[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” custom_padding=”||0px||false|false” da_disable_devices=”off|off|off” global_colors_info=”{}” da_is_popup=”off” da_exit_intent=”off” da_has_close=”on” da_alt_close=”off” da_dark_close=”off” da_not_modal=”on” da_is_singular=”off” da_with_loader=”off” da_has_shadow=”on”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” text_font_size=”19px” text_line_height=”1.3em” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n
The winners of the Crime Writers\u2019 Association Daggers for 2025 have been revealed! The Dagger\u2019s celebrate the best in crime writing across all genres through a wide variety of categories.<\/p>\n
Take a look at these crime novels, available to borrow with your library card.<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=”2_5,3_5″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”2_5″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/suffolkcommunitylibraries.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/The-Book-of-Secrets.jpg” alt=”Book cover of The Book of Secrets” title_text=”The Book of Secrets” url=”https:\/\/suffolk.spydus.co.uk\/cgi-bin\/spydus.exe\/ENQ\/OPAC\/BIBENQ?SETLVL=&BRN=3549009″ url_new_window=”on” _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”3_5″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” text_font_size=”19px” text_line_height=”1.3em” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n
Anna Mazzola<\/strong><\/p>\n Winner of Gold Dagger for Best Crime Novel of the Year<\/em><\/p>\n Rome, 1659. Months after the plague has ravaged Rome, men are still dying in unnatural numbers, and rumour has it that their corpses do not decay as they should. The Papal authorities commission prosecutor Stefano Bracchi to investigate, telling him he will need considerable mettle to reach the truth.<\/p>\n To the west of the Tiber, Girolama and her female friends are at work, helping other women with childbirths and foretelling their futures. Elsewhere in the city, a young wife, Anna, must find a way to escape her abusive husband. But in a city made by men for men, there are no easy paths out.<\/p>\n Stefano’s investigation at the Tor di Nona prison will introduce him to horror, magic and an astonishing cast of characters. He will be left wondering if certain deeds should remain forever unpunished.<\/p>\n Borrow The Book of Secrets<\/em> \u2192<\/a>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=”2_5,3_5″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”2_5″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/suffolkcommunitylibraries.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Dark-Ride.jpg” alt=”Book cover of Dark Ride” title_text=”Dark Ride” url=”https:\/\/suffolk.spydus.co.uk\/cgi-bin\/spydus.exe\/ENQ\/OPAC\/BIBENQ?SETLVL=&BRN=3486065″ url_new_window=”on” _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”3_5″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” text_font_size=”19px” text_line_height=”1.3em” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n Lou Berney<\/strong><\/p>\n Winner of the Ian Fleming Steel Dagger<\/em><\/p>\n Twenty-one-year-old Hardy ‘Hardly’ Reed – good-natured, easygoing, usually stoned – is drifting through life. A minimum-wage scare actor at an amusement park, he avoids unnecessary effort and unrealistic ambitions.<\/p>\n Then one day he notices two children, around six or seven, sitting all alone on a bench. Hardly checks if they’re okay and sees injuries on both children. Someone is hurting these kids. He reports the incident to Child Protective Service. That should be the end of it. After all, Hardly’s not even good at looking out for himself so the last thing he wants to do is look out for anyone else.<\/p>\n But he’s haunted by the two kids, his heart breaking for them. And the more research he does the less he trusts that Child Protective Services – understaffed and overworked – will do anything about it. That leaves – Hardly. He is probably the last person you’d ever want to count on.<\/p>\n Borrow Dark Ride<\/em> \u2192<\/a><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=”2_5,3_5″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”2_5″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/suffolkcommunitylibraries.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/All-Us-Sinners.jpg” alt=”Book cover of All Us Sinners” title_text=”All Us Sinners” url=”https:\/\/suffolk.spydus.co.uk\/cgi-bin\/spydus.exe\/ENQ\/OPAC\/BIBENQ?SETLVL=&BRN=3786198″ url_new_window=”on” _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”3_5″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” text_font_size=”19px” text_line_height=”1.3em” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n Kate Massey<\/strong><\/p>\n Winner of the ILP John Creasey First Novel Dagger<\/em><\/p>\n Leeds, 1977. A chill lies over the city: sex workers are being murdered by a serial killer they are calling the ‘Ripper’, the streets creeping with fear.<\/p>\n Tough, sharp, but tender, Maureen runs Rio’s, a clean, discreet brothel in the city. She’s a good boss who takes great care of her workers – especially her best girls, Bev and Anette. The Ripper may be terrifying girls who work the street, but at Rio’s the girls seem safer.<\/p>\n But when Bev’s sweet-natured son is found beaten to death, a figure from Maureen’s past, DS Mick Hunniford, shows up at her door. Does his arrival herald danger or salvation? And who can Maureen really trust?<\/p>\n Borrow All Us Sinners<\/em> \u2192<\/a>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=”2_5,3_5″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”2_5″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/suffolkcommunitylibraries.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/The-Betrayal-of-Thomas-True.jpg” alt=”Book cover of The Betrayal of Thomas True” title_text=”The Betrayal of Thomas True” url=”https:\/\/suffolk.spydus.co.uk\/cgi-bin\/spydus.exe\/ENQ\/OPAC\/BIBENQ?SETLVL=&BRN=3556460″ url_new_window=”on” _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”3_5″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” text_font_size=”19px” text_line_height=”1.3em” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n AJ West<\/strong><\/p>\n Winner of the Historical Dagger<\/em><\/p>\n It is the year 1715, and Thomas True has arrived on old London Bridge with a dangerous secret. One night, lost amongst the squalor of London’s hidden back streets, he finds himself drawn into the outrageous underworld of the molly houses.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, carpenter Gabriel Griffin struggles to hide his double life as Lotty, the molly’s stoic guard. When a young man is found murdered, he realises there is a rat amongst them, betraying their secrets to a pair of murderous Justices.<\/p>\n Can Gabriel unmask the traitor before they hang? Can he save hapless Thomas from peril, and their own forbidden love?<\/p>\n Borrow The Betrayal of Thomas True<\/em> \u2192<\/a>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=”2_5,3_5″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”2_5″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/suffolkcommunitylibraries.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/The-Night-of-Baba-Yaga.jpg” alt=”Book cover of The Night of Baba Yaga” title_text=”The Night of Baba Yaga” url=”https:\/\/suffolk.spydus.co.uk\/cgi-bin\/spydus.exe\/ENQ\/OPAC\/BIBENQ?SETLVL=&BRN=3577535″ url_new_window=”on” _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”3_5″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” text_font_size=”19px” text_line_height=”1.3em” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n Akira Otani<\/strong><\/p>\n Winner of the Dagger for Crime Fiction in Translation<\/em><\/p>\n Fierce, mixed-race fighter Shindo has been kidnapped by the yakuza. After brutally beating most of them in an attempt to escape, she is forced to work as a bodyguard to protect the gang boss’s sheltered daughter Shoko, a strange, friendless eighteen-year-old who could order Shindo’s death in a moment.<\/p>\n At first Shindo derides Shoko’s nai\u0308vete, but as the men around them grow ever more bloodthirsty and controlling, she becomes ferociously devoted to her charge. However, she knows that if things continue as they are, neither woman can expect to survive much longer.<\/p>\n But could there ever be a different life for two people like them?<\/p>\n Borrow The Night of Baba Yaga<\/em> \u2192<\/a><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=”2_5,3_5″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”2_5″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/suffolkcommunitylibraries.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/The-Peepshow.jpg” alt=”Book cover of The Peepshow” title_text=”The Peepshow” url=”https:\/\/suffolk.spydus.co.uk\/cgi-bin\/spydus.exe\/ENQ\/OPAC\/BIBENQ?SETLVL=&BRN=3611969″ url_new_window=”on” _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”3_5″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” text_font_size=”19px” text_line_height=”1.3em” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n Kate Summerscale<\/strong><\/p>\n Winner of the ALCS Gold Dagger for Non-Fiction<\/em><\/p>\n London, 1953. Police discover the bodies of three young women hidden in a wall at 10 Rillington Place, a dingy terrace house in Notting Hill. On searching the building, they find another body beneath the floorboards, then an array of human bones in the garden. But they have already investigated a double murder at 10 Rillington Place, three years ago, and the killer was hanged. Did they get the wrong man?<\/p>\n A nationwide manhunt is launched for the tenant of the ground-floor flat, a softly spoken former policeman named Reg Christie. Star reporter Harry Procter chases after the scoop. Celebrated crime writer Fryn Tennyson Jesse begs to be assigned to the case.<\/p>\n Borrow The Peepshow<\/em> \u2192<\/a>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=”2_5,3_5″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”2_5″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/suffolkcommunitylibraries.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Night-Watching.jpg” alt=”Book cover of Night Watching” title_text=”Night Watching” url=”https:\/\/suffolk.spydus.co.uk\/cgi-bin\/spydus.exe\/ENQ\/OPAC\/BIBENQ?SETLVL=&BRN=3767132″ url_new_window=”on” _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”3_5″ _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” text_font_size=”19px” text_line_height=”1.3em” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n Tracy Sierra<\/strong><\/p>\n Winner of the Twisted Dagger for Psychological Thrillers<\/em><\/p>\n There was someone in the house. Home alone with her young children during a blizzard, a mother tucks her son back into bed in the middle of the night. Then she hears a noise – old houses are always making some kind of noise.<\/p>\n But this sound is disturbingly familiar: it’s the tread of footsteps, unusually heavy and slow, coming up the stairs. In that split second, she has three choices. Should she hide? Should she run? Or should she fight?<\/p>\nDark Ride<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n
All Us Sinners<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n
The Betrayal of Thomas True<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n
The Night of Baba Yaga<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n
The Peepshow: The Murders at 10 Rillington Place<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n
Nightwatching<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n