Sunday Arts Magazine

6 Sep 2021

Sisters in Crime Thrills and Spills

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Thrills & Spills: Sisters in Crime’s 21st Davitt Awards Winners Announced

Sally Hepworth’s domestic thriller, The Good Sister (Pan Macmillan Australia) won Sisters in Crime’s 21st Davitt Award (Best Adult Novel) on Saturday night (28 August). The annual awards for best women’s crime books were presented online for the second year running. Fans were invited to go to Facebook to watch the ceremony.
Hepworth, based in Melbourne, is the New York Times bestselling author of six novels. Her 2019 book, Mother in Law, has been optioned for a TV series by Hollywood actress and producer, Amy Poehler.

“If I’m perfectly honest,” she said, “it’s still a surprise to me that I write crime. I always start out with a happy, uplifting premise, and before I know it, I’m Googling the best instruments with which to bludgeon someone to death. I blame my teenage fixation with Law and Order SVU. That said, I like to think that there is a market for happy uplifting books that include a little bludgeoning – I may be wrong, but this is my line and I’m sticking to it.”

The Davitt Awards were presented by Debra Oswald, the award-winning playwright, screenwriter, and novelist, and hosted by Tara Mitchell, Sisters in Crime’s Vice-President. Before presenting the awards, Oswald was quizzed on her brilliant career and her latest book, The Family Doctor, an explosive novel about domestic violence.

“Last year our plans for a big gala dinner for our 20th anniversary were scuppered by the pandemic and this year it’s been the same,” Mitchell said.

“The one silver lining is that thanks to the miracles of modern technology, the Davitts now reach a global audience. Our lists now include crime fans from New Zealand, Singapore, Indonesia, South Africa, Canada, the USA, the UK, France, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, and Russia.”