Literary award · Sweden · since 1992

Glass Key award

Literature award. Established 1992 in Sweden.

About Glass Key award

The Glass Key award (Swedish: Glasnyckeln, Danish: Glasnøglen, Norwegian: Glassnøkkelen, Finnish: Lasiavain-palkinto, Icelandic: Glerlykillinn) is a literature award given annually to a crime novel by an author from the Nordic countries. The award, named after the novel The Glass Key by American crime writer Dashiell Hammett, is a real glass key given every year by the members of the Crime Writers of Scandinavia (Skandinaviska Kriminalsällskapet) to a crime novel written by a Danish, Finnish, Icelandic, Norwegian or Swedish author. Each country's members put forth a candidate novel, making up the shortlist.

From the Wikipedia article “Glass Key award”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Recent winners

YearWinnerWinning work
2025Søren Ulrik Thomsen—
2024Christoffer Carlsson—
2023Max Seeck—
2022Morten Hesseldahl—
2021Tove Alsterdal—
2020Camilla Grebe—
2019Stina Jackson—
2018Camilla Grebe—
2017Malin Persson GiolitoQuicksand
2016Ane Riel—
2015Thomas Rydahl—
2014Gard Sveen—
2013Jørn Lier Horst—
2012Erik Valeur—

From Wikidata; the list may be incomplete for some years.

Eligibility and entering

Check the official rules of the Glass Key award for the current eligibility window, accepted formats, residency or language requirements and any entry fee. For most established prizes the publisher submits on the author's behalf, often with a limit on entries per imprint.

If you are self-published, look for an explicit statement that independently published books are accepted, and budget for entry fees and copies for judges.

Sources & data