Women's Prize for Fiction 2023 shortlist announced

The Women's Prize for Fiction is an annual award which is gicen to the best novel written by a woman and published in the UK in the past year. From a longlist of 16 books, a shortslist of six books was announced by a panel of judges for the award on Apirl 26, 2023. The judges for this year's award include: Lousise Minchin- Chair of Judges; novelist Rachel Joyce; journalist-writer Bella Mackie; writer Irenosen Okojie; and Tulip Siddiq- Labour MP.

This year's Women's Prize for Fiction shortlist of six books includes three novels by debut writers, and two by past winners. The winner will be announced on June 14, 2023 and she will be awarded a prize money of £30,000. Checkout the complete shortlist here:

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Jacqueline Crooks' debut novel 'Fire Rush' is a story of dub reggae, Black womanhood, love, and loss. It follows the story of a young woman Yamaye who lives a carefree life in outskirts of London. But when she falls in love with Moose and later loses him, her life changes forever.

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"'Trespasses' is a masterfully executed and intimate portrait of those caught between the warring realms of the personal and political, rooted in a turbulent and brutally imagined moment of history - where it's not just what you do that matters, but what you are," reads the book's blurb. This is Louise Kennedy's debut novel, and it was published in 2022.

Photo: Bloomsbury Publishing

Priscilla Morris' debut novel 'Black Butterflies' is inspired by the real-life incidences of the Siege of Sarajevo. This is a story of disintegration, hope and resilience.


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Barbara Kingsolver's 'Demon Copperhead' is a modern retelling of Charles Dickens' classic 'David Copperfield'. This coming-of-age story follows the a young boy named Damon's journey. It is noted that Kingsolver had won the Women's Prize for Fiction in 2010 for her novel 'The Lacuna'.


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Maggie O'Farrell's 'The Marriage Portrait' is "an unforgettable reimagining of the life of a young woman whose proximity to power places her in mortal danger," reads the book's blurb. It is noted that the author had won the Women's Prize for Fiction in 2020 for 'Hamnet'.

Photo: Women's Prize for Fiction/ Instagram

Laline Paull's new novel 'Pod' is an immersive and transformative story "of an ocean world - its extraordinary creatures, mysteries, and mythologies - that is increasingly haunted by the cruelty and ignorance of the human race," reads the book's blurb. It is noted that Paull was shortlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction in 2015 for 'The Bees'.

Photo: Women's Prize for Fiction/ Instagram