2025 Carol Award Finalists – Mystery/Suspense/Thriller

First off — what exactly are the Carol Awards?

They are awards given out by American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) in recognition of outstanding Christian fiction in the previous calendar year. So these 2025 finalists are books published in 2024. You might have read them already, you might not. I’ll include links to books I’ve read and reviewed.

Carol Award Winners will be announced on September 6 20245at the ACFW Gala in Springfield, Missouri (wouldn’t you love to be there?!)

How does this giveaway work?

You select which of the Carol Award finalists 2025 —Mystery/Suspense/Thriller Category you would like to receive. Mention the title in your comment (or an email if you’re entering that way) and if you win, that’s the book that will be sent to you. Easy Peasy. 

IMPORTANT TO NOTE:

Giveaway details may vary with each book (print, ebook only or winner’s choice of either, plus audible options for Canadians.) Edition availability will be noted in bold after the title/author/publisher of each entry. ALSO NOTE: Giveaway is for US and Canada OR ebook international if you have US Kindle account.

Mystery/Suspense/Thriller Finalists

Fatal Domain by Steven James – Tyndale House – Editor: Karen Watson – Giveaway options: US: paperback or ebook, Canada: ebook or audible, International: ebook with a US Kindle account

When the past scratches its way into the present, it can leave deep scars.

A series of cryptic clues leads Department of Defense redactor Travis Brock to suspect that a grim chapter from his past is not yet over. With the help of his eidetic memory and his newly formed team, he must unearth the truth and stop a terrorist group from stealing one of the military’s most highly guarded technological breakthroughs. With it, the group plans to commit a daring act of espionage that could upend the work of one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical firms and impact millions of people worldwide.

In a high-stakes story of action and intrigue that reaches from a refugee settlement in Uganda to the shores of the Potomac in Washington, DC, shattering secrets from the past will be revealed, loyalties tested, and intimate betrayals brought to light as Brock is forced to decide how to forgive what he cannot forget.

From a novelist that Publishers Weekly has called a “master storyteller” comes an intricate and taut thriller that will have you guessing until the final page.

When All the Birds Sing by Susie Peace Pybus – Indie – Editor: Lynee Lloyd – Giveaway options: US: ebook, Canada: paperback or ebook, International: ebook with a US Kindle account.

Crayfish Cove, 1975 – a tranquil Tasmanian fishing town where doors are left unlocked and kids roam free.

On a lonely road, a young girl meets a man with wild hair and a woodsmoke smell. He invites her to join a band of local children building a treehouse on his bush property. Lily is soon smitten with Harry who spins stories, whistles like the birds and can swing a billy can without spilling a drop.

Kids adore him, parents trust him.

Until a child vanishes …

Who really is the recluse they’ve been entrusting with their children?

As Lily grows, she and her friends attempt to unravel the dark truth of what really happened.

The Burning of Rosemont Abbey by Naomi Stephens – Bethany House (Baker Publishing Group) – Editors: Luke Hinrichs and Jessica Sharpe – Giveaway Options: US: paperback or ebook, Canada: paperback, ebook or audible, International ebook with a US Kindle account.

Everyone in Wilbeth Green has something to hide, but she’s about to uncover their secrets.

1956: In a quiet English village, the smoldering ruins of Rosemont Abbey have set the residents’ tongues wagging, and everyone is quick to accuse troublemaker Paul Everly of the crime of arson. Paul has vanished without a trace, leaving only his plucky twin sister, Louisa, certain of his innocence. Fueling her conviction is an inexplicable connection–she felt her twin’s death an hour before the abbey went up in flames.

Armed with nothing but her wit and her keen sense of intuition, Louisa embarks on her own investigation, challenging the dubious townspeople and the disdain of her aunt and uncle. Even Inspector Malcolm Sinclair, once Paul’s closest friend, warns Louisa to abandon her pursuit. But Louisa is determined to solve a murder no one else believes was committed, even if it means unraveling secrets that could shake Wilbeth Green to its core.

Draw will be held and winner announced on Saturday June 21 2025. REMEMBER TO CHECK EDITION AVAILABILITY FOR EACH BOOK.