Little, Brown nets McIlvanney Prize longlist hat-trick

Little, Brown has scooped three nominations on the McIlvanney Prize longlist for 2019. 

No Man’s Land by Neil Broadfoot, Fallen Angel by Chris Brookmyre and Little, Brown stablemate Val McDermid with Broken Ground made the 13-strong longlist for the £1,000 prize. 

Former winner Brookmyre bagged a second nomination for The Way of All Flesh by Ambrose Parry (Canongate), which he co-authored with his wife Marisa. 

A Treachery of Spies by Manda Scott (Transworld), Breakers by Doug Johnstone (Orenda) and All That’s Dead by Stuart MacBride (Harper Collins) are also in the running alongside, Thunder Bay by Douglas Skelton (Polygon) and A Breath on Dying Embers by Denzil Meyrick (Polygon). 

Former winner Denise Mina's Conviction (Vintage) and In a House of Lies by Ian Rankin (Orion) are also recognised for the award that recognises excellence in Scottish crime writing. As well as the £1000 prize money, the winner will also scoop nationwide promotion in Waterstones.

The prize, formerly the Scottish Crime Book of the Year Award, was renamed the McIlvanney Prize in memory of William McIlvanney who is often described as the Godfather of Tartan Noir. Last year his son, Liam McIlvanney, won the prize and led the torchlit procession through the streets of Stirling alongside Mina who was appearing at the first event.

Longlisted All the Hidden Truths by Claire Askew (Hodder) and In the Silence by M R Mackenzie (Bloodhound Books) also made the five-strong shortlist for the inaugural debut Scottish Crime Book of the Year. 

From the Shadows by G R Halliday (Vintage), Black Camp 21 by Bill Jones (Polygon) and The Peat Dead by Allan Martin (Thunderpoint) make up the shortlist. 

The winners will be presented at the opening reception of the Bloody Scotland International Crime Writing Festival in Stirling on Friday 20th September.