Author A K Blakemore won the 2021 Desmond Elliott Prize for her "stunning" debut novel 'The Manningtree Witches'. The historical fiction book takes the readers on a journey into the menace of the 17th-century English witch trials.
The Desmond Elliott Prize is one of the most prestigious awards given to the best debut novelists in the UK or Ireland. The winner is awarded "£10,000 to shape their developing career", according to their website. Apart from the prize money, Blakemore will also get support from the National Centre for Writing (NCW), which runs the prize.
Blakemore's novel was selected from a shortlist which also featured 'Little Scratch' by Rebecca Watson and 'The Liar's Dictionary' by Eley Williams. The judging panel for this year included: Lisa McInerney (Chair), Chitra Ramaswamy and Simon Savidge.
"'The Manningtree Witches' is a stunning achievement. Blakemore takes limited historical detail and, with what seems like effortless grace and imagination, crafts a breathing, complex world full of wrenchingly human characters, and tells us their stories in language that bears endless rereading, so clever and unexpected and pleasurable it is," McInerney said, praising Blakemore's 'The Manningtree Witches'.
Blakemore has also penned two poetry collections titled 'Humbert Summer' and 'Fondue'.
In 2020, writer Derek Owusu won the prize for a semi-autobiographical story 'That Reminds Me'.
