Poisoned Pen Press is a publisher of

mystery fiction Mystery is a genre fiction, fiction genre where the nature of an event, usually a murder or other crime, remains wiktionary:mysterious, mysterious until the end of the story. Often within a closed circle of suspects, each suspect is usually prov ...

based in

Scottsdale, Arizona Scottsdale is a city in eastern Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, and is part of the Phoenix metropolitan area. Named Scottsdale in 1894 after its founder Winfield Scott (chaplain), Winfield Scott, a retired Chaplain Corps (United States ...

, US. Poisoned Pen Press typically publishes thirty-six new hardcover mysteries per year, thirty-six new large type editions of those hardcovers, and between thirty and forty new trade paperback editions of previously published hardcovers. Audio books of new titles are produced by

Blackstone Audio Blackstone Audio is an independent audiobook publisher in the United States, offering over 25,000 audiobooks. The company is based in Ashland, Oregon, with five in-house recording studios. Blackstone distributes directly to consumers via their ...

History

Poisoned Pen Press was founded in 1997 by

Barbara G. Peters Barbara G. Peters (December 22, 1940) is a Publishing, publisher and Bookselling, bookshop owner. Life and career Peters was born in Winnetka, Illinois. She holds a BA from Stanford University, an MA from Northwestern University, an MSLS fro ...

, Robert Rosenwald, and their daughter, Susan Malling. Peters, who had founded Scottsdale Arizona's 'The Poisoned Pen, A Mystery Bookstore' a decade ago, sees consolidations in the publishing industry as a threat to cultural diversity and to the survival of the

independent bookstore An independent bookstore is a retail bookstore which is independently owned. Usually, independent stores consist of only a single actual store (although there are some multi-store independents). They may be structured as sole proprietorships, ...

. Poisoned Pen Press began by selling out-of-print books, but soon expanded to publish original titles. They earned two

Edgar Award The Edgar Allan Poe Awards, popularly called the Edgars, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America which is based in New York City. Named after American writer Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), a pioneer in the genre, the awards hon ...

nominations (1998 and 2000) and many of their books receive positive reviews in trade publications and general press. Poisoned Pen Press was acquired by

Sourcebooks A sourcebook is a collection of texts on a particular subject intended for use as an introduction to the subject. The selected texts are typically edited, laid out, and typeset in a uniform format before binding, and the result is often a hardcov ...

in 2018.

The Poisoned Pencil

In 2012, The Poisoned Pencil, an

imprint Imprint or imprinting may refer to: Entertainment * ''Imprint'' (TV series), Canadian television series * "Imprint" (''Masters of Horror''), episode of TV show ''Masters of Horror'' * ''Imprint'' (film), a 2007 independent drama/thriller film ...

of Poisoned Pen Press, was founded to publish mysteries for

young adults In medicine and the social sciences, a young adult is generally a person in the years following adolescence, sometimes with some overlap. Definitions and opinions on what qualifies as a young adult vary, with works such as Erik Erikson's stages ...

. Ellen Larson was named editor of The Poisoned Pencil. The first release from The Poisoned Pencil was ''Death Spiral'', by Janie Chodosh, on April 1, 2014. When Poisoned Pen Press was acquired by

in 2018, The Poisoned Pencil was merged into Sourcebooks' young adult imprint, Sourcebooks Fire.

Awards and recognition

In recognition of Barbara Peters' and Robert Rosenwald's contribution to the publishing industry, they received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2008 Bouchercon Crime and Mystery conference. On April 29, 2010, at the

Mystery Writers of America Mystery Writers of America (MWA) is a professional organization of mystery and crime writers, based in New York City. The organization was founded in 1945 by Clayton Rawson, Anthony Boucher, Lawrence Treat, and Brett Halliday. It presents the E ...

's 64th annual Edgar Awards dinner, Barbara Peters and Robert Rosenwald were given the Ellery Queen Award, which honors "writing teams and outstanding people in the mystery-publishing industry".

Notable authors

Notable authors the company has published include: * James Anderson *

Robert Barnard Robert Barnard (23 November 1936 – 19 September 2013) was an English crime writer, critic and lecturer. In addition to over 40 books published under his own name, he also published four books under the pseudonym Bernard Bastable. Life and wor ...

* Claudia Bishop * Kate Charles *

Ruth Dudley Edwards Ruth Dudley Edwards (born 24 May 1944) is an Irish Unionist historian and writer, with published work in the fields of history, biography and crime fiction, and a number of awards won. Born in Dublin, Ireland, she has lived in England since 1965 ...

Martin Edwards Charles Martin Edwards (born 24 July 1945) is the former chairman of Manchester United F.C., Manchester United, a position he held from 1980 until 2002. He now holds the position of honorary life president at the club and Director of Inview Tech ...

Sulari Gentill Sulari Gentill is a short Sri Lankan-born Australian author, also known under the pen name of S. D. Gentill. She initially studied astrophysics before becoming a corporate lawyer, but has since become a writer of mystery and fantasy fiction. ...

Kerry Greenwood Kerry Isabelle Greenwood (17 June 1954 – 26 March 2025) was an Australian author and lawyer. She wrote many plays and books, most notably a string of historical detective novels centred on the character of Phryne Fisher, which was adapted a ...

Steven F. Havill Steven F. Havill is an American author of mystery fiction, mysteries and westerns. Havill lives in Datil, New Mexico, with his wife Kathleen, a writer and artist. A high school teacher of biology and English by day, Havill earned both his B.A. an ...

Libby Fischer Hellmann Libby Fischer Hellmann is an American crime fiction Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, crime novel, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives or fiction that centre on criminal acts and especially on th ...

H.R.F. Keating Henry Reymond Fitzwalter Keating (31 October 1926 – 27 March 2011) was an English crime fiction writer most notable for his series of novels featuring Inspector Ghote of the Bombay CID. Life Keating, known as "Harry" to friends and family, ...

* Laurie R. King *

Ken Kuhlken Ken Kuhlken was born and grew up in San Diego, played semi-pro baseball in Tijuana, and attended San Diego State University, first as a philosophy and then as an English major. After college, he wrote, played guitar and sang in a rock and blue ...

Edward Marston Edward is an English male name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortunate; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-S ...

* Peter May *

Val McDermid Valarie McDermid (born 4 June 1955) is a Scottish crime writer, best known for a series of novels featuring clinical psychologist Dr. Tony Hill and his collaborators in the police department. Her work is considered to be part of a sub-genre k ...

Keith Miles Keith Miles (born 1940) is a Welsh writer of historical fiction and mystery novels. He has also written children's books, radio and television dramas and stage plays. He is best known under the pseudonym Edward Marston, and has also written as M ...

Susan Moody Susan Moody (born 18 January 1940), is the principal pen name of Susan Elizabeth Horwood, an English novelist best known for her suspense novels. After marrying, as her third husband, Professor John Dalgleish Donaldson, at Oxford on 5 Septembe ...

Paul Moorcraft Paul Leslie Moorcraft (born 1948 in Cardiff, Wales) is the director of the Centre for Foreign Policy Analysis in London and a visiting professor at Cardiff University's School of Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies. Biography Personal life M ...

* Michael Norman *

Frederick Ramsay Frederick Ramsay (died 2017) was an American academic, priest and writer. After serving in the US Army, he taught at the University Maryland, became an Episcopal priest in his native Baltimore, and wrote a series of mystery novels. Early life a ...

James Sallis James Sallis (born December 21, 1944) is an American crime writer who wrote a series of novels featuring the detective character Lew Griffin set in New Orleans, and the 2005 novel '' Drive'', which was adapted into a 2011 film of the same nam ...

Rick Shefchik Rick Shefchik (born May 9, 1952) is an American novelist, nonfiction writer, and journalist. He is the author of the novels '' Amen Corner,'' published in 2007, ''Green Monster'', published August 1, 2008 by Poisoned Pen Press, '' Frozen Tundra'', ...

David Waltner-Toews David Waltner-Toews (born 1948 in Winnipeg, Manitoba) is a Canadian epidemiologist, essayist, poet, fiction writer, veterinarian, and a specialist in the epidemiology of food and waterborne diseases, zoonoses and ecosystem health. He is best known ...

* Betty Webb *

Joseph Jefferson Farjeon Joseph Jefferson Farjeon (4 June 1883 – 6 June 1955) was an English crime and mystery novelist, playwright and screenwriter. His father, brother and sister also developed successful careers in the literary world. His "Ben" novels were reissued ...

Freida McFadden Freida McFadden (born May 1, 1980) is an American Thriller (genre), thriller author and practicing physician specializing in brain injury. Biography From New York City, McFadden attended Harvard University as an undergraduate. She practices m ...

References

External links

*
Article in The Drood Review by Barbara Peters

{{authority control Penguin Random House Book publishing companies of the United States Companies based in Scottsdale, Arizona Publishing companies established in 1997 American companies established in 1997 1997 establishments in Arizona