Martin Clark’s latest novel, “The Substitution Order,” was announced as the winner of the 2020 Library of Virginia’s People’s Choice Award for Fiction during a virtual awards ceremony on Oct. 17.
“I’m very grateful for the award,” Clark said. “All the nominated books are excellent. The biggest possible thanks to readers who took the time to go online and vote for me. As always, I’m especially indebted to my friends and neighbors in Patrick County for their help, support and kindness.”
Clark, a Patrick native and retired Circuit Court judge, also won the award in 2009 and 2016.
This year’s twenty-third annual award ceremony was held virtually for the first time due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Clark will receive an engraved crystal replica of his novel and a $2,500 cash prize.
Clark’s book “The Substitution Order,” appeared on several bestseller lists, and the audio version became a national number one bestseller.
The New York Times called the book “a great legal thriller” and selected it as an Editors’ Choice, The Washington Post praised it as “ingenious,” and, in a starred review, Publishers Weekly described it as “masterly.” Entertainment Weekly has noted that “Clark is, hands down, our finest legal-thriller writer.”
