WORD Christchurch.

Best Crime Novel

*''This Mortal Boy'' by

Fiona Kidman Dame Fiona Judith Kidman ( Eakin, born 26 March 1940) is a New Zealand novelist, poet, scriptwriter and short story writer. She grew up in Northland, and worked as a librarian and a freelance journalist early in her career. She began writing ...

**''Money in the Morgue'' by Ngaio Marsh and Stella Duffy **''The Quaker'' by

Liam Mcilvanney Liam McIlvanney is a Scottish-born crime fiction writer and academic at the University of Otago, New Zealand, and the inaugural holder of the Stuart Chair in Scottish studies at Otago. He is the son of William McIlvanney. Works Fiction *''All t ...

**''Call Me Evie'' by J. P. Pomare **''The Vanishing Act'' by Jen Shieff

Best First Novel

* ''Call Me Evie'' by J. P. Pomare ** ''One for Another'' by Andrea Jacka ** ''Crystal Reign'' by Kelly Lyndon

Best Non Fiction

* ''The Short Life And Mysterious Death Of Jane Furlong'' by Kelly Dennett ** ''The Great New Zealand Robbery'' by Scott Bainbridge ** ''Behind Bars'' by Anna Leask ** ''The Cause of Death'' by Cynric Temple-Camp

2020

The shortlists were published on 11 August and the winners were announced on 31 October at WORD Christchurch.

Best Crime Novel

* ''Auē'' by

Becky Manawatu Becky Manawatu (born 1982) is a New Zealand writer of Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Mamoe, Waitaha, and Pākehā background. In 2020, she won two Ockham New Zealand Book Awards for her first novel, ''Auē'' and Best Crime Novel at the 2020 Ngaio Marsh ...

** ''Whatever it Takes'' by

** ''Girl from the Tree House'' by Gudrun Frerichs ** ''The Nancys'' by R. W. R. McDonald ** ''In the Clearing'' by J. P. Pomare ** ''The Wild Card'' by

Renée Renée (without the accent in non-French speaking countries) is a French/Latin feminine given name. Renée is the female form of René, with the extra –e making it feminine according to French grammar. The name Renée is the French form of t ...

Best First Novel

* ''The Nancys'' by R. W. R. McDonald **''Into the Void'' by Christina O’Reilly ** ''Tugga’s Mob'' by Stephen Johnson ** ''Auē'' by

2021

The longlists were announced in July, while the shortlists were published on 16 September and the winners were announced on 30 October by WORD Christchurch.

Best Crime Novel

* ''Sprigs'' by Brannavan Gnanalingam ** ''The Murder Club'' by Nikki Crutchley ** ''The Tally Stick'' by

Carl Nixon Carl Nixon (born 1967) is a New Zealand novelist, short story writer and playwright. He has written four novels and a number of original plays which have been performed throughout New Zealand, as well as adapting both Lloyd Jones' novel ''The ...

** ''The Secrets of Strangers'' by Charity Norman ** ''Tell Me Lies'' by J. P. Pomare

Best First Novel

* ''For Reasons of Their Own'' by Chris Stuart **''The Girl in the Mirror'' by Rose Carlyle ** ''The Beautiful Dead'' by Kim Hunt ** ''Where the Truth Lies'' by Karina Kilmore ** ''While the Fantail Lives'' by Alan Titchall

Best Non Fiction

* ''Black Hands: Inside the Bain family murders'' by

Martin van Beynen Martin van Beynen (born 1959) is a New Zealand writer, print journalist, and former columnist for ''The Press'' in Christchurch. Early life Of Dutch extraction, van Beynen was born in Christchurch.Martin Van Beynen, ''Trapped: Remarkable Sto ...

**''Weed: A New Zealand story'' by James Borrowdale ** ''Rock College: An unofficial history of Mount Eden Prison'' by Mark Derby ** ''From Dog Collar to Dog Collar'' by Bruce Howat ** ''Gangland'' by Jared Savage

Best Younger Readers

* ''Katipo Joe: Blitzkrieg'' by Brian Falkner ** ''Red Edge'' by Des Hunt ** ''A Trio of Sophies'' by Eileen Merriman ** ''Deadhead'' by Glenn Wood

2022

The longlists were announced in July, while the shortlists were published on 14 September and the winners were announced on 15 September by WORD Christchurch.

Best Crime Novel

* ''Before You Knew My Name'' by Jacqueline Bublitz * ''The Quiet People'' by

* ''Nancy Business'' by R. W. R. McDonald * ''She’s a Killer'' by Kirsten McDougall * ''The Devils You Know'' by Ben Sanders * ''Quiet in Her Bones'' by

Nalini Singh Nalini Singh (born September 01, 1945) is an Indian journalist. She has been the anchor for several current affairs programs on Doordarshan, and is most known for her program, 'Aankhon Dekhi', on investigative journalism. She had made another ...

Best First Novel

* ''Before You Knew My Name'' by Jacqueline Bublitz * ''Shadow Over Edmund Street'' by Suzanne Frankham * ''Isobar Precinct'' by Angelique Kasmara * ''Waking the Tiger'' by Mark Wightman * ''Small Mouth Demon'' by Matt Zwartz

References

{{reflist

External links

Ngaio Marsh Award Facebook page
New Zealand fiction awards Mystery and detective fiction awards 2010 establishments in New Zealand Awards established in 2010