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Steve Cavanagh has been named as the winner of this year’s Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award for his book Thirteen (Orion).
Cavanagh was given the £3,000 prize and engraved oak beer cask trophy by Simon Theakston at an event last night (18th July) hosted by broadcaster Mark Lawson on the opening night of the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival.
His novel, a twist on traditional courtroom drama by making the real killer a jury member, is the fifth in his Eddie Flynn series.
He saw off competition from shortlisted books Snap by Belinda Bauer (Transworld), Val McDermid's Broken Ground (Sphere), Mick Herron’s London Rules (John Murray Press), Liam McIllvanney’s The Quaker (HarperCollins) and Khurrum Rahman’s East of Hounslow (HarperCollins).
Cavanagh was crowned the winner by a panel of judges chaired by Mari Hannah.
Title sponsor and executive director of T&R Theakston Ltd, Theakston said: “It is always a privilege to present the winning author with their richly-deserved award. As ever, the standard of both the short and long lists has been astonishingly high, and it is never an easy task to choose a winner.”
A presentation was also made to James Patterson, winner of the tenth Theakston Old Peculier Outstanding Contribution to Crime Fiction Award.
Calling him a “literary giant”, Theakston said: “James is as passionate about reading as he is about writing and is a huge supporter of independent bookstores and libraries. We are delighted that he is joining us here in Harrogate for a few days, and I’m sure many budding crime writers will draw inspiration from his very presence.”
Read our interview with Steve Cavanagh, which is part of our Ireland Country Focus, here.