Are you crafting a high-octane suspense-filled crime thriller? There’s a brand new literary agency specializing in the genre.

Set up by Rhian Davies after three years as a judge for the John Creasy (New Blood) Dagger, (the Crime Writer Association Awards) and writing her blog, ‘It’s a Crime! (Or A Mystery)‘, she decided to turn her passion into her job and founded Phoenix Literary Agency.

It’s a bold move in an age where there are so many voices predicting the imminent death of the entire publishing industry. Here is someone ready to champion new fiction, and she’s especially on the lookout for crime thrillers writers by women.

Considering her current favourite female writer of Crime Fiction, Davies enthuses, “It’s really hard to beat Minette Walters for page-turning, psychological thrillers that really explore relationships and what humans are capable of.”

As for new authors in the scene to check out, Davies admits her eye is on Elizabeth Haynes:

“Is she possibly the next Minette? With a small publisher, her debut novel, Into the Darkest Corner, gained ground by word of mouth which says a lot more than big marketing budgets can.

I’d certainly love to find my own queen of the psychological thriller, so if you think you have the manuscript to prove it, please submit!”

What are you waiting for? And which are your favourite classic or contemporary crime thrillers written by women?