VOICES OF THE ELYSIAN FIELDS: AGATHA FINALIST by Michael Rigg

Each year, attendees (authors and “fans” a/k/a readers) at the Malice Domestic conference in Bethesda, Maryland vote for nominees in six categories to receive an “Agatha.” According to the conference website:

The Agatha Awards celebrate the TRADITIONAL MYSTERY, best typified by the works of AGATHA CHRISTIE. The genre is loosely defined as mysteries that contain no explicit sex, excessive gore, or gratuitous violence, and would not be classified as "hard-boiled."

​The Agatha Award categories are:

• Best Contemporary Novel
• Best Historical Novel
• Best First Novel
• Best Nonfiction
• Best Short Story
• Best Children's/Young Adult Novel

(For more information about the Agatha Award process, see: Agatha Award Process | Malice Domestic Ltd.)

Voices of the Elysian Fields—my debut novel—is one of five finalists in the running for an Agatha as Best First Novel. Here is a short description of the story:

Two days before Christmas, Jonathan Gray, M. D., Chief Deputy Coroner for Orleans Parish, receives shocking news. Robby O’Malley—Jonathan’s mentor for nearly forty years—has died under mysterious circumstances. Within hours after Robby’s death, Gray takes the oath of office as Coroner and participates in autopsies of an elderly couple murdered in their Garden District home. After mass on Christmas morning, Archbishop Phillip Fontenot asks Gray to investigate the sexual assault of one of his parishioners, as well as the disappearance of her sister—without involving the police. As Jonathan winds his way through what appear to be separate incidents, he uncovers connections and secrets that members of the city’s power elite would just as soon remain hidden.

Malice Domestic formally opens on the morning of Friday, April 24, 2026. (There’s early registration, as well as some preliminary activities, on Thursday evening.) The conference ends on Sunday afternoon (April 26^th) around 3:00 p.m. The final session is the annual Agatha Tea Party and, this year, the Theater of the Air presentation, “Vengeance in Vegas.”

I believe registration is still open. For more information, see Home | Malice Domestic Ltd.

If you’re at Malice this year, please drop by and say “Hi.” If you’d like to learn more about Voices of the Elysian Fields (whether you are attending Malice or not), I have a book trailer and have arranged for the Advance Review Copy (ARC) to be available on NetGalley for the next few weeks. Of course, you can always check out the product page on Amazon.com, read a sample and, hopefully, buy a copy. Relevant links are:

Book Trailer: "Voices of the Elysian Fields: A Jonathan Gray, M.D. Mystery" - by Michael Rigg - BOOK TRAILER

NetGalley: Voices of the Elysian Fields | Michael Rigg | 9781685129248 | NetGalley

Amazon Book Link: Amazon.com: Voices of the Elysian Fields: A Jonathan Gray, M.D. Mystery: 9781685129248: Rigg, Michael: Books

I look forward to seeing you in Bethesda and hope I will earn your vote.

MALICE DOMESTIC - WHERE EVERYBODY KNOWS YOUR NAME by Teresa Inge

Last month, I had the pleasure of attending Malice Domestic, an annual convention that celebrates traditional mysteries, with a focus on Agatha Christie-style storytelling. Since its inception in 1989, this event has brought fans and authors together for a fun and friendly experience. Currently held each April in Bethesda, Maryland, it offers a mix of author panels, book signings, and engaging mystery-themed activities.

My own journey with Malice began twenty years ago, accompanied by my husband, daughter, and mother. Although I was initially nervous—surrounded by so many accomplished writers and knowing no one—I was warmly welcomed by Malice volunteers, members of Sisters in Crime (SinC) an organization dedicated to supporting female crime writers, as well as other authors and fans. I then realized I had found a place where I truly belonged which reminded me of the Cheers show theme song.

Fast forward to last month, and Malice Domestic still exudes the same heartwarming “family reunion” vibe, complete with cheerful hugs, laughter, and enthusiasm shared with old friends and new ones. Over the years, this convention has had a profound impact on my writing career. It has helped me forge connections with fellow writers, build lasting friendships, discover publishing opportunities, and hone my writing craft. Now, I take pride in welcoming newcomers, just as I was embraced all those years ago.

This year's highlights included Malice Go Round Speed Dating, New Authors Breakfast, an annual lunch with the Short Mystery Fiction Society, a SinC gathering featuring an "Agatha signature cocktail" and appetizers, a captivating Sherlock Holmes play, the Agatha Awards banquet, an after-party, and panels like "Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys" and "Living in a Modern World: Women Take the Lead." There were fabulous interviews with the guest of honor Marcia Talley, lifetime achievement honoree Donna Andrews, and toastmaster Gigi Pandian as well as a book room overflowing with literary treasures, rounded out an unforgettable experience. 

How Do I Kill Thee? Let Me Count the Ways by Teresa Inge

While participating on the Women Solving Crimes panel at Malice Domestic this year, the moderator asked us about the different weapons we use to kill people in our novels and short stories.

Fortunately for me, the panel had received the questions in advance, which gave me time to review all the homicides I’d written and determine my methods of murder. With sixteen books, I was beginning to lose track of how I kill people!

I began my murderous review with Mutt Mysteries, a four-book series with dogwalker, Catt Ramsey, who solves crime and murder with her dogs, Cagney and Lacey. I had multiple victims and killings in these books. The weapons include a cutting board, knife, gun, pruning shears, and a dog trimmer. All of which fit right into each killer’s homicidal hands.

In Virginia is for Mysteries, a three-book series, I was on a killing spree with boards! I gave one victim a blow to the head with yet another cutting board, then used three wooden boards in various stories to kill people, smashed a killer in the face with a chalkboard, and used a glass vase to kill another.

In other books, I used different methods and weapons. These include strangulation with a lanyard lassoed around a victim’s neck, a chest stabbing with a road sign, a stab in the neck with a pink beach charm, and three shootings in three stories. I then pushed a killer over a riverboat’s balcony and shot him for good measure before lodging a corkscrew in a victim’s neck…twice. I finished the review with blunt objects to kill two victims, and a fatal allergy reaction to another.

After the review, I realized that I had never poisoned anyone. What would Agatha Christie think? That’s when I began tracking my methods of murder and vowed to use poison in my next story. Check out the attached graph to see the weapon that I used the most.