The competition was strong. And she was up against five shortlisted male authors. However, Denise Mina has repeated her feat of 2012 and won the Theakston’s Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year in 2013. We’ve reviewed the winning book Gods and Beasts here on Crime Fiction Lover, where it received four stars. “Gods and Beasts is a pure pleasure to read – so set aside some time, turn off the mobile, grab a glass of wine and indulge in some first-rate crime writing,” said our contributor DeathBecomesHer back in August last year.

The book sees Mina’s detective character DS Alex Morrow return to work after the birth of her twins. She’s dealt a case that begins with murder in a post office, but spirals off into the dark and complex corners of the Glasgow underworld. You can read our recent interview with Denise Mina here.

The announcement was made this evening in Harrogate, West Yorkshire, where the Theakston’s Old Peculiar Crime Writing Festival has just opened with the Novel of the Year award. Earlier in the evening, Baroness Ruth Rendell was honoured with the Outstanding Contribution to Crime Fiction Award. Last year’s winner was Colin Dexter, creator of Inspector Morse.

You can read our preview of this year’s Crime Writing Festival here. Watch for a full report on events in Harrogate in a few days time.