World Literary Awards

← Back to Home

Thomas Perry

トーマス・ペリー

Tōmasu Perī

Aliases: Thomas Edmund Perry

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1947-08-07 （Tonawanda, New York）
Died
2025-09-15 （Los Angeles, California） age 78
Nationality
United States
Languages
English
Residence History
Southern California

Career

Occupations
Novelist, laborer, maintenance man, commercial fisherman, weapons mechanic, university administrator and teacher, television writer, television producer
Active Years
1982-2025

Education

Cornell University
English Literature
Degree: BA
Period: 1965-1969
Year of Graduation: 1969
Country: United States
University of Rochester
English Literature
Degree: PhD
Period: 1969-1974
Year of Graduation: 1974
Country: United States

Awards

Edgar Award
1983
Work: The Butcher's Boy
Category: Best First Novel
Organization: Mystery Writers of America
Result: Winner
Gumshoe Award
2002
Work: Pursuit
Result: Winner
Barry Award
2012
Work: The Informant
Category: Best Thriller
Result: Winner
Barry Award
2021
Work: Eddie's Boy
Category: Best Thriller
Result: Winner

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

The Butcher's Boy

1982 Mystery

A suspense novel featuring a hitman known as the Butcher's Boy.

CrimePursuitRevenge

Vanishing Act

1995 Thriller

First book in the Jane Whitefield series.

Identity concealmentNative American cultureJustice

Metzger's Dog

1983 Mystery

A crime story involving a dog.

CrimeHumor

Bibliography

  • The Butcher's Boy
  • Metzger's Dog
  • Big Fish
  • Island
  • Sleeping Dogs
  • Vanishing Act
  • Dance for the Dead
  • Shadow Woman
  • The Face-Changers
  • Blood Money
  • Pursuit
  • Death Benefits
  • Dead Aim
  • Nightlife
  • Silence
  • Fidelity
  • Runner
  • Strip
  • The Informant
  • Poison Flower
  • The Boyfriend
  • A String of Beads
  • Forty Thieves
  • The Old Man
  • The Bomb Maker
  • The Burglar
  • A Small Town
  • Eddie's Boy
  • The Left-Handed Twin
  • Murder Book
  • Hero
  • Pro Bono
  • The Tree of Light and Flowers

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Tense plottingDetailed character developmentFast-paced narrative
Recurring Motifs
PursuitCriminal psychologyIdentity change

Health

  • Aortic dissection
    2025-09-15
    Cause of death.

Legacy

Known as a popular American mystery and thriller novelist, winner of several awards, published 31 novels.

In Popular Culture

  • His wife Jo Perry is also an author.

Trivia

  • Married to author Jo Perry in 1980, two children.
  • Worked as writer and producer on Simon & Simon, 21 Jump Street, Star Trek: The Next Generation.