The Left Coast Crime “Lefty” Awards are fan awards chosen by registered members of the Left Coast Crime conventions since 1996. Nominations for awards to be presented at each annual convention are made by people registered for that convention and also the immediately prior convention. A ballot listing the official nominees is given to each registrant when they check in at the convention, and final voting takes place at the convention. The ballots are tabulated and that year’s Lefty Awards are presented at the Awards Celebration.
2023 Lefty Awards: Tucson, Arizona
Left Coast Crime 2023 — Trouble in Tucson— presented four Lefty Awards at the convention
in Tucson, Arizona. Registrants of the Left Coast Crime
Conventions in Tucson and Albuquerque were able to nominate three titles in
each category. The 2023 Lefty awards were voted
on at the convention and presented at the Awards Banquet
on Saturday, March 18, 2023, at the El Conquistador Tucson.
| Lefty for Best Humorous Mystery Novel |
| ✫ |
Ellen Byron, Bayou Book Thief (Berkley Prime Crime) |
| ° |
Jennifer J. Chow, Death by Bubble Tea (Berkley Prime Crime) |
| ° |
A.J. Devlin, Five Moves of Doom (NeWest Press) |
| ° |
T.G. Herren, A Streetcar Named Murder (Crooked Lane Books) |
| ° |
Catriona McPherson, Scot in a Trap (Severn House) |
Lefty for Best Historical Mystery Novel
The Bill Gottfried Memorial for books covering events before 1970 |
| ✫ |
Wanda M. Morris, Anywhere You Run (William Morrow) |
| ° |
Dianne Freeman, A Bride’s Guide to Marriage and Murder (Kensington Books) |
| ° |
Catriona McPherson, In Place of Fear (Mobius) |
| ° |
Karen Odden, Under a Veiled Moon (Crooked Lane Books) |
| ° |
Ann Parker, The Secret in the Wall (Poisoned Pen Press) |
| ° |
Iona Whishaw, Framed in Fire (Touchwood Editions) |
| Lefty for Best Debut Mystery Novel |
| ✫ |
Ramona Emerson, Shutter (Soho Crme) |
| ° |
Erin E. Adams, Jackal (Bantam Books) |
| ° |
Eli Cranor, Don’t Know Tough (Soho Crime) |
| ° |
Meredith Hambrock, Other People’s Secrets (Crooked Lane Books) |
| ° |
Harini Nagendra, The Bangalore Detectives Club (Pegasus Crime) |
| ° |
Rob Osler, Devil’s Chew Toy (Crooked Lane Books) |
| ° |
Jane Pek, The Verifiers (Vintage Books) |
| Lefty for Best Mystery Novel |
| ✫ |
Kellye Garrett, Like a Sister (Mulholland Books) |
| ° |
Laurie R. King, Back to the Garden (Bantam Books) |
| ° |
James L’Etoile, Dead Drop (Level Best Books) |
| ° |
Gigi Pandian, Under Lock & Skeleton Key (Minotaur Books) |
| ° |
Louise Penny, A World of Curiosities (Minotaur Books) |
| ° |
Alex Segura, Secret Identity (Flatiron Books) |
To be eligible for the 2023 Lefty Awards, titles must have been published for the first time in the United States or Canada during 2022, in book or ebook format. (If published in other countries before 2022, a book is still eligible if it meets the US or Canadian publication requirement.)
Questions about the Lefty Awards? Email Awards Co-Chairs Lucinda Surber and Stan Ulrich
History of the Left Coast Crime Awards |
