The shortlist of nominees is out for the prize formerly known as the Whitbread, and it appears that the judges “have marked its shift to sponsorship by the Costa coffee chain by shifting their taste towards the thriller. Two of the four books picked for the novels shortlist released last night for the inaugural £50,000 Costa award are marketed by their publishers as ‘gripping’, ‘tremendously exciting’, ‘gritty’ and ‘thrilling’.”