The Award Tally
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CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger

Crime Writers' Association (CWA)

An annual award presented by the Crime Writers' Association, sponsored by Ian Fleming Publications, honoring the best thriller, adventure, or spy novel published in the UK.

Latest winner · 2026

Next · expected May 2027

Shortlist announced Full award calendar

Search through 7,609 books

2026

  1. King of Ashes

    S.A. Cosby

    Nominated for 3 more awards

    Won
  2. A Sting in her Tale

    Mark Ezra

    Shortlisted
  3. Such Quiet Girls

    Noelle W Ihli

    Shortlisted
  4. The Big Empty

    Robert Crais

    Won 1 more award

    Shortlisted
  5. The Good Father

    Liam McIlvanney

    Shortlisted
  6. The Midnight King

    Tariq Ashkanani

    Shortlisted
  7. We Are All Guilty Here

    Karin Slaughter

    Shortlisted

2025

  1. Dark Ride

    Lou Berney

    Nominated for 1 more award

    Won
  2. Blood Like Mine

    Stuart Neville

    Shortlisted
  3. City in Ruins

    Don Winslow

    Shortlisted
  4. Hunted

    Abir Mukherjee

    Shortlisted
  5. Nobody’s Hero

    MW Craven

    Shortlisted

2024

  1. Everybody Knows

    Jordan Harper

    Nominated for 2 more awards

    Won
  2. All the Sinners Bleed

    S. A. Cosby

    Won 1 more award · Nominated for 2 more awards

    Shortlisted
  3. Drowning

    T. J. Newman

    Shortlisted
  4. Gas Light

    Femi Kayode

    Shortlisted
  5. Ozark Dogs

    Eli Cranor

    Shortlisted
  6. The Mantis

    Kōtarō Isaka

    Shortlisted

2023

  1. Agent Seventeen

    John Brownlow

    Won
  2. May God Forgive

    Alan Parks

    Shortlisted
  3. Take Your Breath Away

    Linwood Barclay

    Shortlisted
  4. The Botanist

    M. W. Craven

    Shortlisted
  5. The Chase

    Ava Glass

    Shortlisted
  6. The Ink Black Heart

    Robert Galbraith

    Shortlisted

2022

  1. Dead Ground

    M. W. Craven

    Won
  2. Dream Girl

    Laura Lippman

    Shortlisted
  3. Find You First

    Linwood Barclay

    Shortlisted
  4. Razorblade Tears

    S. A. Cosby

    Won 1 more award · Nominated for 3 more awards

    Shortlisted
  5. The Devil's Advocate

    Steve Cavanagh

    Shortlisted
  6. The Pact

    Sharon Bolton

    Shortlisted

2021

  1. When She Was Good

    Michael Robotham

    Won
  2. One by One

    Ruth Ware

    Shortlisted
  3. The Devil and the Dark Water

    Stuart Turton

    Shortlisted
  4. The Nothing Man

    Catherine Ryan Howard

    Shortlisted
  5. Troubled Blood

    Robert Galbraith

    Nominated for 1 more award

    Shortlisted
  6. We Begin at the End

    Chris Whitaker

    Won 1 more award

    Shortlisted

2020

  1. November Road

    Lou Berney

    Won 1 more award · Nominated for 2 more awards

    Won
  2. Between Two Evils

    Eva Dolan

    Shortlisted
  3. Cold Storage

    David Koepp

    Shortlisted
  4. One Way Out

    A. A. Dhand

    Shortlisted
  5. The Whisper Man

    Alex North

    Shortlisted
  6. This is Gomorrah

    Tom Chatfield

    Shortlisted

2019

  1. To The Lions

    Holly Watt

    Won
  2. Give Me Your Hand

    Megan Abbott

    Nominated for 2 more awards

    Shortlisted
  3. Killing Eve, No Tomorrow

    Luke Jennings

    Shortlisted
  4. Lives Laid Away

    Stephen Mack Jones

    Shortlisted
  5. Memo From Turner

    Tim Willocks

    Shortlisted
  6. Safe Houses

    Dan Fesperman

    Shortlisted

2018

  1. Bluebird, Bluebird

    Attica Locke

    Won 2 more awards · Nominated for 2 more awards

    Won
  2. An Act of Silence

    Colette McBeth

    Shortlisted
  3. If I Die Before I Wake

    Emily Koch

    Shortlisted
  4. London Rules

    Mick Herron

    Nominated for 1 more award

    Shortlisted
  5. The Chalk Man

    C.J. Tudor

    Shortlisted
  6. The Force

    Don Winslow

    Nominated for 1 more award

    Shortlisted

2017

  1. Spook Street

    Mick Herron

    Nominated for 1 more award

    Won
  2. Redemption Road

    John Hart

    Shortlisted
  3. The Constant Soldier

    William Ryan

    Shortlisted
  4. The Killing Game

    J S Carol

    Shortlisted
  5. We Go Around in the Night and Are Consumed by Fire

    Jules Grant

    Shortlisted
  6. You Will Know Me

    Megan Abbott

    Nominated for 1 more award

    Shortlisted

2016

  1. The Cartel

    Don Winslow

    Won 1 more award

    Won
  2. Make Me

    Lee Child

    Shortlisted
  3. Rain Dogs

    Adrian McKinty

    Shortlisted
  4. Real Tigers

    Mick Herron

    Nominated for 1 more award

    Shortlisted
  5. The English Spy

    Daniel Silva

    Shortlisted

2015

  1. Cop Town

    Karin Slaughter

    Nominated for 1 more award

    Won
  2. Missing

    Sam Hawken

    Nominated for 1 more award

    Shortlisted
  3. Nobody Walks

    Mick Herron

    Shortlisted
  4. The Girl on the Train

    Paula Hawkins

    Shortlisted
  5. The Kind Worth Killing

    Peter Swanson

    Shortlisted
  6. The Night the Rich Men Burned

    Malcolm Mackay

    Shortlisted
  7. The White Van

    Patrick Hoffman

    Shortlisted

2014

  1. An Officer and a Spy

    Robert Harris

    Won 1 more award

    Won
  2. Apple Tree Yard

    Louise Doughty

    Shortlisted
  3. I Am Pilgrim

    Terry Hayes

    Shortlisted
  4. Natchez Burning

    Greg Iles

    Shortlisted

2013

  1. Ghostman

    Roger Hobbs

    Won
  2. Capital Punishment

    Robert Wilson

    Shortlisted
  3. Ratlines

    Stuart Neville

    Shortlisted
  4. The Sentinel

    Mark Oldfield

    Shortlisted

2012

  1. A Foreign Country

    Charles Cumming

    Won
  2. Dare Me

    Megan Abbott

    Nominated for 1 more award

    Shortlisted
  3. Reamde

    Neal Stephenson

    Shortlisted
  4. The Fear Index

    Robert Harris

    Shortlisted

2011

  1. The Lock Artist

    Steve Hamilton

    Won 1 more award · Nominated for 2 more awards

    Won
  2. Before I Go to Sleep

    S.J. Watson

    Shortlisted
  3. Cold Rain

    Craig Smith

    Shortlisted
  4. The Good Son

    Michael Gruber

    Shortlisted

2010

  1. A Loyal Spy

    Simon Conway

    Won
  2. 61 Hours

    Lee Child

    Shortlisted
  3. Gone

    Mo Hayder

    Won 1 more award

    Shortlisted
  4. Innocent

    Scott Turow

    Shortlisted
  5. Slow Horses

    Mick Herron

    Shortlisted
  6. The Dying Light

    Henry Porter

    Shortlisted
  7. The Gentlemen’s Hour

    Don Winslow

    Shortlisted

2009

  1. The Last Child

    John Hart

    Won 1 more award · Nominated for 1 more award

    Won
  2. Calumet City

    Charlie Newton

    Shortlisted
  3. Dark Places

    Gillian Flynn

    Shortlisted
  4. Moscow Rules

    Daniel Silva

    Shortlisted
  5. The Brass Verdict

    Michael Connelly

    Won 1 more award

    Shortlisted
  6. The Interrogator

    Andrew Williams

    Shortlisted
  7. The Tourist

    Olen Steinhauer

    Shortlisted

2008

  1. Child 44

    Tom Rob Smith

    Nominated for 2 more awards

    Won
  2. I See You

    Gregg Hurwitz

    Shortlisted
  3. Ritual

    Mo Hayder

    Shortlisted
  4. Shatter

    Michael Robotham

    Shortlisted
  5. The Echelon Vendetta

    David Stone

    Shortlisted

2007

  1. Sharp Objects

    Gillian Flynn

    Nominated for 1 more award

    Won
  2. City of Lies

    R. J. Ellory

    Shortlisted
  3. The Faithful Spy

    Alex Berenson

    Shortlisted
  4. The Intruders

    Michael Marshall

    Nominated for 1 more award

    Shortlisted
  5. The Night Ferry

    Michael Robotham

    Shortlisted
  6. The Woods

    Harlan Coben

    Shortlisted
  7. Triptych

    Karin Slaughter

    Shortlisted

2006

  1. Mr Clarinet

    Nick Stone

    Won
  2. Contact Zero

    David Wolstencroft

    Shortlisted
  3. Pig Island

    Mo Hayder

    Shortlisted
  4. Sweet Gum

    Jo-Ann Goodwin

    Shortlisted
  5. The English Assassin

    Daniel Silva

    Shortlisted
  6. The Lincoln Lawyer

    Michael Connelly

    Nominated for 3 more awards

    Shortlisted
  7. The Mercy Seat

    Martyn Waites

    Shortlisted

2005

  1. Brandenburg

    Henry Porter

    Won
  2. A Blind Eye

    G. M. Ford

    Shortlisted
  3. A Death in Vienna

    Daniel Silva

    Shortlisted
  4. A Good Day to Die

    Simon Kernick

    Shortlisted
  5. Double Cross Blind

    Joel Ross

    Shortlisted
  6. Labyrinth

    Kate Mosse

    Shortlisted
  7. The Apothecary's House

    Adrian Matthews

    Shortlisted

2002

  1. The Sirius Crossing

    John Creed

    Won
  2. Hostage

    Robert Crais

    Shortlisted
  3. Lime's Photograph

    Leif Davidsen

    Shortlisted
  4. Tango One

    Stephen Leather

    Shortlisted
  5. The French Executioner

    CC Humphreys

    Shortlisted
  6. The Master of Rain

    Tom Bradby

    Shortlisted
  7. Without Fail

    Lee Child

    Shortlisted

Frequently asked questions

Who won the CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger in 2026?
“King of Ashes” by S.A. Cosby won the CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger in 2026.
Who are the most recent CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger winners?
2026: “King of Ashes” by S.A. Cosby; 2025: “Dark Ride” by Lou Berney; 2024: “Everybody Knows” by Jordan Harper; 2023: “Agent Seventeen” by John Brownlow; 2022: “Dead Ground” by M. W. Craven.
Has anyone won the CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger more than once?
Yes - 1 author has: Lou Berney (2020, 2025).