CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger 2025 – Interview with Lou Berney

In the run up to the announcement of the winner of the 2025 CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger, we’ve been talking to the shortlisted authors to find out more about their novels. Read on to learn about Lou Berney and Dark Ride.

How does it feel to be on the shortlist for the CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger?

It’s a huge honor and very humbling since I’m a big fan of the other authors on the shortlist.

How would you summarise Dark Ride and what inspired you to tell this story?

Dark Ride is about a grievously ill-equipped and out-matched thriller hero. I often feel like a grievously ill-equipped and out-matched thriller writer, so it seemed like a good fit. I’m a fan of the underdog!

What do you hope readers will take away from your book?

The big idea behind Dark Ride, for me, is that acts of heroism can be complicated. In real life, there’s often a price to be paid for doing the right thing – and understanding what the right thing is isn’t always clear.

What is your writing process?

I do lots of brainstorming, lots of outlining, lots of preparing to draft. And then, once I start drafting, a lot of that goes out the window and – I hope! – I follow the characters where they lead me.

What advice would you give to aspiring thriller writers?

Make sure, on every page, there’s a burning question the reader wants answered.

What is your favourite thriller and why?

Truly impossible to name just one, so here are three (also truly impossible): Case Histories, by Kate Atkinson; In a Lonely Place, by Dorothy B. Hughes; and Devil in a Blue Dress, by Walter Mosley.

Our thanks to Lou for answering our questions! The 2025 Daggers winners will be announced on 3 July. Find out more about past winners of the Steel Dagger on the CWA site here, and learn more about the rest of the Daggers and shortlists here.