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Eli Cranor



Eli Cranor played quarterback at every level: peewee to professional, and then coached high school football for five years. These days, he's traded in the pigskin for a laptop, writing from Arkansas where he lives with his wife and kids.
Over the course of his career, Eli's fiction has garnered multiple awards (2018-The Missouri Review; 2017-Greensboro Review). Along with fiction, Eli writes a nationally-syndicated sports column, and his craft column, "Shop Talk," appears monthly over at Crime Reads. Eli is currently at work on his next novel. Visit elicranor.com for more information.

 

Awards: Edgar (2023)  see all

Genres: Mystery
 
New and upcoming books
Novels
   Don't Know Tough (2022)
   Ozark Dogs (2023)
   Broiler (2024)
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Awards
2023 Edgar Award for Best First Novel : Don't Know Tough

Award nominations
2024 CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger (shortlist) : Ozark Dogs
2024 Barry Award for Best Novel (nominee) : Ozark Dogs
2023 Lefty Award for Best Debut Mystery Novel (nominee) : Don't Know Tough
2023 Barry Award for Best First Novel (nominee) : Don't Know Tough
2023 Anthony Award for Best First Novel (nominee) : Don't Know Tough


Eli Cranor recommends
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Saint of the Narrows Street (2025)
William Boyle
"Saint of the Narrows Street is a hundred-proof shot of tragic love. Nobody writes like William Boyle. Every character has a huge thumping heart. You can smell the skeevy bars and taste the home-cooked lasagna. Boyle deals in details, but this is a big, epic novel, and it's his best yet."
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They All Fall the Same (2025)
Wes Browne
"Browne can flat-out write . . . A southern-fried slice of Kentucky noir penned by a man who not only knows the territory, but also has the chops - and the guts - to serve it to you straight."
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Holy City (2024)
Henry Wise
"Holy City is a debut to be relished. Henry Wise writes like he's been around forever, masterfully weaving together a tapestry of flattened forests and sprawling tobacco plantations, along with intimate portraits of the people who populate rural Southern Virginia. Rarely does a first-time novelist come along with such a bold, singular voice. I've got a feeling Henry's here to stay."

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