Bouchercon XXVII

Bouchercon is an annual convention of creators and devotees of mystery and detective fiction. It is named in honour of writer, reviewer, and editor Anthony Boucher; also the inspiration for the Anthony Awards, which have been issued at the convention since 1986. This page details Bouchercon XXVII and the 11th Anthony Awards ceremony.

Bouchercon
The convention was held in Saint Paul, Minnesota on October 10, 1996; running until the 13th. The event was chaired by Dennis Armstrong and freelance book reviewer Bruce Southworth. Armstrong was working for the local "Once Upon a Crime" book-store at the time and was allowed to take time off work to organise the event.

Special Guests

 * Guest of Honor — Mary Higgins Clark
 * Fan Guest of Honor — Ellen Nehr
 * Toastmaster — Jeremiah Healy

Anthony Awards
The following list details the awards distributed at the eleventh annual Anthony Awards ceremony.

Novel award
Winner:
 * Mary Willis Walker, Under the Beetle's Cellar

Shortlist:
 * Michael Connelly, The Last Coyote
 * Barbara D'Amato, Hard Christmas
 * Andrew Klavan, True Crime
 * Bill Pronzini, Blue Lonesome

First novel award
Winner:
 * Virginia Lanier, Death in Bloodhound Red

Shortlist:
 * Richard Barre, The Innocents
 * G. M. Ford, Who in Hell is Wanda Fuca?
 * Charles Kenney, Hammurabi's Code
 * Martha C. Lawrence, Murder in Scorpio

Paperback original award
Winners:
 * Harlan Coben, Deal Breaker

Shortlist:
 * Eileen Dreyer, Bad Medicine
 * Teri Holbrook, A Far and Deadly Cry
 * Gloria White, Charged with Guilt
 * Robert D. Zimmerman, Closet

Short story award
Winner:
 * Gar Anthony Haywood, "And Pray Nobody Sees You", from Spooks, Spies, and Private Eyes

Shortlist:
 * K.K. Beck, "Rule of Law", from Malice Domestic 4
 * Jean B. Cooper, "The Judge's Boy", from Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine August 1995
 * Bill Crider, "How I Found a Cat, Lost True Love, and Broke the Bank at Monte Carlo", from Cat Crimes Takes a Vacation
 * Elizabeth Daniels Squire, "The Dog Who Remembered Too Much", from Malice Domestic 4

Critical / Non-fiction award
Winner:
 * Kate Stine, The Armchair Detective Book of Lists

Shortlist:
 * Nicholas A. Basbanes, A Gentle Madness: Bibliophiles, Bibliomanes, and the Eternal Passion for Books
 * Douglas G. Greene, John Dickson Carr: The Man Who Explained Miracles
 * Robert Polito, Savage Art: A Biography of Jim Thompson
 * B.J. Rahn, Ngaio Marsh: The Woman and Her Work

True crime award
Winner:
 * Ann Rule, Dead By Sunset

Shortlist:
 * Burl Barer, Man Overboard: The Counterfeit Resurrection of Phil Champagne
 * John E. Douglas & Mark Olshaker, Mindhunter: Inside the FBI's Elite Serial Crime Unit
 * Pete Earley, Circumstantial Evidence: Death, Life, and Justice in a Southern Town
 * T. J. English, Born to Kill

Short story collection / anthology award
Winner:
 * Marcia Muller, The McCone Files: The Complete Sharon McCone Stories

Shortlist:
 * Martin H. Greenberg & Edward Gorman, Cat Crimes Takes A Vacation
 * Carolyn G. Hart, Crimes Of The Heart
 * Carolyn G. Hart, Malice Domestic 4
 * Paula L. Woods, Spooks, Spies, and Private Eyes

Movie award
Winner:
 * The Usual Suspects

Shortlist:
 * Copycat
 * Devil in a Blue Dress
 * Get Shorty
 * Seven

Television series award
Winner:
 * The X-Files

Shortlist:
 * Life on the Street
 * Law & Order
 * Murder One
 * N.Y.P.D. Blue

Magazine award
Winner:
 * The Armchair Detective

Shortlist:
 * Deadly Pleasures
 * Drood Review
 * Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine
 * Mystery Scene

Publisher award
Winner:
 * St. Martin's Press

Shortlist:
 * Avon
 * Mysterious Press
 * Scribner's
 * Walker Books

Editor award
Winner:
 * Sara Ann Freed

Shortlist:
 * Marjorie Braman
 * Carolyn Marino
 * Kate Miciak
 * Michael Seidman

Cover art award
Winner:
 * Pamela Patrick; for Jeanne Dams, The Body in the Transept

Shortlist:
 * Fred George & Corsillo/Manzone; for John Dunning, The Bookman's Wake
 * John Howard & Krystyna Skalski; for Bill Moody, Death of a Tenor Man
 * FCL Colorspace & Richard Hasselberger; for Lynn Hightower, Flashpoint
 * Earl Emerson; for his The Vanishing Smile