Manda Scott announced as winner of McIlvanney Prize for crime fiction

Author Manda Scott has been announced as the winner of the 2019 McIlvanney Prize, at the opening of the Bloody Scotland international crime writing festival.

Manda Scott.

Glasgow-born Ms Scott was given the top prize for her novel A Treachery of Spies.

It is only the second time in its 8-year history that the prize has been won by a woman. Two previous winners – Denise Mina and Chris Brookmyre (this time as Ambrose Parry with wife Marisa Haetzman) were amongst the four finalists along with Doug Johnstone.

Jack Reacher author Lee Child described the winning book as ‘a beautifully imagined, beautifully written, smart, sophisticated – but fiercely suspenseful – thriller’.

The McIlvanney Prize recognises excellence in Scottish crime writing, includes a prize of £1000.

This year Bloody Scotland also introduced the inaugural Bloody Scotland Scottish Crime Debut of the Year which was won by University of Edinburgh writer in residence Claire Askew for All the Hidden Truths.

Born and raised in Scotland, Manda has been, variously a veterinary surgeon, veterinary anaesthetist, acupuncturist columnist, blogger, economist – and author. She began her writing career with a series of crime novels, the first of which was shortlisted for the Orange Prize. No Good Deed, the dark, edgy thriller which followed, was nominated for an Edgar Award and hailed as one of the most remarkable thrillers of the year in 2001.

Festival Director, Bob McDevitt commented: I am delighted that a woman has won both the McIlvanney Prize and the Debut Prize. Coincidentally we had already planned a panel on Spy Sisters about how women are beginning to enter the male dominated preserve of spy fiction.

"When Manda was longlisted for the prize we added her to the panel. Now anyone who had booked to see that event at 2.30pm tomorrow will be lucky to hear from the McIlvanney Prize winner."

Manda Scott announced that she wished to share the prize equally with all finalists - Doug Johnstone, Denise Mina and Ambrose Parry (Chris Brookmyre & Marisa Haetzman).

She invited them all to join her on stage on this day of climate protest and said 'This is the proudest moment of my life. We need to change if we're going to get through this moment of climate and ecological crisis and we need to change the way we do things - this starts with abandoning rivalry. We need to cooperate. We need to share. I would like this to be a grain of sand in a tide that sweeps us to a new way of being.